Immense Icelandic idioms

‘I heart Reykjavik’ is a blog written by a young, vivacious Icelandic lady called Auður. The purpose of the blog to inform readers of the wonders to be found in Reykavik and the country as a whole. Auður’s stated ambition is for ‘I heart Reykjavik’ to “become the best Iceland travel blog around”.

Excellent expressions

Auður latest’s contribution is an amusing and informative list of fifteen Icelandic idioms and turns of phrase, most of which non-native speakers would be entirely unable to work out from the meaning of the individual words.

We learners of Icelandic will all attest that, when it comes to mastering the language, “nobody becomes a bishop without taking a beating”. If you’re already “coming completely from the mountains” as to what I’m talking about, or perhaps thinking that “everything may not be OK at home” with me, then Auður’s post is for you. If you’ve enjoyed ‘I heart Reykjavik’ previously, then this post might just be your “raisin at the end of the hot dog”.

But “I won’t sell it more expensive than I bought it”, you can check out ‘15 peculiar Icelandic phrases that leave you scratching your head’ for yourself. “On with the butter!” as they say.

15 peculiar Icelandic phrases that leave you scratching your head