Complete Icelandic Beginner to Intermediate Book and Audio Course

Learn to read, write, speak and understand a new language with Teach Yourself

Hildur Jonsdottir

• Publisher: Teach Yourself
• Year: 2012
• Print ISBN: 9781444105360
• eBook ISBN: 9781444132328
• Topic: Languages & Linguistics
• Subtopic: Languages
• Index: Languages & Linguistics

This product is most effective when used in conjunction with the corresponding audio support.
- You can purchase the book and audio support as a pack (ISBN: 9781444105377)
- The audio support is also sold separately (ISBN: 9781444105384)
(copy and paste the ISBN number into the search bar to find these products)Are you looking for a complete course in Icelandic which takes you effortlessly from beginner to confident speaker? Whether you are starting from scratch, or are just out of practice, Complete Icelandic will guarantee success!Now fully updated to make your language learning experience fun and interactive. You can still rely on the benefits of a top language teacher and our years of teaching experience, but now with added learning features within the course and online. The course is structured in thematic units and the emphasis is placed on communication, so that you effortlessly progress from introducing yourself and dealing with everyday situations, to using the phone and talking about work. By the end of this course, you will be at Level B2 of the Common European Framework for Languages: Can interact with a degree of fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction with native speakers quite possible without strain for either party.Learn effortlessly with a new easy-to-read page design and interactive features: NOT GOT MUCH TIME?
One, five and ten-minute introductions to key principles to get you started.AUTHOR INSIGHTS
Lots of instant help with common problems and quick tips for success, based on the author's many years of experience.GRAMMAR TIPS
Easy-to-follow building blocks to give you a clear understanding.USEFUL VOCABULARY
Easy to find and learn, to build a solid foundation for speaking.DIALOGUES
Read and listen to everyday dialogues to help you speak and understand fast.PRONUNCIATION
Don't sound like a tourist! Perfect your pronunciation before you go.TEST YOURSELF
Tests in the book and online to keep track of your progress.EXTEND YOUR KNOWLEDGE
Extra online articles at: www.teachyourself.com to give you a richer understanding of the culture and history of Iceland.TRY THIS
Innovative exercises illustrate what you've learnt and how to use it.

1

Hæ, hvað heitir þú?
Hi, what’s your name?

In this unit you will learn

• How to greet people and say ‘goodbye’

• How to ask someone’s name and say your name

• How to ask where someone is from and say where you are from

• How to say ‘yes’ and ‘no’

• How to thank somebody

Language points

• personal pronouns such as ég (I) and þú (you)

• common question words such as hvað (what) and hvar (where)

• word order in questions

• the verbs að vera (to be) and að heita (to be called)

• country names such as Ísland (Iceland)

Greetings

CD1, TR 2

QUICK VOCAB

hæ! hi!

hvað segirðu? how are you? (lit. what say you?)

allt fínt good, fine (lit. everything fine)

sæll! / sæl! (to a woman) hi

blessaður! / blessuð! (to a woman) hi (lit. blessed)

sæll og blessaður! / sæl og blessuð! (to a woman) hi (lit. happy and blessed)

komdu sæll / komdu sæl (to a woman) hi (lit. come happy)

komdu blessaður / komdu blessuð (to a woman) hi (lit. come blessed)

komdu sæll og blessaður / komdu sæl og blessuð (to a woman) hi (lit. come happy and blessed)

sæll vertu / sæl vertu (to a woman) hi (lit. be happy)

góðan dag! / góðan daginn! good day

gott kvöld! / góða kvöldið! good evening

Insight

To pronounce some letter combinations correctly, think of them as being written differently. The combination hv (as in hvað) sounds like kv, and ll with no consonant after it (as in sæll) almost always sounds like dl. The double consonants tt, kk and pp sound like ht (or hd), hk (or hg) and hp (or hb) – the normal h sound followed by a short consonant. It helps to attach the h to the (short) vowel and imagine a tiny break between the h and the final consonant. Say gott in two steps: goh-t.

Language notes

• The question Hvað segirðu? (How are you?) is used more by younger people. It can be answered in several ways: allt fínt (lit. everything fine), bara allt fínt (lit. just everything fine), allt ágætt (lit. everything OK/so-so), bara allt ágætt (lit. just everything OK/so-so).

• Hæ is used more by younger people.

• Sæl (used to address a female) and sæll (used to address a male) are used less by young people (unless they are addressing older people).

• Blessuð (used to address a female) and blessaður (used to address a male) can be used both as greetings and as goodbyes. They are used between older people, although in recent years it has become trendy to use them as greetings between younger people.

• The greetings sæll og bles...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Contents
• Meet the author
• Only got a minute?
• Only got five minutes?
• Introduction
• Pronunciation guide
• 1 Hæ, hvað heitir þú? Hi, what’s your name?
• 2 Hvaða tungumál talarðu? Which language(s) do you speak?
• 3 Mamma Björns er íslensk Björn’s mother is Icelandic
• 4 Christof er dökkhærður Christof is dark-haired
• 5 Christof er að lesa Christof is reading
• 6 Hann fer klukkan tvö He leaves at two o’clock
• 7 Sjáumst í kvöld klukkan hálfníu See you tonight at half past eight
• 8 Ég talaði við Erlu I spoke to Erla
• 9 Við sjáumst um helgina I’ll see you at the weekend
• 10 Hafðirðu það ekki gott? Didn’t you have a nice time?
• 11 Geturðu farið út í búð fyrir mig? Can you go to the shop for me?
• 12 Björn og Guðrún kaupa fiskibollur Björn and Guðrún buy fishcakes
• 13 Hvað er í matinn? What’s for dinner?
• 14 Takk fyrir mig Thanks for the meal
• 15 Ertu til í að koma í bíó? Do you want to go to the cinema?
• 16 Guðrún á afmæli It’s Guðrún’s birthday
• Taking it further
• Key to the exercises
• Appendix: more on pronunciation
• Icelandic–English vocabulary
• English–Icelandic vocabulary
• Index
• Copyright