Pronouns

Pronouns are a closed special sub class of nouns. Morphologically pronouns have often defective, heteroclitic or otherwise irregular inflectional patterns, and certain pronouns have an morphophonologically distinct accusative case, extinct from other noun classes Further reading: [VISK §§ 100|http://scripta.kotus.fi/visk/sisalto.php?p=100] – 104, Semantics … VISK § 7XX

Pronouns are subdivided into categories by semantic and syntactic means. Semantic categories delimit the type of referents (humane, sentient, object), qualification and quantification. (interrogative, quantor). Morphosyntactically distinct is class of proadjectives, that inflect and act like adjectives. There are six personal pronouns for the six deictic references used; first, second and third singular and plural. The personal pronouns have separate accusative cases marked by t suffix. The pronouns in standard literary Finnish are minä (I), sinä (you), hän (he), me (we), te (you), he (they). Further reading: VISK § 100

• Personal pronouns examples:*
• minä: minä+Pron+Pers+Sg+Nom (Eng. # me)
• sinut: sinä+Pron+Pers+Sg+Acc
• heille: he+Pron+Pers+Pl+All

The personal pronouns are among the most dialectally varied words of the Finnish language. The pronouns forms are one of the factors separating eastern dialects from the western ones. The personal pronouns of eastern dialects are mie, sie, (hää, hiä), myö, työ, hyö resp.; The third singular being rare in modern use. |citation-needed|

In the western dialects the pronouns are mää, sää for first and second singular, and more variedly meitti, teitti, heitti for plurals.

In standard spoken Finnish, and in many cases even in written form, the words mä and sä are more common and preferred to longer minä and sinä for first and second singular respectively. In practice the distinction is much like between Estonian corresponding pronouns, but official norm still recommends only the long forms. For third singular the nominative form is hän as in standard written language, however the inflection is without intervening -ne- part. In old literary Finnish and poetic language the forms ma and sa are still used.

There are six demonstrative pronouns for six non-personal references. In standard written Finnish these are tämä (this), tuo (that), se (it), nämä (these), nuo (those), ne (those).

Further reading: VISK § 101

• Demonstrative pronouns examples:*
• tämä: tämä+Pron+Dem+Sg+Nom
• tuolle: tuo+Pron+Dem+Sg+All

In standard spoken Finnish the demonstrative pronouns are commonly tää, toi, nää, noi instead of tämä, tuo, nämä, nuo.

Interrogative pronouns are used in question clauses. The basic interrogatives in standard written Finnish are kuka (who), mikä (what), kumpi (which); millainen (what kind of), kuinka (how), miksi (what for). Further reading: VISK §734

• Interrogative pronouns examples:*
• kuka: kuka+Pron+Interr+Sg+Nom (Eng. # who)
• ketä: kuka+Pron+Interr+Sg+Par
• kenet: kuka+Pron+Interr+Sg+Acc

The stem of kuka is shortened by from kene to ke in spoken language.

Few forms of kuka based on ken stem and ku stem have become archaic. Fuhrer reading: VISK §102 Also the short form of mi is archaic and limited to poetic use. |citation-needed|

Relative pronouns are kuka, joka and mikä (which, whose). VISK §735| They are morphologically indistinct from corresponding interrogative pronouns.

• Relative pronouns examples:*
• kuka: kuka+Pron+Rel+Sg+Nom

Quantor pronouns correspond to existential and universal quantifiers and their negations. The generic quantors are joku (someone), jokin (something), jokainen (everyone), kaikki (everything), kukin (each one), kukaan (no one), mikään (nothing), jokunen, muutama, harva (a few), moni (many) and useampi (more). The dual quantors, quantifying over set of two objects are jompikumpi (either or), kumpikin, molemmat (both), kumpikaan (neither). VISK §740 The quantor pronouns subsume the class of indefinite pronouns used in older grammar defintions. VISK §742 The indefinite quantifiers are classified as indefinite quantors for the sake of compatibility. This covers joku, jokin, jompikumpi, as well as specific eräs, muuan (some), yksi (one).
Further reading VISK §746 – 749.

• Quantor pronouns examples:*
• joku: joku+Pron+Qu+Indef+Sg+Nom
• jotkut: joku+Pron+Qu+Indef+Pl+Nom

Reflexive pronoun is the word itse refering to self, usually but not always coupled with possessive suffix to denote the referent. Further reading: VISK §729

• Reflexive pronouns examples:*
• itse: itse+Pron+Refl+Sg+Nom

Reciprocal pronoun is toinen refering to each other. It uses possessive suffix to delimit the reciprocal group. Further reading: VISK §732

• Reciprocal pronouns examples:*
• toisiamme: toinen+Pron+Recipr+Pl+Par+PxPl1

Proadjectives are pronouns that act in place of adjectives syntactically. They are formed by compounds (or derivations) of pronoun and lainen or moinen (such as). Further reading: VISK §715

• Proadjectives examples:*
• jollainen: jollainen+A+Rel+Sg+Nom

Proadverbs are the pronouns that have lexicalised into adverbs by their syntax and semantics. Further reading: VISK §715

• Proadverbs examples:*
• missä: missä+Adv+Interr+Ine

forms of jompi may not exist as free morphs. The marginal forms of monias are extinct. Oddly enough, the semireduplicative intensifier monituinen is nowhere to be found in VISK either.

Marginally in the pro word category are nouns, adjectives and adverbs refering to equivalence in comparative context since they are also otherwise lacking meaning like other pro words. This fgroup includes words sama (same), eri (different), muu (other), toinen (another), and their derivations. Further reading: VISK §766

In spoken language the supposedly non-inflecting eri has common inflected forms.

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This (part of) documentation was generated from src/fst/morphology/stems/pron.lexc