Stress and syllable balance
In simple words the stress always falls on the first syllable, with only a few exceptions.
Pure vowel sounds. Length depends on the syllable-balance rule.
| Letter | IPA | Reference point |
|---|---|---|
| a | [a] | like a in father (but short and open) |
| e | [e] | like e in bet |
| i, y | [ɪ] | like English i in bit, hit |
| í, ý | [i] | like English ee in feet |
| o | [o] | a pure o, like aw in saw but with rounded lips and no glide |
| ö | [ö] | like German ö (close to u in fur) |
| u | [ʏ] | like German ü (say i in bit with rounded lips) |
| ú | [u] | like oo in moon |
Pronounced [je] (like ye in yes): sérðu [sjerðʏ], sé [sje:]
Vowels change their quality before the combinations ng, nk:
| Letter | → | Example |
|---|---|---|
| a | → á | langur [lauŋg̊ʏr] |
| e | → ei | lengi [leiŋjg̊jɪ] |
| i, y | → í, ý | stingur [stiŋg̊ʏr], yngja [iŋjg̊ja] |
| o | → ó | kongur [kʰouŋg̊ʏr] |
| u | → ú | ungur [uŋg̊ʏr] |
| ö | → au | öng [öiŋg̊] |
Before gi [ji] and gj [j], vowels also change their quality:
| Letter | → IPA | Example |
|---|---|---|
| a | [ai] | daginn [d̥aijɪn] |
| e | [ei] | segir [seijɪr] |
| i, y | [i] | svigi [svijɪ], flygi [flijɪ] |
| o | [oi] | bogi [b̥oijɪ] |
| u | [ʏi] | hugi [hʏijɪ] |
| ö | [öi] | lögin [löijɪn] |
| ú | [ui] | almúgi [almuijɪ] |
Complex vowels characteristic of Icelandic.
| Letter | IPA | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| á | [au] | skáld [sg̊auld̥], má [mau:] |
| ó | [ou] | ósk [ousk], ós [ou:s] |
| ei / ey | [ei] | heima [hεi:ma], heyra [hεi:ra] |
| au | [öi] | austur [öistʏr], auka [öi:g̊a] |
| æ | [ai] | ætt [aiʰt:], fæ [fai:] |
Key feature: Icelandic has no voiced b, d, g!
f, v, r, m, n, l — roughly as in English and other European languages (note: r is trilled, as in Spanish).
h — a breathy [h]: heima [hei:ma]
j — like English y in yes: já [jau:], Jón [jou:n]
s — slightly lisped, between s and sh: standa [sd̥and̥a], straumur [sd̥röi:mʏr]
þ — like English th in thing; ð — like th in that: þjóð [þjou:ð]
n before g, k → [ŋ]: langur [lauŋg̊ʏr]
They stand for weak voiceless sounds, like the unaspirated p, t, k in English spin, stop, skin. The letters p, t between vowels are pronounced the same way.
Voiceless sounds with aspiration after the consonant (pʰ, tʰ, kʰ):
The aspiration is pronounced BEFORE the consonant (ʰpp, ʰtt, ʰkk):
Positional variants of g, f and special combinations.
Before a, u, ð, r and at the end of a word, and also when doubled before ð → the fricative [γ] (a voiced velar fricative, like g in Spanish lago):
After a vowel and before i, j, the letter g → [j]:
Between vowels, between a voiced consonant and a vowel, and at the end of a word after a vowel:
f before l, n → [b̥]: afli [ab̥lɪ], nafni [nab̥nɪ]
The combination fn before d → [m]: nefndi [nemd̥ɪ], hefndi [hemd̥ɪ]
Stops turn into fricatives before t, k, s:
Pronounced [χs], less often [ks]: vaxa [vaχsa], öxi [öχsI], sex [seχs, seks]
Pronounced with a palatal [j̊] (≈ the h in English huge, or German ich):
hvað [kva:ð], hver [kve:r]
Before e, i, y, í, ý, ei, ey, æ and j
| Sound | Palatalized variant |
|---|---|
| [g̊] | [g̊j] — palatalized g |
| [k] | [kj] — palatalized k |
| [ŋ] | [ŋj] — palatalized nasal |
Voiceless variants of r, l, m, n, ŋ — as if whispered
| Voiceless | Voiced counterpart |
|---|---|
| [r̥] | voiceless [r] |
| [l̥] | voiceless [l] |
| [m̥] | voiceless [m] |
| [n̥] | voiceless [n] |
| [ŋ̊] | voiceless nasal [ŋ] |
| [ŋ̊j] | voiceless palatalized nasal |
r, l, m, n are pronounced voiceless — as if whispering the sound while still letting air flow through:
These spell voiceless sonorants:
nefnt [nem̥t]
Epenthetic d̥ in the combinations ll, nn, rl, rn
Between vowels, and also after a vowel before r, n → [d̥l]. At the end of a word → voiceless [d̥l̥]:
After á, é, í, ó, ú, ý, æ, ei, ey, au, before a vowel or r → [d̥n]. At the end of a word → [d̥n̥].
Exception: the nn of the suffixed article stays [n:].
Within a single root. The [r] is more often kept in disyllabic words and dropped in monosyllabic ones: