[EP.00] Let's Learn Icelandic - Introduction

[@zkull9982]

I just realized this is new content, I love the fact that more and more poeple are teaching icelandic, it's hard to begin learning without as much resorces as common languages. Determination is key though

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Yes, I think some determination is needed... Obviously on your guys part, but also on mine! Thanks so much for watching ♥

[@amerhamza2373]

​@letslearnicelandic405 hi i want learning iceland language from beginners can you help me

[@chrlmlln9018]

Thank you so very very very much, for your absolutely extraordinary and excellent channel for learning Icelandic language! I appreciate and value your detailed way of showing us auslenders how to form our tongue, lips and mouth to get the letter rightly proanciated in the best way! And one more thing, learning the correct and right way to speak from the beginning is crucial! And you are truly and very good teacher! I can not enough THANK you, Ása! By the way I have only visited Ísland once in 1992! But it was unforgettable! I love the Icelandic language and of course the people of Iceland! Best regards from Sweden!💯👍👌💖💝💖

[@mattbaker7305]

This really is the best time to be alive. I decided that I wanted to learn Icelandic because I want to be able to read Old Norse (although I know there is debate about pronunciation). I simply looked up learning Icelandic on KZbin, and found a lovely and funny teacher spending their own time to put lessons out to the masses at no cost. Thank you for making this available. I look forward to watching every one of your videos multiple times in the coming months.

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Sounds like a fantastic plan!

[@SweetsCrimeZoo]

I'm also learning Icelandic in order to read Old Norse. :)

[@Gustavomazu]

thank you for doing this series! like you said the amount of material available is very skew and this just adds to how challenging it is to learn, so people like you are doing a great, great service to all of us!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Thank you for watching! / Takk fyrir að horfa!

[@PregoEgo]

I already speak a difficult language (Polish) and I want to learn Icelandic because I am genuinely obsessed with learning languages that are not commonly taught and used. Thank you for making this course!

[@StalkerPripyat86]

Thank you for this lessons. Next year going to move from Ukraine to Iceland and work there as IT specialist. Icelandic for me is an opportunity for quick integration into society. Because if you live somwhere you need to understand local people, culture, traditions etc. It's kind of respect.

[@keithshanemcglynn8646]

I'm going to Iceland with my girlfriend sometime this year. She always wanted to go and I'm not comfortable going somewhere where I don't understand what's Going on around me. Seriously Thank you so much. There are so few resources to learn your language.

[@letslearnicelandic405]

I hope the two of you will have the best time!

[@fallanelite]

I wanted to learn Islensku cause I just visited Iceland and it is so magical. The glaciers, all the foss(es), the people are so honest and friendly. As a singaporean chinese, it is an eye opener and I immediately fell in love. Hoping that by learning islensku, I could connect with the Icelandic culture more intimately. ❤ Your channel is god sent anyway!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Wow! Such warm, lovely feelings you have for Iceland! I am sure you can learn some Icelandic and learn more about us in the process! Good luck / Gangi þér vel!

[@nicholasdoyle7342]

I am so so sooooo appreciative of your channel and approach. I’m starting school for mechanical and aerospace engineering in the US and my programmer offers Iceland for a study abroad option (along with 9 other countries but Iceland was the only option I wanted!) So now, I’ve been trying to work out how to immigrate (most likely through University of Iceland) to Iceland to make contributions to the country, help preserve the language, land and culture because I believe it is one of the world’s treasures where the lands are respected (more so than most others). You are absolutely correct that there is not a lot of (accurate) content for foreigners to learn without living there, so again, I greatly appreciate you…Takk Fyrir!

[@ngumarenugor1292]

I would love to visit Iceland and want to know some basics of the language

[@cazcat]

I want to visit Iceland, maybe for our 30th anniversary in 2027. I've always felt that it shows more respect, when traveling, to try to speak a little bit of the language. I love listening to you, your accent is beautiful and you seem like you have a good heart. I hope you are successful! And way to go living in Italia, that's my dream! 😊

[@justineniogret206]

thank you so much for your channel! i tried to learn Islandic a few years back, and thought it was VERY difficult. i'm learning Hebrew now, and i came back to Islandic for my studies, and don't find any langage so difficult now, because Hebrew is... a concept. i love Islandic, and want to read Old Norse. thank you again!!

[@LisaHerger]

Oh wow! I just discovered this channel. Thanks for making great Icelandic content!!!

[@pedroricardo2813]

Thank you so much! I really wanted to learn iceland but I could never find enough materials. You are doing something really great and I am grateful for your help! Hugs from Brazil🇧🇷🇮🇸💛

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Ah so nice that you want to learn Icelandic! And thanks for your kind words ♥ I hope this course helps a bit!

[@leoramos1844]

Blessuð! I'm from Brazil. Icelandic has been the apple of my eye since I learned about its existence when I was 16. I'm 23 now and I still love it incredibly. I've never had the courage to go ahead and seriously learn it, but I think I'm getting there. Seeing channels like yours pop out in KZbin recently gives me so much joy :)

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Ah, nice to hear that Iceland is loved!

[@islagilbert1216]

My friend and I want to move to Iceland in the future so finding this channel is really helpful, thank you!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Happy to help! Good luck! / Gangi ykkur vel!

[@asktoobtain]

10:20 Thank you for your kindness, love and courageousness :)

[@John_Krone]

Assignment: I want to learn Icelandic because of all the countries I have traveled (more than 45 so far), no other country has made me feel happier (considering everything) as Iceland has. The country, the weather (I love cold moody weather and rain), the food and most importantly the people. I fell in love with the country, its language and history fascinates me. I have already made friends but I really want to communicate with them in Icelandic instead of English. Also, I have all the circumstances to be able to work remotely from there, which is now high in my plans. Also, I speak English, Spanish and German, so I am hoping these languages can help me base a foundation to grasp on to Íslensku. About your qualifications, let me say, I had a Japanese instructor who was "certified" to teach me in Japan. However he did not have patience, was too proud and made it difficult to learn, not because of the difficulty of the language, but because he was a horrible instructor. I love your approach and your down to earth attitude. That makes learning anything much easier! Takk fyrir, Ása.

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Oh wow, what a wonderful reason ♥ After living in Italy for a while, I too am starting to see the benefits of cold weather sometimes 😊 I sincerely hope that you will manage to realise your dream, I am rooting for you. Thanks so much for your kind words and good luck! Gangi þér vel 🙂

[@danimolusco]

I want to learn because it looks so pretty and challenging. i’m not sure how far I’ll get but I hope i can learn a bit 🙂

[@Владимир-о4ъ4ю]

Hi! You are very positive and charging us with your positiveness. You may add one more reason for learning Icelandic: Parkinsson will come to such persons much later. Well done. Thank you.

[@bogdanrusu5786]

Hello and thanks for the courses. I'd like to learn icelandic because I want to understand the lyrics of the band called Sólstafir. This and also to brag about it, because it's super hard to learn :))

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Perfect reasons!

[@izzasharifis]

My boyfriend is Icelandic and I’m Canadian/Pakistani. I have been trying to learn how to speak, I tried apps to learn but I found the pronunciation was so off! I’m so glad I came across your page. 🎉

[@Darnokk15]

Thank you for this series of videos. I watched this first video and now I'm gonna watch the rest of them. This is just what I've been looking for for the past couple of months. There's so few youtube videos on Icelandic. Thank you!

[@Darnokk15]

It's been two months since I moved to Iceland and I think it's the time to start studying the language, lol

[@Darnokk15]

And it's funny to me how you compared it to Japanese, because I've studied Japanese for 3 years and I've gotten to this point where learning more of it would be pretty effortles to me. So I'm hoping I'll be able to get to that level in Icelandic one day, lol

[@letslearnicelandic405]

@@Darnokk15 Yes, Japanese is just so incredibly pretty - I am a big fan! I am sure you can get to that level in Icelandic too! Good luck with your studies ♥

[@Darnokk15]

@@letslearnicelandic405 Thank you!

[@matthewbowles9967]

I started learning Icelandic today after finding your channel not only because I've always loved languages, but also because I checked out your channel, and you have very useful lessons! :)

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Yay, that is so wonderful to hear. I feel honoured 😊 Good luck! / Gangi þér vel!

[@flors95]

Hæ Hæ! I want to learn Icelandic because I love Old Norse languages and the Viking history. I'm a native Spanish speaker so I understand how hard grammar can be at times haha. I also speak English fluently. I hope I can visit Iceland some day and get to know more about your culture.

[@letslearnicelandic405]

I hope too that you can visit Iceland some day! Welcome to Let's Learn Icelandic!

[@djmillhaus]

Haha: "they throw some vowels on the paper and then read it _somehow_" is probably best description of English I've ever heard 😂👍 Thx for this channel, Icelandic is a beautiful language!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

I tell no lies! Thanks so much for the support ♥

[@DanielPerez-se3wy]

wow i just found your channel and i think im going to see all your videos cause i struggle to find material about learning icelandic and this is what i needed, thanks for doing this

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Yes, Let's Learn Icelandic! Thanks for your enthusiasm! Good luck! / Gangi þér vel!

[@alexsekai]

You are an amazing teacher!! Thank you so much for your videos! :)

[@ninaaura6663]

In Romania we have the same grammatically adjectives and the same grammar. I AM SURE I'LL LEARNING THIS LANGUAGE COSE I LOVE ICELAND AND I REALLY WANT TO LIVE HERE

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Hopefully these similarities will make your Icelandic learning experience smoother! Good luck / Gangi þér vel!

[@FrozenMermaid666]

That’s interesting to hear, because it kinda proves my point that language classifications and language difficulty level lists aren’t always accurate, in fact, I have seen videos listing it as a category 1 language (even though it is actually a category 2 or category 3 language) yet referring to Icelandic as ‘one of the hardest languages ever’ which makes no sense if they both have the same grammar with multiple noun / adjectives endings! Honestly, grammar and the number of noun / adjective endings aren’t even what makes a language hard or easy, and when there are more noun or adjective endings it just means that there are a few extra words and patterns to get used to, and even with all the different endings, Icelandic still doesn’t have as many words as English, and it’s really not the number of words / endings etc that makes a language hard, otherwise English would be considered the hardest language ever because it has a lot more words and more idioms and more slang than all other languages, yet it is the easiest language ever, and in truth, it is more about the aspect of the language and how easy it is to read and spell the words and how easy to memorize most words from a language are, so the aspect or format and the word memorability etc are what truly determines a language’s difficulty, and luckily Germanic languages are the easiest languages ever created in every way, with extremely organized aspect that is very easy to read, so none of the Germanic languages are truly / objectively hard, much less one of the hardest languages, and even though Icelandic isn’t as easy as English which is the easiest language ever, it is still quite easy and can be learnt without a lot of effort as Icelandic words are as pretty as English / Norse / Dutch / Norwegian / Gothic words, which makes them as easy to learn / memorize as the words from English and Dutch and Norse etc, because one naturally tends to remember the prettier and more distinctive words faster, plus Icelandic pronunciation is one of the easiest pronunciations ever, as easy as English / Dutch / Norwegian etc pronunciation, and almost all the sounds used in Icelandic are also used in English, except for the ö sound which is an EO sound which also exists is German and the other Nordic languages, and this is definitely an advantage for speakers of English as the sounds and diphthongs etc are the same for the most part! Icelandic is one of those languages that is just to pretty not to know, same as Old Norse / Dutch / Norwegian / Gothic / Faroese / Danish etc, they are as pretty / refined / poetic as English, so I highly recommend learning all these magical languages, and all other / any other Germanic languages also, as they are all gorgeous and a true work of art, the raider / warrior dudes that created the Germanic languages really had a lot of artistic talent and a good eye / ear for prettiness and harmonies and created the most perfect languages, most ppl don’t even know how pretty the words from these languages are as most ppl don’t even know about most of them, so I cannot recommend them enough!

[@sandysandra11]

Hey! Im from Egypt and i love learning new languages. The reason i want to learn icelandic is to understand it. i hate when i watch icelandic shows or listen to icelandic songs and don't understand it. Also i wanna read icelandic books in its language not just translatable ones. I don't trust all the translations. So that's why. Im very happy i found this channel cuz five years ago i struggled to learn the language cuz i can't find enough sources to learn it. ❤

[@devinstout6421]

Hæ Hæ! I want to Learn the Icelandic language because of my ancestry, through this journey I’ve felt more connected spiritually than ever before and feel like in a way it was calling me, my main goal is to be able to speak to my gods and goddesses with full respect and part of that is pronouncing words and saying sentences correctly or as best I can. I’m so grateful I found your Chanel !

[@letslearnicelandic405]

It is so fun for me to realise how different the reasons are that people want to learn Icelandic :) I hope my channel will help you on your journey - Thanks so much for watching!

[@ovalmind]

This is one of the more interesting and very well explained icelandic related classes, out of those very few sources to learn on the internet. It's a very altruist action! Takk fyrir tíman.

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Thank you! / Takk fyrir!

[@vevegsilva]

Hi! I'm Brazilian. I'm trying to learn Old Norse so I can translate the icelandic sagas to portuguese. I think that learning the icelandic language would help me understand better the Old Norse language and I want to visit Iceland someday, so I think it'll be really helpful to know more about the idiom. Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge, Ása! I'm happy that I find your channel.

[@thiory]

Hæ from Brazil.

[@vevegsilva]

@@thiory Hæ!😁 Muito bom encontrar outro brasileiro aqui!

[@thiory]

@@vevegsilva bora praticar islandês eu amo idiomas, é meu nono idioma, mas to tentando aprender o Guarani ao mesmo tempo rs

[@letslearnicelandic405]

So many Brazilian people looking to learn Icelandic - what a wonderful surprise :) I hope you can progress and do everything you dream of - I believe in you, good luck!

[@vevegsilva]

@@thiory Bora! Nossa, cara! Nove idiomas! Que massa! Um dia chego no seu nível. Gosto muito de aprender novos idiomas. Tbm quero aprender mais sobre línguas indígenas, já que tiveram um papel muito importante na formação do português brasileiro. Tem algum canal que você indique pra aprender guarani?

[@taramarie4212]

SO so happy I found your channel. I have been on/off learning Icelandic over the year - and have always felt a deep urge to go to Iceland (hoping soon!). Native language is English, but I do speak German on a B2-C1 level so good to know grammar is up there with similarities! While I have been learning Icelandic it is via an app that does vocab mostly, so no grammar knowledge of the language until now. You also seem like such a lovely human! Good luck with learning Italian :D

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Knowing vocabulary is a great foundation to further improve your Icelandic! (And the German will help tremendously later on.) I hope you manage to visit Iceland very soon :)

[@sari2756]

I highly appreciate your KZbin channel, this is the most content on learning Icelandic I’ve ever seen and it’s like I just found water while walking in a desert. Thank you!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Wow, thank you! Happy to help!

[@lucasfranco7787]

Congratulations for your endeavor on building such a remarkable educational channel

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Thank you very much!

[@watto2100]

Grazie mille!

[@annaluise181]

I’m so happy I found your channel!! I decided to do my master’s degree in Iceland and will move to Isafjördur in August for that and just started trying to learn some Icelandic. I started by learning the most common words and bought a book to understand the grammar but I feel like it’ll be so much more helpful to hear you pronounce the words and your explanations of the grammatical rules. Thank you so much for putting these videos up on KZbin! I can’t wait to work through them over the next few weeks!😊

[@letslearnicelandic405]

I hope you are in Ísafjörður now! And that you like it!

[@seek4truth]

Thank you so much! I seriously enjoyed your attitude, your way of getting the information accross, not too fast not too slow, very very right to the point and seriously honest and very fun and enjoyable to watch! I am a postdoc in artificial intelligence living in Finland. I am planning to find a position im Reykjavìk and live there for a year at least and if i can continue, move there forever! I love the nature in your country. Finland is all about lakes and trees, and i have seen these for the last ten years, Iceland has a totally different nature that i dream every night to visit!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Thank you, for being so nice :) Ah and I hope you manage to find a position! Yes, we have considerably fewer trees than Finland lol... Good luck with that and with learning Icelandic!

[@luisa_8401]

I plan on visiting Iceland for my honeymoon next year, and I want to learn a few key phrases and how to properly pronounce the names of locations by then. Thank you for creating this channel! So excited to get started! Saludos desde Puerto Rico! 🇵🇷

[@letslearnicelandic405]

That is so exciting! I wish you all the best ❤

[@leroideslangues]

I applaud your efforts in teaching Icelandic! I am becoming increasingly interested in Northwestern Europe and Scandinavia, and consequentially the languages thereof! I am already self-studying (poorly, probably) German, Norwegian, and Irish. I struggle with this imagined feeling that I need to be useful as a human and with my hobbies and passions. So, of course, I am attracted to another language that is spoken on an island with very few speakers (Irish is the worst off but hopefully it will turn around soon)! C'est la vie... in any case, I am trying to allow myself (through coercion) to just enjoy what I enjoy!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

I think it is so important to have something that we do, just because we enjoy it, without any pressure! So, best of luck with your hobby of Northern Europe and I wish you a lot of fun :)

[@Eduardo-tm9hr]

Thank you so much for putting out this content. As you mentioned, there are not so many materials in Icelandic out there and i really appreciate you. I would like to learn Icelandic because it's a very beautiful language and I'd like to visit or even live in Iceland someday, even though it might be very hard. Grazie Mile, spero che impari anche tu l'italiano!!!!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

I am glad you appreciate it! And yes... my Italian is somewhat improving - but far too slowly... Thanks so much for watching and for your lovely comment ♥

[@CorinaSha]

For my family 💕 Takk takk Ása you’re helping me and my children learn!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

You are very welcome!

[@indrajukame]

After a month of slowly learning Icelandic from your channel, I finally see the introduction. 😅 Your work here is very appreciated!! The content is easily understandable, well structured, and heimavinna is indeed a good way to check on myself to see what I have learned! Þakka þér kærlega fyrir! I have 3 reasons why I'm learning Icelandic: 1) I love languages in general. 2) When I went to Iceland for the first time 1,5 years ago I fell in love with your beautiful country! Not just because of the beautiful nature, it was an unexplainable feeling of joy and happiness- which I always feel there. Have been there for 4 times and am going to go there in October again. Learning the language is a way to show my love and respect to your country. 3) Since a couple of months I'm in a beautiful love relationship with an Icelander. And I want to be able to talk to him and his children in their language. 😊 Kveðja frá Lettlandi🇱🇻❤🇮🇸

[@letslearnicelandic405]

All very beautiful reasons! I am sure you will see your progress when you visit in October. I hope you have the best time ❤

[@noway8445]

I listen to a lot of Icelandic music. I have been studying Icelandic for about two years from Florida and the resources are few. I watched Icelandic cartoons for children first, then I started listening to Icelandic rap music. I highly recommend both for English speaking students. Someone really needs to develop a better Icelandic keyboard that doesn’t require copying and pasting the missing letters.

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Well done! I admire your interest and tenacity! Listening to Icelandic music should be a great help! I highly recommend it too. I am sure you can add an Icelandic keyboard to your computer! Also your phone if that is what you use. I live abroad and am also using computers/phone not bought in Iceland, and I have them set up so I can switch easily between English/Icelandic keyboards on all my devices. No copy paste required. But it might be a bit of a pain for a beginner on Icelandic keyboard, because the letters won't be marked correctly on your computer, but with practise it should be manageable. Try googling it! This should make your life easier. Good luck!

[@Voryn]

Thank you so much for this series! I've been trying to find something similar for a long time and just discovered your channel. I want to learn Icelandic because I really like the country and the language has something magical and ancient about it. Lots of greetings from Germany!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

yeah there is not so much material around, unfortunately, but hopefully this will help a bit! Thanks for watching and good luck with your Icelandic studies!

[@blotski]

I am so glad I've found this channel. I spent ages learning Icelandic many years ago and then got too busy to keep it up but I've recently gone back to it. I am an experienced linguist and speak several languages and have learned Russian, Polish and Finnish among others so have learned languages which are traditionally thought of as difficult. I found Icelandic the hardest! So many endings and so few ways of remembering them all. Sometimes it just feels that all verbs are irregular. But funnily enough I'm finding it a bit easier second time round.

[@letslearnicelandic405]

I know the feeling - wanting to learn a language, but getting to busy :) Ah, so you speak Finnish, that is so impressive, something that I have always wanted to learn, and knowing some Polish would help me explain Icelandic better to people coming from Polland or countries with related languages. So many languages - so little time! Yes, Icelandic is not easy for sure, so many irregularities, but it can be done, I promise, I have seen some foreigners speak excellent Icelandic. Nice to hear that you are having an easier time now, sometimes things just need time to sink in, and all the other languages you know must also help. Good luck with everything - Gangi þér vel ♥

[@burkhardschmorell3973]

When I was in undergrad and got Stefán Einarsson's seminal grammar for the language--when I only knew Spanish and German for comparison--I thought Icelandic was impossibly hard. Stefán's first chapter is phonetics, and he dives DEEP into pre-aspirated K's and such. It's definitely not the foot to lead off on. I don't know how the U.S. soldiers stationed on Iceland in WWII ever got very far in it. But by now, I'm C1 in German, and I've dabbled in Arabic, Mandarin, Latin, French, Russian, Vietnamese, Swedish and Norwegian. So when I come back to it, I'm finding that Icelandic is basically Norwegian (THE easiest language) with a Latin/German-like case system. Easy. It should be FSI schedule III, not IV, in my opinion. Russian is much harder, and it's FSI 4. Anyway, I hope you continue this channel. There are not enough resources for learning the language outside the country, and Latibær is very hard to find, yar har or otherwise.

[@wolfgirlie]

My husband got that book to study from and he loves that book. Its his Icelandic Bible

[@burkhardschmorell3973]

@@wolfgirlie I honestly wish there were a comparable work for German--phonetics, grammar, readings, and a glossary all in the same package. It's not a bad book at all. It's just a little too deep for beginners. But it's like Stefán says in the intro--he saw that nobody had done a comprehensive grammar in English and decided he might as well. Only Wheelock's Latin has ever impressed me more with the value of what you get for the price. Unfortunately my copy had a mosquito wedged in the first few pages when it arrived from Amazon back in 2006. You can still see the little brown stain from where I cleared it away. But it is one of my most treasured books that I own.

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Since I have never learned Icelandic as a foreigner I am afraid that I am not so familiar with that book, but I am glad that there is some useful material available. As far as I know there were very few US soldiers that learned any Icelandic to speak of, but I am sure there were some. Yes, what is difficult is always super subjective, but almost every single language that one knows will help a bit, so you have the best foundation to learn Icelandic with your very impressive language skills!

[@burkhardschmorell3973]

@@letslearnicelandic405 Well, yeah, probably, given the U.S. reputation for monolingualism, not too many of our guys ever got really good at the language. But that is one of the reasons Stefán states why he wrote the book. We needed a base in the north Atlantic to fight Nazi Germany, so we just kind of commandeered your country. Sorry about that. (Not that I'm especially loyal to the government in Washington; I claim Pennsylvania Dutch Country, the Confederacy, and my home state, and nothing more.) Oh, my language skills really aren't that impressive. I'm good at learning pronunciation. I've had more than one Ukrainian at my church assume I was fluent in Russian because I could imitate the accent so well while speaking basic phrases. I also _understand_ grammar easy. But getting to the point where I can hold a live conversation with good grammar? I have to brute-force memorize vocabulary and phrases with flashcards. And the attrition on my vocabulary is atrocious. Out of every German noun that I learn, I forget about 15% of them by the time I get 40 days out. That rate is 25% for verbs. I've had to arrest all introduction of new verbs to my flashcard load because I'm so backlogged at getting the old ones fluent. I don't mean to detract from your point. Some people have a knack for language while others don't. And even for those who do have a knack, Icelandic just takes longer than Romance languages or other Germanics. But I guess what I'm trying to say is, in the broad scheme of things, Icelandic has challenges that are familiar if you've seen Latin and at least one other Germanic language. Go east, or go outside Indo-European, and it's much wilder. And in any case, where there's a will there's a way.

[@letslearnicelandic405]

@@burkhardschmorell3973 Absolutely, the will is the most important point in learning languages!

[@Anna-ul4uo]

I am half-Danish. I went to museums during visits to my family in Denmark and fell in love with the culture of the vikings. I started learning Icelandic because I liked the idea of having a language for myself that most people don't know about, with the added bonus that it relates back to that history in a way. Plus, Iceland is a gorgeous country that I would love to visit someday, and it would be really rewarding to be able to understand people.

[@letslearnicelandic405]

I hope too that you get to visit Iceland! Good luck with your Icelandic studies / Gangi þér vel!

[@hillary.esdrelon]

I want to learn Icelandic, because I like the northern countries and I planned to visit Iceland someday, also because I thought it would be cool if I can speak the language aswell.

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Very nice reasons ❤

[@louisevissenaekens1594]

Thank you so much! I have found two apps that teach words, (Drops, the two versions), but they do not teach the pronounciation of the letters alone. Thanks to you, Ása, I now understand why sometimes the person speaks it a certain way and sometimes another. I cannot express enough how thankful I am. By the way, even a course that has cost me over €100, does not explain the rules of pronounciation. I owe you so much!! Thank you for everything! I also love your accent, bit by bit I understand why you breathe so mucht when you pronounce. I have learned that trying to speak English whith Icelandic breaths, is way funnier, and also makes it easier to remember when to breate.

[@sarid.6788]

Hi! I moved to Iceland a couple of months ago and I will stay here for another few :) I just want to get closer to local people and have the best experience possible! Here’s my reason to learn Icelandic. Thank you for you videos, they’re very helpful ❤

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Good luck! Gangi þér vel!

[@bri_jacobs]

Honestly this is amazing. I started dating an Icelandic man and finding any resources to learn Icelandic is so so hard (especially sources that are reliable). Thank you for doing this amazing work!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

You are very welcome!

[@tonyfuturepolyglot]

Just discovered your channel! Love your energy and enthusiasm for languages in general as well as your native tongue Icelandic. I'll be going to Iceland for a workcation (work + vacation in case if you didn't know). When I visit other countries (whether that being a leisure trip or a work trip), I try to learn some of the language to enrich my traveling experiences. Learning languages is a hobby of mine so to be able to challenge myself by learning another language while having fun is something I do. That is my why for learning Icelandic. Interesting to see that there's some similarities between German and Icelandic and I had some background in German so it might help. Regardless, looking forward to learning Icelandic through your videos! :) Cheers from the States

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Yes! Any German helps for sure! I hope you have the best time during your workcation ♡

[@kvintaquilts]

I visited beautiful Iceland in the magical summer of 2020, with few other tourist. I love your Island, I even seriously considered moving there with my husband and son,but… life just happened. we will definitely revisit and be able to show a little respect by knowing a little of icelandic. Coming from Denmark, I know how important it is to keep the small languages alive❤ Thanks for your video series!

[@jaerodriguez7990]

Thank you Ása for starting this channel! 🙏 I learn languages best when I connect positive emotions to it. And for Icelandic, my learning experience is colored with my fascination for Old Norse mythology, Viking history, and Ásgeir's music. I study German and Icelandic at the same time. My German level is way better than my Icelandic as I started 🇩🇪 earlier and also since I live here in Germany. I think this is helpful in not confusing the two. But indeed I agree that the 2 languages complement each other. 🇩🇪 and 🇮🇸 are in a sort of "sweet spot" of closeness in the language family tree. Which means they are similar yet still very distinct. Both being Germanic languages, they are similar enough in terms of grammar. They virtually use the same tenses and tend to share the same peculiarities, so when I have learned a grammatical concept in 🇩🇪 , I easily grasp it when learning it in 🇮🇸 . Iceland's isolation from the rest of continental Europe however allowed it to maintain its uniqueness. Icelandic's vocab has very little Latin/Romance influence, which helps in avoiding mixing up the two (e.g. Familie vs. fjölskylda). Of course words with common Germanic roots are recognizably similar, but they still sound very distinct from one another: For example: strong = stark = sterkur mother = Mutter = móður animal = Tier = dýr water = Wasser = vatn Looking forward to your videos! 😊

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Yes, knowing German is probably one of the best foundations for learning Icelandic, so I am sure you will be able to improve! I really like your attitude and I agree, positive emotions are absolute Key to learning new languages (and most things in general) Happy New Year! / Gleðilegt nýtt ár!

[@elenamerelo8072]

aaah takk fyrir alt!! you made me smile through the whole video, you are such a nice and funny and reasonable person :D i am so happy i came across your channel, there really is a lack in not only icelandic but also other languages vids! i want to learn icelandic because i find it fascinating and like the challenge. I love the country, and i think learning a language is a window for the culture and people. I have been studying norwegian for the past year and i am infatuated with it, hope it also helps me a bit. I would love to be fluent or at least understand norwegian, swedish, german, danish and icelandic one day, so that when in the future i travel there i can move around, get to know the people, and be better able to understand them and how they are ^^ i am in love with the nordic countries and everything related to them hehe have always felt drawn to them. I love finding commonalities amongs them, or with german and english, the pronunciation, how the words are formed, the grammar,... So cool! Also love the fact that you are so thoughtful and are going to set homework and have that last part in the video where you talk, so so useful! Looking forward to learning with you, have a good one :D

[@letslearnicelandic405]

I am sure almost everything that you have learned in Norwegian will help your Icelandic :) I wish you super success in your ambitious language learning dreams and I hope you'll be able to visit the Nordic countries sooner rather than later!

[@horowirtz9415]

it feels fun, also i live in a region in France which was influenced by norse, which from what i understood is close to islandic

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Yes very close! Good luck with your learning!

[@pierrebalandras6320]

tu es originaire de normandie ?

[@predarek]

I'm visiting Iceland in a few weeks so I thought I would at least try to learn the pronunciation and a few phrases. Learning a new language always gives you an insight into a culture so that's another reason!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

That is so true! You always learn something new and interesting when dipping your toes into a new language. Good luck and I hope you'll have the best time in Iceland!

[@CaseyDokoupil]

Thank you for offering this. I moved to Iceland 7 months ago and am finally settled enough to focus on my language skills. It can be hard to find good resources even when living here! It's incredibly helpful to have this right on my phone and see examples from the lessons around me. You are much appreciated, Ása!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Thank you so much! I hope you are making progress :)

[@RCGrulz]

Hey I just stumbled upon this and I'm super grateful! I moved to Iceland about 8 months ago and have barely picked up a thing. I'm now dating an icelandic man and it would be nice to be able to communicate with his family 😅

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Yes it is a common misunderstanding that just living in a country you will learn the language without any effort. At least that has not been my personal experience :) But living in Iceland and knowing Icelandic is a great start, and hopefully my channel can also help. Good luck! / Gangi þér vel!

[@NominsMarriageOfficiant]

I've loved the icelandic culture for about two yrs already but never got to study it. Hopefully I will have the willpower to learn this gorgeous language. Thank you sm for teaching us!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

I hope so too. Good luck! Gangi þér vel!

[@chivasluna2521]

thank you for the videos ❤️❤️ I recently got hooked with Nordic Noir movie genre and most of the movies in to-watch list are in Iceland (which I always want to visit). And finding your videos are so helpful (i dont expect 100% perfection, at least I know simple stuff lol)

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Yay! Welcome to learning Icelandic, I hope you have fun!

[@louisevissenaekens1594]

I want to learn Icelandic because I visited it last year, and I had never felt ANYTHING in my entire life before that. The nature is so pretty out there, unbelievable. I want to convince my teachers of the university that I can do my stage in Iceland, so that I can be there for at least a couple of months. If that does not works, I will travel there myself, for months. Never ever ever ever in my life have I seen so many pretty things, and the language is super pretty too.

[@diegoele5181]

Takk fyrir, Ása. I was learning some Icelandic the past year, and I gave up because it's hard to find a native teacher. My teacher stopped teaching. You told us many people think Icelandic grammar is hard, specially for declension and cases. I recommend trying Russian. After learning a bit of Russian, I've found Icelandic easier. I am native Spanish speaker, so I have no problems to pronounce Icelandic. Icelandic phonology is really close to Spanish. I speak a bit of German too. I am interested in Icelandic because I love Sagas. I was in Iceland in 2001 before Iceland became mainstream. I want to visit it the next Easter again. Thank you for your channel. I'll be following you. Takk takk.

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Yes, there are not so many people teaching Icelandic, unfortunately. Yes, I have heard Russian is very difficult, but it is like you say, all languages that you know will help a lot with Icelandic, even seemingly different languages such as Spanish and Russian. I hope you can visit Iceland soon! And that the weather won't be too bad!

[@RascalOutdoors]

The cases become way easier after learning Finnish. We have 16 cases (some choose to disregard them, though).

[@GiuseppeAlonci]

Great content! I am also an Italian learning Icelandic :P I want to learn Icelandic because... why not? It's fun!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Perfect! Welcome to learning Icelandic. Hopefully we can improve in each other's languages!

[@hansubermann]

I follow! Next 22 december I move to live in RVK, so don't hesitate to contact me! I'll stay in 101 zone

[@AMaupin2]

Thank you, so much, for creating this channel!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Glad you enjoy it!

[@chatongivre3082]

Thanks ! As french 17 yo boy i'm coming to your channel to understand a women not speaking in my nativ language that is going to teach me another harder language ! But i'll make it, i'll one day got to Iceland !

[@FrozenMermaid666]

French is way harder than Icelandic, but honestly, both Icelandic and French are easy category 1 languages, so they are super easy to learn, but French has very complicated category 2 pronunciation and category 2 accent with lots of open nasal sounds and very difficult Rs, so I cannot sound native in French, even though I can understand most words in French, while Icelandic is naturally very easy to pronounce with category 1 pronunciation and an accent that’s one of the easiest to imitate, so I used to sound native in Icelandic even at a beginner level, but I am advanced level now, because Icelandic has a very easy accent, and the pronunciation is also very easy with very soft sounds and soft normal Rs and the other type of nasal sounds (aspirated sounds) that are like the closed version of nasals (projected around that area that’s right behind the nose) that sound very cool and that are very easy to make by adding a soft H sound before the TN letter combination, for example, vatn is pronounced vahtn with very subtle H sound that helps giving it that aspired consonant effect, so the Icelandic pronunciation and accent are as easy as the pronunciations and accents of English and Gothic and Norse and Dutch and Norwegian and Welsh and Breton and Cornish and Faroese and Italian and Latin and Esperanto, whereas the French accent and pronunciation are not so easy and require a lot of practice like the accents and pronunciations of Danish and German and Swedish and Brazilian Portuguese and Spanish etc - Icelandic and Gothic and Norse are three of the easiest languages to learn and pronounce etc, almost as easy as English and Dutch, which are the easiest languages ever created, and when it comes to cognates, it’s a bit easier to learn the Icelandic word than it is to learn the Norwegian word because the Icelandic words have more distinctive word endings and very different spelling rules, whereas the Norwegian words are too similar to the Danish / Swedish words, so if one is learning all these languages, it’s easier to confuse the Norwegian word with the Danish / Swedish word than it is to confuse the Icelandic word with the Norse word, especially if one hasn’t seen them many times, and it has to be due to the type of word endings, but after seeing them many times, I don’t confuse them anymore, as they all become automatic, so revising a lot is very important when learning many similar languages, and, the word order in Icelandic is normal and quite free like in English and Gothic and Norse, so it’s easier than in Dutch and German, and, I know that many find its grammar intimidating, but, it’s not grammar that makes a language difficult or easy, plus its grammar is the most logical, and it’s not even that different from French grammar or Spanish grammar or Latin grammar etc, and, the verb conjugations are way more complicated in French and Spanish as they have a lot more tenses, but in Icelandic they are very easy with fewer tenses, and the patterns are the same for each group of nouns / adjectives / verbs, so the endings are the same for each group of words, just like in French and Spanish and Latin etc, so one should learn the patterns well, as it makes it easy to use the right forms if one knows the patterns very well, and, when learning new languages I also recommend reading the declensions for each word at least once or twice, after learning the base words automatically, though it’s not 100% necessary to do this, but I recommend reading them if one wants to learn the new languages very well and automatically, so I recommend reading the declensions and conjugations for every Germanic / Celtic etc language, and observing the patterns, and when finding an exception, that word that doesn’t follow the same patterns can be added to a list and revised more and learnt by heart with its forms, but for most words, which follow the same patterns, it’s not necessary to learn the different forms by heart if one learns the patterns by heart! (Norse languages can seem very intimidating at first as they have a very unique and intimidating-looking aspect, but one would be amazed how easy they are to learn and pronounce - they are way easier than I thought they would be at first when I first started learning them!)

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Thank you so much! I am sure you will make it and one day be able to visit Iceland!

[@firelordpoptarte]

I can’t wait, this was a godsend channel, honestly

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Thank you so much... and good luck in your studies!

[@noway8445]

Thank you for the lessons.

[@letslearnicelandic405]

You are welcome, Thank you for watching ♥

[@laurenbabcock9905]

I am so happy to have found this channel! I am looking forward to learning Icelandic. I am trying to learn Icelandic because my husband and I plan to visit in September 2024. I'm a native English speaker, but have also studied French and Russian. So glad to have found a channel which will help with grammar, because that's so essential to gaining understanding and I was afraid I would only be able to find vocabulary to memorize. Thanks for the great resource!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

OOh, so next year you will be in Iceland! Fantastic! Main thing is to surround yourself with the language as much as possible - good luck 😊 Gangi þér vel ♥

[@johngusmano387]

Thank you so much for this channel!!! I am slowly but surely following along and I am hoping to learn Icelandic! ( I’m from Michigan, USA)! BLESS BLESS!! :-)

[@letslearnicelandic405]

I am sure you will manage to learn Icelandic, good luck! Bless bless :)

[@pickle-juice-sana5157]

I’m half Icelandic but almost don’t know any Icelandic due to me growing up in Denmark but I am trying to learn and Icelandic actually doesn’t seem to hard for me I know some of the basics but I’m still trying to learn and my family and my moms friends are teaching me slowly through the bases☺️

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Danish is already an excellent background for Icelandic, so if you also have Icelandic roots and support, I am sure you will improve very rapidly :) Good luck!

[@ecojulie]

Takk fyrir að bua til þessa ràs!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Takk fyrir að horfa ♥

[@willowparadise7354]

Thanks for this video! I love icelandic and you're right there's not enough website to learn it,so thanks again!! I'm french and I find icelandic so different and unique language!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Yay! Welcome to learning Icelandic!

[@doro5419]

Takk fyrir námskeiðið!

[@Mallobean]

Hello Ása, I found your channel a few months ago but am just now sitting down to study with you. I am an American who lived for three years in Sweden and only recently visited Iceland with my wife. We loved it there and are considering a move sometime in the near future. I learned a lot of Swedish while I was living in Sweden and it's helped me with the Icelandic for sure! I look forward to learning from you. Bless bless!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Yes, any Swedish you know will help tremendously! Thanks for sharing - and good luck! Gangi þér vel!

[@muurr2886]

Hey! It was such an enjoyment to watch your video! You are so positive and nice! Thank you for doing this great thing! I want to learn Icelandic just because it sounds really pleasant for my ears and also seems so unique. I've never studied any language of a "German" group so it may appear to be a real struggle but an exciting one 😊

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Good luck!! I wish you all the best! Thanks for watching ♥

[@violencnoviolet]

Hey there! I've been meaning to learn the basics of Icelandic out of curiosity for some years now since language learning is of my favourite hobbies. I am fascinated by Nothern Germanic languages and Nordic countries-they're different from everything I know in terms of history, folkore, climate, culture and so forth. I'm from South America, Brazil, and Icelandic sounds rather pleasant to my ears. I've been following you from the get-go, but haven't gotten around to actually trying to learn the language (other than just watching random videos about it on KZbin). Well, this changes now. Thank you for this video! Keep it up! 🤍🪴🍃🌿

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Great to hear! So many Brazilians learning Icelandic - it's truly amazing! Good luck! / Gangi þér vel ♥

[@samueldiaz1448]

Thank you thank you tha K you a thousand times thank you for opening this channel!!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

You are so welcome! Thanks for watching!

[@jofermk]

Thank you very much for uploading videos about how to learn icelandic, its a beautiful language ! Please share more videos!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

No worries, I have already done a lot in a very short amount of time (this channel is only a few months old), and many more are to come! Thanks so much for watching ♥

[@giuliac5318]

Hey Ása! I just found your channel and loved this little introduction video! I’m an italian living in Spain, grew up speaking German and studied Japanese at University, so I really thought it was funny you mentioned all these languages! I love nordic languages and felt really motivated... until you mentioned the 6 plurals of icelandic hahaha I am travelling to Iceland this August so this is my reason and excuse to start learning your native language! Thank you so much for creating this channel for all of us!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Ah, so you will understand all my references to other languages! (because beyond these I really don't know much). No worries about the grammar, you can always just learn a bit and see if you like it, there is no need for it to be perfect. Thank you so much for watching!

[@kevinpease9138]

I've been meaning to start learning Icelandic for a long time, just now I realized that I just need to start doing it. Subbed to your channel, hopefully it'll help :) Thanks!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Yes, waiting for the perfect moment when you have full concentration and all the time in the world, never works in reality. The key is just to start! Good luck! / Gangi þér vel!

[@emilgretarsson5921]

My Dad is from Iceland. I have always known a little Icelandic. But I would love to study more and share it with my children. My youngest and I just enjoyed this video and look forward to seeing all the others. Thank you! We also have a trip to see family coming up and I could use a refresher course. 😁 Ég skil mikiõ en tala pinu litla. Íslensk málfræõi er mjör erfit!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Well your name is Icelandic, so you already have that going for you! I'm sure with some practise you will improve! Engar áhyggjur, íslensk málfræði er erfið fyrir alla, en hún kemur með æfingunni! Best of luck to you and your children!

[@emilgretarsson5921]

@@letslearnicelandic405 glad to know I'm not alone. I'll definitely keep practicing!

[@mikoajszpak1393]

After 1 month of learning I finally found a great source to learn Icelandic! I am from Poland. I really want to work in Iceland as a teacher (many people in Iceland are from Poland and they do not want to learn Icelandic. Also, I heard that in schools some kids are learning Polish) in school or as a translator. The funny thing is that for that 1 month of learning I found many similarities in Icelandic and Polish grammar. It's kinda easier to learn it, i think. Well, thank you for this channel and I hope that one day I'll write comment here fully in Icelandic 😄

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Yes I have often thought that it would be useful if I knew some basic Polish to point out the most obvious similarities/traps-that-look-like-similarities-but-are-not, since there are many Polish people in need/want of learning Icelandic, but alas. Though I am sure you guys can pick these out by yourself much better than I would be able to do anyways :) I wish you all the best! When you are ready don't hesitate to try and comment here in Icelandic - even if only partially and filled with mistakes! That is the road of learning. Good luck! / Gangi þér vel!

[@HeavensSunrise1]

Heimavinna: Hello! I’m learning Icelandic because I really love languages and cultures. I have not attempted to learn Icelandic because I heard it was very hard but I’ve been dabbling in other Nordic languages and want to challenge myself to learn this beautiful language too. Thank you so much for taking the time to share your world!🌎💕😄

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Fantastic! I am sure you will have a nice collection of Northern languages soon! Welcome to learning Icelandic :)

[@wanderingarielle4796]

HIIII! I was so glad to find your channel cause its been months that i've been trying to find resources to learn Icelandic. Thank you so much for this, you just earned a new subscriber

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Well, this channel is also only a few months old :) Thanks so much for watching and subscribing ♥ And good luck with learning Icelandic!

[@kenways1011]

I want to move to Iceland from from Norway. Thanks for making this, there really isn't a lot of material out there.

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Good luck!

[@stepzorkanyx8871]

I am forvad to learn islandic here withc you. Your voice is pleasant and nice.😊

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Thank you so much!

[@jezzeronthecoast]

Not a lot of resources! Come to Australia and try to learn Icelandic (websites, and facebook sites like this is it!) I believe there was a university professor in Canberra, when he retired it stopped being taught.

[@ValeriyaWysteria]

I’ve been wanting to learn Icelandic for years, Definately keeping up with this

[@letslearnicelandic405]

I wish you all the best of luck and good progress - Gangi þér vel!

[@ijdonnelly11]

This is fantastic! Thank you so much for making these.

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Glad you like them! Thank you for watching!

[@daliladalo2521]

I am learning Icelandic because of my interest for Icelandic books!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

What a lovely reason ❤

[@January-last]

You're awesome 😍 and I like a lot how witty you are 😁 Now with the homework: not sure if I'll stay for the whole ride, but right now Icelandic sounds great to me. I just want to try it and see where it gets me I guess 🏕️ btw I'm a Russian native speaker and can confirm that when a language has this amount of adjective forms it's nowhere near easy 😆

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Thank you so much ♥♥♥ No worries, Icelandic will always be there, so you can always study for a while and then come back to it later. Yes, from I understand, learning Russian is no joke! I remember a Russian acquaintance of mine talking about English grammar, and let's just say that he was not very impressed >.< Welcome to the world of studying Icelandic - and good luck!

[@naturallyiceland]

Hae Hae, Just found you channel. Great initiative! I want to learn Icelandic because I plan to start a business there and move there. Been there 3 times now. Going again I. September. Yes, it's not easy at all and nobody to talk too here in NL but there is Internet radio 👍. 💪💪💪

[@letslearnicelandic405]

That sounds very exciting! Starting up is not easy, but every little time you spend on Icelandic will help, I promise! So listening to the internet radio is super good. And also, knowing Dutch will absolutely help! Good luck with everything!

[@luisbispo5636]

I want to learn icelandic, because i want to visit Iceland one day, and my interest with norse mithology (Forn Siđr)

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Ah, I hope you manage to visit Iceland! And maybe watch or read something about Norse Mythology and understand a bit of Icelandic! Good luck / Gangi þér vel!

[@AP-fi4wt]

I am Italian and as a second job (acutally it's more like a raison d'etre) I translate novels from Japanese, which has become a deep part of myself after ten years of passionate study, but... I'm tempted to cheat on my Japanese with Icelandic🤣 It's simply beautiful with a marvellous phonetic...

[@letslearnicelandic405]

I love Japanese too! Though I am in no way able to do translations, so very impressive. I'm sure Japanese won't mind if you have an open relationship with Icelandic 😆

[@lovellmer]

Thank you so much for this!

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Thank you for watching ❤

[@ttvJustMistaken]

Thank you for doing these videos! I'm really excited to learn this beautiful language that Icelandic is 💛 Regarding the heimavinna, I am learning Icelandic because, first of all, I love learning new languages. For me, learning languages is learning cultures and being able to have the freedom to meet and talk to many different people in their own native language. I'm from Brasil and I already am fluent in English and I have an intermediate knowledge of Italian and French, so adding Icelandic to it would be amazing! Secondly, I recently - this week - discover "Skiptir Ekki Máli" from Dadi Freyr and it made me fall in love with this amazing language! I aim on being able to understand and sing it along! Last but not least, I plan on visiting Europe soon and to learn many languages there and meet many people, so knowing Icelandic will be helpful to achieve this goal because I think that learning the "hardest" language first will be helpful. So yeah, that's a bit of me! Thanks again for working hard on these videos, I helps many people 💛

[@letslearnicelandic405]

Yeah, Daði Freyr is great, and we're all super proud of him and the Gagnamagn! I am glad you stumbled across him :) Lol, tackling the hardest first is very brave! And I wish you all the best: Gangi þér vel að læra íslensku!

[@lourdescetrangolo9074]

Thank you for your videos ! You are the best, this is priceless ♥️✨

[@letslearnicelandic405]

You are so welcome!