Kirjallisen

Kirjallisen is a Finnish grammatical form that functions as the genitive singular of the adjective kirjallinen, which means literary or written. In Finnish, adjectives agree with the nouns they modify in case and number, so when kirjallinen describes a noun in the genitive case, it takes the form kirjallisen. This form is used to attribute the property of being literary or written to the noun that follows in genitive.

The word originates from the stem kirja, meaning book, combined with the adjectival suffix -llinen. The resulting form införs a relationship of possession or attribution within a noun phrase, and is not a standalone noun. It is commonly encountered in discussions of literature, publishing, and textual analysis, where the quality of belonging to the literary domain is being described.

Usage examples illustrate typical contexts. Kirjallisen teoksen kansi means the cover of the literary work. Kirjallisen maailman tropeja conveys the tropes of the literary world. Kirjallisen kulttuurin kehitys refers to the development of literary culture. In each case, kirjallisen modifies a following noun in genitive, aligning the phrase with standard Finnish adjective declension patterns.

Notes on interpretation emphasize that kirjallisen is used to characterize the modified noun as pertaining to literature or written production, rather than standing as an independent lexical item. It frequently appears in academic writing, literary criticism, library catalogs, and publishing discourse, where precise attribution of literary nature to objects or concepts is required. See also Finnish grammar, adjective declension, and genitive constructions in Finnish.