Breakdown of Strætóinn kemur seint af því að það snjóar.
það
it / there (existential) / the one (n)
koma
to come
snjóa
to snow
strætóinn
the bus
Questions & Answers about Strætóinn kemur seint af því að það snjóar.
How does af því að affect the word order after it?
af því að is a subordinating conjunction, which connects a secondary phrase to the main sentence. At this level, the word order after it stays normal: Subject plus Verb. So we see það snjóar in the exact same order as if it were a standalone sentence.
Why is the word for 'because' made up of three words (af því að)?
In Icelandic, 'because' is a phrase rather than a single word. Af means 'from', því is a form of 'it', and að is 'that'. Literally, it translates to 'from it that', but it functions as a single building block meaning 'because'.
The English translation uses 'is coming' and 'is snowing'. Why aren't there any extra words for 'is' in the Icelandic sentence?
Icelandic doesn't have a 'present continuous' tense like English does. The simple present verbs kemur and snjóar cover both 'comes' and 'is coming', as well as 'snows' and 'is snowing'. You just use the context to pick the most natural English translation!