yhteenliittyvyys

Yhteenliittyvyys is a Finnish term used to describe the property of being able to be joined or unified with other objects under a defined operation or relation. The word combines yhteen (together) and liittyvyys (connectivity or relation), and in Finnish scholarly language it denotes a criterion of compatibility or joinability.

In mathematics and logic the concept often refers to the possibility of combining structures in a coherent way. In lattice or algebraic contexts, elements or substructures are said to be yhteenliittyviä if there exists a join or least upper bound that contains both. In model theory or category theory, the term is used to describe an amalgamation-like property: given structures that share a common substructure, there exists a larger structure into which the originals can be embedded so that their embeddings agree on the shared part. This form of yhteenliittyvyys ensures that disparate components can be consistently combined.

In computer science and systems engineering, yhteenliittyvyys describes the ability of components, modules, or services to be composed into a larger system without conflicts, usually through compatible interfaces and data formats. It underpins practices such as modular design, plug-in architectures, and service-oriented or microservice approaches.

Examples include merging two data schemas via a shared base schema, combining two software libraries with a common interface, or integrating grammars or parsers under a single coherent parsing framework.

See also: amalgamation, unification, integration, composability.