omistussõnu

Omistussõnu, a term originating from Estonian linguistics, refers to possessive suffixes. These suffixes are attached to nouns to indicate ownership or possession. Unlike possessive pronouns which stand alone, omistussõnu are bound morphemes that modify the noun they are attached to. This grammatical feature is common in many Finno-Ugric languages, including Estonian.

The primary function of omistussõnu is to convey whose something is. For example, in Estonian, adding a suffix to a noun like 'maja' (house) can indicate that the house belongs to someone. The specific suffix used often depends on the grammatical person (first, second, or third) and the number (singular or plural) of the possessor. They are a crucial element in forming possessive constructions and understanding the relationships between entities in a sentence.

The use of omistussõnu contributes to the agglutinative nature of the Estonian language, where multiple suffixes can be added to a root word to express various grammatical functions. These suffixes are not typically independent words and require a noun base to be meaningful. Their presence simplifies sentence structure by eliminating the need for separate possessive pronouns in many contexts, making the language more economical in its expression of possession.