Tilvistarlegum

Tilvistarlegum is the dative plural form of the Icelandic adjective tilvistarlegur, which means existential or ontological. In Icelandic, tilvistarlegur is used to describe matters related to existence or the nature of being. The form tilvistarlegum appears when the noun it modifies is in the dative plural, reflecting standard Icelandic adjective inflection.

Grammatical role and usage: Tilvistarlegum functions as a descriptive modifier in phrases where the head noun is plural and in the dative case. For example, tilvistarlegum spurningum means existential questions, and tilvistarlegum áskorunum can be used to refer to existential challenges. These phrases are common in philosophical or literary Icelandic texts that discuss existence, meaning, or phenomenology.

Etymology: The base tilvistarlegur combines the stem tilvistar- (relating to existence or being) with the suffix -legur (forming adjectives meaning “pertaining to” or “characterized by”). The form tilvistarlegum is simply the grammatical inflection required by the dative plural context.

Context and scope: Tilvistarlegur and its inflected forms, including tilvistarlegum, are part of standard Icelandic grammar and are widely used in discourse about existential topics. They are not a separate scholarly term or concept, but a grammatical form that enables precise expression of existential qualifiers within sentences.

See also: tilvistarfræði (ontology or existential philosophy), tilvistarlegt, Icelandic adjective inflection.