Ferskeytlan — finish the Icelandic verse
The ferskeytla is Iceland's beloved four-line verse form, recited over coffee, at family gatherings and in radio contests for centuries. It follows strict rules of rhyme and alliteration. In this game you get the first half of a verse and pick the ending that obeys the rules.
The rules of the form
- Line 3 rhymes with line 1, and line 4 rhymes with line 2.
- Two words in line 3 must alliterate with the first stressed word of line 4, which is called the höfuðstafur (head stave).
- A consonant alliterates with itself, all vowels alliterate with each other, and the clusters sk, sp and st only match themselves.
How to play
- Read the first half of the verse.
- Four endings are offered. Only one follows all the rules; the others break either the rhyme or the alliteration.
- Pick one. A wrong pick tells you exactly what broke, so you learn the craft as you play.
All the verses are written for Kokomo, so you will not have seen them anywhere else.
What rules does a ferskeytla have to follow?
A ferskeytla is a four line Icelandic verse and three rules apply at once. Line three rhymes with line one and line four with line two. Two words in line three must alliterate, meaning they begin with the same sound. The head letter at the very start of line four must carry that same sound.
That is why the wrong endings are rarely obvious. An ending can rhyme perfectly and fail on alliteration, or alliterate correctly and rhyme wrongly, and the game tells you exactly which rule broke. Vowels alliterate with each other in Icelandic, any vowel with any other, while the clusters sp, st and sk alliterate only with themselves. The verses are written for Kokomo rather than taken from tradition, and the bank holds 74 of them. One appears each day with four possible endings to choose from.
Frequently asked questions
- What is a ferskeytla?
- A ferskeytla is the classic Icelandic four-line verse form: lines 1 and 3 rhyme, lines 2 and 4 rhyme, and the lines are bound together by alliteration. Icelanders have composed them for centuries.
- What are stuðlar and höfuðstafur?
- They are the alliteration pillars of Icelandic verse. Two words in the third line (the stuðlar) must share their initial sound with the first stressed word of the fourth line (the höfuðstafur). Vowels all count as one sound, and sk, sp and st only match themselves.
- Can a learner play Ferskeytlan?
- It is a challenge, but every wrong choice explains exactly which rule it broke, so the game doubles as a small course in Icelandic verse craft.