Breakdown of Gangan byrjaði eftir tveggja klukkutíma bið.
tveir
two
byrja
to start
klukkutíminn
the hour
eftir
after / for (waiting for)
Questions & Answers about Gangan byrjaði eftir tveggja klukkutíma bið.
Why do we use tveggja here instead of tveir or tvo?
tveggja is the genitive (possessive) form of the number two. In Icelandic, to express a measurement like "a two-hour wait", you literally say "a wait of two hours". Both the number and the noun for "hours" must be in the genitive case to show this "of" relationship.
The preposition eftir usually takes the accusative case when talking about time. Why are we using the genitive here?
eftir is triggering the accusative case here, but it applies to the main noun of the phrase: bið (wait). The phrase tveggja klukkutíma (of two hours) merely describes the wait. Because it acts as a descriptive possessive, it stays in the genitive case regardless of the preposition that comes before the whole phrase.
How do we know klukkutíma is plural? It looks exactly like the singular object form.
The weak masculine noun klukkutími (hour) ends in -a in the accusative, dative, and genitive singular. However, its genitive plural form happens to also be klukkutíma. You can confidently tell it is plural here because it is paired with the plural genitive number tveggja.
Is the noun bið related to the verb for waiting?
Yes! bið (a wait) is a feminine noun derived directly from the verb bíða (to wait). As mentioned, eftir requires the accusative case here, and for this noun, the accusative form (bið) is exactly the same as its nominative dictionary form.