Learn Hardcore Finnish: Kirjakauppa kadun kulmassa myy käytettyjä kirjoja. - The bookstore on the corner sells used books.

In Finnish, when you say “the corner of the street,” katu (“street”) takes the genitive case (kadun) to show possession. The structure is literally “street’s corner.” Then kulma (“corner”) gets a location ending to show where.

What does the -ssa ending on kulmassa indicate?

The suffix -ssa is the inessive case, used to express “in” or “at” something.
• kulma → kulmassa = “in/at the corner.”
So kadun kulmassa = “at the street’s corner.”

Why are both käytettyjä and kirjoja in the partitive plural?

Adjectives in Finnish agree with the nouns they modify in case and number. Here:
• kirja (“book”) → partitive plural kirjoja (“some books”)
• käytetty (“used”) must also be partitive plural → käytettyjä
This expresses an indefinite amount (“some used books”).

How do I know whether to use -ja or -jä for the partitive plural ending?

Finnish follows vowel harmony:
• Words with back vowels (a, o, u) take -ja.
• Words with front vowels (ä, ö, y) take -jä.
kirja has back vowel a → partitive plural kirjoja.
käytetty has front vowel y → käytettyjä.

Why isn’t there an article like “a” or “the” before kirjakauppa?

Finnish has no articles. Definiteness or indefiniteness is understood from context, not by using separate words.

Why is the verb myy in the third person singular?

Verbs in Finnish agree with their subjects in person and number.
• kirjakauppa (“bookstore”) is singular → verb is myy (“(it) sells”).

What does the compound kirjakauppa literally mean?

It’s made of kirja (“book”) + kauppa (“shop/business”) = “bookshop” or “bookstore.” Finnish often forms new words by joining two nouns directly.

Why don’t we use a copula like on (“is”) before the location phrase?

The main verb of the sentence is myy (“sells”), so there’s no need for on. If you wanted simply to state location, you’d say:
• Kirjakauppa on kadun kulmassa = “The bookstore is at the street corner.”
But here you want to say “sells,” so you drop the copula.

Can we change the word order, or must it be Kirjakauppa kadun kulmassa myy käytettyjä kirjoja?

Finnish word order is flexible thanks to case endings. You could say:
• Kadun kulmassa kirjakauppa myy käytettyjä kirjoja.
or even emphasize the books:
• Kirjakauppa myy käytettyjä kirjoja kadun kulmassa.
All versions are grammatically correct; you just shift the emphasis.