varhaisimpien

Varhaisimpien is a Finnish grammatical form meaning “of the earliest ones.” It is the genitive plural form of the superlative adjective varhaisin, which translates roughly as “the earliest.” The word is used to refer to the earliest items or groups within a larger set and is typically followed by a noun in the genitive case.

In practice, varhaisimpien appears when describing or attributing something to the earliest members of a group. For example, varhaisimpien lähteiden mukaan means “according to the earliest sources,” and varhaisimpien tutkimusten perusteella means “based on the earliest studies.” The construction signals that the referenced items are at the beginning or earliest stage of a sequence.

Morphologically, varhaisimpien is formed from the base varhaisin (the earliest) with the comparative/superlative form, and the genitive plural ending -ien. This pattern is common for adjectives that describe groups or sets and is used to link to a following noun that is in genitive, such as lähteiden, tutkimusten, or aikalaispiirien.

Usage notes: varhaisimpien is primarily a descriptive tool in historical, scholarly, or literary writing. It does not denote a specific, separate concept but rather marks a relation to the earliest items within a set. Its exact meaning depends on the nouns it accompanies.

See also: varhaisin, varhaisimmat, genitive plural noun phrases in Finnish, such as varhaisimpien lähteiden.