an attempted analysis of Finnish morphophonology

1. 1
Declensionofnouns and adjectives
Point 1: Basic case endings. The basiccase endingsare exactlythe same inbothsingularandplural with
the onlyexceptionsof the nominative,whichhasnoendinginthe singularandthe ending -tinthe
plural,andthe genitive,whichhasthe ending -n inthe singularand -en inthe plural. All singularcase
endingsplusthe nominative/accusativeplural ending-tare attached to the singularstem.All other
plural case endingsare attachedto the plural stem, where plural stem= singularstem+ plural i (taking
intoaccount certain changesprovokedbythe additionof plural i).The variantswith a are usedfor
wordswhichcontaina back vowel u, o,a. The variantswithä are usedforwordswhichdo not containa
back vowel u, o,a.
singularcase endings plural case endings
nominative – -t
genitive -n -en
partitive -a/-ä -a/-ä
accusative -n (= genitive) -t (= nominative)
illative -Vn(V = lengtheningof vowel) -in(V = alwaysi inthe plural)
inessive -ssa/-ssä -ssa/-ssä
elative -sta/-stä -sta/-stä
allative -lle -lle
adessive -lla/-llä -lla/-llä
ablative -lta/-ltä -lta/-ltä
essive -na/-nä -na/-nä
translative -ksi -ksi
abessive -tta/-ttä -tta/-ttä
instructive (-n) -n
comitative -ine- -(i)ne-
prolative -tse -tse
Table 1. Basic case endings.
Endingsthat seemtodifferfromthese basicendingsare merely modifications due tocertain
phonological environments. The declensiontablesthatfollow donotinclude the rare casesabessive,
instructive,comitativeandprolative whichcanbe formedregularlybysimplyattachingtheirendingsto
the stems.
Point 2: Vowel overview.
front back
close i,y u
half-close e,ö o
open ä a
Table 2. Finnishvowels.
Table 2 isverytellingwhenitcomestodescribingthe phenomenonof "vowel changes"provokedby i.i
isthe mark of the plural,the past tense andthe conditional,i.e.plural,pastandconditional stemsare
builtfromsingularstems/presentstemsbythe simpleadditionof i.Thisi is directlyaddedtothe

2. 2
roundedvowels u,y,o,ö withoutaffectingthematall (u + i –> ui, y + i –> yi, o + i –> oi, ö + i –> öi).The
remaining,unroundedvowels –includingiitself –are influencedtodifferentdegrees.Whenthe singular
stemof a nounor adjective orthe presentstemof a verbendsin e or ä,the additionof plural/pasti
expulses eor ä (e + i –> i, ä + i –> i). a, whichisfarthestawayfrom i, doesnotgive inso easily.
Sometimesitis expulsed(a +i –> i), sometimesitstaysbutgetspulledclosertowards iwhichhas the
effectthatitchangesto o (a + i –> oi).In verbal formsthere isthe tendencyfor i to have lessof an effect
than innominal forms. i itself isonlyaffectedinnominalforms(i+ i –> ei), inverbal formsitis
unaffected(i+ i –> i).e, ä, a behave the same inpast verbal formsas inplural nominal forms,butinthe
conditional both ä anda simplyadd i (ä + i –> äi, a + i –> ai) withonly e,beingclosestto i and unable to
escape its devastatingeffect,stillgettingexpulsed(e+i –> i). So one couldspeakof a firstloosening
effectinthe pasttense (i + i –> i) and a secondlooseningeffectinthe conditional (ä +i –> äi, a + i –> ai).
Point 3: u, y, o, ö – the free spirits. The roundedvowelsu,y, o,ö are alwaysstable andrefuse toreactto
attemptsat disturbingthem. The singularstemof nouns/adjectivesending inthese single vowelsis
identical tothe nominativesingular. The plural stemisformedbysimplyaddingplural ito the singular
stem(u + i –> ui,y + i –> yi,o + i –> oi,ö + i –> öi).So nominative talo hassingularstem talo- andplural
stemtaloi-,and all case endingsinbothsingularandplural are directlyattached tothe stems. Table 3
showsthe complete patternfor talo.
singular plural
nominative talo talot
genitive talon talojen
partitive taloa taloja
accusative talon talot
illative taloon taloihin
inessive talossa taloissa
elative talosta taloista
allative talolle taloille
adessive talolla taloilla
ablative talolta taloilta
essive talona taloina
translative taloksi taloiksi
Table 3. Declensionof nominativesendingin u,y,o,ö.
The seemingirregularitiesingenitive,partitiveandillative pluralare due toplural i andnot to the
roundedvowelsthemselves. Theywill be explainedlater.
Point 4: ä and a – the submissive andthe rebel. The openvowels ä anda are stable exceptincontact
withi. ä alwaysgivesinand disappearsincontactwith i (ä + i –> i), a sometimesdisappearsand
sometimeschangesto o (a + i –> i/a + i –> oi). Asa guideline fortwo-syllable words, a changestoo
whenthe vowel inthe firstsyllable isa,eor i, and a disappearswhenthe vowel inthe firstsyllableisu
or o (due tothe principle of vowelharmony there canbe no y, ö or ä inthe firstsyllable witha inthe
secondsyllable).Asanattempttounderstandthis phenomenonone mightsaythatthe relationship
betweenroundedvowelsand igoesin bothdirections,i.e.the roundedvowelsare notaffectedby

3. 3
plural i and inturn theydo not affectplural i either.So,ina wordlike muna,a isonits owninits
rebellionagainstplural iwithoutanysupportfromrounded u,andso a losesand getskickedoutof the
wordby i. On the other hand, a, e and i are all affectedbyplural iand so theirpresence inthe first
syllable mayabsorbsome of the effectof plural i.Thisenables a to stayin the word,but notcompletely
unaffected. Table 4illustratesthisphenomenon.
adessive singular adessive plural
matkalla matkoilla
herralla herroilla
kirjalla kirjoilla
koiralla koirilla
munalla munilla
Table 4. a reactingto plural i.
In almostall adjectivesandverbs andinmanynouns withmore thantwo syllables a isexpulsed byplural
i/past i (a –> i). Anexception (a –>oi) are the followingtypesof nouns:
- whenthe secondtolast syllable containsashort i, inwhichcase one mightargue that thisshort
i isparticularlygoodat absorbingthe effectof plural i,
- when a is precededbyshort l, n, r or by twoconsonants,inwhichcase one mightsay that these
consonants alsohave the abilitytoabsorbsome of the effectof plural i.
adessive singular adessive plural
lukijalla lukijoilla
omenalla omenoilla
sanontalla sanontoilla
kanava kanavilla
Table 5. a in three-syllablenouns.
There are exceptionstothese rulesandsome wordsmayevenhave parallel forms. Thismakes a the
vowel withthe mostunpredictable behaviouramongall Finnishvowels. Beingfarthestawayfrom i,a
triesto rebel against i butthe outcome is notalwayscertain.

4. 4
Nouns/adjectives inwhicha/ä dissappearshow the mostregularbehaviourinbothsingularandplural.
singular plural
nominative muna munat
genitive munan munien
partitive munaa munia
accusative munan munat
illative munaan muniin
inessive munassa munissa
elative munasta munista
allative munalle munille
adessive munalla munilla
ablative munalta munilta
essive munana munina
translative munaksi muniksi
Table 6. Declensionof nominativeson ä and nominatives ona witha disappearingbeforeplural i.
Nominativeson a witha changingtoo before plural i follow the patternoutlinedintable 3.
Point 5: i – the troublemaker.Asthe markof the plural,the pasttense andthe conditional, iattachesto
othervowelsand triestodisturb them.Asstated underpoints2 and 3, the roundedvowelsare immune
to disturbancescomingfrom i,but all unroundedvowels –includingiitself –are affected.Beyondthat, i
isalso unstable initself. Nouns/adjectivesof foreignorigineendingin iusuallykeepthe i forthe singular
stem,whereasmostFinnishnouns/adjectiveschange ito e.
singular singular
nominative sali järvi
genitive salin järven
partitive salia järveä
accusative salin järven
illative saliin järveen
inessive salissa järvessä
elative salista järvestä
allative salille järvelle
adessive salilla järvellä
ablative salilta järveltä
essive salina järvenä
translative saliksi järveksi
Table 7. Singulardeclensionsof nominativesendingin i.
Under the influence of plural i,the i of the singularstemchangesto e (i + i –> ei). Thisis the strangest
phenomenonamongall the vowelchangesanditonlyhappensinnominal forms,neverinverbal forms.
It parallelsthe change of nominative ito singularstem e(like injärvi–> järve-). Usuallyitis i that kicks
out e and here all of a suddenitis the otherway around. Itcan perhapsbe understoodbythe closeness
of i and e. e, beingthe closestneighbourto i among all unroundedvowels,isthe onlyone thatalways
getskickedoutby an attaching i inall situations (plural/past/conditional). Butdue totheircloseness i

5. 5
itself isnottotallyfree fromdisturbancescomingfrom e.Thisisthe "revenge of e".Ani comingfromthe
outside alwayskicksoutan e, but an i beingpart of a wordcan be attackedbyan e comingout of
nowhere andcan be kickedoutitself.Thisiswhathappens when nominativesof original Finnishwords
endingin i formtheirsingularstem (järvi–> järve-) andwhenall singularstemsendingin i formtheir
plural stems (sali+ i –> salei-).Table 8 showsthe complete patternforsali.
singular plural
nominative sali salit
genitive salin salien
partitive salia saleja
accusative salin salit
illative saliin saleihin
inessive salissa saleissa
elative salista saleista
allative salille saleille
adessive salilla saleilla
ablative salilta saleilta
essive salina saleina
translative saliksi saleiksi
Table 8. Declensionof nominativesendingin i– wordsof foreignorigin.
The boldformsin table 8 as well asin table 3 still have tobe explained,andnow the time hascome to
deal withthe seeminglyirregulargenitiveandpartitive pluralforms.The illativeplural will still have to
wait.
If i is surroundedbyothervowelsittriestohide and changestoj. Lessdramaticallyput,asequence of
three vowelswith iinthe middle (e.g. oie) isunstable.Insuchsituations ichangestoits relatedhalf-
vowel j andthe resultingsequenceisstable again(e.g. oje).Thisexplainsthe genitive andpartitiveplural
formsof talo in table 3 and the partitive plural of saliabove.
So the partitive plural of talo isformedasfollows:nominative+plural i + partitive ending=talo + i + a =
taloja withplural i changingto j between surroudingvowels.
The genetive plural of talo isformedaccordingly:nominative +plural i + genitive ending=talo + i + en =
talojen withplural i changingto j between surroundingvowels.
Idemforthe partitive plural of sali:nominative+plural i + partitive ending=sali + i + a = salei + a =
saleja.Here ithas to be rememberedthatsingularstem i+ plural i = ei as explained above.
The genitive plural of saliisformedinthe same way withjusta slight modification:nominative +plural i
+ genitiveending=sali + i + en = salei + en = salien, and notsalejen as one mightexpect. Asmentioned
before, eisthe vowel closestto iand the one thatmost easilysuccumbstothe disturbingeffectof i.In a
formlike talojen the original vowel sequenceis oie,so i is surroundedbytwovowelsone of whichis
rounded o againstwhich i iswithoutpower.Since avowel sequence of thiskindisunstableand i cannot
kickout o,i itself givesinand changestoitsrelatedhalf-vowelj producingthe stable sequenceoje.Ina

6. 6
formlike salien,however, the originalvowel sequenceis eie,withi beingsurrounded onbothsidesby
the vowel thatmosteasilygetskickedoutof wordsby i. Andthisis exactlywhathappens:the first egets
kickedoutand the resultis the stable sequence ie.
Nowa brief returnto järvi.Beinganoriginal Finnishword,järvihasthe singularstem järve-.Attaching
plural i to the singularstemkicksout e and givesthe plural stem järvi-.Table 9showsthe complete
pattern.
singular plural
nominative järvi järvet
genitive järven järvien
partitive järveä järviä
accusative järven järvet
illative järveen järviin
inessive järvessä järvissä
elative järvestä järvistä
allative järvelle järville
adessive järvellä järvillä
ablative järveltä järviltä
essive järvenä järvinä
translative järveksi järviksi
Table 9. Declensionof nominativesendingin i– original Finnishwords.
Nominativesof thistype showaveryregulardeclensionpatternwithall endingsbeingdirectlyattached
to the stemwithoutanymodifications.
Point 6: e – the darkhorse.Nouns/adjectivesendinginshort echange this e to longee in the singular
stem.Furthermore these wordsbehave asif theywere endinginaclosedsyllable,meaningthat
consonantsthatundergogradation (explained underpoint9) take theirweakformsinthe nominative
and theirstrongformswhenthe nominative isopenedbythe long ee.Daniel Abondoloclaimsthat
wordsendinginshort e are pronouncedwithaglottal stopat the end whichexplainstheirbehavinglike
beingclosed. Soone mightlookatthe nominative-genitivepairsade/sateenratherlike sade'/sateen,
where ' representsthe glottal stopandshowsthe closure of the lastsyllable. Underthe influenceof
plural i, ee changesto ei (e + i –> i andthus ee + i –> ei). Here is the complete patternfora nominative
singularendinginshorte:

7. 7
singular plural
nominative perhe perheet
genitive perheen perheiden
partitive perhettä perheitä
accusative perheen perheet
illative perheeseen perheisiin
inessive perheessä perheissä
elative perheestä perheistä
allative perheelle perheille
adessive perheellä perheillä
ablative perheeltä perheiltä
essive perheenä perheinä
translative perheeksi perheiksi
Table 10. Declensionof nominativesendingin e.
The boldformsin table 10 still have tobe explained.Allotherformsare producedregularlybydirect
attachmentof the case endingstosingularstem perhee- andplural stem perhei-.
Point 7: Double vowels –complete lossof individuality.Whateverindividualisticcharacteristicsthe
vowelsmayhave ontheirown,whentheyteamuptheyall behave prettymuch the same.All double
vowels–whetherlongvowelsordiphthongsorjusttwodifferentvowels –are stable inthe absence of
plural i.
In the presence of plural i:
- Long vowelslose the secondteammember: aa +i –> ai, ee + i –> ei, etc.
- Diphthongson i are unchanged:ai + i –> ai, oi + i –> oi, etc.
- The so-calledraisingdiphthongs ie,uo,yö lose the firstteammember: ie+ i –> ei, uo + i –> oi,
yö + i –> öi.
- Othervowel combinationslose the secondteammember: ue+ i –> ui, ye + i –> yi, etc.
Double vowelsprovoke certainchangesinthe basiccase endings,namelyforthe partitive singularand
plural,the illativesingularandplural andthe genitive plural.Asaquicklookat the case endingsintable
1 will show,these are exactlythe case endingswhichbeginwithavowel,all othersbeginwitha
consonant(the comitative isbuiltonplural iinboth singularandplural andfollowsthe usual rulesfor
the attachmentof plural i).Whena case endingbeginning withavowel isattachedtoa stemendingin
twovowelsthe resultwouldbe three vowelsinarow,e.g.nominative maa +partitive endinga =
partitive maaa?Since Finnishhasonlytwovowel quantities –longand short– such a sequence isnot
possible.Instead,aconsonantisinsertedbetweenstemandending.Forthe partitive (bothsingularand
plural) thisconsonantis t: maa + partitive endinga =maata.Forthe illative(bothsingularandplural)
the consonantis h: maa + illative endingan = maahan.Forthe genitive plural the consonantisd: mai +
genitive pluralending en = maiden.
Actually,the situationisnotreallythisstraightforward.The explanationwiththe impossibilitytohave
three equal vowelsinarowbreaksdownfor plural forms (andalsoforsingularformsendingintwo

8. 8
differentvowels).The plural stemof maa ismai-,sothe partitive plural couldbe formedfrom mai- +a =
maja,the illative plural couldbe mai- +in = maiin,the genitiveplural couldbe mai- +en = majen.maja
and majen looklike perfectlyacceptable forms, maiin alittle lessso. Itisindeed asmall stepfrom maiin
to maihin or from taloiin to taloihin.It wouldseemthatthe h hasthe taskto betterseparate the ending
fromthe stem. maiin couldbe pronounced ma-iin insteadof mai-in andthe h pointsclearly outthat the
breakhas to be between maiandin.
The situationis differentforthe partitive and genitive plural. The triggeringeventforpartitive plural-ta/
-tä and genitive plural-den isactuallythe longvowel inthe singularstem.Thisseemstobe a situation
where the language triestohomogenize itsformsandthishomogenizationoverridesinfluencescoming
fromspecificphonological environments.A longvowel inthe singularstemproducesthe partitive
singularon -ta/-tä andthisformentailsthe partitive pluralon -ta/-tä andthe genitive pluralon -den.By
the way,the genitiveplural ending -den canalwaysbe replacedby the equivalentending -tten.Itdoes
not seemtomatterwhichof the twoendingsisused.
Thisfinallyexplainsthe illativeplural of talo intable 3, the illative plural of saliintable 8 and the
partitive plural andgenitive pluralof perheintable 10.
There are,however,some furtherconsiderations.
For the illative:The illative singularendingis only -hVn (whereV standsforthe vowel inthe preceding
syllable)formonosyllabicstems endinginalongvowel.Forpolysyllabicstemsendinginalongvowel the
illative singularendingis-seen andthisendingalwaysentails the correspondingillative plural ending
-siin. Thisexplainsthe illative singularand illativeplural of perheintable 10. The illative plural ending -
hin isindependentof the illativesingularendingandisalwaysusedwhenthe plural stemendsintwo
vowels,unlessthe ending -siin isrequiredbythe illative singular -seen.
nominative illative singular illative plural
maa maahan maihin
vapaa vapaaseen vapaisiin
talo taloon taloihin
Table 11. Comparisonof illative endings.
For the partitive:The partitive plural endingis only -ta/-tä whenthe singularstemendsintwovowels.A
two-vowelplural stemwhichwasproducedfromasingle-vowelsingularstemisnotconvincingenough
to make partitive intermediate -tshowupinthe plural.
nominative singularstem partitive singular plural stem partitive plural
maa maa- maata mai- maita
talo talo- taloa taloi- taloja
Table 12. Comparisonof partitive endings.
For the genitive plural: Asalreadystatedabove,the genitive plural followsthe partitive anditsending
can onlybe -den/-ttenwhenthe partitiveplural hasthe ending-ta/-tä.

9. 9
nominative singularstem genitive singular plural stem genitive plural
maa maa- maan mai- maiden/maitten
talo talo- talon taloi- talojen
Table 13. Comparisonof genitiveendings.
Tables14 and 15 showthe complete declensions formaaandvapaa.
singular plural
nominative maa maat
genitive maan maiden/maitten
partitive maata maita
accusative maan maat
illative maahan maihin
inessive maassa maissa
elative maasta maista
allative maalle maille
adessive maalla mailla
ablative maalta mailta
essive maana maina
translative maaksi maiksi
Table 14. Declensionof monosyllabicnominativesendinginalongvowel.
singular plural
nominative vapaa vapaat
genitive vapaan vapaiden/vapaitten
partitive vapaata vapaita
accusative vapaan vapaat
illative vapaaseen vapaisiin
inessive vapaassa vapaissa
elative vapaasta vapaista
allative vapaalle vapaille
adessive vapaalla vapailla
ablative vapaalta vapailta
essive vapaana vapaina
translative vapaaksi vapaiksi
Table 15. Declensionof polysyllabicnominativesendinginalongvowel.

10. 10
Point 8: Consonantoverview.
bilabial labiodental alveolar palatal velar glottal
plosive p t, d k
sibilant s
fricative v h
lateral l
trill r
glide j
nasal m n ŋ
Table 16. Finnishconsonants. Voicelessconsonantsare inbold.
labial dental palatal glottal
plosive p t, d k
fricative v s j h
liquid r, l
nasal m n ŋ
Table 17. Finnishconsonants.Simplifiedmodel. Voicelessconsonantsare inbold.
Table 16 showsa phoneticallyaccurate description of the Finnishconsonants (afterFredKarlsson:
Finnish, AnEssentialGrammar). Table 17 isa simplifiedphonological modelwhichcontainsall the
oppositionsnecessaryforaphonological analysis. One importantpointtonotice isthatalmostall of the
mostcommon voiceless/voicedpairsare absentinFinnish: p/b, f/v,s/z,k/g.The onlyexistingpairis t/d.
On the otherhand Finnishmakesabundantuse of soundalternationswhichare basedonvoiceless-
voicedoppositions.The onlyfullpair of thistype ist/d,otheralternatingpairs(inlackof better
candidates) are p/v andk/j.Perhapsinducedby the phenomenon thatp and k alternate withneighbours
that are notonlyvoicedbutalsofricatives, talsoalternatesnotonlywith d butalsowith s, althoughina
differentcontext. Otheralternationsare n/sandn/m.The firstconsonantsto be lookedatare the
plosives p,t, kwhichundergothe importantphenomenoncalledconsonantgradation.
Point 9: p, t, k – the bigguys.The big voicelessplosives p,t, k needalot of space inopensyllablesin
orderto thrive.Assoonas a syllableclosesthey eithergetkickedoutof the word or theyhave to crouch
downand change theirshapes,makingthemselvessmaller.Whenaclosedsyllable openstheycome
back inor stretch outagain.Closedsyllablesendinaconsonant,opensyllablesendinavowel.For
instance,the word lippu has two syllables: lip andpu.lip is closed, pu isopen.Whenthe genitive singular
ending-n isadded, lippu + n,the secondsyllable closesandone p iskickedoutof the word:lippu + n –>
lipun.This processiscalledconsonantgradation. Consonantsinopensyllablesare called"the strong
grade",consonantsin closed syllablesare called"the weakgrade".
Some wordshave a lot of space.In the opensyllablesof these wordsthere isroomfora whole pairof
pp,tt or kk. Whenthe syllable closesone of the pairiskickedoutbut there isstill enoughroomforthe
otherone to stay.

11. 11
nominative (open) genitive (closed)
kuppi kupin
katto katon
laukku laukun
Table 18. Consonantgradation,type 1.
Otherwordsdo not have thatmuch space.Theyhave onlyroom fora single p,tor k in an opensyllable.
Whenthe syllable closes, k– the biggestguyfromthe dark regionsbackunderthe palate – getskicked
out completely,but p andt manage to crouch downand change theirshapessothat theycan still stayin
the word.Crouchingdown, these twofellowslose theirroughvoicelessedgesandbecome smoothand
voiced,i.e.voiceless tchangesintovoiced d andvoiceless p changesintovoiced v (neitherb norf exist
inoriginal Finnishwords,sothat p and v can be consideredformingavoiceless-voicedlabial pair,see
table 17).
nominative (open) genitive (closed)
leipä leivän
katu kadun
ruoka ruoan
Table 19. Consonantgradation,type 2.
Thenthere are wordswithmediumsize space offers.Inopensyllablesof these words p,t,kcoexistwith
theirnasal relativesfromthe same articulationpoint –labial plosivep coexistswithlabial nasal m,
dental plosive tcoexistswithdental nasal n,palatal plosivekcoexistswithpalatalnasal ŋ.Whenthe
syllable closesthe plosivescrouch downandtake on the shape of their smallerneighbourswhich
enablesthemtostay.Note: ŋkiswritten nkand ŋŋ is written ng whichgivesthe impressionthatthe
case withnk/ng isdifferentfromthe othertwo.Butthis isonlyan orthographical matter, phonologically
the situationsare exactlyequal (mp –>mm,nt –> nn,ŋk–> ŋŋ).
nominative (open) genitive (closed)
kampa kamman
ranta rannan
kenkä kengän
Table 20. Consonantgradation,type 3.
Othermediumsize wordscontain tand k inthe companyof l and r. The situationisanalogoustotype 3:
whenthe syllable closes tandk crouch downand change theirshapes whichenablesthemtostay.Here
voicelessdental tchangesintothe respectivevoiceddental neighbourlor r, voicelesspalatal kalways
changesintovoicedpalatal j,andp doesnot take part inthisgame at all.
nominative (open) genitive (closed)
ilta illan
kerta kerran
jälke jäljen
arke arjen
Table 21. Consonantgradation, type 4.

12. 12
The last type concernsonly k alone.Whenthisbigguyisalone inan opensyllable andthe syllable
closes, kgetskickedoutcompletelywiththe exceptionof the situationwhere kissurroundedbyeither
u or y. Inthiscase crouchingdownand changingshape helpseven ktostayin the word. The change
fromk to v may seemstrange,buttakingonthe shape of a labial consonantinan environmentof
rounded(labial)vowelsisprobablythe bestdisguisepossible.
nominative (open) genitive (closed)
puku puvun
kyky kyvyn
Table 22. Consonantgradation,type 5.
Point 10: n,r, l, s,t – the friends.The dental consonants n,r,l, s strive to be withtheirdental friend t.
One dental consonantismissingfromthislist –d. d isinfact not much more than the weakversionof t
and doesnotplayan active role itself.
More aboutthe partitive
As explainedunderpoint7,the basicpartitive ending -a/-ä isattachedwiththe helpof anintermediate
t whena stemendsintwo vowels.Thissame intermediatetalsoappearswhen a stemendsina dental
consonantfollowedby e.In suchsituations e– the most unstable amongall Finnishvowels –willingly
dropsout so that sort of a partitive stem isleftwhich endsinadental consonant. Thisdental consonant
provokesthe appearance of dental partitiveintermediatet. Sosingularstempiene- + partitive ä –>
pien(e↓)- + (↑t) + ä –> pien- + t + ä –> pientä.Here e↓ meansthate isdroppingoutand ↑t meansthatt
iscomingintoexistence. Thisprocess alwaystakesplace whenthe voiceddental consonants n,r,l are
followedby e.
nominative singular singularstem partitive singular
pieni piene- pientä
nuori nuore- nuorta
kieli kiele- kieltä
Table 23. Partitive singularafterdental consonant.
s and t, however, losetheirabilitytocreate partitive intermediate twhenthey are precededbynon-
dental consonants. Theyare bothvoicelessandneedsome voicedsupportfromeitheravowel orfrom
another(voiced) dentalconsonantprecedingthem. Otherwiseestaysin place andthe regularpartitive
ending-a/-ä isattachedtoit(unlessthe nominative endsinaconsonant,as will be explainedlater).
Table 24 illustratesthissituation.

13. 13
nominative singular singularstem partitive singular
lahti lahte- (t preceded by non-dental
consontant)
lahtea (regularpartitive ending
-a)
vesi vete- (t preceded by vowel) vettä (e dropsoutand
intermediatet appears)
kansi kante- (tpreceded by dental
consonant)
kantta (edropsoutand
intermediatet appears)
suomalainen suomalaise- (spreceded by
vowel)
suomalaista (edropsoutand
intermediatet appears)
ajatus ajatukse- (spreceded by non-
dentalconsonant)
ajatusta (nominativeendsin a
consonant)
Table 24. Partitive singularafters,t.
Table 24 seemstobringup more questionsthanitprovidesanswers.The formationof the singularstem
lahte- from the nominative lahtiisaregularphenomenonasexplainedunderpoint5:nouns/adjectives
of foreignorigineendingin iusuallykeepthe i forthe singularstem, whereasmostFinnish
nouns/adjectiveschange ito e. Nowwhat about vesi/vete- andkansi/kante-?Asthe onlytwovoiceless
dental consonants,sandt have an intimate relationshipwitheachotherandcan easilychange fromone
intothe otherand back again (t alternatingwithswasalsobrieflymentionedunderpoint8).Wheni
changesto e and at the same time i isprecededby s,thenusually schangesto t. Whene changesto i
and at the same time e is precededby t,thenusually tchangesto s. Simplerput:sichangesto te and te
changesto si, but ithas to be keptin mindthatthese changesare triggeredbythe rulesforthe vowel
changesconcerning i and e. Sonominative vesigivessingularstem vete- andplural stem vesi-,
nominative kansigivessingularstem kante- andplural stem kansi-.Table 25showsthe complete pattern
for vesi whichisalsoa good illustrationof the mechanismof consonantgradation atwork withinthe
declinational pattern.
singular plural
nominative vesi vedet
genitive veden vesien
partitive vettä vesiä
accusative veden vedet
illative veteen vesiin
inessive vedessä vesissä
elative vedestä vesistä
allative vedelle vesille
adessive vedellä vesillä
ablative vedeltä vesiltä
essive vetenä vesinä
translative vedeksi vesiksi
Table 25. Declensionof nominativesendingin -si.
Thisseemstobe a good momentto say a little more aboutconsonantgradation.The essivevetenä in
table 25 consistsof three opensyllables: ve/te/nä. tisthusinan opensyllable andtherefore inthe
stronggrade. Onthe otherhand,the translative vedeksiconsistsof anopen,aclosedand an open

14. 14
syllable:ve/dek/si.Here the tof the stemvete- isina closedsyllable andthuschangestothe
correspondingweakgrade d.Similarlyforthe othersingularforms: ve/den,ve/te/en,ve/des/sä,
ve/des/tä,ve/del/le,ve/del/lä,ve/del/tä.The partitive singularvettä cannotbe analysedinthe lightof
consonantgradation.Itis producedfromthe singularstem vete- + partitive ä –> vet(e↓)- + (↑t) + ä –>
vet- + t + ä –> vettä as explainedabove forpieni.
An importantpointtonote inthiscontextisthe behaviourof double vowelsinplural forms. Forthe
purposesof consonantgradationa double vowelcountsasa short vowel if itwasproducedbyvowel
change from a shortvowel,butitcounts as a longvowel if itwasproducedby vowel change froma long
vowel ordiphthong.
nominativesingular singularinflectional
stem
plural inflectionalstem inessive plural
katu katu- katui- kaduissa
sade satee- satei- sateissa
Table 26. Consonantgradationinplural forms.
The inessive plural kaduissa isnotbrokendownintosyllablesas ka/du/is/sa (whichwouldmeanan
opensyllable du,requiringthe stronggrade andthus the inessiveplural katuissa).Instead, kaduissais
brokendownas ka/du͜is/sa withaclosedsyllabledu͜isrequiringthe weakgrade. The double vowel u͜iis
here feltasa single vowel becauseitwasproducedfromthe single vowel u inthe singularstem.Onthe
otherhand,the inessive plural sateissaisbrokendownas sa/te/is/sa leavingtinan opensyllableand
requiringthe stronggrade,because the double vowel eiinthe plural stemwasproducedfromthe
double vowel eeinthe singularstem. Thisisa case of homogenizationwhere the language strivesto
assimilate plural formstosingularforms(inessive singularkadussa –>inessiveplural kaduissa,inessive
singularsateessa –> inessiveplural sateissa),ratherthanlettingthe immediate phonological
environmentdeterminethe forms.
Nowback to table 24. Nextinline in the table issuomalainen,which introduces the topicof nominatives
endinginconsonantsandtheirstemchanges.Before table 24,the nominativesinall examplesendedin
vowels,andpotentialstemchangeswere due tothe vowel changesoutlinedunderpoints4,5, 6 and 7.
For singularstemsthese changes are i –> e and e –> ee. For nominativesendinginothervowels the
singularstemisidentical withthe nominative.Table 27 givesanoverview of nominativesendingin
vowelsandtheirrespective singularstems.
nominative ending nominative example stemchange singularstem
single vowel kala none kala-
twovowels maa none maa-
-i (wordsof foreign
origine)
sali none sali-
-i (Finnishwords) järvi i –> e järve-
-si vesi si –> te vete-
-e perhe e –> ee perhee-
Table 27. Nominatives endinginavowel.

15. 15
Nowit sohappensthat Finnishnouns/adjectiveswhichendinaconsonantusuallyendina dental
consonantn, r, l, s,t. These will be treatedone byone inthe nextsections.
Point 11: n – nothingtoounusual.Fourtypesof nominativesendingin n have tobe distinguished:
n-type 1: nominativesendingin -nen,
n-type 2: nominativesendingin -enprecededbyaconsonantotherthan n,
n-type 3: nominativesendingin -nprecededbyavowel otherthane,
n-type 4: special nominativesendingin -ton/-tön.
n-type 1: nominativesendingin -nen
Thisendingregularlychangesto -seinthe singularstem.The basicmechanismtoattach case endingsto
nouns/adjectivesendinginconsonantsconsistsinusinganintermediate ebetweenthe endconsonant
of the nominative andthe case endings.If thismechanismwere usedunmodified,then suomalainen
wouldformitsgenitive assuomalainenen.This-nenen endinghastoomany sequencesof dental
consonantplus e and breaksdown (eis veryunstable ashasalreadybeenmentionedbefore,in
particularinenvironmentswithdental consonants).Butthe endingcannotsimplybe -nebecause then
the genitive wouldbe identical tothe nominative.Asawayout of thisdilemman changesto s.This
change is notas strange as it may seematfirst:voiceddental n changesto voicelessdental s–a
perfectly natural process. Soinsteadof -nene,the singularstemendingis -se.Table 28 showsthe
complete pattern.
singular plural
nominative suomalainen suomalaiset
genitive suomalaisen suomalaisten/suomalaisien
partitive suomalaista suomalaisia
accusative suomalaisen suomalaiset
illative suomalaiseen suomalaisiin
inessive suomalaisessa suomalaisissa
elative suomalaisesta suomalaisista
allative suomalaiselle suomalaisille
adessive suomalaisella suomalaisilla
ablative suomalaiselta suomalaisilta
essive suomalaisena suomalaisina
translative suomalaiseksi suomalaisiksi
Table 28. Declensionof nominativesendingin -nen.
Table 28 containsone newform – the genitive pluralon -ten.The rule isas follows: Nouns/adjectives
witha partitive singularon -ta/-tä where partitive intermediate tisnotdue to a longvowel inthe
singularstemcan have an alternative genitiveplural ending -ten.-ten isattachedinthe same wayas
partitive -ta/-tä,i.e.rightnexttothe dental stemconsonantwith edroppingout,andthe appearance of
genitive intermediate tcouldbe explainedinthe same wayasthe appearance of partitive intermediate
t. The major difference isthat thisphenomenonhappensonlyinthe singularforthe partitive andonlyin
the plural for the genitive.The ending -ten isusuallyanalternativetothe regularending -en.

16. 16
Nominatives endingin-nen seemtobe the oneswhere the genitive plural ending-ten ismostcommonly
used,althoughthe ending -en isapparentlycorrectaswell.
n-type 2: nominativesendingin -enprecededbyaconsonantotherthan n
Thisendingsimplyusesanintermediate e betweenthe endconsonant of the nominativeandthe case
endings,e.g.nominativejäsen changestogenitivejäsenen –there isnodouble -nenen here aswouldbe
the case withthe -nen nominatives,sothe language isokaywiththis. Table 29 showsthe complete
patternfor jäsen.
singular plural
nominative jäsen jäsenet
genitive jäsenen jäsenien/jäsenten
partitive jäsentä jäseniä
accusative jäsenen jäsenet
illative jäseneen jäseniin
inessive jäsenessä jäsenissä
elative jäsenestä jäsenistä
allative jäsenelle jäsenille
adessive jäsenellä jäsenillä
ablative jäseneltä jäseniltä
essive jäsenenä jäseninä
translative jäseneksi jäseniksi
Table 29. Declensionof nominativesendingin -en.
The genitive plural hasonce againparallel forms,butitseemsthatinthistype the genitiveplural on -en
may be more commonlyused.
n-type 3: nominativesendingin -nprecededbyavowel otherthane
Nominativesof thistype alsouse anintermediate ebetweenthe endconsonantandthe case endings,
but the last-n of the stemchangesto -m: nominativepuhelin –> genitivepuhelimen.n hasseveral
neighboursintowhichitcanchange,and inthiscase nasal dental n changesintonasal labial m–
anotherperfectlynatural process.Butwhydoes n change inthe firstplace? puhelinen wouldalsoseem
perfectlyacceptable. Itlookslike n needsaprecedingeto keepitinplace,like intable 29 above for
jäsen –> jäsenen.Whenthere isno suche, n changesto m.In any case,table 30 showsthe complete
patternfor puhelin.

17. 17
singular plural
nominative puhelin puhelimet
genitive puhelimen puhelimien/puhelinten
partitive puhelinta puhelimia
accusative puhelin puhelimet
illative puhelimeen puhelimiin
inessive puhelimessa puhelimissa
elative puhelimesta puhelimista
allative puhelimelle puhelimille
adessive puhelimella puhelimilla
ablative puhelimelta puhelimilta
essive puhelimena puhelimina
translative puhelimeksi puhelimiksi
Table 30. Declensionof nominativesendingin -n.
Table 30 requires againanotherexplanationforthe partitive singular. The stemof the nounis
puhelime-,sothisis nota dental consonantfollowedby ewhichwas givenunderpoint10 as the
conditionforthe e droppingoutand lettingpartitiveintermediatetattach directlytothe dental
consonantpreceding e.Thiscannothappenhere,because when edropsoutthe remainderof the stem
wouldbe puhelim- andthislast m isnot somethingthatpartitive intermediate twouldwanttoattach
to. The mechanismatwork here isactuallymucheasier:Since all nouns/adjectiveswhichend ina
consonantendina dental consonantanyway,the partitiveendingattachesdirectlytothe nominative
endingbymeansof partitive intermediate t.Thisexplainsthe partitive puhelinta andconsequentlythe
alternative genitive pluralpuhelinten:nominative puhelin + partitive a –> puhelin + (↑t) + a –> puhelinta.
A similarprocesshappensfornominativesendinginshort e.As wasmentionedunderpoint6,such
nominativescouldbe consideredendinginaglottal stop,i.e.nominative perhecouldbe lookedatas
perhe' where 'representsthe glottal stopwhichclosesthe syllable.Here toothe partitive isattachedto
the nominative bymeansof partitive intermediate twhichhasthe furthereffecttoassimilatethe glottal
stop,i.e.the glottal stopturnsinto t: nominative perhe'+ partitive a –> perhe' + (↑t) + a –> perhe'ta –>
perhetta.Thisfinallyexplainsthe partitive singularof perheintable 10.
n-type 4: special nominativesendingin -ton/-tön
-ton/-tön isaspecial semanticendingmeaning"without".Similarlyton-type 3the final n changesto m,
but the bindingvowel is a/ä insteadof e.The singularstemthus endsin -oma/-ömä.tisina closed
syllable in -ton/-tön andthe openingof the syllable from -on/-ön to-oma/-ömäcausesdoublingof t.So
the complete endingisalways -ttoma/-ttömä.Table 31showsthe complete pattern foronneton.

18. 18
singular plural
nominative onneton onnettomat
genitive onnettoman onnettomien/onnetonten
partitive onnetonta onnettomia
accusative onneton onnettomat
illative onnettomaan onnettomiin
inessive onnettomassa onnettomissa
elative onnettomasta onnettomista
allative onnettomalle onnettomille
adessive onnettomalla onnettomilla
ablative onnettomalta onnettomilta
essive onnettomana onnettomina
translative onnettomaksi onnettomiksi
Table 31. Declensionof special nominativesendingin -ton/-tön.
The partitive singularisformedinthe same wayas for puhelin.Since the nominative endsina
consonantand the singularstemdoesnotendin e precededbya dental consonantthe partitive is
attacheddirectlytothe nominative withthe helpof intermediatepartitive t.
Point 12: r and l – two rare lads.The nominative ending risrare and occurs mostlyinfeminineformsof
wordsdesignatingprofessions. The nominative ending l(usuallyel) isalsorare butdoesnot seemtobe
linkedtoa specifictype of words.Forbothtypesthe singularstemisformedregularlywithintermediate
e betweenthe nominativeendingandthe case endings.Table 32 showsthe complete patternfor
tarjoilijatarandtable 33 showsthe patternfor askel.
singular plural
nominative tarjoilijatar tarjoilijattaret
genitive tarjoilijattaren tarjoilijattarien/tarjoilijatarten
partitive tarjoilijatarta tarjoilijattaria
accusative tarjoilijatar tarjoilijattaret
illative tarjoilijattareen tarjoilijattariin
inessive tarjoilijattaressa tarjoilijattarissa
elative tarjoilijattaresta tarjoilijattarista
allative tarjoilijattarelle tarjoilijattarille
adessive tarjoilijattarella tarjoilijattarilla
ablative tarjoilijattarelta tarjoilijattarilta
essive tarjoilijattarena tarjoilijattarina
translative tarjoilijattareksi tarjoilijattariksi
Table 32. Declensionof nominativesendingin -r.

19. 19
singular plural
nominative askel askelet
genitive askelen askelien/askelten
partitive askelta askelia
accusative askelen askelet
illative askeleen askeliin
inessive askelessa askelissa
elative askelesta askelista
allative askelelle askelille
adessive askelella askelilla
ablative askelelta askelilta
essive askelena askelina
translative askeleksi askeliksi
Table 33. Declensionof nominatives endingin-l.
Point 13: s – surelymore unusual. There are three typesof nominativesendinginsandtheyall showa
rather strange behaviour:
s-type 1: nominativesendingin -us/ys, -os/-ös, -staus,
s-type 2: nominativesendingin -sprecededby anunrounded singlevowel,
s-type 3: nominativesendingin -sprecededbytwovowels otherthanthe ending -staus.
s-type 1: nominativesendingin -us/ys, -os/-ös, -staus
In nouns/adjectivesof thistype nominative schangestoks inthe singularstemwhichisthenfollowed
by the usual binding ebetweennominative endingandcase endings.Apartfromschanginginto ksthe
patternisperfectlyregular. Whydoes schange into ks? The singularstemending -seisalreadyoccupied
by nominativesendingin -nen.Thisisnotactuallya reasonwhynominativesendingin -sshouldnot
have the same singularstemending -se,butFinnishseemstobe a language the interiorworkingsof
whichreallystrive tokeepthingsneatlyapart. Thankstothisprocessitis notonlypossible toconstruct
inflectedformsregularlyfromnominatives/infinitives,butitisalsopossible toreconstruct
nominatives/infinitivesfrominflectedforms.ThismakesFinnishamostregularandsystematiclanguage
– againstall initial appearances. Table 34showsthe complete patternfor ajatus.

20. 20
singular plural
nominative ajatus ajatukset
genitive ajatuksen ajatuksien/ajatusten
partitive ajatusta ajatuksia
accusative ajatus ajatukset
illative ajatukseen ajatuksiin
inessive ajatuksessa ajatuksissa
elative ajatuksesta ajatuksista
allative ajatukselle ajatuksille
adessive ajatuksella ajatuksilla
ablative ajatukselta ajatuksilta
essive ajatuksena ajatuksina
translative ajatukseksi ajatuksiksi
Table 34. Declensionof nominativesendingin -us/-ys,-os/-ös,-staus.
The explanationforthe formationof the partitivesingularwasgivenunderpoint11for puhelin.In the
case of ajatusit istrue that the stemendsina dental consonantfollowedby e,butthe dental consonant
ishere s, and fors and t there isthe additional requirementthattheybe precededbyavowel orby
anotherdental consonant.Since thisisnotthe case here,the partitive endingattachestothe
nominative withthe helpof intermediate t.
s-type 2: nominativesendingin -sprecededbyanunroundedsinglevowel
Nominativesof thisformbehave inthe strangestway,reminiscentof nominativesendingin ewhich
were introducedunderpoint6. Inthe singularstemthe s of the nominativedisappearsandprovokesa
lengtheningof the precedingvowel.Thisvowellengtheningopensthe syllableandprovokesconsonant
gradation.Sonominative kaunis givessingularstem kaunii-,andnominativerakas givessingularstem
rakkaa-. Table 35 showsthe complete patternforkaunis.
singular plural
nominative kaunis kauniit
genitive kauniin kauniiden
partitive kaunista kauniita
accusative kaunis kauniit
illative kauniiseen kauniisiin
inessive kauniissa kauniissa
elative kauniista kauniista
allative kauniille kauniille
adessive kauniilla kauniilla
ablative kauniilta kauniilta
essive kauniina kauniina
translative kauniiksi kauniiksi
Table 35. Declensionof nominativesendinginasingle unroundedvowel plus -s.

21. 21
It isinterestingtonote thatthe singularstemending iidoesnot change inthe plural stem(asexplained
underpoint7) whichaccountsfor manysingularandplural formsbeingidentical. Thisisof course not
the case forall nominatives belongingto thisgroup,onlyforthose endingin -is.
s-type 3: nominativesendingin -sprecededbytwovowelsotherthanthe ending -staus
Thisis anotherstrange case. In the singularstem,nominative schangestot whichisthenfollowedby
bindinge.The plural stemisformedfromthe singularstem te changingto plural stem si (asexplained
underpoint10) but withan additional ksqueezinginbefore the s.Thisgivesnominative singular
rakkaus,singularstem rakkaute-,plural stemrakkauksi-.Table 36showsthe complete patternfor
rakkaus.
singular plural
nominative rakkaus rakkaudet
genitive rakkauden rakkauksien
partitive rakkautta rakkauksia
accusative rakkaus rakkaudet
illative rakkauteen rakkauksiin
inessive rakkaudessa rakkauksissa
elative rakkaudesta rakkauksista
allative rakkaudelle rakkauksille
adessive rakkaudella rakkauksilla
ablative rakkaudelta rakkauksilta
essive rakkaudena rakkauksina
translative rakkaudeksi rakkauksiksi
Table 36. Declensionof nominativesendingintwovowels plus-s.
One lastremark aboutthe partitive singularisnecessaryhere.Whenthe singularstemendsin e
precededbya dental consonant,i.e.whenthe conditionsexplainedunderpoint10 for the attachment
of partitive -ta/-tätothe singularstem are met,thenpartitive -ta/-tädoesattachto the singularstem
and notto the nominative, evenif the nominative endsina(dental) consonantaswell.Nominative
singularrakkaus hassingularstem rakkaute-.Thisstemmeetsthe conditions tohave partitive -ta/-tä
attached,so thisiswhat happensandthe partitive singularof rakkaus israkkautta–and notrakkausta.
In caseslike thisone the singularstemalwaystakespriorityoverthe nominative.Onlyincaseswhere
the conditions toattach partitive -ta/-tätothe singularstemare notmet doespartitive -ta/-täattach
directlytothe nominative.
Point 14: t – truly unexpected. Thisendingoccursmostlyprecededby -u/-y.The regularthingisthata
bindingeis usedbetweennominativeandcase endings. One shouldthusexpectnominative oluttohave
singularstemolute-.The unusual thingisthat t drops outof the stem, so nominativeolutactuallyhas
singularstemolue-.Table 37 showsthe complete patternfor olut.

22. 22
singular plural
nominative olut oluet
genitive oluen oluiden
partitive olutta oluita
accusative olut oluet
illative olueen oluihin
inessive oluessa oluissa
elative oluesta oluista
allative oluelle oluille
adessive oluella oluilla
ablative oluelta oluilta
essive oluena oluina
translative olueksi oluiksi
Table 37. Declensionof nominativesendingin -t.
Once again,the partitive singularisformedfromthe nominative because the singularstemdoesnotend
ina dental consonantfollowedby e. The illativesingularisregularly formedbydoublingthe lastvowel.
Unlike stemsendingintwoequal vowelslike maa-,whichmuchuse abinding h toattach the illative
endinginorderto avoidthree equal vowelsinarow, the stemolue- endsintwo differentvowelsand
thushas no problemdoublingthe lastone of them. The illativeplural followsthe general rulethatall
plural stemsendingintwovowels use the ending-hin (withthe exceptionof those thathave the illative
singularending-seen). The partitive plural followsthe rule thatnouns/adjectiveswithasingularstem
endingintwovowelstake the partitive plural ending -ta/-tä,andthisendingentailsthe genitiveplural
ending-den.
Point 15: The partitive-genitive connection.Thispointdeservessome final remarks. The genitive plural
showsa close connectiontothe partitive,butonlyincertainsituations. There are foursituationsin
whichpartitive singular-ta/-tä appears:
(1) nominativesendingin twovowels,
(2) singularstemsendingintwovowels excludingsituation 1,
(3) singularstemsendingindental consonantplus e,
(4) nominativesendinginaconsonant excludingsituation3.
nominative singularstem partitive singular
(1) maa maa- maata
(2) perhe perhee- perhettä
(3) suomalainen soumalaise- suomalaista
(4) puhelin puhelime- puhelinta
Table 38. Partitive singularon -ta/-tä.
Partitive singularon -ta/-tä isproducedfromthe singularsteminsituations1and 3 and from the
nominative insituations2and4 (accordingto the presentanalysis;differinganalysesare alsopossible
concerningsituations1and2). The longvowel inthe singularsteminsituations1and 2 producesa
partitive plural on -ta/-tä andconsequentlyagenitiveplural on -den/-tten.Insituations3and 4 the

23. 23
partitive plural isnoton -ta/-tä (itisformedregularlyfromthe plural stem),andthe genitive plural can
have the alternative ending -ten.
nominative singular
stem
partitive
singular
plural stem partitive
plural
genitive plural
(1) maa maa- maata mai- maita maiden/maitten
(2) perhe perhee- perhettä perhei- perheitä perheiden/
perheitten
(3) suomalainen suomalaise- suomalaista suomalaisi- suomalaisia suomalaisten/
suomalaisien
(4) puhelin puhelime- puhelinta puhelimi- puhelimia puhelimien/
puhelinten
Table 39. The partitive-genitive connection.
It appearsthat genitive plural -ten isthe preferredendingwhenittakesthe form -sten (like in
suomalaisten) andpossiblyalso -rten (likeinnuorten).Whenthe processproducinggenitive -ten would
leadto -tten (aswouldbe the case for vesi withpartitive singularvettä andpotential genitiveplural
vetten,or for rakkaus withpartitivesingularrakkautta andpotentialgenitiveplural rakkautten), this
formseemstobe excluded, probably because the genitiveplural ending -den/-tten isdue toa different
cause and the innerworkingsof the Finnish language (whateverthatmaymean) seemtostrive to keep
thingsneatlyapart,as was already mentionedearlier.Furthermore,itappearsthatthe genitiveplural
endings-lten and-nten are lessusedthantheirrespectivealternativeregularendings(likeaskelien
rather thanaskelten,or puhelimien rather than puhelinten).