Syvimmän

Syvimmän is a Finnish grammatical form meaning “the deepest.” It is the genitive singular of the superlative adjective syvin, which itself is derived from syvä, meaning deep. As a form, syvimmän is not a standalone noun; it is an inflected adjective used to modify a noun in the genitive singular.

In practice, syvimmän is used when the noun it describes is in the genitive case. For example, syvimmän meren pohja means “the bottom of the deepest sea,” and syvimmän järven pohja means “the bottom of the deepest lake.” The structure can be extended to other geographic or figurative expressions, such as syvimmän vuoren huippu, “the summit of the deepest mountain.” The head noun (pohja, huippu) remains in the nominative in such phrases, while the possessive idea is conveyed by the preceding genitive noun (meren, järven, vuoren).

When the noun is not in genitive, the base superlative form syvin is used, e.g., syvin meri for “the deepest sea.” The use of syvimmän is most common in descriptive, literary, or formal contexts where a genitive construction is required.

Etymology and relation to other forms: syvimmän derives from the adjective syvin (deepest), which in turn comes from syvä (deep). Finnish adjectives change form to agree with the case and number of the noun they modify; syvimmän reflects genitive singular agreement with its associated noun.

See also: Finnish grammar, adjectives, comparative and superlative forms, genitive case.