Expressing specific years
When you want to state that something happened in a specific calendar year, you use the word vuonna (the essive case form of vuosi, meaning "in the year").
Unlike many other situations in Finnish where numbers must be inflected to match the noun they modify, the number following vuonna strictly stays in its basic, uninflected nominative form. Even for long compound numerals, you simply write the digits (or say the number in its dictionary form), and they remain in the nominative case.
| The famous inventor patented the light bulb in the year 1880. | Kuuluisa keksijä patentoi hehkulampun vuonna 1880. |
| The first commercial steam engine was built in the year 1712. | Ensimmäinen kaupallinen höyrykone rakennettiin vuonna 1712. |
Timeline of milestones
Because the phrase vuonna + [year] acts as a self-contained time marker, it is incredibly useful for tracing timelines. You can use it to talk about historical events, inventions, and even predictions for the future.
| The inventor invented the printing press in the year 1440. | Keksijä keksi kirjapainon vuonna 1440. |
| The doctor developed the first vaccine in the year 1796. | Lääkäri kehitti ensimmäisen rokotteen vuonna 1796. |
| This new operating system will revolutionize the market in the year 2025. | Tämä uusi käyttöjärjestelmä tulee mullistamaan markkinat vuonna 2025. |
Word order with "vuonna"
Like many time expressions in Finnish, the phrase vuonna + [year] is quite flexible. While it most commonly sits comfortably at the end of a sentence, you can also place it in the middle of a clause to shift the emphasis naturally.
| This operating system was so fast in the year 2007 that everyone wanted a smartphone. | Tämä käyttöjärjestelmä oli vuonna 2007 niin nopea, että jokainen halusi älypuhelimen. |
| They were so smart that they invented a new smartphone in the year 2010. | Ne oli niin fiksuja, et ne keksi uuden älypuhelimen vuonna 2010. |
