Aluksi

Aluksi is a Finnish adverb meaning “at the outset” or “initially.” It signals the first phase of a process or sequence and is used in both narrative and explanatory writing to mark what happens at the beginning before later steps.

Grammatically, aluksi is an invariable adverb and does not change with person, number, or tense. It typically appears at the start of a clause to set the scene: “Aluksi teimme X, sen jälkeen Y.” It can be used with different tenses and is often contrasted with later markers such as lopuksi (“finally”) or myöhemmin (“later”).

Examples:

Aluksi sää oli sateinen, mutta myöhemmin paistoi aurinko.

Aluksi tutustuimme asiakkaiden tarpeisiin, ja sen jälkeen kehitimme ratkaisun.

Aluksi harjoittelu tuntui vaikealta, mutta lopulta se sujui paremmin.

Etymology: aluksi is derived from the noun alkus or alkua, meaning “beginning,” combined with an adverbial formation to express “in the beginning” or “initially.” The word is widely used in written and spoken Finnish to structure timelines and arguments.