Breakdown of Kafarinn synti heilan kílómetra. Auk þess sá hann hafsbotninn.
hann
he
sjá
to see
synda
to swim
kílómetrinn
the kilometer
heill
whole, entire
auk þess
in addition
kafarinn
the diver
hafsbotninn
the ocean floor
Questions & Answers about Kafarinn synti heilan kílómetra. Auk þess sá hann hafsbotninn.
Why is the phrase heilan kílómetra in the accusative case here?
This is the Accusative of Extent. In Icelandic, you use the bare accusative case (without any prepositions) to express the physical distance covered, such as swimming heilan kílómetra (a whole kilometer).
Why does the word for kilometer end in an a in kílómetra?
The base dictionary word is kílómetri, which is a weak masculine noun. Weak masculine nouns ending in -i change their ending to -a in the accusative, dative, and genitive singular cases.
Why is þess in the genitive case in the phrase auk þess?
The phrase auk þess translates to furthermore or besides that. The word auk is a preposition meaning besides or in addition to, and it requires its object to be in the genitive case. Thus, the pronoun það becomes its genitive form þess.
Why does the second sentence use the word order sá hann instead of hann sá?
This is a classic example of the V2 (verb-second) rule. Since the second sentence starts with the adverbial phrase Auk þess, the verb sá must take the second grammatical slot. This pushes the subject hann to the third position.
How is the compound word hafsbotninn formed?
It is a compound noun made from haf (ocean) and botn (bottom or floor), plus the attached definite article -inn. The first root takes the genitive case (hafs), making the literal meaning the bottom of the ocean.
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