Jatkoviiva

Jatkoviiva, meaning "continuation dash" in Finnish, is a punctuation mark used in Finnish typography to indicate a deliberate break or pause in a sentence, or to set off an abrupt or supplementary clause. It is the Finnish analogue to the English em dash in many contexts, though exact usage can vary by style guide and medium.

Use and function: Jatkoviiva is employed to emphasize the second part of a sentence, to replace parentheses or commas for effect, and to signal a sudden shift in thought or a closing remark. It can enclose commentary or interruptions or mark a dramatic pause. In practice, its placement and spacing around the dash vary by publisher and by the conventions of digital versus print media.

Form and typographic conventions: In digital typography jatkoviiva is typically rendered as the em dash (Unicode U+2014) or its local typographic variant, depending on font and platform. It is longer than a hyphen or an en dash and is not used to join words (unlike the hyphen). Spacing around the dash also varies: some styles place no spaces on either side, while others use spaces for readability, especially in online text.

Relation to other marks: The jatkoviiva is distinct from the hyphen, which joins words or word parts, and from the en dash, which denotes ranges or connections between numbers and dates. It shares with the em dash the function of signaling interruptions, clarifications, or abrupt syntactic shifts, but Finnish usage can have specific typographic preferences.

Notes: As with many punctuation marks, the precise rules for jatkoviiva can differ between publishers and style guides. When writing for a particular outlet, refer to its editorial guidelines to determine preferred spacing and punctuation treatment.