röðinni

Röðin, in Icelandic, refers to a line, row, or queue of people or objects, as well as a sequence or order in a broader sense. It is used for practical situations such as standing in line for service or a waiting queue, as well as for describing ordered lists, a series of events, or a chronological sequence in writing and speech. The word can be applied to both tangible arrangements (a line of passengers) and abstract concepts (a sequence of steps or a ranking).

In everyday Icelandic, röð is a feminine noun. The definite singular form is röðin, and the form röðinni is used in phrases following prepositions to indicate “in the line” or “in the sequence,” for example í röðinni meaning “in the line.” The term also appears in compound expressions such as röð atburða (a sequence of events) or röð hlutanna (the order of the objects), showing its flexibility across contexts. Plural forms and more complex inflections vary with grammatical case and definiteness, as with other Icelandic nouns.

Etymology traces röð to Old Norse röð, related to similar terms in other Nordic languages that denote order or a line. In modern Icelandic, the word remains a common, neutral term used in everyday speech, written language, and technical contexts alike. There are no widely recognized proper-noun usages of röðin beyond its ordinary sense, though it can appear in literature and journalism when referring to lines, sequences, or orders of items or events.