Breakdown of Skólastjórinn er alltaf minnugur reglnanna.
vera
to be
alltaf
always
reglan
the rule
skólastjórinn
the headmaster
minnugur
mindful
Questions & Answers about Skólastjórinn er alltaf minnugur reglnanna.
Why is reglnanna in the genitive case here?
The adjective minnugur (mindful of) governs the genitive case. Just like certain prepositions or verbs, a small group of Icelandic adjectives require the noun that follows them to be in a specific case. Here, the object of the mindfulness must be genitive.
How is the form reglnanna constructed from the dictionary form regla?
Regla is a weak feminine noun. Its indefinite genitive plural is reglna (weak feminine nouns ending in -la or -ra often drop the vowel before adding the -na plural ending). To make it definite ("the rules"), you add the genitive plural suffix -nna, resulting in reglnanna.
Why does the adjective minnugur take the -ur ending?
It is acting as a predicative adjective describing skólastjórinn (the headmaster). Because skólastjóri is a masculine noun in the nominative singular, the adjective must agree with it, taking the masculine nominative singular strong form, which is minnugur.
If the headmaster were female, how would the sentence change?
The feminine noun for a female headmaster is skólastýra (definite: skólastýran). The adjective would drop the -ur to agree with a feminine nominative singular noun, making the sentence: Skólastýran er alltaf minnug reglnanna.
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