Questions & Answers about Kenen veljenpoika tuo on?
How is the word kenen formed?
Kenen is the genitive (possessive) form of the interrogative pronoun kuka (who). The stem changes completely from the base word, which is an important irregularity to memorize. Just like changing who to whose in English, Finnish uses kenen to ask who someone is related to or who something belongs to.
Does the word veljenpoika literally mean brother's son?
Yes! It is a compound word made from veljen (the genitive form of veli, meaning brother) and poika (son). If the nephew were a sister's son, you would use sisarenpoika instead.
Why doesn't the word order invert here like it does in English?
In Finnish, forming a question with a question word like kenen does not require swapping the subject and the verb. The entire question phrase kenen veljenpoika goes at the front, followed by the normal subject-verb order: tuo (that) on (is).
Why is tuo used here instead of se?
You use tuo when you are referring to a specific person you can see physically further away from you, like pointing at someone across the room. Se is generally used for people you cannot see right now or have already been talking about in the conversation.
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