Tulkinnan

Tulkinnan is the genitive singular form of the Finnish noun tulkinta, which means interpretation, rendering, or reading. It denotes the act or result of explaining the meaning of something, such as a text, data, a law, or a situation. The concept is used across disciplines to describe how meaning is inferred, explained, or decided from available information.

The word derives from the verb tulkita, to interpret, explain, or translate. In Finnish, tulkinta and its inflected forms appear in many academic, professional, and everyday contexts. Common phrases include tulkinnan kohteena (the subject of interpretation) and tulkinnan perusteet (the basis or criteria for interpretation). Because tulkinta covers both broad and specific senses of meaning, tulkinnan is frequently employed to indicate a relationship of interpretation to another entity or process.

In practice, tulkinnan is used in various fields:

- Law and policy, where statutory or contractual interpretation is analyzed and justified.

- Literature and humanities, where texts are read for meaning, themes, and contextual significance.

- Science and data analysis, where observed results are interpreted to draw conclusions.

- Language and translation studies, where interpretation is distinguished from literal translation and culturally informed understanding.

As a grammatical form, tulkinnan is often seen in phrases that express ownership or relation, such as “tulkinnan perusteet” or “tulkinnan kohteena oleva asia.” It functions as a key term in discussions about how meanings are constructed, contested, or agreed upon in different contexts.