Icelandic prepositions are essential linking words that connect different parts of a sentence.

They show direction, location, time, or spatial relationships between objects.

However, using them correctly requires a basic understanding of the Icelandic case system.

Every preposition in Icelandic forces the noun that follows it into a specific grammatical case.

This means the noun will change its ending depending on the preposition you use.

In this guide, I’ll break down exactly which prepositions trigger the accusative, dative, and genitive cases.

The role of cases with prepositions

Icelandic nouns have four cases: nominative, accusative, dative, and genitive.

The nominative case is the basic dictionary form of a word.

You’ll never use the nominative case immediately after a preposition.

Instead, every preposition dictates whether the following noun must be in the accusative, dative, or genitive case.

Some prepositions only ever take one specific case.

Other prepositions can take two different cases depending on the context of the sentence.

Memorizing which preposition triggers which case is a vital step in mastering Icelandic grammar.

Prepositions taking the accusative case

The accusative case (þolfall) is most commonly used for the direct object of a sentence.

However, several prepositions always require the noun following them to be in the accusative case.

These prepositions generally describe movement through something or a relationship around an object.

Here are the most common prepositions that always take the accusative case.

Here are a few examples showing these prepositions in action.

In the first example, the preposition um forces the word bók (book) into its accusative form, bókina.

Prepositions taking the dative case

The dative case (þágufall) is often associated with the indirect object.

It’s also the most common case governed by prepositions in Icelandic.

Many prepositions indicating origin, stationary position, or proximity will always take the dative case.

Here are the most common prepositions that always require the dative case.

Let’s look at how these affect nouns in a sentence.

Because frá and hjá always take the dative case, the words hús (house) and hundur (dog) change to their dative forms.

Prepositions taking the genitive case

The genitive case (eignarfall) is traditionally used to show possession.

There are only a few prepositions in Icelandic that force the genitive case, but they’re used very frequently.

These prepositions often describe endpoints, absences, or causes.

Here are the standard prepositions that take the genitive case.

Here’s how you use them in conversation.

The preposition til is incredibly common in Icelandic and always requires the genitive case.

Prepositions taking multiple cases

Some Icelandic prepositions can take either the accusative or the dative case.

The case you choose depends entirely on whether there’s movement or stationary location involved.

If the sentence describes motion toward a specific destination, you use the accusative case.

If the sentence describes a stationary position or location, you use the dative case.

Here are the most common dual-case prepositions.

Let’s compare the difference between motion and location using the preposition í.

This same logic applies to the preposition á.

Learning to spot the difference between motion and location is the key to mastering these specific prepositions.