Formation and declension of loanwords that end in -ík

Gerð og beyging fleirkvæðra orða sem enda á -ík

Abstract

This article deals with Icelandic polysyllabic nouns of Greek-Latin origin that end in –ík, for example epík ‘epic’, keramík ‘ceramic’, and klassík ‘classic’. The oldest loan
words were borrowed from Danish via German, but in recent decades they have most likely entered Icelandic through English. The main research question in this article
concerns declension: how are these nouns declined in the genitive form? As feminine nouns, the words in question follow the same pattern as the monosyllabic, feminine
noun vík. Thus, as vík, polysyllabic -ík nouns have the ending -ur in genitive singular. However, the ending -ar is also possible in many instances. In this paper, it is argued
that the -ík ending has triggered the gender and consequently the declension of the words in question. Finally, the paper addresses the question whether -ík should be
understood as an ending or as a part of the stem. As the ending -ík is not productive in the formation of new Icelandic words it is concluded that the latter is more likely.