Steingervingurinn var í sandinum fyrir löngum tíma síðan.
The fossil was in the sand a long time ago.
Breakdown of Steingervingurinn var í sandinum fyrir löngum tíma síðan.
vera
to be
í
in / into / to (before the hour, in telling time) / per (in frequency expressions)
tíminn
the time / the class (m) / the hour
langur
long
fyrir
ago (fyrir + dative)
síðan
ago (fyrir ... síðan)
steingervingurinn
the fossil
sandurinn
the sand
Questions & Answers about Steingervingurinn var í sandinum fyrir löngum tíma síðan.
How does the 'ago' phrase work in fyrir löngum tíma síðan?
To say 'ago' in Icelandic, you use the frame fyrir + [amount of time in the dative case] + síðan. Here, the amount of time is löngum tíma (a long time). You will see this 'sandwich' structure every time you talk about how long ago something happened!
Why is the word for 'time' spelled tíma instead of tími?
The dictionary form is the masculine noun tími. However, because it is inside the fyrir ... síðan structure, it must take the dative case. For this type of noun, the dative ending changes the word to tíma.
Why does the adjective langur (long) change to löngum here?
Adjectives must match the gender, number, and case of the noun they describe. Since tíma is a masculine, singular, dative noun, the adjective becomes löngum to match it perfectly. Notice how the A changes to an Ö; this vowel shift is common when adding dative endings.
Why does the preposition í trigger the dative case in í sandinum?
The preposition í can take either the accusative or the dative case. It takes the dative when there is no movement, simply stating where something is located (the fossil was resting IN the sand). If someone were pushing the fossil INTO the sand (movement), you would use the accusative case instead.
What is the literal meaning of steingervingur?
This is a great compound word! It combines steinn (stone) with gervingur (something made or formed, related to the verb gera). So a fossil in Icelandic is literally a 'stone-made thing.' The -inn on the end is the attached word for 'the', making it 'the fossil.'
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