Breakdown of Ef við finnum samræmi, viðhöldum við einingunni.
við
we
finna
to find
ef
if
samræmið
the harmony
viðhalda
to maintain
einingin
the unity
Questions & Answers about Ef við finnum samræmi, viðhöldum við einingunni.
Why does the second half of the sentence say viðhöldum við instead of við viðhöldum?
Because Icelandic uses V2 (verb-second) word order. The entire conditional clause Ef við finnum samræmi counts as the first block of information. Therefore, the verb of the main clause, viðhöldum, must come immediately after the comma to take the second position, pushing the subject við right after it.
Why is the word for unity, einingunni, in the dative case here?
It is the object of the verb viðhalda (to maintain), which always requires its object to be in the dative case. Notice the definite article attached to the end: the feminine noun eining (unity) becomes einingunni (the unity) in the dative singular.
How does the prefix change the meaning of the verb halda in this sentence?
What gender and case is the word samræmi?
The word samræmi (harmony, consistency) is a neuter noun. Here it is in the accusative case because it is the direct object of the verb finna. Like many neuter nouns ending in -i, its form is identical across all four cases in the singular.
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