sellaisille

Sellaisille is a Finnish grammatical form: it is the plural allative form of the demonstrative determiner sellainen, meaning such or that kind of. In Finnish, demonstratives inflect for number and case, and sellaisille marks “to/for such ones” when referring to multiple people or things. The form is commonly used with a following noun in plural that is in the allative case, or as a pronoun referring to a group.

Usage and examples: Sellaisille is used to indicate recipients or targets of an action or a state. For example, in the sentence Tätä palvelua tarjotaan sellaisille asiakkaille, “This service is offered to such customers,” sellaisille modifies asiakkaille, expressing “to such customers.” Another example: Sellaisille ihmisille on tärkeää saada tukea, “There is a need for support for such people.” The form can stand in for a noun phrase running in the allative with ellipsed reference, especially in formal or written Finnish.

Grammatical notes: Sellainen, the base form, means such. Its plural nominative is sellaiset, while the allative plural form is sellaisille. The allative suffix -lle broadly marks direction toward or for the referenced group. Sellaisille is therefore a member of the family of demonstratives that adapt to number and case to specify the scope of “such ones.”

Etymology: Sellaisille is derived from the demonstrative adjective sellainen plus the allative suffix -lle, used to express “to/for such [ones].” The construction is a standard feature of Finnish morphology.

See also: sellainen, tällainen, tuollainen, sellaiset.