A. In such sentences as ‘year after year,’ ‘day after day.’ In Finnish
the first word is put in the nominative and the second in the ablative.
=Päivä päivältä hän tulee kipeämmäksi=, _day by day he gets worse_.
=Myrsky kiihtyy hetki hetkeltä=, _the storm grows stronger every hour_.
=Odotan häntä tunti tunnilta=, _I expect him every hour_.
B. In sentences expressing money earned in a given time. =Hän saa
kaksituhatta markkaa vuodelta=, _he receives two thousand marks a year_.
=Maksavat rengille viisitoista ruplaa kuukaudelta=, _the servant is paid
fifteen roubles a month_.
C. The time from which anything begins. =Kaupunki on viima vuosisadalta=,
_the house dates from the last century_. =Niinkuin asetus tammikuun
viidenneltä päivältä määrää=, _according to the provisions of the decree
of January 5_.
Similarly—=Kello kuudelta aamulla nousin työtä tekemään=, _I begin to
work at_ (that is, _beginning from_) _six o’clock in the morning_. =Tulee
pimeä jo kello neljältä=, _it gets dark at four o’clock_.
III. It is used analogously to the adessive (No. IV), to express
cessation from an occupation, game, or meal. =Miehet tulivat ongelta=,
_the men came home from fishing_. =Tulimme päivälliseltä=, _we came from
dinner_. =Lapset lakkasivat sokkosilta=, _the children stopped playing
blind man’s buff_.
IV. The ablative denotes motion from a person or from his house.
=Vierahat tulivat teiltä=, _the strangers came from you_. =Palvelija tuli
isännältä=, _the servant came from his master_. Cf. =Ostin tavaroita
kauppamieheltä=, _I bought some goods of the merchant_. So also =Minä
sain äidiltäni kirjeen=, _I received a letter from my mother_. =Kysyivät
häneltä=, _they asked of him_.
V. From the idea of separation the ablative comes to denote the person
who loses anything or from whom anything is hidden, defended, etc. It
becomes in fact very nearly what is called the ‘dativus incommodi’ in
Latin Grammar. =Häneltä kuoli äiti=, _his mother died_ (_died from
him_). =Ei Jumala kiellä lapsiltansa iloa=, _God does not forbid joy to
his children_. =Ei tytär salaa äidiltänsä mitään=, _the daughter hides
nothing from her mother_.
VI. The cause which prevents an action is put in the ablative. =Tyttö
ei päässyt kotoa astiain pesulta=, _the maid could not leave the house
because she had to wash the things_. =En jouda kesäisiltä kiirehiltä=, _I
cannot come on account of the work that has to be done in summer_. =En
voinut nukkua koiran haukunnalta=, _I could not sleep on account of the
dogs barking_.
VII. The ablative is also used to denote the part or quality with respect
to which anything is predicated of an object. =Hän on hyvä tavoiltansa=,
_he has a good disposition_. =Munat ovat väriltään ja suuruudeltaan
erilaisia=, _eggs are of different colours and sizes_. =Poika on iältään
jo kymmenvuotias=, _the boy is ten years old_ (_in his life_). =Tyttö on
solakka varreltaan=, _the girl has a graceful figure_. =Ukko on vielä
ketterä jalalta=, _the old man is still quick-footed_. =Tunnen hänen
näöltä=, _I know him by sight_. =Mies on Matti nimeltä=, _the man is
Matthew by name_.
VIII. It is apparently to this use that must be traced such expressions
as =maistua hyvältä=, =karvaalta=, _to taste good_ or _bitter_.
Verbs which express the impression made by an object on the senses are
generally followed by an adjective in the ablative describing the nature
of the sensation. If it is remembered that the distinction between the
adjective and substantive is very slight, we may explain such a phrase
as =näyttää kauniilta= as _looks with regard to beauty_, that is, _looks
beautiful_.
Examples—=Hän näyti Saksalaiselta=, _he looked like a German_. =Miltä
nyt tuntuu?= _how do you feel now?_ =Mansikka maistuu makealta=,
_strawberries taste sweet_. =Se näyttää luonnollisemmalta=, _it seems
more natural_.
_Allative._
I. The allative expresses motion on to or into the neighbourhood of an
object. =Lapsi putosi lattialle=, _the child fell on to the floor_.
=Tahdotteko viedä minun Uudelle Kadulle?= _will you show me the way to
New Street?_ =Lähen Pohjolan tuville, Lapin lasten tanterille=, _I go to
the dwellings of the North, to the plains of the Laplanders_.
II. It expresses also the external circumstances of an action when those
circumstances are regarded as not already existing, but as to be entered
on. =Koska saatte työnne alkeille?= _when will your work be begun?_ =Minä
panen kankaan kuteille=, _I put the stuff to be woven_.
III. Like the adessive and ablative it is used of occupations, games,
or meals, in which one engages, but always with the idea of entering
on or beginning. =Menkäämme ongelle=, _let us go and fish_. =Emäntä on
käskenyt ruoalle=, _the mistress of the house has asked us to dinner_.
=Olen kutsuttu kahville=, _I am invited to take coffee_. =Lapset rupeevat
piilosille=, _the children begin to play hide and seek_.
IV. From meaning motion into the neighbourhood of an object or to the
house of anyone (e.g. =Meille tuli vieraita=, _guests came to see us_),
it comes to be used as a dative to express the remote object of an
action. =Äiti antoi kirjan pojallensa=, _the mother gave a book to her
son_. =Jumala on laupias syntisille=, _God is merciful to sinners_.
=Olen kiitollinen teille=, _I am obliged to you_; =olen ottanut itselleni
vapauden=, _I have taken (for myself) the liberty_. =Minun on mahdoton
määrätä aikaa takaisin tulolleni=, _I cannot fix the date of my return_.
V. The allative is sometimes, though rarely, used in the way described
under the ablative IX. =Ilma näyttää kauniille=, _the weather looks
fine_. Cf. Kal. xli. 23. =Jo kävi ilo ilolle=, =Riemu riemulle remahti=,
=Tuntui soito soitannalle=, etc.
_Abessive._
The abessive expresses the absence of anything.
=Joka syyttä suuttuu,
Se lahjatta leppyy=,
_He who is angry without a cause is reconciled without a reward_
(proverb).
=Joka kuritta kasvaa,
Se kunniatta kuolee=,
_He who grows up without education dies without honour_ (proverb), =Olkaa
huoletta=, _don’t trouble yourself_ (_be without care_). =Elä suihki
sutsunatta, Eläkäräämi rätsinättä, Elä liiku liinaisetta= (Kal. xxiii.
215), _go not without raiment, wander not without a shirt, stray not
without a kerchief_. =Vanhempien tiedotta=, _without the knowledge of
one’s parents_. =Muitten avutta=, _without the help of others_.
For emphasis the particle =ilman= is placed before the abessive.
=Ilman tau’in tappamatta,
Ottamatta oivan surman=,
_Without being slain by disease or taken by a natural death_ (Kal. xvi.
178, 9).
The use of the abessive of the third infinitive is particularly frequent,
see below, p. 193.
_Essive._
I. The original use of the essive is locative, but this only survives
in some adverbial expressions: =ulkona=, _out of doors_; =kaukana=,
_far_; =luona=, _near_; =takana=, _behind_; =kotona=, _at home_; =läsnä
olla=, _to be present_; =kokonansa=, _altogether_ (_in its entirety_);
=keskenänne=, =keskenänsä=, etc., _between you, them_; and such
expressions as =olla rannempana=, _to be near shore_; =olla sisempänä=,
_to be inside_.
II. From this use comes that denoting a definite period of time during
which something happens; =tänäpänä=, _to-day_; =huomenna=, _to-morrow_;
=Maanantaina=, =Tiistaina=, etc., _on Monday, Tuesday,_ etc. =En ole
maannut kolmena viimeisenä yönä=, _I have not slept there the last three
nights_. =Ihmiset käyvät pyhänä kirkossa=, _people go to church on a
Saint’s day_. =Eip’ on toiste tullutkana, Ei toiste sinä ikänä=, _She
never came again, Never again in this life_ (Kal. v. 138). =Jo päivänä
muutamana, huomenna moniahana= (Kal. v. 53).
III. From a metaphorical use of this local meaning the essive comes to
denote the character or state in which the subject of a sentence is. It
is used thus—
(1) As the predicate. =Isäni on pappina=, _my father is a priest_.
=Taivas köyhän kattona,
Maantie permantona= (proverb),
_The sky is the roof of the poor man and the high road his floor_. =Mikä
on asiana?= _what’s the matter?_
(2) As the appositional case.
=Minkä nuorena oppii
Sen vanhana muistaa= (proverb),
_What one learns young one remembers when old_. =Nuorna vitsa
väännettävä=, _one should bend the bough while it’s young_ (proverb).
=Poikana minä en tuntenut häntä=, _as a boy I never knew him_.
_Translative._
I. The original meaning of the translative, like that of the illative and
allative, seems to be motion to; but this only survives in a few adverbs.
=Ulos=, _out of doors_ (‘foras’); =luoksi= or =luoʻ=, _to_; =taakse= or
=taaʻ=, _backwards_; =sisemmäksi=, _inwards_; =rannemmaksi=, _nearer
shore_.
II. In a temporal sense the translative is used to express the time
in which a thing _is to be_ (not _was_) accomplished. =Poika rupesi
palvelukseen vuodeksi=, _the boy entered service for a year_. =Hän jäi
meille yöksi=, _he stayed with us for the night_ (the event, though in
the past, is regarded from the point of view when it was future).
It also expresses a limit of time: =tämä kirja valmistuu jouluksi=, _the
book will be ready by Christmas_. =Voinko saada ne ensi maanantaiksi?=
_can I have them by next Monday?_
It is also used to express place in numerical order. =Ensiksi=, _first_,
_in the first place_; =toiseksi=, _in the second place_.
III. The most frequent signification of the translative is metaphorical,
viz. the state into which anyone or anything passes. It can be used thus
after transitive and intransitive verbs. =Tulla köyhäksi=, _to become
poor_. =Ilma ei muutu selkeäksi=, _the weather does not become clearer_.
=Ne tulevat valmiiksi=, _they will be ready_. =Myrsky käy raivoisaksi=,
_the storm grows high_. =Emäntä leipoi jauhot leiviksi=, _the housewife
baked the flour into bread_. =Itse tuon sanoiksi virkkoi=, (frequent
phrase in Kalevala), _himself thus put this into words_. =Kaupunki paloi
tuhaksi=, _the town was burnt to ashes_.
It is also used as a complement after verbs of naming, calling,
considering, perceiving, etc. (_v._ p. 201), the idea being that in
consequence of the action of such verbs the object passes into a new
state. =Kutsutte minun mestariksi ja Herraksi=, _ye call me master and
Lord_. =Näkivät hänen kuolleeksi=, _they saw he was dead_. =Älkää
pahaksi panko=, _don’t take it amiss_. =Tunnen itseni hyvin sairaaksi=,
_I feel very ill_. The verb =pitää= is peculiar in always taking the
essive, and not translative, after it. E.g. =Pitää jotakin häpeänä=, _to
think a thing a shame_.
IV. It also expresses the purpose or use for which anything serves.
=Hän kelpaa opettajaksi=, _he is fit for a schoolmaster_. =Mitä voin
tehdä palvelukseksenne?= _what can I do for you (for your service)?_
=Olkoon tämä teille opiksi=, _let this be a lesson to you_. =Yhtiö lasten
suojelemiseksi=, _a society for protecting children_. =Juon viiniä
terveydekseni=, _I drink wine for my health_. =Juoda onneksi=, _to drink
to some one’s health_.
By an extension of this use the translative is used almost like the
essive (cf. the dative of the complement in Latin). =Se on hänelle
häpeäksi=, _he ought to be ashamed of it_ (_it is for a shame to him_).
Compare also =miksi?= _why?_
The translative can be used idiomatically in such phrases as _He speaks
Finnish well for a foreigner_, or _considering that he is a foreigner_,
=hän puhuu suomea hyvin ulkomaalaiseksi=. So too, =Laiva on purreksi
hyvä kulkemaan=, _the ship goes well for a sailing-boat_. =Poika on
liian viisas ikäiseksensä=, _the boy is very clever for his age_. A good
example of this use is found in Kal. v. 63 ff. =Sileähk’ on silkaseksi=,
=Kuleahka kuujaseksi=, =Evätöin emäkalaksi=, =Ihala imehnoksiki=,
=Pää-rivatoin neitoseksi=, =Vyötöin veen on tyttöseksi, Korvitoin
kotikanaksi=.
VI. This use is analogous to the adverbial use of the translative, which
is frequent. For instance, =pahaksi= (or =kovaksi=), =hyväksi onneksi=,
_fortunately, unfortunately_. =Osaksi=, _partly_. =Elää herroiksi=, _to
live en grand seigneur_.
With this may be compared its use to express the language in which
anything is written. =Kirja on käännetty suomeksi=, _the book is
translated in Finnish_. So =Saksaksi=, _in German_; =Ruotsiksi=, _in
Swedish_; =Venäjäksi=, _in Russian_.
_Comitative._
I. The comitative is used to express the person in whose company, or the
object in connection with which an action takes place. It is always used
in spoken Finnish in the plural, even if only one person or object is
referred to, but in the old language and in printed books the singular
is sometimes found. It nearly always takes a pronominal affix. =Mies
meni pois vaimoinensa=, _the man went away with his wife_. =Vetivät
verkon kaloinensa=, _they drew in the net with the fish_. =Otti lapsen
äitinensä=, _he took the child with its mother_. =Kesä on tullut ihanine
ilmoinensa=, _the summer is come with beautiful weather_. =Sata miestä
miekkoinensa=, _a hundred men with their swords_ (Kal. xi. 100).
When the comitative is combined with an attribute, the latter frequently
ends in =n=, not =ne=. For instance, =järvet saoin saarinensa=, _lakes
with a hundred islands_ (Kal. xxiv. 459). =Ei hänen sovi tulla tänne
tuhmin tapoinensa=, _he ought not to come here with his foolish ways_.
=Älä tule sisään likaisin jalkoinesi=, _don’t come in with your dirty
feet_.
Copious examples of this case will be found in Kalevala, xxiv. 444-462.
=Jää nyt pirtti terveheksi, Pirtti lautakattonesi=, etc.
_Instructive._
I. The instructive is used to express the instrument or the manner in
which an action is performed. The instructive of substantives is chiefly
used of parts of the body and in modern Finnish always in the plural.
=Paljain jaloin=, _with bare legs, barelegged_. =Poika meni ulkos paljain
päin=, _the boy went out bareheaded_. =Omin käsin=, _with one’s own
hands_; =omin silmin=, _with one’s own eyes_. =Ristissä käsin=, _with
hands crossed_. =Kaikki huonekalut ovat sikin sokin=, _all the furniture
is topsy-turvy_. =Kulkea jalan=, _to go on foot_. =Alla päin=, _with
one’s head hanging down_ (Kal. iii. 501 and following lines). =On meillä
valta omin luvin tulla huoneesenne=, _we have authority to come into
your room without asking leave_. =Kahden ynnä=, _both together_; =yksin
mielin=, _with one accord_; =yksin syntyi Wäinämöinen=, _Wäinämöinen was
born alone_.
It is noticeable that generally when this case is used, either a noun
with an adjective is found or two nouns both in the instructive. Thus one
can say =kissa repi ovea kynsin hampain=, whereas if only one word were
used it would be better to use =kynsillä= _or_ =hampailla=.
The instructive rarely takes pronominal suffixes. Kal. ix. 507, 509, =En
liiku omin lihoini ... En väiky omin väkini=.
II. The instructive of adjectives is frequently used adverbially to
express manner.
(1) The instructive _singular_ of an adjective is used adverbially to
qualify another adjective or adverb in the positive. =Tavattoman kaunis=,
_exceedingly beautiful_; =kauhean ruma=, _horribly ugly_; =hyvin hyvä=,
_very good_; =tämä yö oli hirveän pitkä=, _the night was terribly long_.
(2) The instrumental _plural_ of adjectives in the comparative or
superlative is used to define verbs. =Puhu nopeammin=, _speak quicker_;
=aurinko paistaa kirkkaammin=, _the sun shines brighter_.
III. The instructive plural is also used in a temporal sense, and denotes
an indefinite or recurring period of time. Thus =linnut laulavat illoin=,
=aamuin=, _the birds sing in the morning_, _in the evening_ (whereas if
a definite morning or evening is meant the essive must be used). In
this sense the termination =sin= is often used, which is really the
instructive plural of an adjective with a nominative =nen= formed from
the noun. Thus =me alamme työn aamuisin kello kahdeksasta=, _we begin to
work at eight in the morning_. =Iltaisin rupeamme aikaisemmin maata=, _we
go to led earlier in the evening_. =Hän tekee talvisin kauppamatkoja=,
_he makes business journeys in the winter_. =Onko teillä tapa valvoa
öisin?= _are you in the habit of not sleeping at night?_
This same ending is added to substantives in a sense somewhat analogous
to the prolative. =Minä menen rautateisin=, _I go by rail_. =Sotaväki
matkusti osaksi maisin osaksi merisin=, _the troops travelled partly by
land, partly by sea_.
_Prolative._
This case is rarely used, and in fact has no sense when formed from any
but substantives expressing some kind of local position. It expresses
motion by or over anything, and is chiefly employed in adverbial
expressions, and generally in the plural. =Tulla meritse tai maitse=, _to
come by sea or land_. =Järven ranatse=, _along the shore of the lake_.
=Niemen nenitse=, _round the promontory_. =Aalloitse=, _by sea_. =Minä
kylvän kyyhättelen Luojan sormien lomitse=, _I sow by the finger of God_
(lit. through the interval of the fingers). Kal. ii. 297 =(Mehiläinen
lenti) Otavaisten olkapäitse, Seitsentähty en selitse=, _(the bee flew)
over the shoulder of the great bear, over the back of the seven stars_.