Kovuuden

Kovuuden is the genitive form of the Finnish noun kovuus, which denotes hardness, toughness, or severity. In standard Finnish, kovuus refers to the quality or state of being hard or firm, and kovuuden is used when expressing possession or a relationship to that quality, for example in phrases like metallit kovuuden mittaaminen or kiven kovuuden arvo.

Etymology and grammatical note: Kovuus comes from the adjective kova, meaning hard or strong, with the suffix -us forming a noun that signifies a quality. The genitive ending -n marks possession or association, so kovuuden literally means “the hardness of …” or “the hardness quality of ….” The word functions across domains as a general descriptor of a material’s physical resistance as well as a metaphorical toughness.

Usage: In materials science and engineering, kovuus is commonly used to talk about hardness, with kovuuden mittaaminen referring to the measurement of hardness (for example using hardness testers and scales). In everyday Finnish, kovuus can describe firmness or severity in non-physical senses, such as the kovuus of a policy, a performance, or a person’s demeanor. The term is often complemented by adjectives or measurements, for instance korkeata kovuutta (high hardness) or matalan kovuuden arvo (value of low hardness).

See also: kovuus (the base noun), kestävyys (durability), jäykkyys (stiffness), kovuuden mittaaminen (hardness measurement).