Breakdown of Við vitum hverju þunglyndið stjórnar.
við
we
hvað
what
vita
to know (a fact, information)
stjórna
to control
þunglyndið
the depression
Questions & Answers about Við vitum hverju þunglyndið stjórnar.
Why is the word for "what" hverju here instead of just hvað?
The verb stjórna (to control) always requires its object to be in the dative case. Since "what" is the object being controlled, the basic form hvað must change to its dative form, which is hverju.
Is hverju a form of hver (who) or hvað (what)?
Both! In Icelandic, the question words for "who" and "what" share a single set of endings. Hverju is the neuter dative form. Because abstract "what" questions are treated as neuter, hverju translates to "what". If it were the masculine or feminine dative form hverjum, it would mean "whom".
Why does hverju come before the subject þunglyndið?
This sentence contains an indirect question ("what the depression controls"). In Icelandic, just like in English, a question word is pulled to the front of its clause. So even though hverju is the object of the verb stjórnar, it has to appear before the subject.
What case is þunglyndið in, and why?
It is in the nominative case. Even though there is a dative object in this clause (hverju), þunglyndið (the depression) is the subject that is actively doing the controlling. Subjects in Icelandic are almost always in the nominative case.
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