Seurattaessa

Seurattaessa is a Finnish adverbial participle derived from the verb seurata, meaning to follow or observe. It functions as a non-finite clause marker that expresses a concurrent circumstance in relation to the main clause, roughly equivalent to “while following” or “in following.” The form is most common in formal or written Finnish, such as manuals, regulations, and descriptive or explanatory texts, and is less frequent in everyday speech.

Formation and form: Seurattaessa is the adverbial participle formed with the suffix -ttaessa, attached to the verb stem of seurata. This creates a clause that describes an action occurring at the same time as the action in the main clause. Finnish has several adverbial participles with similar -essa/-essa formations, but seurattaessa specifically denotes the act of following or observing in parallel with another action.

Usage: The construction introduces a circumstance under which the main clause occurs. For example: “Seurattaessa sovittuja ehtoja toimitus eteni suunnitelman mukaan.” (If the agreed conditions are followed, the delivery progressed as planned.) Another example: “Seurattaessa henkilötietojen käsittelyä on noudatettava tietosuoja-asetuksia.” (When handling personal data, the data protection regulations must be followed.) The phrasing emphasizes that the sequencing or outcome depends on the following of prescribed rules or conditions.

See also and notes: Seurattaessa is part of a broader set of Finnish non-finite adverbial participles used to indicate concomitant actions. In practice, it appears mainly in formal writing and may be substituted by clearer subordinate clauses (for example, “kun seurataan …”) in conversational language.