Breakdown of Ég hlakka til að opna gjöfina um jólin.
ég
I
að
to (infinitive marker)
opna
to open
um
over / during (a period of time)
hlakka til
to look forward to
jólin
the Christmas
gjöfin
the gift
Questions & Answers about Ég hlakka til að opna gjöfina um jólin.
The lesson says hlakka til requires the genitive case. Why isn't there a genitive word after it here?
Because hlakka til is followed by an action (að opna), not a noun or pronoun. If you were looking forward to a thing, like Christmas, you would use the genitive noun (Ég hlakka til jólanna). But since you are looking forward to doing something, you just use the infinitive verb (að + verb), which doesn't take a case.
Why is it gjöfina and not just gjöf?
Gjöfina means 'the gift'. It is the feminine noun gjöf (gift) with the definite article -ina (the) attached to the end. It is in the accusative case because it is the direct object receiving the action of the verb opna (to open).
Why is the preposition um used here for 'at'?
In Icelandic, the preposition um (which often means 'about' or 'around') is the standard word used with holidays and seasons to mean 'at' or 'during' that time. When used for time, um always forces the following word into the accusative case.
Is the word for Christmas (jól) a plural word?
Yes! Jól is a neuter plural noun in Icelandic. When you add the definite article to say 'the Christmas', it becomes jólin (literally 'the Christmases'). Because the preposition um takes the accusative case, the neuter plural form stays exactly as jólin.
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