Level A1
Nominative case – the first case
There are four cases in Icelandic. The first case in the declension table is the nominative case (nefnifall, abbreviated as nf.).[a] It is the default case for a word. The main word of the sentence (the subject, the word that is doing something) is usually always in the nominative case.
The helper words you use to force a word into the nominative case is „hér er“ (“here is”).
Very few verbs cause the nominative case, but of those the important ones are „að vera“ (to be) and „að heita“ (to be called).
Examples:
- Kötturinn minn borðaði kvöldmatinn minn. (My cat ate my dinner) – The cat is the main subject of the sentence.
- Hann er ekki góður köttur. (He is not a good cat) – “He” is the main subject of the sentence, “good cat” is in the first case because „að vera“ causes the first case.