Finnish is a proud member of the Finno-Ugric language family and, therefore, not related to the English language. It has no articles, no future tense, nor many other features found in so many European languages. It is a pretty regular language. Its spelling rules are so simple that Finnish children never have to worry about participating in spelling bee competitions. There, quite simply, is no need for them.
Vowels
The Finnish vowels always sound the same regardless of their place in the word. The instructions refer to General American English unless stated otherwise.
IPA
Notes
Examples
A
[ɑ]
as in "palm tree"; never as in "hat"
absurdi, palmu, utopia
E
[e]
like the first e in the Australian English (GA) and British English (RP) "legend"
emu, genre, legenda
I
[i]
pronounced like the letter y in "gallery"
idoli, galleria
O, Å
[o]
almost like the letter o in "corny" but more closed, never as in "not gold"; the letter Å, the "Swedish O", is used only in names of Swedish origin
korni, operetti, studio, Måns
U
[u]
as in "moose taboo" but short
urbaani, pulu, tabu
Y
[y]
the "French U" and the "German Ü"; close to the expression of disgust "eww", but short and pronounced in the front part of the mouth; start with the vowel sound in the word "sea" and then pout like a proud pufferfish
yksi, tyly, hyeena
Ä
[æ]
like the letter a in "band"
ässä, bändi
Ö
[ø]
the closest thing found in English can be heard in some words before r, as in "early bird"; the Finnish sound is pronounced closer to the teeth
söpö, ötökkä
The dots above Ä and Ö are NOT accents nor stress marks used to modify A and O. The two letters stand for distinct sounds made in the front part of the mouth, whereas the sounds represented by the dotless letters are produced at the back. Forgetting your dots results either in incomprehensible gobbledygook or in some wholly unrelated word. It is better to tell someone that they are hellä (tender, gentle) than to call them hella (kitchen stove).
GOOOOAAAAL!
Long vowels are written with double letters. They are the same sounds as the single letter ones but longer. If you get the length wrong, there is a risk of either being misunderstood or not being understood at all. If your biology paper is tuulessa, the wind has caught it. If it is tulessa, it is on fire. If your language doesn't have a long sound found in Finnish, a good way to practice is to take the corresponding short sound and stretch it like an excited sports announcer after a goal or a touchdown.
IPA
Notes
Examples
AA
[ɑː]
as in "Aargh!" and the British English (RP) "bar"
baari, aaria, hurraa
EE
[eː]
never as in "sweet dreams", but a British (RP) soccer announcer shouting the name "Best" - "Beest!"
eeppinen, toffee, magneetti
II
[iː]
as in "team"
iilimato, tiimi, kirii
OO
[oː]
Australian (GA) rugby announcer yelling the name "George" - "Geoorge!"
ooppera, virtuoosi, neuloo
UU
[uː]
as in "boom" and "vacuum"
vakuumi, buumi
YY
[yː]
as in the German "kühl"; similar to "eww" but closer to the teeth
basketball announcer shouting "Erving" - "Eerving!"; the Finnish sound is closer to the teeth
insinööri, miljöö
Foreign names and loanwords sometimes defy these rules. For example, Chile has a long i in the middle and duo has a long u.
Who are you?
The word for "I" is minä and for "you" sinä. Finnish verbs are conjugated according to person and number. Here are two forms of the verb olla, "to be":
Pronoun
Verb
minä
I
olen
am
sinä
you
olet
are
Finns rarely use the expression "my name is". Instead we simply say "I am". The quintessential Finnish word for "hello" is terve, literally "healthy".
Terve! Minä olen Väinö.
Hello! I am Väinö.
Sinä olet Aino.
You are Aino.
The question word kuka, "who", is followed by words in the same order as if they were in a statement.
Terve! Kuka sinä olet?
Hello! Who are you?
Sorry and thank you
Finnish does not have separate, short expressions for "sorry" and "excuse me". Both are translated with anteeksi. The word for "thank you " is kiitos.