Definiteness
So far, we have only worked with indefinite nouns.
All cases and pluralities of nearly any noun in Icelandic can be either indefinite or definite. In general, indefinite nouns are used to talk about things that are general (e.g., a cat, a man, a horse) while definite nouns are used to talk about things that are specific (e.g., the cat, the man, the horse).
Definiteness In English
In English, nouns are made indefinite by adding an indefinite marker, a/an before the word for the singular and nothing for the plural. The definite is always formed by adding the definite marker, The, before the word in both the singular and plural.
Example 1: A horse eats. Example 2: The horse eats. Example 3: Horses eat. Example 4: The horses eat.
Definiteness In Icelandic
In Icelandic, nouns are indefinite by default and need to be changed to be made definite. Since nouns are indefinite by default, there is no indefinite marker, and the concept of a horse and just horse are represented the same, just the word hestur.
Indefinite nouns become definite by adding the definite article, hinn, to the word, the equivalent of the English word the." This can be done in one of two ways: detached and attached.
Hinn Chart
Hinn declines according to case, number, and gender.
| sing. hinn | Masc. | Fem. | Neut. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nom. | hinn | hin | hitt/hið |
| Acc. | hinn | hina | hitt/hið |
| Dat. | hinum | hinni | hinu |
| Gen. | hina | hinnar | hins |
The neuter singular nominative and accusative have two forms depending on which method of making the word definite is used. The first is used for the attached, and the second is used for the detached.
| plur. hinn | Masc. | Fem. | Neut. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nom. | hinir | hinar | hin |
| Acc. | hina | hinaar | hin |
| Dat. | hinum | hinum | hinum |
| Gen. | hinna | hinna | hinna |
Detached Hinn
The detached definite is the less common method. It is not often used in typical speech and is mainly reserved for place names and official titles. Although it can be used for any noun, it is very atypical and stilted to do so.
To form it, simply place corresponding hinn that matches the gender, plurality, and case of the noun before it.
Example 1: Þetta er hinn hestur. - (This is the horse.)
Example 2: Þetta er hitt hjarta. - (This is the heart.)
Example 3: Ég elska hinar stelpur. - (I saw the girls.)
Example 4: Ég borðaði hina köku. - (I ate the cake.)
Example 5: Hann gleymdi hinum bönunum. - (He forgot the bananas.)
Attached Hinn
The attached definite is the one that should be used 99% of the time.
To form the attached definite, the corresponding version of hinn is attached to the end of the indefinite noun. For most of the forms, this means removing the letter h from the word hinn and attaching what's left to the noun's end.
Example 1: Þetta er hesturinn. - (This is the horse.)
If the word to be made definite ends in an a, i, or u or ends in an r in the nominative or accusative plural, the letter i is removed as well.
Example 2: Þetta er hjartað. - (This is the heart.)
Example 3: Ég elska stelpurnar. - (I saw the girls.)
Example 4: Ég borðaði köku**na*. - (I ate the cake.)
If the word is a dative plural, the ending changes from -um to -unum.
Example 5: Hann gleymdi bönununum. - (He forgot the bananas.)
For practice, translate the following into Icelandic:
- The women ate the cakes.
- She ate the banana.
- They threw me the balls.
- The horse spoke Icelandic.