Learn Icelandic: Samkenndin hjálpar öllum. - The compassion helps everyone.

Samkenndin hjálpar öllum.

The compassion helps everyone.

Breakdown of Samkenndin hjálpar öllum.

hjálpa

to help

allur

all / everything / everyone

samkenndin

the compassion

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Questions & Answers about Samkenndin hjálpar öllum.

Why is the word for "everyone" in the dative case (öllum) here?

The verb hjálpa (to help) always forces the person receiving the help into the dative case. Because of this, the pronoun allur (all/everyone) changes to its dative form, öllum.

If öllum is plural, why does the English translation use the singular word "everyone"?

In English, "everyone" is grammatically singular. But in Icelandic, to say "everyone" you usually use the plural form of allur to mean "all people". So the sentence is literally saying "The compassion helps all."

If I wanted to say "compassion helps no one" or "compassion helps someone", how would I use the dative case?

Because hjálpar requires the dative, you would use the dative forms of those pronouns. "No one" becomes engum (Samkenndin hjálpar engum), and "someone" becomes einhverjum (Samkenndin hjálpar einhverjum).

How is the subject samkenndin built?

It is made up of the prefix sam- (meaning "together") and kennd (meaning "feeling"). The -in at the end is the feminine definite article "the". Put together, it literally means "the shared feeling" or compassion.