Stereotypes and Myths Posted by sequoia on Jul 21, 2012
When you read about Iceland or talk to Icelanders you often get a picturesque view, compounded by the fact that most things about Iceland easily available stem from the Icelandic tourist board. Many things about Iceland are only in Icelandic, or aren’t mentioned at all, and most Icelanders don’t know what it’s like from a…
There once was a puffin, just the shape of a muffin Posted by hulda on Jul 19, 2012
…And he lived on and island in the bright blue sea! ~Florence Page Jaques Few birds are as iconic to Iceland as lundi, Atlantic puffin. They live in large colonies all around the shorelines of Iceland but especially in the Vestmannaeyjar (= Westman Isles) where the largest puffin colony of the world is located. Often they…
Everyday Icelandic Posted by sequoia on Jul 17, 2012
The most difficult thing to find when you don’t live in Iceland is the Icelandic for things that you would never talk to someone else about. You might be able to get some of this from reading a lot of varied books, but unless you have a friend in Iceland willing to take photos or…
The trolls. Posted by hulda on Jul 16, 2012
Perhaps the most variable of all supernatural creatures of Iceland is tröll, a troll. Stories of them describe their size alone ranging from the size of a mountain to something resembling a very large human. Their behaviour varies likewise from friendly and loyal to solitary, hermit-like sages to beastly and violent man eaters. Sometimes trolls…
Difficult sounds in Icelandic Posted by sequoia on Jul 14, 2012
First, I’d like to say these are all rules that have been taught to me – I’m not making up any rules based on my own observations. This post from earlier shows how to (approximately) pronounce the alphabet. If you’d just like to buy a book, I recommend “The Pronunciation of Modern Icelandic“, which is…
Falling Fall and Mountain Moo. Posted by hulda on Jul 13, 2012
Despite that it’s föstudagurinn þrettándi (= the Friday 13th) I hope you’re all doing well! One of the quickest and the most effective ways of widening your vocabulary in any foreign language is to pick up a map and begin to translate the names of places. It’s not only easy – the repetition of certain…
Reading Receipts Posted by sequoia on Jul 10, 2012
If you ever go to Iceland, a fun souvenir is your shopping receipts. They’re almost always in Icelandic and there are two main types with slight variations. You can also get other receipt types from various more unique events and places. The first type is the real receipt. This shows the items that you bought…