Finnish IRL

Page 3

Can you work in Finland without Finnish? 2,355 ads
Seven ads in ten are in Finnish. The other three are not spread evenly 10 min read
ne - an older couple on an apartment balcony looking down at neighbours in the courtyard below, yellow autumn leaves around them
ne written he Finland advertised its pronoun on billboards abroad. At home it says this one
How Finnish Is Your Silence? Quiz Ollaan hiljaa
Four seconds of nothing. It is an answer arriving, not a problem to solve. 6 questions
nii - two older men on a bench by a still Finnish lake looking straight ahead, one answering the other in a single syllable
nii written niin Someone wrote 330 pages on the difference between this and joo
The longest Finnish word is 61 letters of Lego
It is less a word than a very specific job advert 11 min read
niinku - a woman explaining something to a younger colleague across a Finnish canteen table with one hand circling in the air, snow outside the window
niinku written niin kuin Finns are teased for this one and say it anyway
no niin - two older women on a sauna bench wrapped in towels, the stove glowing beside them
no niin Two words, no meaning, and a Finn can run a whole conversation on them
The 100 verbs that carry spoken Finnish
Olla wins by 13 to 1. Then conversation gets more interesting 10 min read
no - an older man on a park bench starting a story to the woman beside him, one hand lifting, green summer trees behind
no It looks like English "no" and means the opposite of a refusal
onks - a man leaning on a Finnish kiosk counter asking whether something is in, the older vendor already reaching under the counter
onks written onko Move the question letter one word to the left and you have asked something else
Is it rude to speak bad Finnish? 93% want you to
75 per cent draw the line somewhere else entirely 8 min read
How Rude Is Your Finnish? Quiz Sano jotain
There is no word for please. The warmth is real - it is just somewhere else. 6 questions
oon - a young woman on the phone in an office kitchen doorway saying where she is, coffee cup already in hand, melting snow on the ledge outside
oon written olen Someone rings to say where they are. This is the word you will miss
perkele - a man standing beside a car with its bonnet up in a snowy Finnish car park, looking at the engine with flat fury
perkele Not the Finnish for "oh dear"
Spoken Finnish eats the endings that carry grammar
Four teachers, two registers, and nobody was lying to anybody 10 min read
puhutko englantia - a young woman asking a halting question at a lit Finnish kiosk window in the snow, and getting the answer back without a pause
puhutko englantia The answer is yes, and that is the whole problem
punanen - a man holding up a red jumper and a grey one in a Finnish shop, telling the friend beside him which he means, snow through the window
punanen written punainen The national dream is a punainen tupa, and nobody pronounces the i
What Finns actually say in the sauna, in order
The famous 3.3 million saunas trace to one unpublished bulletin 10 min read
sä - an older woman behind a Finnish kiosk counter leaning forward and asking a young customer something directly, pointing with an open hand
sä written sinä The polite version you are looking for does not exist
sauna - a man in a towel sitting with a beer outside a small wood-fired Finnish sauna, steam off his shoulders and deep snow all round
sauna More saunas than cars, and one rule everyone actually enforces
Why Finns switch to English, and the four fixes
She gets answered in English before she has opened her mouth 11 min read
se - two women talking by a bar table, one tipping her chin towards someone off to the side while she talks about them
se written hän Finns call people "it", and no course will tell you
semmonen - a man describing a shape with both hands to a shop assistant who is nodding along, bare trees through the window
semmonen written semmoinen Finnish has three words for "that kind of", and one is how bad news arrives
200 Finnish subtitle words. Mä is not one of them
570 million tokens, and mä is not in the top 200 16 min read
sisu - a woman in a reflective work jacket pushing a bicycle up a slushy hill into driving sleet, a plain Finnish apartment block behind her
sisu The noun is the export. Finns reach for a different form of it
vessa - a man in a Finnish restaurant asking a passing waiter a short question, and the waiter pointing off to one side without stopping
vessa written käymälä The word on the sign is not the word anyone says