genetiivistä

Genetiivistä refers to the genitive case in Finnish grammar (genetiivi). The genitive is used to indicate possession or a close, inherent relationship between two nouns, as well as to express origin or characteristic in some constructions. In everyday Finnish, the most visible use is to show ownership: kissan talo means “the cat’s house” and talon ovi means “the door of the house.” The possessor noun is put in the genitive, while the possessed noun usually remains in the nominative.

Form and agreement

In standard Finnish, the genitive singular is formed by adding a suffix to the possessor noun, typically -n (kissa → kissan; talo → talon). The suffix is subject to regular phonological and vowel-harmony adjustments of Finnish noun-formation. The genitive plural is expressed with a different suffix, commonly -en or -ien, giving forms such as kissojen (of cats) and talojen (of houses). The exact form depends on the word’s stem and sound pattern. When multiple possessors are involved, the possessor phrase itself is in the genitive: kissan talojen ovi = the door of the cats’ houses.

Functions and usage

Beyond possession, genetiivi can express close association, description, or origin. It often appears in compound noun phrases naming a feature or material (esimerkiksi Suomen lippu = the flag of Finland; Suomen kieli = the Finnish language). The genitive is also used with numerals to indicate quantity in the possessor position (kolmen kissan talo = the house of three cats). In clauses, the genitive interacts with adjectives and other modifiers, and it is one of the core cases of Finnish grammar.

See also

Genetiivi (the genitive case), Finnish grammar, noun declension.