m.is

The Árni Magnússon Institute for Icelandic Studies has, for years, developed and nurtured tools and databases that support the Icelandic language. These solutions, such as the dictionary and the inflectional description, have evolved over time, each on its own terms. To strengthen Icelandic in the digital world, the Institute and the Ministry of Culture teamed up to make these tools accessible in one place.

Kolibri went on visits to primary and secondary schools to interview and explore the needs of students and teachers. It quickly became clear that young people and non-native speakers generally do not turn to the most robust Icelandic language solutions online. This was due to fragmented solutions, difficulties in discovering them, and old traditions in how results are presented.

Kolibri designed a web interface with a fresh and modern brand identity, working closely with experts from the Árni Magnússon Institute and the Ministry. The branding draws inspiration from traditional dictionaries while blending it with the aesthetics of modern web solutions. The interface leverages the wealth of information found in dictionaries and databases while reimagining how searches are conducted and how information is presented.

The Árni Magnússon Institute was responsible for development and integration with its language databases. Development was carried out in collaboration with Kolibri’s designers, who also conducted user testing. M.is will be further developed, and is already designed to support the further evolution of new and existing language technology solutions from the Institute and market players. The result is a solution that strengthens the Icelandic language and makes it more accessible to non-native speakers.