Re: CHAT: Icelandic Numbers (was: Re: CHAT: San Marino)

From: "Oskar Gudlaugsson"

> Hehe. You just touched on a subject you might not have wanted to touch on
> after all ;) Icelandic number declension is, to say the least, highly
> archaic. Numbers 1-4 (!) are declined in all four cases and three genders.
> Let's see...
[snip the info I asked for (thanks, Oskar)]

> Yes, this is indeed an absolute nightmare for foreigners learning
Icelandic.
> Very few languages, even Indo-European ones, preserve such an elaborate
> number declension system. When reading about IE, I also somehow got the
> understanding that even in that language, the number 4 was undeclined. But
> couldn't be true, I mean, how could Icelandic/Old Norse just make up such
a
> declension? It usually goes the other way, right?
Through the languages I'm familiar with and by analogy, I would have guessed
that you stopped at three. Iceland, it seems, dares to be different.

> This also creates us (Icelanders) a dilemma, when we're asked to count to
> ten in our language. In which gender should we count? (case isn't a
> question, we'd always choose nominative). Usually we count in masc, but if
> we're quantifying an item, we're of course required to make the genders
> agree.
Haven't you answered your own question? I find it very hard to believe that
there's no citation form for numbers. With a noun in the equation, I can see
kids saying, "One apple, two apples, three apples..." or "One paper clip,
two paper clips, three paper clips" and having that noun invoke the
appropriate gender-specific nominative form. But if you said, "Hey kids,
let's count from one to thirty." I can't imagine someone saying: "counting
apples or paper clips?. Masculine? Okay. 2x2=4? Surely, students don't stop
a class and say, "Okay, I need to know if we're multiplying dogs or chairs."

> So, anybody still interested in learning Icelandic? ;)
It's a *cool* Nordlang. Mere mention of copious, arcane noun declensions
sends erotic shivers down my spine. Still, I'd be better motivated if
Iceland offered neat, visa-getting job opportunities for wayward Americans
:)

Kou