Skills on AI

Locale Is 001

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Use when working with the Icelandic locale (`is-001`) — its endonym Íslenska, Latin script, left-to-right (LTR) direction, or spoken-population data. Reference data and translation guidance (register, grammar, idiom, typography) for this specific locale; see [[locale]] for general i18n/l10n concepts (BCP 47, plural rules, RTL) that apply across all locales.

Reference data for the Icelandic locale — endonym Íslenska, written in the Latin script, left-to-right (LTR).

Identifiers

  • BCP 47 tag: is-001
  • ISO 639-1: is
  • ISO 639-3: isl
  • Script: Latn (Latin)
  • Region: 001 (World)
  • Text direction: ltr — left-to-right (LTR)

Speakers (approximate)

  • L1 (native): 314,000
  • L2 (additional): 50,000
  • L1+L2 (total): 364,000

Regional variants

This is the base/macro locale for Icelandic. Region-specific variants in this dataset:

Pluralization

CLDR plural categories for this locale: one, other (2 forms).

  • one — t = 0 and i % 10 = 1 and i % 100 != 11 or t % 10 = 1 and t % 100 != 11 (e.g. 1, 21, 31, 41, …)
  • other — everything else (e.g. 0, 2~16, 100, 1000, …)

See Unicode Messageformat for writing plural messages using these categories.

Translating into this locale

Icelandic is a North Germanic language known for linguistic purism: new vocabulary is built from native roots rather than borrowed. The Árni Magnússon Institute for Icelandic Studies and the Icelandic Language Council guide usage. See Locale Is Is.

Translate ideas, not words.

  • Do not import English or Danish loanwords where an Icelandic term exists: "tölva" (computer), "sími" (phone), "vefur" (web), "hugbúnaður" (software). The Icelandic terminology bank (Orðabanki, https://idord.arnastofnun.is) and the Málið.is portal are the reference.
  • Icelandic keeps complex inflection; translate to a full sentence rather than a keyword stack.
  • Re-express idioms by meaning.

Grammar that trips translators.

  • Four cases (nominative, accusative, dative, genitive), three genders, and definite article suffixes ("maður, maðurinn"). Foreign personal names and loanwords still decline.
  • Verbs conjugate for person, number, tense, and mood. Some verbs take subjects in the dative or accusative ("mér líkar", "mig vantar").
  • Verb second in main clauses.
  • Plural forms and adjective endings depend on gender, case, and definiteness.

Register.

  • "Þú" is used to everyone. The polite "þér" is archaic. Use first names and plain tone.

Orthography and typography.

  • Keep the letters þ, ð, æ, ö and all accented vowels (á, é, í, ó, ú, ý). Do not substitute "th" or "d".
  • Quotation marks „…“; decimal comma, period for thousands; dates "17. október 2026"; 24-hour clock ("kl. 17:30"); currency "12,50 kr.".
  • Months, days, and nationalities are lowercase.
  • Gender-inclusive language is discussed in Iceland; neutral wording is preferred where possible.

Common pitfalls

  • Using English loanwords where an Icelandic term exists.
  • Not declining names and loanwords.
  • Using wrong case after prepositions.
  • Dropping or replacing Icelandic letters.

Learn more

  • Locale for BCP 47 identifiers, locale-sensitive formatting, pluralization, and text-direction concepts that apply across all locales.
  • Unicode Messageformat for writing plural/selection messages correctly for this locale's grammar.
  • Árni Magnússon Institute for Icelandic Studies (https://arnastofnun.is)
  • Málið.is (https://malid.is)

View locale-is-001/SKILL.md on GitHub