heita
Saying Your Name (Heita)
heita means to be called. It is how Icelanders say their name: Ég heiti Anna (My name is Anna).
How It Works
The present tense
- ég heiti (I am called)
- þú heitir (you are called)
- hann / hún / það heitir (he / she / it is called)
- við heitum, þið heitið, þeir / þær / þau heita
heita follows the same pattern as læra and other verbs in Present Tense: I-Verbs (læra).
Saying and asking a name
The name comes right after the verb and does not change: Ég heiti Guðrún. To ask, Icelandic says what are you called?: Hvað heitir þú? In everyday speech and writing þú joins the verb: Hvað heitirðu? See Joined Forms (ertu, viltu, talarðu).
Names of things
heita works for places, animals and words too: Hvað heitir hundurinn þinn? (What is your dog's name?) and Hvað heitir þetta á íslensku? (What is this called in Icelandic?).
Another way to say it
Ég er Anna (I am Anna) is also natural when you introduce yourself, especially after Hæ. heita is the usual way to state or ask a name, and a full Icelandic name often includes a patronymic, as in Names and Patronymics.
Examples (6)
- Ég heiti Anna.
My name is Anna.
Word by Word: I am-called Anna.
The name stays in its basic form after heiti.
- Hvað heitirðu?
What's your name?
Word by Word: What are-called-you?
heitirðu is heitir þú joined into one word.
- Hann heitir Jón og hún heitir Guðrún.
His name is Jón and hers is Guðrún.
Word by Word: He is-called Jón and she is-called Guðrún.
- Við heitum Sigga og Óli.
Our names are Sigga and Óli.
Word by Word: We are-called Sigga and Óli.
The plural form heitum goes with við.
- Hvað heitir hundurinn þinn?
What is your dog's name?
Word by Word: What is-called the-dog your?
- Hvað heitir þetta á íslensku?
What is this called in Icelandic?
Word by Word: What is-called this in Icelandic?
A very useful question for learners: point at something and ask.
Common Mistakes
Using the dictionary form heita instead of the form that matches ég.
Ég heita Anna.Ég heiti Anna.heita is the infinitive and the form for þau. With ég the verb ends in -i: ég heiti. With þú, hann and hún it ends in -ir: þú heitir, hún heitir.
Asking with hvernig (how), as in German Wie heißt du?
Hvernig heitirðu?Hvað heitirðu?Icelandic asks what you are called, not how. Use hvað with heita.
How It Connects
Learn This First
heita is conjugated with the personal pronouns.
Related Patterns
- Present Tense: i-Verbs (læra)
heita takes the same -i, -ir, -um, -ið endings as læra.
Level 1 - ertu / viltu / talarðuJoined Forms (Ertu, Viltu, Talarðu)
In questions heitir þú usually joins into heitirðu.
Level 1 - hvaðWhat (Hvað)
The question word for a name is hvað: Hvað heitirðu?
Level 1 - Names and Patronymics
The name you give with heita often includes a patronymic such as Jónsdóttir.
Level 1 - veraTo Be (Vera)
Ég er Anna is another natural way to introduce yourself.
Level 1 - Names Change Form
The name stays in the nominative after heita, but names change form after many other words.
Level 2
Words in This Pattern
Practice heita in Bubblegum
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