Breakdown of Ég á heima í Reykjavík.
ég
I
í
in / into / to (before the hour, in telling time) / per (in frequency expressions)
Reykjavík
Reykjavik
eiga heima
to have one's home (somewhere), to reside
Questions & Answers about Ég á heima í Reykjavík.
Why do we use á heima instead of búa to say "live"?
Both búa and the phrase eiga heima mean "to reside" or "to live" somewhere. You will hear Icelanders use both interchangeably. Saying Ég bý í Reykjavík means the exact same thing as this sentence.
What is the literal translation of á heima?
The word á is the "I" form of the verb eiga, which means "to own" or "to have." The word heima means "at home." Literally, you are saying "I own at home," but it functions as a set phrase meaning "I live."
Why is it heima and not just heim?
In Icelandic, there is a big difference between location (being somewhere) and motion (going somewhere). Heima is used when you are stationary at home. Heim implies movement towards home, like when you say you are going home. Since you are talking about where you live, you are stationary, so you use heima.
Does the word Reykjavík change its ending because of the preposition í?
When í is used to describe a stationary location, it forces the next word into the dative case. Luckily, the dative form of Reykjavík is exactly the same as its base dictionary form, so the spelling stays exactly as it is!