Learn Hardcore Finnish: Tämä kahvila on rauhallinen aamulla.

Tämä = this
kahvila = café, coffee shop
on = is (3rd person singular of olla = to be)
rauhallinen = calm, peaceful, quiet
aamulla = in the morning (literally on the morning, using a case ending)

So the whole sentence is: This café is quiet in the morning.

Why is it Tämä kahvila and not just Tämä or Se?

All three are possible, but they differ in nuance:

Tämä kahvila = this café (right here / very close to me)
- You clearly specify it’s a café, and you point to one that is near you.
Tämä alone = this (one)
- Grammatically you could say Tämä on rauhallinen aamulla, which would mean This is quiet in the morning, but the listener has to know from context that you are talking about a café.
Se kahvila = that café / the café (more distant or already known)
- Used more when something is already known from context or not right next to you.
- Se kahvila on rauhallinen aamulla ≈ That café / The café is quiet in the morning.

So Tämä kahvila is a clear, neutral way to indicate “this particular café here”.

Why do we need the verb on? Can Finnish ever drop “is” like some other languages do?

Finnish normally needs the verb olla (to be) in sentences like this.

Tämä kahvila on rauhallinen aamulla. = correct
Tämä kahvila rauhallinen aamulla. = incorrect / ungrammatical

Unlike Russian or Arabic in the present tense, Finnish does not normally omit “is”. You can sometimes leave out pronouns (like se, hän) in context, but not the verb on here.

What grammatical form is rauhallinen, and why does it end in -nen?

Rauhallinen is an adjective in the nominative singular form.

Many Finnish adjectives end in -nen, for example:
- suomalainen – Finnish
- iloinen – happy
- rauhallinen – peaceful, quiet

The -nen ending is part of the basic dictionary form. The base noun is rauha (peace), and rauhallinen is literally “peaceful”.

As a predicate adjective (after on), it agrees with the subject:

Tämä kahvila (singular) → rauhallinen (singular nominative)
Nämä kahvilat (plural) → rauhallisia (plural partitive)
- Nämä kahvilat ovat rauhallisia aamulla. = These cafés are quiet in the morning.

So here rauhallinen is just the normal, agreeing form for a singular subject.

Why is it rauhallinen and not hiljainen? What is the difference?

Both can be translated as “quiet”, but they have different nuances:

rauhallinen
- Emphasises calmness, peacefulness, lack of disturbance or stress.
- A place can have some background noise and still be rauhallinen if the atmosphere is relaxed.
hiljainen
- Emphasises low volume, silence.
- A hiljainen place is acoustically quiet; people are not talking loudly, there’s little noise.

So:

Tämä kahvila on rauhallinen aamulla.
→ The café has a calm, relaxed atmosphere in the morning.
Tämä kahvila on hiljainen aamulla.
→ There is little or no noise in the café in the morning.

They often overlap, and both would be understandable.

Why does aamulla have the ending -lla? How does that mean “in the morning”?

The ending -lla / -llä is the adessive case. Besides location (on / at), Finnish also uses this case for time expressions:

aamu = morning
aamulla = in the morning (literally on the morning)

Similar examples:

päivä → päivällä = in the daytime
ilta → illalla = in the evening
yö → yöllä = at night

So here, aamulla is a standard way to say “in the morning”.

Can I say aamuna or aamuisin instead of aamulla? What’s the difference?

Yes, but the meaning changes slightly:

aamulla
- Neutral: in the morning (at that time of day).
- Tämä kahvila on rauhallinen aamulla.
  → Generally, in the mornings, this café is quiet.
aamuna (essive case)
- More often refers to a specific morning:
- Eräänä aamuna kahvila oli rauhallinen. = One morning the café was quiet.
aamuisin
- Means “in the mornings / every morning / usually in the morning”, habitual:
- Tämä kahvila on aamuisin rauhallinen.
  → This café is usually quiet in the mornings.

In your sentence, aamulla is the most straightforward, common choice.

Is the word order fixed? Could I say Tämä kahvila aamulla on rauhallinen or Aamulla tämä kahvila on rauhallinen?

Word order in Finnish is flexible, but not all orders sound natural.

All of these are grammatically acceptable, with small differences in emphasis:

Tämä kahvila on rauhallinen aamulla.
- Neutral, very natural: This café is quiet in the morning.
Aamulla tämä kahvila on rauhallinen.
- Emphasis on “in the morning”:
- In the morning, this café is quiet (and maybe not at other times).
Tämä kahvila on aamulla rauhallinen.
- Still okay; slight emphasis shift, but understandable.
Tämä kahvila aamulla on rauhallinen.
- Sounds odd / marked; not typical everyday word order.

For learners, stick to the original order or put aamulla at the beginning for emphasis.

Why is kahvila in its basic form, and not kahvilassa?

Here kahvila is the subject, so it stays in the nominative (dictionary) form:

Tämä kahvila = this café (subject)
on = is
rauhallinen = predicate adjective describing the subject

If you say kahvilassa (in the café), you are using the inessive case (-ssa/-ssä), which describes location, not the subject itself.

Compare:

Tämä kahvila on rauhallinen aamulla.
→ This café is quiet in the morning. (characteristic of the café)
Tässä kahvilassa on rauhallista aamulla.
→ It is quiet in this café in the morning. (describes what it’s like inside the café)

Both are fine, but the grammar and focus are different.

How would I say “These cafés are quiet in the morning”?

You need plural for both the demonstrative and the noun, and adjust the adjective:

Nämä kahvilat ovat rauhallisia aamulla.

Breakdown:

Nämä = these
kahvilat = cafés (plural nominative of kahvila)
ovat = are (3rd person plural of olla)
rauhallisia = quiet (plural partitive of rauhallinen, used as predicate with a plural subject in this pattern)
aamulla = in the morning

So: Nämä kahvilat ovat rauhallisia aamulla.

How do I make this sentence negative?

Use the negative verb ei with ole (negative of on):

Tämä kahvila ei ole rauhallinen aamulla.
= This café is not quiet in the morning.

Structure:

Tämä kahvila – subject
ei – negative verb (3rd person singular; the form ei is used for he/she/it/they in the present)
ole – negative form of on
rauhallinen – stays in the same form
aamulla – unchanged

Can I drop Tämä and just say Kahvila on rauhallinen aamulla?

Yes, you can, but the meaning becomes more generic or context-dependent:

Kahvila on rauhallinen aamulla.
- Could mean “A café is quiet in the morning” (a general statement).
- Or, in a clear context, “The café is quiet in the morning”.

Without tämä / se / tuo, you lose the explicit pointer to “this café here”. So:

Tämä kahvila on rauhallinen aamulla.
→ clearly a specific café, probably near you.

How is Tämä kahvila on rauhallinen aamulla pronounced?

Approximate pronunciation (IPA):

Tämä → /ˈtæ.mæ/ (or /ˈtæ.mɑ/ depending on accent)
kahvila → /ˈkɑh.vi.lɑ/
on → /on/
rauhallinen → /ˈrɑu̯.hæl.li.nen/
aamulla → /ˈɑː.mul.lɑ/

Key points:

Stress is always on the first syllable of each word: TÄ-mä KAH-vi-la ON RAU-hal-li-nen AA-mul-la.
Double consonants (like -ll- in rauhallinen, aamulla) are held slightly longer.
au and au / au̯ are pronounced as a diphthong (one gliding vowel sound).