Rivillään

Rivillään is a Finnish adverbial phrase that describes the arrangement of people or objects as being in rows or in a line. It is commonly used in descriptive writing to convey orderly positioning, such as crowds, troops, students, or rows of houses.

Linguistically, rivillään is formed from the noun rivi (row, line) combined with a suffix pattern that marks the relation to the subject described, giving the sense of “in their rows” or “in rows.” The form emphasizes the organization and regularity of the arrangement rather than the location alone. It is typically used in narrative or descriptive contexts rather than in everyday casual speech.

In practice, rivillään appears in journalism, historical writing, and fiction to depict structured formations. For example, it can describe soldiers standing in formation, spectators arranged along a stadium or parade ground, or people lined up for an orderly activity. The phrase conveys a visual impression of uniformity and discipline and can carry connotations of collective effort or ritual.

Related expressions include rivi (row) and rivistö (a line or array of buildings or objects). Rivillään contrasts with forms such as rivissä, which more directly denotes “in a row” location, whereas rivillään focuses on the organized arrangement associated with the subject. The usage is standard in Finnish-language text and is most common in descriptive or reportage writing.