Question 1

How does the -lingur suffix change the word kið in this sentence?

Accepted Answer

The noun kið already means a young goat (a kid), but adding -lingur emphasizes that it is a small baby or offspring. Nouns formed with -lingur are always masculine, which is why it declines as a masculine noun here, becoming kiðlingnum in the dative definite form.

Question 2

Why is the baby goat (kiðlingnum) in the dative case?

Accepted Answer

The case is controlled by the verb strjúka (to pet or stroke). In Icelandic, the receiver of the petting always takes the dative case.

Question 3

If the baby goat is masculine and dative, why is the adjective loðna (furry) instead of loðnum?

Accepted Answer

Because the noun has the definite article attached (-num in kiðlingnum), the adjective must use the weak declension. The weak ending for masculine dative singular is -a. If you were petting an indefinite furry goat, it would use the strong declension: strjúka loðnum kiðlingi.

Question 4

The phrase hlakka til usually forces the following noun into the genitive case. Why isn't the rest of this sentence in the genitive?

Accepted Answer

When hlakka til (to look forward to) is followed directly by an action rather than a noun, you use the infinitive marker að plus the infinitive verb (að strjúka). The verb strjúka then takes over and dictates the dative case for its own object (kiðlingnum).

Við hlökkum til að strjúka loðna kiðlingnum aftur.

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