Questions & Answers about Yfirmaðurinn sem ég var að tala við er hér.
Why is the preposition við stranded at the end of the clause sem ég var að tala við?
This is exactly how Icelandic handles prepositions in relative clauses, very similar to casual English! Instead of saying 'the boss to whom I was talking', you use sem (that/who) and leave the preposition við (to/with) at the very end of the clause.
Why do we use var að tala instead of just the past tense verb talaði?
The phrase var að tala translates to 'was talking'. Icelandic uses the verb vera (to be) plus að plus an infinitive verb (tala) to show an ongoing action, just like the English '-ing' form. If you used talaði, the sentence would simply mean 'The boss I talked to is here.'
What case is yfirmaðurinn in, and does the preposition við affect it?
Yfirmaðurinn is in the nominative case because it is the main subject of the sentence (Yfirmaðurinn... er hér). The preposition við normally forces the accusative case, but here its object is the relative particle sem. Because sem never changes form, you don't see the accusative case applied anywhere, and við does not affect the main subject yfirmaðurinn.
How is the word yfirmaðurinn built?