Language/Finnish/Pronunciation/Alphabet-and-Pronunciation

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Hei!

I'll try to tell you about pronunciation of Finnish.

In common, it's easier than English writing/reading system. You read words precisely as they are written. But there are also some vital details you should always remember.

Alphabet

The alphabet in Finnish is composed of 29 letters:

a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, l, m, n, o, p, q, r, s, t, u, v, w, x, y, z, å, ä, ö.

The letters š and ž can occur only in loan words.

Letter Pronunciation
A a [a:]
B b [be:]
C c [se:]
D d [de:]
E e [e:]
F f [æf]
G g [ge:]
H h [ho:]
I i [i:]
J j [ji:]
K k [ko:]
L l [æl]
M m [æm]
N n [æn]
O o [o:]
P p [pe:]
Q q [ku:]
R r [ær]
S s [æs]
T t [te:]
U u [u:]
V v [ve:]
W w [ve:], [kaksoisve:]
X x [æks]
Y y [y:]
Z z [tset]
Å å [o:], [ruotsalainen o:]
Ä ä [æ:]
Ö ö [ø:]

Long and short sounds

Because Finnish uses few sounds, the length of similar sounds is important. As example - tapaan sinut "I meet you" and tapan sinut "I murder you".

ee, aa, oo, uu

So if you see ee, aa, oo, uu - read them loooong . Usual letters you read in a usual manner.

It is a bit trickier with long consonants , they are also important. Try to NOT speak them as two discrete k-k, t-t etc. Try instead :

  • Set your mouth as if you are ready to say it.
  • Take a very short pause.
  • Say the sound - but strongly.

Congratulations, you've done it! :)

Perhaps it would be good if you train a bit with kk, pp, tt.

mm, ss, rr, nn, ll

Sounds mm, ss, rr, nn, ll don't need such an articulation, just say them a bit longer.

Ä, Y, Ö

Ä, Y, Ö are authentic for Finnish.

  • Ä resembles "cAt" or "bAd" in English.
  • Y resembles German Über or French vU
  • Ö resembles the same sound in German


Video: how to pronounce each letter of the Finnish Alphabet


Finnish Online Virtual Keyboard


Authors

Alexofwermland


Contributors

Vincent, 87.92.174.96, Maintenance script and 2a04:cec0:11ac:a3d4:9801:86e8:1413:9fca


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