Words by

Ish Sveinsson Houle

Photo by

Jói Kjartans

The Grapevine’s guide to sounding Icelandic, one word at a time

As we dive headfirst into this Airwaves season (happy 25th, you guys), I’ve decided to share a word that I hope you don’t have to end up using. Buuuuuuuuut you might have to. I’m talking about djammviskubit. 

Let’s break it down. This word is a fun little portmanteau and in order to understand it, we have to start with the word samviskubit. Samviskubit is the Icelandic noun for guilt or regret. And because the Icelandic language just loves a compound word, this word is a compound of samviska and bit. Samviska is the word for conscience, and bit is a bite, sharpness, or edge. Samviska + bit leads you to a sharp bite in your conscience, more commonly known as a guilty conscience. 

Which brings us back to our Word of The Issue. To see where the portmanteau is coming from, you need to know that djamm is a party. There are a few different words in Icelandic for a few different kinds of partying. Djamm does not apply to a tame dinner party with friends, this is for going out downtown; maybe clubbing, maybe drinking, definitely having a raucous time. 

When you combine all we’ve learned thus far, you can see that djammviskubit is the regret you get from partying, particularly after drinking. It’s an unspecified regret, so your possibilities are endless. If you’ve woken up in the morning with a raging headache and grasping a half-eaten wrap from Pítubarinn, really wishing you hadn’t said yes to all those Fernet shots or tried cutting the line at Kaffibarinn (and getting caught), you might already be familiar with djammviskubit. 

So, what have we learned here? Five new Icelandic words, for starters — not too shabby! But also, you’ve learned something to use at your own risk. Yeah, it’s Airwaves. We’re obviously not endorsing you doing anything actually regrettable – don’t be an asshole, keep our city happy and safe. But hey, if you wake up and have regrets about spinning the wheel at English Pub or somehow ending up at Radar, then feel free to tell your friends you can’t make it out of the house today — you’re working through a bout of djammviskubit.

Learn more Icelandic words hér.