Kuka hän on?

Breakdown of Kuka hän on?

olla
to be
hän
he / she
kuka
who

Questions & Answers about Kuka hän on?

Does kuka only mean "who", or can it mean "what" too?
Kuka strictly means "who" and is only used when asking about people. If you want to ask "what" about a thing or an animal, you use mikä.
The translation says "he", but can hän also mean "she"?
Yes! Finnish does not have separate words for "he" and "she". The word hän covers both, so this sentence can mean "Who is he?" or "Who is she?" depending on the context.
Why is the word order Kuka hän on instead of Kuka on hän?
When you ask a question with a pronoun like hän (he/she), the pronoun usually goes right after the question word. So the literal word order in Finnish is "Who he is?".
Would Finnish speakers say this exactly like this in everyday life?
In formal or written Finnish, yes. However, in casual spoken Finnish, people rarely use hän. They usually use the word se (it) for people, so you will much more often hear Kuka se on? instead.

Learn Kuka hän on and more in Finnish

All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.

  • Practice with interactive exercises
  • Track your progress with spaced repetition
  • Learn at your own pace — completely free