Language/Finnish/Grammar/Basic-Finnish-Phonetics
Learning Finnish phonetics is an essential part of mastering the Finnish language. As a Finnish language teacher with 20 years of experience, I have found that my students who understand the basics of Finnish phonetics make faster progress in their language acquisition journey.
Don't hesitate to look into these other pages after completing this lesson: Conjunctions & Finnish Verb Tenses.
Finnish Vowels and Consonants
Finnish has 8 vowels and 18 consonants. The Finnish language is known for its vowel harmony, which means that the vowels in a word must match each other in terms of their frontness or backness.
Finnish Vowels
Finnish has 8 vowels. There are 2 types of Finnish vowels: back vowels and front vowels. Back vowels are pronounced with the tongue in the back of the mouth, while front vowels are pronounced with the tongue in the front of the mouth.
Finnish back vowels are: a, o, and u. Finnish front vowels are: ä, ö, and y. Finnish also has two vowel pairs: i/e and u/o.
It is important to note that the Finnish letter “a” can be pronounced in two different ways: short and long. The short “a” sound is pronounced similar to the “a” in the English word “hat”, while the long “a” sound is pronounced similar to the “a” in the English word “father”.
Finnish Consonants
Finnish has 18 consonants. There are 4 types of Finnish consonants: voiceless, voiced, preaspirated, and geminate.
Finnish voiceless consonants are: k, p, t, and s. Finnish voiced consonants are: g, b, d, and z. Finnish preaspirated consonants are: k, p, and t. Finnish geminate consonants are: kk, pp, tt, ll, mm, nn, and ss.
Finnish Phonetics and Pronunciation Rules
Finnish phonetics operate based on a set of rules that must be learned by non-native speakers. Here are some general Finnish pronunciation rules:
- Finnish words are pronounced exactly as they are spelled. - Stress is placed on the first syllable of a word. - Every sound must be clearly enunciated in Finnish pronunciation. - Every syllable in Finnish must be clearly emphasized.
Finnish Pronunciation Practice
The best way to practice Finnish pronunciation is by speaking the language on a regular basis with native Finnish speakers. Additionally, recording yourself speaking Finnish and listening back to it can help you identify areas that need improvement.
Here are some common Finnish words and phrases along with their pronunciation that will help you get started:
| Finnish | Pronunciation | English Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Hei | [ˈhei] | Hello |
| Kiitos | [ˈki.ɔ.tos] | Thank you |
| Hyvää päivää | [ˈhy.ʋæː ˈpæi.ʋæː] | Good afternoon |
| Näkemiin | [ˈnæ.ke.miːn] | Goodbye |
Conclusion
Learning Finnish phonetics is essential to the mastery of the Finnish language. By understanding the phonetics and pronunciation rules, you will be able to communicate more effectively with native speakers. Keep practicing and soon you will become proficient in the Finnish language!
Sources
- Finnish language - Wikipedia
- Free Finnish Tutorial: Basic Finnish Phrases, Pronunciation and ...
- Finnish Sound Structure. Phonetics, phonology, phonotactics and ...
- Basic Finnish Phrases with Pronunciation - ielanguages.com
Finished this lesson? Check out these related lessons: Imperative Mood & How to Use Be.
Other Lessons
- Sami and Karelian Languages
- Negation
- Imperative Mood
- Indefinite Articles in Finnish
- How to Use Have
- Possessive Case in Finnish
- Conditional Mood
- Finnish Adjectives and Pronouns
- Finnish Verbs: Present Tense
- Sentence Structure