Icelandic typing practice
Touch type Icelandic in your browser for free: Smart Lessons from Icelandic words, Icelandic books to type, and the keys for ð, þ, æ, ö and á to ý on Icelandic, US and UK keyboards.
What you can practise
Smart Lessons in Icelandic
Real Icelandic words, built around your slowest key. You start on six keys, and Icelandic's own letters join as the others come up to speed.
The Icelandic alphabet
Every letter in order against the clock, with how to type each Icelandic letter on your keyboard.
Typing games in Icelandic
Pilot and Spaceship: steer through the gaps or shoot down enemy ships by typing Icelandic words.
6 Icelandic books
Classic Icelandic books, out of copyright, typed a passage at a time.
Icelandic letters
Icelandic has ten letters beyond a to z. Six are accented vowels, á, é, í, ó, ú and ý, each a letter of its own with its own sound; the others are ð (eth), þ (thorn), æ and ö. Þ starts some of the commonest words, "það" (it), "þú" (you), "þetta" (this), and ð ends many more, such as "með" (with) and "góð" (good).
An Icelandic keyboard gives ð, æ, þ and ö keys of their own: Ð right of P, Æ right of L, Þ at the end of the bottom row and Ö right of 0. The accented vowels are a dead key ´, right of Æ, then the vowel. On a US or UK keyboard, US-International makes ' the acute dead key and puts ð, þ and æ on AltGr+D, AltGr+T and AltGr+Z; ö is Shift+' then O.
On an Icelandic keyboard
Windows: Icelandic · macOS: Icelandic · Linux: Icelandic
Add it in Windows under Settings > Time & language > Language & region, in macOS under System Settings > Keyboard > Input Sources, in Linux under Settings > Keyboard > Input Sources.
| Letter | Windows | macOS | Linux |
|---|---|---|---|
| á | ´then A | ´then A | ´then A |
| ð | Ð | Ð | Ð |
| é | ´then E | ´then E | ´then E |
| í | ´then I | ´then I | ´then I |
| ó | ´then O | ´then O | ´then O |
| ú | ´then U | ´then U | ´then U |
| ý | ´then Y | ´then Y | ´then Y |
| þ | Þ | Þ | Þ |
| æ | Æ | Æ | Æ |
| ö | Ö | Ö | Ö |
On a US or UK keyboard
Windows: United States-International · macOS: ABC – Extended · Linux: English (US, intl., with dead keys)
Add it the same way. On US-International ' and " become dead keys: type a space after one for the mark itself.
| Letter | Windows | macOS | Linux |
|---|---|---|---|
| á | 'then A | Option Ethen A | 'then A |
| ð | AltGr D | Option D | AltGr D |
| é | 'then E | Option Ethen E | 'then E |
| í | 'then I | Option Ethen I | 'then I |
| ó | 'then O | Option Ethen O | 'then O |
| ú | 'then U | Option Ethen U | 'then U |
| ý | 'then Y | Option Ethen Y | 'then Y |
| þ | AltGr T | Option T | AltGr T |
| æ | AltGr Z | Option ' | AltGr Z |
| ö | Shift 'then O | Option Uthen O | Shift 'then O |
Tips for typing Icelandic
The acute key ends the home row
´ sits right of Æ, at the far end of the home row, for the right little finger. Every á, é, í, ó, ú and ý is that key then the vowel, so drill words like "já", "ég" and "hús" until the two presses flow.
Þ is where / would be
Þ takes the bottom-row key that holds / on a US keyboard, under the right little finger. It begins "það", "þú" and "þetta", so it comes up constantly; practise reaching down to it and back.
Ö is up on the number row
Ö has the key right of 0, a long stretch for the right little finger. Keep the hand anchored on the home row and come straight back after it.
On a US keyboard the accent is '
With US-International the acute is the ' key, already under the right little finger, so á is ' then A. For an apostrophe on its own, type a space after it.