á Íslandi / í Reykjavík

In or on with Place Names

Level 2

To say that you are in a place, Icelandic uses á or í with the dative. Each place name has its own preposition: á Íslandi (in Iceland) but í Reykjavík (in Reykjavík).

How It Works

Some common places
á

  • á Íslandi (Iceland)
  • á Grænlandi (Greenland)
  • á Akureyri
  • á Ísafirði
  • á Húsavík
  • á Spáni (Spain)
  • á Ítalíu (Italy)

í

  • í Reykjavík
  • í Danmörku (Denmark)
  • í Noregi (Norway)
  • í Hafnarfirði
  • í Keflavík
  • í Póllandi (Poland)
  • í Þýskalandi (Germany)

Rules of thumb for Icelandic towns

  • Towns named after a fjord (-fjörður) usually take á: á Ísafirði, á Siglufirði. Hafnarfjörður is the well-known exception: í Hafnarfirði.
  • Towns in -vík usually take í in the south and west, up to the fjords around Ísafjörður: í Reykjavík, í Keflavík, í Bolungarvík. From Hólmavík east, along the north and east coasts, they take á: á Hólmavík, á Húsavík, á Dalvík.

The case changes with the direction
Where?

  • á Íslandi (dative)
  • í Reykjavík (dative)

Where to?

  • til Íslands (genitive)
  • til Reykjavíkur (genitive)

Where from?

  • frá Íslandi (dative)
  • frá Reykjavík (dative)

With a country, "to" is usually til with the genitive: Við förum til Spánar. With a town, you will hear both til and the town's own á or í with the accusative: til Hafnarfjarðar or í Hafnarfjörð. See Movement or Location With Í and Á, To (til) and From (frá).

Examples (6)

  1. Ég bý á Íslandi.

    I live in Iceland.

    Word by Word: I live on Iceland.

    Ísland takes á, and the location is in the dative: Íslandi.

  2. Hún býr í Reykjavík en vinnur í Hafnarfirði.

    She lives in Reykjavík but works in Hafnarfjörður.

    Word by Word: She lives in Reykjavík but works in Hafnarfjörður.

    Both places take í. Hafnarfjörður becomes Hafnarfirði in the dative.

  3. Við vorum á Akureyri um helgina.

    We were in Akureyri over the weekend.

    Word by Word: We were on Akureyri over weekend-the.

    Akureyri takes á.

  4. Frændi minn býr á Húsavík.

    My uncle lives in Húsavík.

    Word by Word: Uncle my lives on Húsavík.

    Húsavík takes á, although Reykjavík takes í.

  5. Ég er frá Póllandi en bý í Danmörku.

    I'm from Poland, but I live in Denmark.

    Word by Word: I am from Poland but live in Denmark.

    frá and í both take the dative here: Póllandi, Danmörku.

  6. Þau fóru í frí til Spánar.

    They went on vacation to Spain.

    Word by Word: They went in vacation to Spain's.

    For movement to a country, use til with the genitive: Spánar.

Common Mistakes

  • Using í with Ísland.

    Ég bý í Íslandi.
    Ég bý á Íslandi.

    Ísland takes á. Learn the preposition with each place name.

  • Using á with Reykjavík.

    Hún býr á Reykjavík.
    Hún býr í Reykjavík.

    Reykjavík takes í, even though other towns, like Akureyri and Húsavík, take á.

  • Using the accusative for a location.

    Ég bý á Ísland.
    Ég bý á Íslandi.

    When á or í tells where something is, the place name is in the dative: Íslandi, Spáni, Danmörku.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

á Íslandi / í ReykjavíkLevel 2In or on with Place Names

Learn This First

Place names build on movement and location.

Words in This Pattern

á