Finnish Language Characteristics
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Variant Forms of Words
In Finnish, as in English, the forms of some words will vary according to how they are used in a sentence. Who—whose—whom or marry—marries—married, are examples of words in English with variant forms.
As you read Finnish records, be aware that the endings of most words vary with usage. One word in Finnish often translates into English as two or more words. For example, talo (house) changes to talossa (in the house).
Plurals
Finnish indicates the plural of a word in two ways:
- "T" is added to nouns that have no other endings. For example, talo (house) becomes talot (houses).
- "I" is added if the noun has another ending. For example, talossa (in the house) becomes taloissa (in the houses).
Possessives
In addition to or instead of using words like my and theirs, Finnish adds endings to words to show possession. If a word already has another ending on it, the possessive ending appears at the end of the word. For example, see how possessives change the words talo (house) and talossa (in the house):
- his house - hänen talonsa
- in his house - hänen talossansa
See Table 1 for a more complete description of possessives.
Prepositions and Postpositions
In English, words like in, on, with, before, and after are prepositions. They come before the noun in sentence and show direction, location, or time, or introduce an object. For example,
- in the house
- on the desk
- with the meal
- to the car
- at the table
Depending on the various grammar rules, Finnish prepositions may appear in one of three ways:
- Before the noun. Ennen sotaa (before the war).
- After the noun (in this case, it is called a postposition). Sodan jälkeen (after the war).
- Added to the noun. Helsinki becomes Helsinkiin (into Helsinki).
Table 2 contains other examples.
Word endings
Endings are also added to words for other grammatical purposes. See Table 1 and Table 3 for other examples.
Spelling Changes
When an ending is added to a word, the consonants within that word may also change. Consider the following examples:
| Letters that Change | Examples |
|---|---|
| ht to hd | lahti to lahden |
| k to (nothing) | Ilmajoki to Ilmajoen |
| kk to k | kirkko to kirkon |
| lt to ll | ilta to illan |
| mp to mm | lampi to lammen |
| n to s | Heinonen to Heinosen |
| nk to ng | Helsinki to Helsingin |
| nt to nn | isäntä to isännn |
| p to v | orpo to orvon |
| pp to p | pappi to papin |
| rk to r | Turku to Turun |
| rt to rr | virta to virran |
| s to d or t | uusi to uuden, uuteen |
| tt to t | tyttö to tytön |
| uku to uvu | suku to suvun |
| vowel+t to vowel+d | iti to idin |
Tables
Possessive Endings
| Possessive and Ending | Meaning | Examples: talo (house), talossa (in the house) | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| minun, -ni | my | talo » minun taloni | house » my house |
| talo » minun talossani | house » in my house | ||
| sinun-, si | your (singular) | talo » sinun talosi | house » your house |
| talo » sinun talossasi | house » in your house | ||
| hänen, -nsa, -nsä or double vowel + n |
his, her | talo » hänen talonsa | house » his (her) house |
| talo » hänen talossansa | house » in his (her) house | ||
| talo » hänen talossaan | house » in his (her) house | ||
| meidän -mme | our | talo » meidän talomme | house » our house |
| talo » meidän talossamme | house » in our house | ||
| teidän, -nne | your (plural) | talo » teidän talonne | house » your house |
| talo » teidän talossanne | house » in your house | ||
| heidän, -nsa, -nsä or double vowel + n |
their | talo » heidän talonsa | house » their house |
| talo » heidän talossansa | house » in their house | ||
| talo » heidän talossaan | house » in their house |
Prepositional Endings on Nouns
| Ending | Basic Meaning | Example | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| -a, -ä, -ta, -tä | of, some | suku » sukua | family » of a family |
| -in | by means of, with | oma käsi » omin käsin | one’s own hands » with one’s own hands |
| -ine + a possessive ending (see Table 1) |
together with | lapsi » lapsinensa or lapsineen | child » together with his (her or their) children |
| -ksi | changed into, become | vaimo » otti vaimoksi | wife » took for a wife or became a wife |
| -lla, -llä | at, by, in | Tampere » Tampereella | Tampere » in (at) Tampere |
| -lle | to | Tampere » Tampereelle | Tampere » to Tampere |
| -lta, -ltä | from | Tampere » Tampereelta | Tampere » from Tampere |
| -n | of | talo » talon väki | house » people of the house |
| -na, -nä | as | lapsi » lapsena | child » as a child |
| -ssa, -ssä | in | Helsinki » Helsingissä | Helsinki » in Helsinki |
| double vowel + n | into | Helsinki » Helsinkiin | Helsinki » into Helsinki |
| -sta, -stä | from | Helsinki » Helsingistä | Helsinki » from Helsinki |
Other Word Endings
| Ending | Basic Meaning | Example | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| -t | forms a plural | talo » talot | house » houses |
| -ko, -k | indicates a question | Helsingissä » Helsingissäkö | in Helsinki » in Helsinki? |
| -ton | without, -less, un- | lapsi » lapseton | child » childless |
| -tta, -ttä | (on verbs) without | nähdä » näkemätt | to see » without seeing |
| -n, -t | shows a direct object | talo » näen talon | house » I see the house |
| talo » näen talot | house » I see the houses | ||
| -lla, -llä followed by a form of the verb olla (to be): on, ei ole, oli, ei ollut, on ollut, or ei ole ollut |
shows possession or ownership (to have) | Anna » Annalla on | Anna » Anna has |
| Anna Toivonen » Anna Toivosella oli | Anna Toivonen » Anna Toivonen had | ||
| minä » minulla on ollut | I » I have had | ||
| sinä » sinulla oli | you (singular) » you had | ||
| hän » hänellä oli | he/she » he/she had | ||
| me » meillä ei ole ollut | we » we have not had | ||
| te » teillä on | you (plural) » you have | ||
| he » heillä ei ole | they » they do not have |
References
Family History Department. Genealogical Word List: Finnish. Salt Lake City: Family History Department of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1997.