Breakdown of Hann var hjá lögfræðingnum þann tólfta mars.
vera
to be
hann
he
hjá
next to / at (someone's) place, with
lögfræðingurinn
the lawyer
Questions & Answers about Hann var hjá lögfræðingnum þann tólfta mars.
Why do we use þann before the date?
In Icelandic, to express "on the" for a specific calendar date, you use þann, which is the accusative masculine form of the word sá (that/the). Because months are masculine words, the date takes masculine forms.
Why does tólfti change to tólfta here?
When you state when something happened, the time phrase takes the accusative case. Since þann triggers the weak declension, the ordinal number tólfti (twelfth) changes to its weak accusative masculine form, tólfta.
Why is the lawyer called lögfræðingnum instead of lögfræðingurinn?
The preposition hjá (at/with) always forces the noun that follows it into the dative case. The base noun lögfræðingur (lawyer) becomes lögfræðingi in the dative, and when you add the dative definite article "-num" (the), it merges to become lögfræðingnum.
Does hjá lögfræðingnum literally mean "at the lawyer's"?
Yes! Just like in English, using hjá with a person or their profession implies being at their house, clinic, or office. So hjá lögfræðingnum naturally translates to "at the lawyer's".