Tag Archives: English in Iceland
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…
English cognates and slang in Icelandic Posted by sequoia on Apr 14, 2012
There’s lots of English slang in spoken Icelandic, and a bit less in written. (EDIT: Please see Alex’s comment for notes about “cognates” and “false friends”, etc. as well as good examples!) In person Icelanders, when chatting with friends, might use straight English words for things that may not exist in Icelandic, that have a…
Icelandic names Posted by sequoia on Feb 1, 2012
For today and tomorrow (February first and second), voting is going on for the University of Iceland’s student council. I didn’t vote but I took some screenshots because I thought it’s a good way to teach something about Icelandic names. “Kjósa í kosingum til Stúdentaráðs og Háskólaráðs 2012” “Elections for Student Council and University council…
English in Iceland Posted by sequoia on Aug 18, 2011
Potential tourists often wonder how widespread English is in Iceland, so here’s some examples. This is the mayor of Reykjavík giving a speech at a memorial for Japan (they planted cherry trees that were donated by one of the nurseries in Iceland). This is a housing advertisement found here. “1-2 manna herb.Funahöfða 17a -19 Rvk…