Enemmistöstä

Enemmistöstä is the elative case form of the Finnish noun enemmistö, meaning “the majority.” It literally conveys the idea of movement from or reference to the majority and is used to indicate origin, source, or a point of comparison relative to the group identified as the majority. The elative suffix in Finnish is -stä (or -stä after front vowels), so the form enemmistöstä is produced by adding this suffix to enemmistö.

In practice, enemmistöstä appears in formal or written Finnish to express phrases such as enemmistöstä poiketen, meaning “in deviation from the majority” or “contrary to the majority.” It is common in political, legal, and analytical writing when contrasting a minority view or an exception with what most people think or decide. For example: Päätös tehtiin enemmistöstä poiketen, indicating that the decision went against the majority. Another use is to situate a statement or finding relative to the majority, for instance describing opinions that differ from the majority’s stance.

Related forms of enemmistö are used to express different grammatical roles (for example, inessive enemmistössä = in the majority, partitive enemmistöä = a portion of the majority). Enemmistöstä is thus a specific case form that helps speakers and writers make nuanced comparisons and refer to the majority as a source or reference point.

Notes: While commonly found in formal Finnish, enemmistöstä is not a standalone concept beyond its grammatical use; its meaning depends on context and surrounding wording.