julkinen

Julkinen is a Finnish adjective meaning public, open to or concerning the general population, as opposed to private. It is used to describe institutions, spaces, discourse, or information that are accessible to everyone or financed by the public sector. The related noun julkisuus conveys the idea of publicity or public character, while julkinen often appears in compounds to form terms such as julkinen sektori or julkinen tiedote.

Usage: Common phrases include julkinen sektori (public sector), julkinen tila (public space), julkinen keskustelu (public discussion), and julkinen tiedote (press release). In legal and administrative language you may encounter julkinen hallinto (public administration) and julkiset hankinnat (public procurement). It can also modify descriptions of events or information that is intended for all citizens, for instance julkinen kuuleminen (public hearing).

Grammar: Julkinen is a regular Finnish adjective and is declined to agree with the noun it modifies in number and case (for example, nominative singular julkinen talo; genitive singular julkisen talon). It is not gendered. It may appear predicatively with the noun omitted, as in tila on julkinen (the space is public).

Etymology and related terms: The word is native Finnish and derives from the concept of visibility and accessibility; a closely related noun is julkisuus, meaning publicity or public character. See also related terms such as yksityinen (private) and public-sector vocabulary.