Breakdown of Stelpan finnur hárburstann sinn inni.
stelpan
the girl
inni
inside
finna
to find
sinn
his/her/their own (sinn, sína, sitt)
hárburstinn
the hairbrush
Questions & Answers about Stelpan finnur hárburstann sinn inni.
Why do we use sinn for "her" instead of hennar?
Because the girl is finding her own hairbrush. In Icelandic, you use the reflexive pronoun sinn when the object belongs to the subject of the sentence (the girl). If we used hennar, it would mean she found some other girl's hairbrush!
Why is the form exactly sinn here, rather than another form like sína or sitt?
The word sinn has to match the gender, number, and case of the thing being owned. Hárbursti (hairbrush) is a masculine noun. Here, it is the direct object of the verb finnur (finds), so it takes the accusative case. The masculine, singular, accusative form of the reflexive pronoun is sinn.
Why does hárburstann have the definite ending -nn if we are saying "her hairbrush"?
In English, we replace "the" with "her". But in Icelandic, when you use a possessive pronoun like sinn, the noun usually keeps its definite article (the "the" ending) attached to it. So it literally translates to "the hairbrush her own".
What is the difference between inni and inn for "inside"?
You use inni for a static location, meaning something is already resting or happening inside. You use inn for motion or direction, like walking into a room. Because the hairbrush is just sitting inside where she finds it, we use inni.
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