Breakdown of Íslendingurinn talar íslensku og ensku.
og
and
Íslendingurinn
the Icelander
tala
to speak
íslenska
Icelandic (the language)
Questions & Answers about Íslendingurinn talar íslensku og ensku.
Where is the word for "the" in this sentence?
Icelandic doesn't use a separate word for "the" in front of the noun. Instead, it attaches it to the end! The base word is Íslendingur (an Icelander). By adding the ending -inn, it becomes Íslendingurinn (the Icelander).
Why are íslensku and ensku written with lowercase letters, but Íslendingurinn is capitalized?
In English, we always capitalize the names of languages, but in Icelandic, languages (like íslenska and enska) are written in lowercase. You only capitalize names of specific people, places, and nationalities, which is why Íslendingur gets a capital letter.
Why do the words for Icelandic and English end in "-u" here (íslensku, ensku)?
When you look these languages up in a dictionary, they end in "-a": íslenska and enska. However, because they are the target of the verb talar (they are the things being spoken), they must change into what is called the accusative case. For feminine nouns that normally end in "-a", this "object" form changes the ending to "-u".
Does the verb talar stay the same if I want to say "I speak"?
No, it changes depending on who is doing the speaking. When talking about a third person like the Icelander (he or she), you use talar. If you want to talk about yourself and say "I speak", you drop the final "r" and say ég tala.