Asutakse

Asutakse is an Estonian verb form used in the passive voice. It conveys that an action of founding, establishing, or settling has taken place without naming the agent responsible. In English, it is commonly rendered as “is established,” “is founded,” or “is settled,” depending on the context.

Grammatical notes about asutakse relate to Estonian passive formation. The passive present tense is produced by attaching a suffix to the verb stem, and asutakse is the form that typically appears with verbs linked to founding or settling actions. In this construction, the focus is on the occurrence of the action and its result, rather than on who carried it out. The agent remains unspecified, which is common in historical or descriptive passages.

Usage of asutakse tends to appear in historical, geographical, and institutional descriptions. It is used when noting that a settlement, city, or organization came into being at a particular time or place, or when stating that a place is located at a site without attributing the relocation or establishment to a specific individual or group. The phrasing emphasizes the event itself and its outcome rather than the actors involved.

Related terms in Estonian include asutamine (the act of establishing), asutus (an establishment or institution), and asustus (settlement). The noun form asutus is used for a formal establishment, whereas asutamine refers to the act of founding. These terms share the same semantic field of creation and placement of organizational or geographic entities.