passiiviloppu

Passiiviloppu is a term used in Finnish linguistics to describe the set of suffixes that mark the passive voice on finite verbs in certain Finnic languages. It refers to an inflectional ending (loppu) attached to the verb stem to indicate that the action is carried out without an explicit agent or by an unspecified agent. The passiiviloppu forms part of the verb’s conjugation and is contrasted with active forms.

Morphology of the passiiviloppu is suffixal and often shows variation (allomorphy) depending on phonology, stem class, tense, and mood. In Finnish, several passive endings exist, and their choice aligns with phonological rules such as vowel harmony and consonant gradation. The passive forms created by the passiiviloppu typically function without an overt agent, allowing the speaker to foreground the action or its result. The passiiviloppu interacts with other parts of the grammar, including negation and aspect, and may be used alongside or in contrast with periphrastic passive constructions that employ auxiliary verbs.

In usage, the passiiviloppu provides a means to obliquely reference events or states, enabling statements about actions where the actor is unknown, irrelevant, or intentionally left unmentioned. It is a key feature of the finite verb’s inflectional paradigm in languages that employ suffixal passives and is a focus of descriptive studies within Finnish grammar and, more broadly, Finno-Ugric linguistics.

Cross-linguistically, languages outside the Finnic family may have analogous passive endings or other strategies for signaling voice changes. In Finnish-language descriptions, the term passiiviloppu is used to refer specifically to these passive-suffix phenomena, while other languages may use different terminology for similar constructions.