Breakdown of Ég treysti engum öðrum augum.
ég
I
annar
other, another; second
enginn
no one / nobody / no (m/f)
treysta
to trust
Questions & Answers about Ég treysti engum öðrum augum.
Why does auga become augum in this sentence?
Auga (eye) is one of the four special weak neuter nouns (along with eyra, hjarta, and lunga). Here it takes the dative plural ending -um because the verb treysta (to trust) forces its object into the dative case.
Does the verb treysta always take the dative case?
Yes, treysta requires the person or thing you are trusting to be in the dative case. This rule dictates the case of the entire noun phrase engum öðrum augum rather than using the accusative.
Where does the word öðrum come from, and why does it start with an 'ö'?
It comes from the word annar (other). Because it must agree with the dative plural noun augum, it takes the dative plural ending -um. In Icelandic, adding an ending with a 'u' causes an 'a' earlier in the word to shift to 'ö' (a process called U-mutation). Thus, the stem changes to öðr-, making the word öðrum.
Why does the word for "no" or "none" take the form engum here?
The negative pronoun enginn has to match augum in gender (neuter), number (plural), and case (dative). For all three genders, the dative plural form of enginn is engum.