ákveðinna

ákveðinna is an inflected form of the Icelandic adjective ákveðinn, which carries the sense of “definite” or “certain.” In Icelandic, adjectives agree with the nouns they modify for gender, number, and definiteness, and certain forms appear only in particular grammatical cases or phrases. The form ákv edinna occurs when the adjective appears with a plural noun in a genitive context, and it can also appear in other plural cases where the definite, or “weak,” ending is required by the syntax.

In practice, ákveðinn and its inflected forms are used to express specification or limitation, similar to how English uses “the definite” or “certain.” The form ákveðinna is most commonly encountered in written Icelandic, especially in older texts, legal language, and formal prose, where adjectives and nouns are declined in a more rigid case system. In everyday speech, speakers might opt for less marked forms when definiteness is conveyed through definite articles or other constructions.

Etymology and background: the adjective ákveðinn derives from Old Icelandic and ultimately from the same North Germanic stock that produced related words in neighboring languages. The development of definite and weak adjective endings in Icelandic reflects a long-standing grammatical tradition in which indefiniteness and definiteness are encoded through inflection rather than separate articles alone.

See also: Icelandic grammar, adjectives in Icelandic, definiteness and the definite article, Old Norse influences on Icelandic.