Exessive case
The exessive case is a grammatical case that denotes a transition away from a state. It is a rare case found in certain dialects of Finnic languages. It completes the series of "to/in/from a state" series consisting of the translative case, the essive case and the exessive case.
Finnish
The exessive is found only in Savo and southeastern dialects. Its ending is -nta/ntä. For example, tärähtäneentä terveeksi = "from loony to healthy", or a state change from mental illness to mental health.
There are some word forms in Finnish dialects in which the exessive appears in a locative sense. These are somewhat common, though nonstandard, for example takaanta/takanta (from behind, standard Finnish takaa), siintä (from that/it or thence, standard Finnish siitä).
Estonian
In the general pattern of the loss of a final vowel when compared to Finnish, the Estonian exessive ending is -nt. For example, tagant = from behind (something).
Literature
- Särkkä, Tauno: Itämerensuomalaisten kielten eksessiivi (The exessive case of the Baltic-Finnic languages), Helsinki 1969.
External links
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