Finnisch

Written by Joe Brady

It is fair to say that Finnish is rather difficult to learn for anyone who does not speak one of the Finno-Ugric languages. Even for those who do there are problems. For instance, Finnish and Hungarian belong to the Finno-Ugric group but they are far from being mutually comprehensible, as far apart as, say, Russian and Gaelic. It's not that Finnish is inherently difficult; but its origins make it different from most of the other languages of Europe. There are a few exceptions: Finnish and Estonian are closely related and there are a few other small kindred languages such as Lapp, also known as Saame, which is spoken in the northern parts of Scandinavia, and the Kola Peninsula of north-western Russia. Other Finno-Ugric languages are spoken here and there in eastern Europe and Russia parts of the Eurasian landmass.

So, for fun rather than academic advancement Virtual Finland here offers you a chance to learn a few Finnish pleasantries that could be really useful if you have the good fortune to visit Finland. Click on the Finnish words to hear how to say them.

But before you do that listen to the distinctive voice of Barbara Helsingius, one of Finland's most sophisticated chanteuses, as she unravels some of the mysteries of romance in Finnish.

Greetings and everyday expressions

In a bar or restaurant

In the street

[zuletzt aktualisiert: 07.06.02] .......... © 1999-2002 Caasn | Post@Caasn.de