Languages and Culture Learn Finnish

If you want you learn finnish, this is the place to post! I (atleast) will be teaching. However, if someone else speaks finnish, and wishes to teach here, should post on this thread, or PM me.

This will be a course in basic finnish. Everyone who wishes to attend this course should post on this thread.

Teachers:
Sephiroth
Tetsuo

 

Im here and ready to learn

 

Yay! The first student!!!!
"And there was much rejoicing."
"Yay..."
-the narrator and Arthurs knights in Monty Python and the Holy Grail

 

What do we learn first?

 

The basics. Like I and me are both minä, and because I think some of you don't have ä on your keyboards you can type a instead of ä. Minä is pronounced like this: me-nah.
Now, I'll wait for someone to come, and if anyone hasn't come by tomorrow, I'll start teaching you two. Other people will be allowed to enter the course, but they should read all the posts before entering the course (I recommend it so you'll learn what the others have).

Okay, let's start with simple things, like
English Finnish Pronounced
Hey Hei Hey
Bye bye Hei-hei Hey-hey


Simple, right?
That's the class for today. Sorry it was a little short.

 

letters are pronounced as:

A= same as english "I" but cut to the first sound you get out of your mouth...like "eye" without the "ye"
B= say the word "ben" without the "en"
C= say the word "sen" without the "n" and a long "e"
D= say the word "demo" without the "emo"
E= say the word "espionage" without "spionage"
F= say the word "affirmative" without the letter "a" & "irmative"
G= say the word "game" without "ame"
H= say the word "harness" without "arness"
I= say the letter "E" in english
J= say the word "yama" without "ama"
K= say the word "ken" without "en"
L= say the word "lamp" without "amp"
M= say the word "mice" without "ice"
N= say the word "name" without "ame"
O= say the word "door" without the letters "d" & "r"
P= say the word "pain" without the "ain"
Q= ...um.. combine the two letters "K" and "U" ..so it's like "K"en+s"OO"n
R= ...i have no idea how to explain this -_-
S= say the word "same" without the "ame"
T= say the word "elite" without the "eli"
U= say the word "soon" without the letters "s" & "n"
V= say the word "vandal" without the "andal"
X= say the word "band", without the "b" & "nd" and "ex" witout the "e", then combine these two sounds.
Y= ...i have no idea how to explain this -_-
Z= should not be needed. Finnish language doesn't have this letter, also the pronounciation it quite hard to explain but say the letters T,S,E,T in finnish and it should sound like it.
Ä= say the word "sand" without "s"&"nd"
Ö= ...i have no idea how to explain this -_-




more later..tired. Hope i even got these right ;

 

Can I join ?

Also yay for Monty Python ^_^ .

 

Sure you can join Feena, and Tetsuo, I'll take that as you signing up to be a teacher... and Tetsuo, Thank you, that was very helpful. From now on you can see from Tetsuo's post how can you pronounce it.

Now.... On with the class.
English Finnish
1 yksi
2 kaksi
3 kolme
4 neljä
5 viisi
6 kuusi
7 seitsemän
8 kahdeksan
9 yhdeksän
10 kymmenen

Hope this is enough for now.

 

Since many words contain the "Y" letter, it would be good if there were a way to tell how it sounds... english "Y" (You,fujiYama,etc..) sounds like finnish "J" and there isn't any words that come in mind that has a sound of a finnish "Y" in a english word. Troublesome.

 

Could I join as well? *pokes around*

 

sure you can join.

English Finnish
You sinä
can voi/pystyy/voit
join liittyä

 

I don't know if this helps any, but to the problem for the finnish "Y" letter. It sounds similar to the japanese "U" ("yUme" for example)


Try this for a size:
http://www.edu.fi/oppimateriaalit/ymmarrasuomea/hallo.au
See if you recognize any of the voices heard. Try to translate it in text by listening and using the above pronounciation list.

I'll give a kick start:
Uusi ystävä, vanha...