Genitiivivorm

Genitiivivorm, literally the genitive form, is the grammatical form used to mark possession and related relations in languages that employ the genitive case. In linguistics, the genitive case signals a close relationship between two nouns, such as ownership, part-whole connections, origin, or description. The exact realization of the genitive varies by language, often appearing as a suffix on the governed noun or as a prepositional phrase.

In Finnish, where the term is most commonly discussed, the genitive form (genetiivi) is used to express possession and related relations. The form of the genitive depends on the noun’s stem and phonology; singular genitive endings typically include -n (for example talo → talon, kissa → kissan, lapsi → lapsen). Plural genitive forms are more diverse (for example talot → talojen, kissa → kissojen, lapsi → lasten), reflecting Finnish stem and vowel harmony rules. The genitive is also used in noun phrases to indicate ownership, as in pojan kirja (the boy’s book) or talon ovi (the door of the house).

Outside Finnish, the genitive is a common feature in many languages. Latin, for instance, uses liberi pueri (the books of the boys); German often renders possession as des Hauses Tür (the door of the house) with articles showing the case; English typically uses 'of' or the possessive ’s. While the surface forms differ, the genitive serves a similar function across languages: to express ownership, association, or measurement.

See also: genitive case, Finnish grammar, possessive constructions.