Question 1

Why do we use þeir sem to mean "those who" instead of a neuter form like þau sem?

Accepted Answer

In Icelandic, when you are talking about people in general ("those who" or "anyone who"), you use the masculine plural þeir. You would only use the neuter plural þau if you were specifically referring to a mixed group of people you had already mentioned, or if you were referring to neuter nouns.

Question 2

Does the relative word sem change depending on who we are talking about?

Accepted Answer

No, the relative word sem ("who", "which", "that") never changes its form. It is always just sem, regardless of the gender, number, or case of the word it refers back to (in this sentence, þeir).

Question 3

Why doesn't the adjective krefjandi (demanding) change to match the feminine accusative noun stöðu?

Accepted Answer

Words ending in -andi are present participles (often translating to English words ending in "-ing"). In Icelandic, these act as adjectives but they are indeclinable, meaning they never change their endings to match gender, number, or case.

Question 4

Why is the word for "position" written as stöðu instead of its dictionary form staða?

Accepted Answer

It is the direct object of the verb velja (to choose), so it must be in the accusative case. The word staða is a weak feminine noun (it ends in a vowel in the nominative), and these typically change their ending to -u in the accusative, dative, and genitive singular cases.

Þeir sem hafa metnað velja krefjandi stöðu.

Breakdown of Þeir sem hafa metnað velja krefjandi stöðu.

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