Suomi on Pohjoismaa.

Finland is a Nordic country.

Breakdown of Suomi on Pohjoismaa.

• olla: to be
• Suomi: Finland
• Pohjoismaa: Nordic country

Questions & Answers about Suomi on Pohjoismaa.

What does on mean in this sentence?

On is the third-person singular present form of the verb olla (to be).

• olla = to be
• hän on = he/she is
• se on = it is
• Suomi on = Finland is

So Suomi on Pohjoismaa literally means Finland is [a] Nordic country. Finnish uses one form, on, where English has is / am / are, depending on the subject.

Why isn’t there an article like a or the in the Finnish sentence?

Finnish does not have articles at all—no a, an, or the. The idea of a Nordic country vs the Nordic country is understood from context, not from a specific word.

So:

• Suomi on Pohjoismaa.
  = Finland is a Nordic country. (English needs a, Finnish does not.)

What case are Suomi and Pohjoismaa in?

Both Suomi and Pohjoismaa are in the nominative case (the basic dictionary form).

• Suomi = Finland (nominative, acts as the subject)
• Pohjoismaa = Nordic country (nominative, acts as the predicate noun / complement)

In a simple X is Y sentence, both X and Y normally appear in the nominative case:

• Suomi on Pohjoismaa.
• Helsinki on Suomen pääkaupunki. – Helsinki is the capital of Finland.

Why is Pohjoismaa written as one word and not as two words?

Finnish very often forms compound nouns by joining words together into a single word.

• pohjoinen = north / northern
• maa = land, country
  → Pohjoismaa = northern country / Nordic country

In compounds:

• Only the last part takes case endings.
• Spelling as separate words (pohjoinen maa) usually changes the nuance and often isn’t the standard term anymore.

So Pohjoismaa as one word is the established noun meaning Nordic country.

Is there a difference between Pohjoismaa and pohjoinen maa?

Yes, there is a nuance difference.

• Pohjoismaa (compound noun)

  • A fixed term meaning a Nordic country (one of the Nordic states: Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Iceland, etc.).
  • More specific and almost “name-like.”

• pohjoinen maa (adjective + noun)

  • Literally a northern country; could refer to any country located in the north (for example, Canada could be called a pohjoinen maa in some contexts).
  • Descriptive, not a set geopolitical label.

So:

• Suomi on Pohjoismaa. → Finland is a Nordic country (member of the Nordic group).
• Suomi on pohjoinen maa. → Finland is a northern country (geographically northern).

Why is Pohjoismaa capitalized?

Capitalization in Finnish is more limited than in English, but:

• Suomi is capitalized because all country names are capitalized.
• Pohjoismaa is often capitalized when it refers to a member of the specific group Pohjoismaat (the Nordic Countries as a recognized geopolitical/cultural group).

You may sometimes see it with a lowercase p when used in a more general, descriptive sense (pohjoismaa = a northern country), but when it clearly refers to the Nordic group, a capital P is common and natural.

Why is it Pohjoismaa (singular) and not Pohjoismaat (plural)?

Because the sentence is saying that Finland is one country of that type, not that it is the whole group.

• Pohjoismaa = a Nordic country (singular)
• Pohjoismaat = the Nordic countries (plural)

Compare:

• Suomi on Pohjoismaa.
  = Finland is a Nordic country.

• Pohjoismaat ovat Euroopassa.
  = The Nordic countries are in Europe.

Or, more explicitly:

• Suomi on yksi Pohjoismaista.
  = Finland is one of the Nordic countries.

Could the word order be Pohjoismaa on Suomi?

Grammatically, Pohjoismaa on Suomi is possible, but the emphasis changes and it sounds unusual in normal speech.

• Suomi on Pohjoismaa.

  • Neutral statement: “Finland is a Nordic country.”
  • Subject (Suomi) comes first; this is the normal, unmarked word order.

• Pohjoismaa on Suomi.

  • Emphasizes Pohjoismaa and might sound like you’re identifying which Nordic country you mean (as in “The Nordic country is Finland”), but this would usually be expressed differently in real usage.

For a beginner, you can treat Subject – on – Complement as the standard pattern:

• Suomi on Pohjoismaa.
• Helsinki on kaupunki. – Helsinki is a city.

Is there any special ending on Suomi or Pohjoismaa that means “is”?

No. The idea of “is” is carried entirely by the verb on.

• Suomi – unchanged nominative noun (subject).
• on – the only part that shows “is” (form of olla).
• Pohjoismaa – unchanged nominative noun (complement).

Unlike some languages, Finnish does not mark “is” as an ending on the noun; it uses a separate verb.

How would I say Finland is not a Nordic country?

To negate on, you use a special negative verb ei plus a different form of olla:

• Suomi on Pohjoismaa. – Finland is a Nordic country.
• Suomi ei ole Pohjoismaa. – Finland is not a Nordic country.

Pattern:

• [Subject] ei ole [complement]. → “[Subject] is not [complement].”