ókunnugir

ókunnugir is the Icelandic masculine plural nominative form of the adjective ókunnugur, meaning unknown or unfamiliar. It is used to describe things that are not known to a particular person or group, including people, places, or documents. In everyday language, it often refers to individuals who are not acquainted with the speaker. For example, “Hann er ókunnugur mér” means “He is unknown to me.” The term can also describe unfamiliar locations or items within a given context.

Etymology and grammar: The word is built from the negating prefix ó- attached to kunnugur, which derives from kunna, “to know,” and thus conveys the idea of not being known or familiar. Ókunnugir appears as the masculine plural form; Icelandic adjectives generally agree with gender, number, and case, so other forms of the same base adjective exist for different grammatical contexts.

usage and nuance: Ókunnugir is generally neutral in tone, used in ordinary descriptive language. It can carry a subtle sense of distance or lack of acquaintance when referring to people, but it is not inherently pejorative. Context often determines whether the connotation is strictly factual or mildly evaluative.

See also: kunnugur, ókunnugur, Old Norse cognates.