Re: Mini-lesson - Ordinal Numbers

Thanks Haukur for this mini-lesson. It's useful to know some bases
on how to use numbers in ON. But before posting my version of the
end of the story, there are some little things that I don't
understand.

-Is it possible that numbers appear in dative or genetive case?
-In the sentence : "Menn Eiríks vega einn manna Óláfs" why the
first "menn" is not in genetive case? I know that it is them who
accomplish the action, so it is correct that "menn" is in
nonimative, but genetive case apply also, isn't it? And can we
write "menninir" (or "mannanna" in gen.) because we already "know"
them. And finally the second "manna" shouldn't be in singular as
there is only one man killed by Eirik's men?
-I suppose that "bæði" is the nom. sing. of "báðir" (both), but if
that is correct, why is not "bæðr"?

sorry for my little ignorance :)))

--- In norse_course@yahoogroups.com, haukurth@... wrote:
> Mini-lesson - Ordinal Numbers
>
>
> GRAMMAR
>
> Numbers are quirky things. In Old Norse the first four ordinal
> numbers are declined in cases, genders and numbers. The rest are
> not declined at all.
>
> The nominative and accusative singular masculine of the declined
> ordinals are as follows.
>
> nom. einn tveir þrír fjórir
> acc. einn tvá þrjá fjóra
>
> Numbers are often used with the partitive genitive; represented in
> English by "of".
>
> tveir þeira = two of them
> tveir manna Hauks = two of Haukr's men
>
> Sometimes the numeral 'einn' is used as an indefinite article
>
> Hér er EINN maðr.
> Here is A man. / Here is ONE man.
>
>
>
> VOCABULARY
>
> Numerals
>
> Declined:
>
> einn = one
> tveir = two
> þrír = three
> fjórir = four
>
> Not declined:
>
> fimm = five
> sex = six
> sjau = seven
> átta = eight
> níu = nine
> tíu = ten
>
>
> Adjectives
>
> helgr = holy
> vándr = bad (more or less same as 'illr')
>
>
>
> EXERCISES
>
> 1. Translate the following.
>
> Hér eru tveir menn. Þeir heita Óláfr ok Eiríkr.
> Er Óláfr helgr maðr ok góðr mjök en Eiríkr er bæði
> vándr ok illr. Er Eiríkr sér Óláf vill hann hann vega.
> Eiríkr hefir tíu menn en Óláfr fjóra. Óláfr vegr tvá
> manna Eiríks. Menn Eiríks vega einn manna Óláfs. Nú vilja
> sumir flýja því at þeir eru ragir. Tveir manna Eiríks
> flýja. Þá hefir Eiríkr sex menn en Óláfr þrjá.
>
> 2. Make up the end of the story in Old Norse.
>
>
>
> REAL TEXT
>
> The following is from the Icelandic book of homilies; one of the
> oldest extant Icelandic texts.
>
> - - -
> Tvá sonu átti inn fyrsti maðr Adam, ok var annarr
> þeira góðr en annarr vándr. Abel var góðr, en Kain vándr.
>
> Þrír váru synir Nóa í örkinni með honum. Váru tveir góðir,
> en einn var vándr. Sem ok Jafet vóru góðir, en Kam var illr.
>
> Tvá sonu átti Abraham, ok var annarr góðr, en annarr illr.
> Ísak var góðr, en Ismael illr.
>
> Átti Ísak ok tvá sonu. Var annarr góðr, en annarr vándr.
> Er Jakob góðr ok inn helgasti maðr, en Esau vándr.
> - - -
>
> Glossary
>
> synir (nom. pl.) = sons
> sonu (acc. pl.) = sons
> inn fyrsti = the first
> inn helgasti = the holiest
> í örkinni = in the ark
> var, váru = was, were (an older form of 'var' is 'vas')
> annarr = one of two