Locative cases

Paikallissijat, or locative cases in English, is the way Finnish grammar identifes where someone or something is, is going to, or has come from.

The most common types of locative cases are classified by internal or external locations. Listed below are brief overviews of the different types of internal and external cases and the idea behind them. A very in-depth explanation about locative cases can be found from this locative cases article(Opens in new window) by Joel Yliluoma.

Internal locative cases

Illative - To where (Mihin)

The Illative (illatiivi) case is part of the internal locative cases. It typically corresponds to the into preposition in English, and usually refers to a change or observation of something going from outside to inside.

The illative case is indicated by the -Vn, -hVn, -seen suffixes, and describes the following concepts:

When something is going to and into something else.
When phrasing or expressing time.

Inessive - In where (Missä)

The Inessive (inessiivi) case is part of the internal locative cases. It typically corresponds to the in preposition in English, and usually refers to something being inside of something else.

The inessive case is indicated by the -ssa/-ssä suffixes, and tends to describe the following concepts:

When something is inside of something else.
When an object has or contains something.
When phrasing or expressing time.

Elative - From where (Mistä)

The Elative (elatiivi) case is part of the internal locative cases. It typically corresponds to the from preposition in English, and usually refers to a change or observation of something going from inside to outside, though this is not always exact and depends on the context.

The elative case is indicated by the -sta/-stä suffixes, and tends to describe the following concepts:

When something comes from somewhere.
When giving an opinion.
When using certain verbs.

External locative cases

Allative - To where (Mihin)

The Allative (allatiivi) case is part of the external locative cases. It typically corresponds to the to, on or onto prepositions in English, and usually refers to a change or observation of something going from outside to a closeby position.

The allative case is indicated by the -lle suffix, and describes the following concepts:

When something is going to (but not necessarily into) something else, such as an open space.
When giving something to someone.

Adessive - In where (Missä)

The Adessive (adessiivi) case is part of the external locative cases. It typically corresponds to the at, on or around prepositions in English, and usually refer to being externally closeby or around something.

The adessive case is indicated by the -lla/-llä suffixes, and tends to describe the following concepts:

When something is at, near or around something.
When something is on top of something.
When referring to open spaces.
When describing possession.
When being or going by or with something.
When phrasing or expressing time.

Ablative - From where (Mistä)

The Ablative (ablatiivi) case is part of the external locative cases. It typically corresponds to the from" preposition in English, and usually refers to a change or observation of something going from somewhere externally closeby to outside", though this is not always exact and it depends on the context.

The ablative case is indicated by the -lta/-ltä suffixes, and tends to describe the following concepts:

When something is going away from a place it is near or around.
When phrasing or expressing time.
When using certain (and often perceptional) verbs.

Grammar

Vocabulary

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