Iceland Languages: Difference between revisions

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''[[Iceland Genealogy|Iceland]]''
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==Description==
Icelandic is a North Germanic language spoken by about 314,000 people, the vast majority of whom live in Iceland where it is the national language. It is most closely related to Faroese and Western Norwegian.


The language, spoken and written is Icelandic. This language is closest of the Nordic languages to the Old Norse language (which was spoken throughout early Scandinavia) and has remained relatively unchanged since the twelfth century. Iceland is the most literate nation in the world, with literacy estimated at 99.9%.
The language is more conservative than most other Western European languages. While most of them have greatly reduced levels of inflection (particularly noun declension), Icelandic retains a four-case synthetic grammar (comparable to German, though considerably more conservative and synthetic) and is distinguished by a wide assortment of irregular declensions. Since the written language has not changed much, Icelanders can read classic Old Norse literature created in the 10th through 13th centuries (such as the Eddas and sagas) with relative ease.


The dominant language in the period of settlement was Old Norse, the language spoken throughout Scandinavia at that time. Through the centuries it has developed into modern Icelandic, which is spoken throughout Iceland. The records of Iceland are chiefly in Icelandic and Danish; some are in Latin and some in Old Norse.<ref name="profile">The Family History Department of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, “Family History Record Profile: Iceland,” Word document, private files of the FamilySearch Content Strategy Team, 1988-1997.</ref>
Icelandic is closely related to Faroese; the written forms of the two languages are very similar, but their spoken forms are not mutually intelligible.[2] It is not mutually intelligible with the continental Scandinavian languages (Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish) and is more distinct from the most widely spoken Germanic languages, English and German, than those three are. <ref>Wikipedia contributors, "Icelandic language," in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'', https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icelandic_language, accessed 21 March 2021.</ref>


== References  ==
==Word List(s)==
*[[Icelandic Genealogical Word List]]
*[[Danish Genealogical Word List]]
*[[Latin Genealogical Word List]]


{{reflist}}
* [https://1000mostcommonwords.com/1000-most-common-icelandic-words/ 1000 Most Common Icelandic Words]


[[Category:Iceland]]
==Alphabet and Pronunciation==
* [https://omniglot.com/writing/icelandic.htm Icelandic Language alphabet and pronunciation (Omniglot online encyclopedia of writing systems & languages]
* [https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Icelandic/Alphabet_and_Pronunciation#How_the_letters_are_pronounced How the letters are pronounced in the Icelandic language]
* [http://www.applet-magic.com/icelandiclang.htm The Alphabet of the Icelandic Language]
* [http://mylanguages.org/icelandic_alphabet.php Icelandic Alphabet]
 
The Icelandic alphabet is notable for its retention of two old letters that no longer exist in the English alphabet: Þ, þ (þorn, modern English "thorn") and Ð, ð (eð, anglicised as "eth" or "edh"), representing the voiceless and voiced "th" sounds (as in English thin and this), respectively. The complete Icelandic alphabet is: <ref>Wikipedia contributors, "Icelandic language," in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'', https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icelandic_language#Writing_system, accessed 21 March 2021.</ref>
{| class="wikitable" style="table-layout: fixed; width: 50em; text-align: center;"
|-
! style="background: #efefef; font-weight: normal;" colspan="32" | '''Majuscule forms''' (also called '''uppercase''' or '''capital letters''')
|-
| A || Á || B || D || Eth|Ð || E || É || F || G || H || I || Í || J || K || L || M || N || O || Ó || P || R || S || T || U || Ú || V || X || Y || Ý || Þ || Æ || Ö
|-
! style="background: #efefef; font-weight: normal;" colspan="32" | '''Minuscule forms''' (also called '''lowercase''' or '''small letters''')
|-
| a || á || b || d || ð || e || é || f || g || h || i || í || j || k || l || m || n || o || ó || p || r || s || t || u || ú || v || x || y || ý || þ || æ || ö
|}
 
'''Pronunciation Aids'''
*[https://ielanguages.com/icelandic-pronunciation.html Icelandic Pronunciation (ielanguages.com)]
*[https://www.worldnomads.com/explore/northern-europe/iceland/icelandic-pronunciation-guide Icelandic Pronunciation Guide (World Nomads)]
*[https://adventures.is/blog/icelandic-words-letters-pronunciation-guide/ Icelandic Words, Letters, and Pronunciation Guide]
 
==Language Aids and Dictionaries==
'''Language Aids'''
* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icelandic_language#Grammar Icelandic Grammar - Wikipedia]
* [https://www.pinhok.com/kb/icelandic/386/icelandic-grammar/ Icelandic Grammar - Pinhok Languages]
* [https://www.101languages.net/icelandic/grammar.html Icelandic 101]
* [http://mylanguages.org/learn_icelandic.php Learn Icelandic - My Languages.org]
* [https://ielanguages.com/icelandic.html Learn Icelandic Online - ielanguages.com]
 
'''Dictionaries'''
* Hilmisdóttir, Helga. ''Icelandic practical dictionary: Icelandic-English/English-Icelandic.'' New York: Hippocrene Books, Inc., 2017. '''''Available at:''''' [https://www.worldcat.org/title/956688334 WorldCat].
* Taylor, A R. ''Icelandic-English, English-Icelandic dictionary.'' New York: Hippocrene Books, 2016. '''''Available at:''''' [https://www.worldcat.org/title/982203906 WorldCat].
* Zoega, Geir Tomasson. ''Icelandic-English dictionary.'' Reykjavik: Bokaverzlun Sigurthar Kristjanssonar, 1957. '''''Available at:''''' [https://www.worldcat.org/title/1058075515 WorldCat].
 
'''Online Dictionaries'''
*[http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/cgi-bin/IcelOnline/IcelOnline.TEId-idx?type=simple&size=First+100&rgn=lemma&q1=Vinnukona Icelandic to English Dictionary]
*[https://www.lexilogos.com/english/icelandic_dictionary.htm Icelandic Dictionary (Lexilogos)]
*[https://en.glosbe.com/en/is Icelandic-English Dictionary (Glosbe)]
*[https://www.familysearch.org/library/books/records/item/61748-an-icelandic-english-dictionary?offset=4 An Icelandic-English dictionary]
 
The University of Iceland offers free courses in Icelandic at [https://icelandiconline.com/ Icelandic Online].
 
==Additional Resources==
* Jónsdóttir, Hildur. ''Icelandic.'' London: Hodder Headline, 2004. '''''Available at:''''' [https://www.worldcat.org/title/473378360 WorldCat].
* Marsh, George P and Rasmus Kristian Rask. ''A compendious grammar of the Old-Northern or Icelandic language.'' Burlington: Hiram Johnson & Co., 1838. '''''Available at:''''' [https://www.worldcat.org/title/63628594 WorldCat].
* Hogg, John. ''On the history of Iceland, and the Icelandic Language and Literature.'' London: J. Murray, 1859. '''''Available at:''''' [https://www.worldcat.org/title/37438398 WorldCat].
* Jónsdóttir, Hildur. ''Complete Icelandic.'' London: Teach Yourself, 2010. '''''Available at:''''' [https://www.worldcat.org/title/1027691531 WorldCat].
 
==References==
 
 
 
[[Category:Iceland Language and Handwriting]] [[Category:Language and Handwriting]]

Revision as of 11:19, 20 March 2024

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Description[edit | edit source]

Icelandic is a North Germanic language spoken by about 314,000 people, the vast majority of whom live in Iceland where it is the national language. It is most closely related to Faroese and Western Norwegian.

The language is more conservative than most other Western European languages. While most of them have greatly reduced levels of inflection (particularly noun declension), Icelandic retains a four-case synthetic grammar (comparable to German, though considerably more conservative and synthetic) and is distinguished by a wide assortment of irregular declensions. Since the written language has not changed much, Icelanders can read classic Old Norse literature created in the 10th through 13th centuries (such as the Eddas and sagas) with relative ease.

Icelandic is closely related to Faroese; the written forms of the two languages are very similar, but their spoken forms are not mutually intelligible.[2] It is not mutually intelligible with the continental Scandinavian languages (Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish) and is more distinct from the most widely spoken Germanic languages, English and German, than those three are. [1]

Word List(s)[edit | edit source]

Alphabet and Pronunciation[edit | edit source]

The Icelandic alphabet is notable for its retention of two old letters that no longer exist in the English alphabet: Þ, þ (þorn, modern English "thorn") and Ð, ð (eð, anglicised as "eth" or "edh"), representing the voiceless and voiced "th" sounds (as in English thin and this), respectively. The complete Icelandic alphabet is: [2]

Majuscule forms (also called uppercase or capital letters)
A Á B D Ð E É F G H I Í J K L M N O Ó P R S T U Ú V X Y Ý Þ Æ Ö
Minuscule forms (also called lowercase or small letters)
a á b d ð e é f g h i í j k l m n o ó p r s t u ú v x y ý þ æ ö

Pronunciation Aids

Language Aids and Dictionaries[edit | edit source]

Language Aids

Dictionaries

  • Hilmisdóttir, Helga. Icelandic practical dictionary: Icelandic-English/English-Icelandic. New York: Hippocrene Books, Inc., 2017. Available at: WorldCat.
  • Taylor, A R. Icelandic-English, English-Icelandic dictionary. New York: Hippocrene Books, 2016. Available at: WorldCat.
  • Zoega, Geir Tomasson. Icelandic-English dictionary. Reykjavik: Bokaverzlun Sigurthar Kristjanssonar, 1957. Available at: WorldCat.

Online Dictionaries

The University of Iceland offers free courses in Icelandic at Icelandic Online.

Additional Resources[edit | edit source]

  • Jónsdóttir, Hildur. Icelandic. London: Hodder Headline, 2004. Available at: WorldCat.
  • Marsh, George P and Rasmus Kristian Rask. A compendious grammar of the Old-Northern or Icelandic language. Burlington: Hiram Johnson & Co., 1838. Available at: WorldCat.
  • Hogg, John. On the history of Iceland, and the Icelandic Language and Literature. London: J. Murray, 1859. Available at: WorldCat.
  • Jónsdóttir, Hildur. Complete Icelandic. London: Teach Yourself, 2010. Available at: WorldCat.

References[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Icelandic language," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icelandic_language, accessed 21 March 2021.
  2. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Icelandic language," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icelandic_language#Writing_system, accessed 21 March 2021.
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