finiittiseen

Finiittinen is a Finnish adjective meaning finite or limited, used primarily in technical contexts such as mathematics, computer science, and linguistics to describe objects or concepts with a defined, bounded extent. The illative singular form of the adjective is finiittiseen, which is used when the noun it modifies appears in the illative case, indicating movement into or toward a finite thing (for example, into a finite state).

In practice, finiittinen appears in phrases governing finite entities. Common compounds include finiittinen automaatti (finite automaton), finiittinen kieli (finite language), and finiittinen joukko (finite set). These terms are standard in descriptions of formal languages, automata theory, and related areas. The concept contrasts with ideas of infinity or unboundedness, which are more often described using other Finnish terms such as ääretön (infinite).

Etymology traces finiittinen to the Latin finis, through the Finnish word formation that yields the -inen adjective suffix. The illative form finiittiseen reflects Finnish morphology, where adjectives agree with the case and number of the noun they modify. While finiittinen is common in scholarly Finnish, everyday language tends to express the same ideas with less specialized wording, such as “rajoitettu” (restricted) or “käsitteellisesti rajallinen” (conceptually bounded) when appropriate.

See also: finite automaton, finite set, finite language, Finnish grammar.