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Questions & Answers about Líkar þér maturinn?
Why does this sentence use þér instead of þú for "you"?
The verb líka (to like) behaves a bit unusually: it requires the person doing the liking to be in the dative case. Þér is the dative form of þú. Because this feels backwards to English speakers, we often call words like þér here a "quirky subject."
What case is maturinn (the food) in?
It is in the nominative case, which is the basic dictionary form. With verbs like líka, the "liker" takes the dative case, but the thing being liked stays in the basic nominative case.
Why does the sentence start with the verb líkar?
To ask a yes/no question in Icelandic, you move the verb to the very front. If this were a statement ("You like the food"), the normal order would be Þér líkar maturinn. To make it a question, you just swap the first two words!
How do we know maturinn means "the food" and not just "food"?