gefið

Gefið is the Icelandic past participle of the verb gefa, meaning "given." It is used in a variety of periphrastic and adjectival constructions to indicate that something has been given, provided, or issued. In standard modern Icelandic, gefið forms part of perfect tenses with hafa or vera, as in ég hef gefið mér bók, "I have given myself a book," or bókin hefur gefið út, “the book has been issued.” It also appears in fixed phrases such as gefið upp (given up), gefið í ljós (revealed), and gefið út (published).

Morphology and usage patterns: gefið is the common form used for the neutral, singular participle in many contexts. It can function adjectivally, describing a noun with the sense of “given” or “provided.” The participle forms of gefa are inflected for gender and number in attributive use, and older or dialectal varieties may show alternative forms, such as gefinn in certain contexts or compounds.

Etymology and cognates: gefa originates in Old Norse and is related to other North Germanic forms for “to give.” The Icelandic gefið has close parallels in Danish givet, Norwegian gitt, and Swedish given, which share the same etymological lineage from the same verb root.

See also: gefa, hafa, vera, and related verbal forms in Icelandic grammar.