Breakdown of Við skulum tala um þessi viðskipti núna.
við
we
tala
to speak
núna
now
um
about
þessi
this (m/f)
skulu
to shall / to promise to
viðskiptin
the business / the transaction
Questions & Answers about Við skulum tala um þessi viðskipti núna.
Why is there no að before tala?
Because skulum comes from the modal verb skulu. Just like in English where we say 'We shall talk' instead of 'We shall to talk', Icelandic modal verbs take a bare infinitive. You simply drop the að (to).
Is við skulum tala a promise or a suggestion here?
When used with við (we), skulum usually expresses a firm intention or a strong suggestion, translating very naturally to 'Let's...'. So Við skulum tala effectively means 'Let's talk' as well as 'We shall talk'.
Why is the plural word þessi used for the singular English translation 'this business'?
The Icelandic word for business, viðskipti, is a neuter noun that is almost always used in the plural form. Because the noun is grammatically plural, the demonstrative pronoun for 'this/these' must also match it, becoming the neuter plural þessi.
What case does the preposition um force on þessi viðskipti?
The preposition um (about) always takes the accusative case. The neuter plural forms of both þessi and viðskipti happen to look exactly the same in the accusative as they do in the nominative (subject) case, so you do not see a spelling change here.
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