Teitittelystä

Teitittelystä refers to teitittely, the formal or polite form of address in Finnish. It involves addressing the addressee with the pronoun te and using the corresponding verb forms (second-person plural), rather than the informal sinä forms. It serves to express respect, social distance, or professional courtesy. Teitittely is common in encounters with strangers, elders, officials, service staff, and in written communications such as letters, forms, and public notices. In many contexts, teitittely remains standard in customer service, government offices, healthcare, and schools when addressing those not personally known to the speaker; it may be used with titles such as herra, rouva, neiti, or with professional roles.

The use of teitittely is historical and sociolinguistic; it reflected social hierarchies and distance. Since the late 20th century, Finnish speakers have shifted toward more casual speech in many settings, leading to more widespread sinuttelu, especially among younger people and among colleagues. Nevertheless, teitittely remains common in formal settings, when there is an uncertainty about the appropriate level of familiarity, or when addressing someone older or in a position of authority.

Grammatically, teitittely uses the pronoun te and verbs in the second-person plural form (for example, olette, voitte). Imperatives such as olkaa hyvä or olkaa hiljaa are typical polite commands.

When in doubt, start with teitittely; if the other person invites you to switch to sinuttelu, you can adjust.