Breakdown of Myndin þín er á veggnum.
vera
to be
myndin
the picture
á
onto / on / in (static location) / on (a day of the week)
þinn
your (m, f, n: þinn, þín, þitt)
veggurinn
the wall
Questions & Answers about Myndin þín er á veggnum.
Why does the sentence say veggnum instead of the dictionary form veggur?
Veggnum is the definite dative form meaning "the wall". The dictionary form is veggur (a masculine noun meaning "a wall"). In the dative case, it drops the "-ur" to become vegg, and adding the dative definite article ending makes it veggnum.
Why is "the wall" in the dative case here?
The preposition á (on) can take either the accusative or the dative case. When it describes a stationary location, like a picture resting on a wall, it requires the dative case. If it described movement directly onto the wall, it would take the accusative.
Why is it Myndin þín (literally "the picture your") instead of just Mynd þín?
In Icelandic, when you use a possessive word like þín (your), the noun it belongs to usually has to be in its definite form (with "the" attached). So, you say myndin þín (the-picture your) rather than just using the basic indefinite word mynd.
Why do we use þín for "your" in this sentence instead of þinn?
Possessive words must match the gender of the noun they describe. The word for picture, mynd, is a feminine noun. Therefore, we must use the feminine form þín instead of the masculine form þinn.
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