Breakdown of Syyskuussa ja marraskuussa aurinko ei paista.
ja
and
ei
no / not (negative verb)
aurinko
sun
paistaa
to shine
syyskuu
September
marraskuu
November
Questions & Answers about Syyskuussa ja marraskuussa aurinko ei paista.
How do we say "in" a month in this sentence?
You add the inessive ending -ssa (meaning "in") to the end of the month's name. Here, syyskuu (September) becomes syyskuussa and marraskuu (November) becomes marraskuussa. Since all Finnish months end in the word kuu (which contains the back vowel u), they will always take the -ssa ending, never -ssä.
What do the month names syyskuu and marraskuu literally mean?
All Finnish months end in kuu, which means "moon" or "month". Syys comes from syksy (autumn), so syyskuu is the "autumn month". Marras is an old word for "death" or "dying" (referring to plants dying off before winter), making marraskuu the "death month".
Why is it ei paista instead of ei paistaa?
The dictionary form of the verb "to shine" is paistaa. However, in Finnish, when you use the negative word ei (does not), the main verb drops its personal ending to form the negative stem. The stem for this verb is paista-, so "does not shine" becomes ei paista.
Could I put the months at the end of the sentence instead?
Yes! Finnish word order is quite flexible. You could also say Aurinko ei paista syyskuussa ja marraskuussa. Putting the months at the very beginning just places a little more emphasis on the specific time of year.
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