kulkiessa

Kulkiessa is a Finnish adverbial participle form derived from the verb kulkea (to go or walk). It expresses that the action of the main clause occurs at the same time as the action described by the participle, and is typically translated as “while walking” or “as one walked.” The form is created by attaching the suffix -essa to the verb stem; for kulkea the resulting form is kulkiessa.

In use, kulkiessa functions to set a scene or provide background detail without creating a separate clause. The subject of the participle is usually the same as the subject of the main clause, though Finnish allows variations in more complex sentences. The participial phrase is often set off from the main clause by a comma, especially when it comes before the main clause, but commas are common after the phrase as well in longer sentences. Examples include: “Kulkiessa kaupungin halki, hän huomasi kahvilan.” and “Hän huomasi kahvilan kulkiessaan kaupungin halki.” These illustrate how the action in the participle clause describes the manner or circumstance of the main action.

Kulkiessa is most common in written Finnish, including narrative prose and descriptive passages. It is part of a broader set of adverbial participles formed with -essa/-ossa and related suffixes, which convey simultaneous or conditional actions without creating finite subordinate clauses. In everyday speech, speakers may instead use independent clauses or other constructions, but kulkiessa remains a standard idiom in formal or literary contexts.

See also: adverbial participle, kulkea, -essa/-ossa participial forms.