Perhaps you’re heading to Finland this year… or maybe you just want to impress your friends a little at the camp. Whatever the case, it never hurts to brush up on your Finnish, and what better way to start than with some summer vacation related phrases?

Perhaps you’re heading to Finland this year… or maybe you just want to impress your friends a little at the camp.  Whatever the case, it never hurts to brush up on your Finnish, and what better way to start than with some summer vacation related words and phrases?

Just so you know, I’m far from the ideal candidate to teach anyone, and I’ll probably be corrected for the next week by native Finns, but this is the Finnish I learned growing up and what I am going to share with you today.  Of course, this is for me to learn too, so feel free to correct me and I’ll do what I can to update it.

You should see play buttons for each word which tell you how to pronounce them.  If you don’t, try it out on a computer later if you’re on a mobile device, or perhaps a different browser.  So what the hey, let’s begin:

🔊 mökki

cabin / cottage

🔊 Ajamme mökille.

We’re driving to the cottage.  You do a shorter k when saying it this way.

🔊 kaunis  🔊 ulkona  🔊 Se on kaunis ulkona!

It’s beautiful/lovely outside!

🔊 ilma  🔊 Nyt on kaunis ilma. 

Now it’s lovely weather.

🔊 järvi 

lake

🔊 Hypätä järveen!

Go jump in the lake!

🔊 myrsky 

storm

🔊 Myrsky tulee.

A storm is coming.

🔊 Voi etta! 

Oh no!  This can’t be happening!

🔊 aurinko  🔊 Aurinko paistaa. 

The sun is shining.

paistaa can also mean fry, and can be used in the context of, for example, frying an egg.

🔊 Paista kananmuna. 

 

🔊 kuu  🔊 Kuu on noussut. 

The moon has risen.  Say the s a little smoother and shorter than the example voice, though. Nousut.

🔊 ovi  🔊 Pa ovi kiinni! 

It should be “paa” actually; this is slang and may not be used in mainstream Finnish so it doesn’t know what I’m talking about and misprounces it. It’s a slightly longer “ahh” sound than in the example, so it should be spoken less abruptly. Paa ovi kiinni!

Shut the door!  You would want to say it if someone’s letting the mosquitoes in at night.

🔊 Pane ovi lukkoon. 

Pane is the proper form of “paa”.  It means put. Pane ovi lukkoon means Lock the door, more literally “put the door locked”. Maybe there’s a psychopath out there… or a clever bear.

🔊 ikkuna  🔊 Avaa ikkuna! 

Open the window!  Maybe someone farted.

🔊 sauna 

Now you have an audio cue to show your internet friends how it should be said.

🔊 Pitäs mennä saunaan.

I must go to sauna.  Say it in a manner like you just can’t take waiting anymore.

🔊  Mene hakemaan vettä saunalle.

Go fetch water for the sauna.

🔊 kamiina 

stove

🔊 Syty kamiinaa. 

Light up the stove.

🔊 löyly  🔊 Nyt pitää ottaa löylyä. 

Now we must take steam.

🔊 lyö or 🔊 lyödä
hit

🔊 vihta 

A bundle of young birch switches, used for hitting oneself in the back during löyly.

🔊 Lyö vihdan kanssa.

Hit with the vihta!

🔊 kalja 

beer!

🔊 Juomme kaljaa. 🔊 Juomme kaljaa.

Let’s drink some beer.  It’s worth saying twice.

🔊 juoppo 

Just be careful not to become one of these.

That’s all for today!

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