Breakdown of Á óskilamunadeildinni er það geymslutíminn sem er talað um.
vera
to be
það
it / there (existential) / the one (n)
tala
to speak
á
onto / on / in (static location) / on (a day of the week)
um
about
sem
who / which / that
óskilamunadeildin
the lost and found department (f)
geymslutíminn
the storage period (m)
Questions & Answers about Á óskilamunadeildinni er það geymslutíminn sem er talað um.
Why is talað in the neuter singular form here, instead of matching the masculine noun geymslutíminn?
Because tala um is a prepositional verb. When these verbs are made passive, Icelandic uses an impersonal construction. The participle does not agree with the noun; it is locked into the default neuter singular form (talað), leaving the preposition (um) stranded at the end of the clause.
Can I move the preposition um to the front of the relative clause?
No, you cannot move the preposition before the relative pronoun sem. In these impersonal passive constructions, the preposition must remain stranded right after the past participle.
What are the parts making up the long compound word óskilamunadeildinni?
It breaks down into óskil (unclaimed or lost property), muna (from munur, meaning items or objects, here in the genitive plural), and deildinni (the department, in the dative case because of the preposition á).
Why does the sentence use the structure það... sem (it is... that) instead of just saying the storage time is talked about?
This is a cleft sentence used for emphasis. By saying er það geymslutíminn sem, the speaker emphasizes that the storage period is specifically the thing being discussed. Even without the emphasis, because prepositional passives are impersonal, geymslutíminn cannot act as a normal grammatical subject for talað um.
Learn Á óskilamunadeildinni er það geymslutíminn sem er talað um and more in Icelandic
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free