History & Language
The Reykjavík Grapevine takes on Iceland’s history, language and related topics
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Just Sayings: “Betra er að vera góðs manns frilla en gefin illa”
As you have perhaps heard, Icelanders are pretty liberal when it comes to their love lives. But that said, the saying “Betra er að vera góðs manns frilla en gefin illa” would probably still be on the fringe of acceptable society nowadays.…
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Just Sayings: “Enginn er sá leppalúði að ekki vilja fá sér brúði”.
To be honest, we only picked this idiom because of the word “leppalúði.” In a very loose English translation, the Icelandic saying “Enginn er sá leppalúði að ekki vilja fá sér brúði” means “No one is such a loser that he doesn’t…
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Just Sayings: “Að lifa eins og blóm í eggi”
Is everything going great? Are you “living the life”? Well then—in Iceland—you are “living like a flower in an egg.” This saying might be confusing for those who know that there are no flowers in eggs, just slimy yellow yolks. But, unless…
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Just Sayings: “Hollari er húsbruni en hvalreki á fyrsta ári”
How to explain this? The idiom goes like this in English: “It’s healthier that your house burns to the ground than to find a beached whale in your first year.” And now you might ask, what the fuck? Well, this seems to…
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Just Sayings: “Að fleygja barninu út með baðvatninu”
This one—which is international yes, but weirdly popular in Iceland—is a bit harsh. It’s direct translation is “to toss the child out with the bath water,” meaning to sacrifice something valuable along with all the worthless stuff. But what everyone actually thinks…
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Just Sayings: “Engum flýgur sofanda steikt gæs í munn”
“No goose flies into your mouth already roasted” sounds like a fairly obvious observation to make. Geese are mean, vicious creatures with teeth on their tongues who will chase you at the slightest provocation. But the actual meaning of this phrase is…
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Just Sayings: “Fleira má bíta en feita steik”
So, you’re looking to explore cannibalism with your best friend but aren’t sure how to broach the subject? Don’t worry—we’ve got you. “Fleira má bíta en feita steik” literally translates to “You can bite into more things than a fat steak.” It’s…
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Just Sayings: Heimskur er jafnan höfuðstór
Blessed with a big head? Tough luck. As Icelanders say, “People with big heads are stupid!” Yes, not our most gracious saying, we know. Basically, it means that one should not judge others by their appearances. For instance, one should not make…
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Just Sayings: “Varla Upp Í Nös Á Ketti”
When it comes to cats, historically, Icelanders are not fans. We have the brutal Yule Cat that eats poor children around Christmas and the monster Skuggabaldur (you could translate it as “the burden of the shadow”), that is the spawn of a…
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Just Sayings: “Sá er montnastur sem minnst er í varið”
Here’s one for the endless self-posting idiots out there. This saying literally means, “the ones that are conceited are often uninteresting” and it’s used by Icelanders to describe those flashy types who probably go to the gym a lot and buy Michael…
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Just Sayings: Að Slá Einhverjum Gullhamra
“Að slá einhverjum gullhamra” literally means to hit someone with a golden hammer. In Icelandic though, this means that you just gave someone a compliment. The saying can also mean that you’re hitting on someone—as in, you’re repeatedly hitting them with a…
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Just Sayings: “Tekinn á Beinið”
This saying is not really that old. It originated at Akureyri Junior College and means to tell someone off, often by higher authority. The direct translation of the saying—which in Icelandic would be used “Að taka einhvern á beinið”—is “to force someone…
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Just Sayings: “Of Seint Í Rassinn Gripið”
Here’s one idiom that suddenly became inflammatory because of #MeToo. It literally means “too late to grab that ass.” I kid you not. This is the exact translation. Of course, it’s not about a missed opportunity to sexually harassing someone, it simply…
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Helgakviða Hundingsbana: Poems of Helgi, Hundingur’s Slayer
In this series, I illuminate the individual poems of the Edda—that most famous, epic masterpiece of Icelandic literary tradition—with humour, vulgarity, and modern realness. If you reading this and thinking, “What the fuck is the Edda?” you should start by reading my…
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Just Sayings: Rassgat í bala
Ever been so broke that you didn’t even own your own butt in a tub? Introducing the most colourful term of them all to announce that you’re penniless: “Rassgat í bala.” The idiom literally means, “asshole in a tub” (and yes, it’s…
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Just Sayings: Að Tefla Við Páfann
“Að Tefla Við Páfann” is probably the first idiom that many Icelandic kids learn. It literally means “playing chess with the pope.” But the meaning is far from literal. So when you’re playing chess with the pope, well, good luck, because that…
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Edda Recap: The Poem of Völundur
The Poem of Völundur In this series, I illuminate the individual poems of the Edda—that most famous, epic masterpiece of Icelandic literary tradition—with humour, vulgarity, and modern realness. If you reading this and thinking, “What the fuck is the Edda?” you should…
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Just Sayings: “Heimskt er heimaalið barn”
This saying is pretty basic. In English, it means ‘a homeschooled child is a stupid child.’ Sounds rough, but this is a saying in Iceland. What it means is that an individual that does not travel or see the world, will be…
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Edda Recap: Hávamál
In this series, I illuminate the individual poems of the Edda—that most famous, epic masterpiece of Icelandic literary tradition—with humour, vulgarity, and modern realness. If you reading this and thinking, “What the fuck is the Edda?” you should start by reading my…
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Just Sayings: “Flýtur meðan ekki sekkur”
This saying is basically another version of “þetta reddast,” which is basically the motto of the Icelandic nation, translating to “everything is going to work out.” But there is a slight difference. Literally, “flýtur meðan ekki sekkur” translates to, “it floats as…
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Edda Recap: The Poem of Hyndla
This poem is actually has two women who talk to each other! Of course they’re talking about a dude, so it still doesn’t pass the Bechdel test, but when we’re talking about Medieval literature you take any woman you can get. Most…
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Just Sayings: “Að Launa Einhverjum Lambið Gráa”
‘The Lion King’ is now in theatres and what better way to celebrate the ultimate savannah revenge story than with an iconic Icelandic one? Specifically, that of the Heiðarvíga Saga. In it, teenager Gestur Þórhallason seeks revenge on his father’s murderer, Víga-Styr,…
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Just Sayings: “Enginn Verður Óbarinn Biskup”
One expression you are likely to hear in Iceland is “Enginn verður óbarinn biskup,” which literally means “no one will be an unbeaten bishop.” Essentially, the phrase means “it takes considerable work to reach your goals,” and one English version of this…