Icelandic Level 4 plus

Prerequisite for entry

Basic knowledge of Icelandic (successful completion of Icelandic syllabus 4 at UCL Language Centre or other comparable studies).

Term duration

10 x 2-hour classes.

Aims and objectives

The aim of the course is to enable students who have an advanced knowledge of Icelandic to acquire a better fluency in the language. Cultural awareness will be further developed. There will be continued emphasis on the grammar, so that students will gain better confidence and fluency when conversing with natives. More complex texts will be introduced to increase vocabulary and understanding of idioms.

Functions

• Translating texts
• Improving reading skills
• Improving listening skills
• New technologies
• Press and media
• Folk stories, folk belief in Iceland
• Education
• Multicultural Iceland

Linguistic structures/ Phonetics

Recognising/understanding colloquial usage of Icelandic (speed, omission of certain sounds)   

Grammar

• The declension of the reflexive pronoun, all cases, sing & plural
• The genitive (with possessive pronouns & noun declension)
• Adjectives in the comparative and superlative (emphasis on the nominative, weak & strong)
• Adverbs
• Common prefixes (how to break up words correctly and grasp their correct meaning by understanding each component)
• More irregular nouns

Learning resources

Books

• Course book: Colloquial Icelandic, Daisy Newman;
• Learning Icelandic, Mál & Menning
• Teacher’s handouts
• Online material from Bragi - íslenska

Dictionaries

• Glossaries from Colloquial Icelandic & Learning Icelandic
• Íslensk ensk orðabók - Iðunn
• Ensk-íslensk skólaorðabók – Mál & Menning
• Ordabok

In addition there is a wide range of language learning materials for self-study in the Self-Access Centre.