saakka

Saakka is a Finnish postposition used to express the upper bound of a range, typically meaning up to or until. It functions in time and in space expressions and is generally placed after the preceding phrase, which is inflected as required by Finnish grammar.

In time use, saakka marks the endpoint of a duration or a deadline. Common examples include kello kahdeksaan saakka or kahteen saakka, meaning until eight o’clock or up to two o’clock. Other frequent forms are yöhön saakka (into the night) and kaksi viikkoa saakka (for up to two weeks). Saakka can also appear with starting points to indicate a span from a point onward, such as koulusta saakka (from school onward).

In spatial or quantitative usage, saakka denotes extent or reach. For instance, viisi kilometriä saakka can mean up to five kilometers. It can also appear in more general phrases such as kaupungin keskustasta saakka to indicate an extent from a location, though the exact phrasing depends on the surrounding context.

Saakka is an indeclinable postposition, meaning it does not change form. The surrounding noun or numeral is inflected as required by the sentence (for example, kahdeksaan, kahteen, kahteen saakka), while saakka itself remains constant. It is closely related in meaning to the more formal or neutral asti; in many contexts the two can be interchangeable, though saakka can carry a slightly broader sense of continuing up to an endpoint.

See also: Finnish postpositions, asti, alkaen.