Breakdown of Noviisi antoi salaseuran valan, ja minä sanoin häntä ystäväksi.
minä
I
hän
he / she
ja
and
ystävä
friend
sanoa
to say
antaa
to give
noviisi
the novice
salaseura
the secret society
vala
the oath
Questions & Answers about Noviisi antoi salaseuran valan, ja minä sanoin häntä ystäväksi.
Why does the second clause use häntä and ystäväksi?
This demonstrates the specific verb rection for sanoa when it means "to call someone something". The person being called must be in the partitive case (häntä), and the label applied to them is in the translative case (ystäväksi, ending in -ksi).
How would this sentence change if I used the verb kutsua (to call) instead of sanoa?
Both verbs require the person to be in the partitive case (häntä). However, while sanoa pairs with the translative case for the label (ystäväksi), kutsua is often paired with the essive case. If you used kutsua, the clause would become ja minä kutsuin häntä ystävänä.
The English translation says "gave the oath", but we usually "swear" or "take" an oath. Is antaa valan standard in Finnish?
Yes, this is an idiomatic difference. While English speakers "take" an oath, Finnish speakers "give" it (antaa valan). You can also use the dedicated verb vannoa (to swear), which would be vannoa valan.
Why is the object in the first clause (valan) in the genitive-accusative, but the object in the second clause (häntä) is partitive?
Antaa (to give) takes a total object because giving the oath is a completed action, so vala takes the -n ending. Verbs of labeling or calling, like sanoa or kutsua, inherently require a partitive object (häntä) because the action of applying a label is treated as an ongoing or unbounded action directed at the person.
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