Hard-to-Translate Words

Finnish contains words rooted in Finnish values and culture, which can make them challenging to translate directly into English. Let’s explore some of the trickiest examples and see what they tell us about Finnish society compared to the Anglosphere.

A Rules-Based Society

Finnish has expressions that emphasise a strong respect for rules and peace. For example, pelisäännöt refers to "the rules of the game" or "house rules," but the English expression does not convey the same respect for fairness or order. Likewise, kotirauha, literally meaning "home peace," emphasises inviolable privacy and security, a significant cultural value in Finland, which is far more than just the "right to privacy" in English.

The word kynnys refers to a threshold but carries both physical and emotional connotations in Finnish. In English, it is used in much more concrete situations, such as “a door threshold” or “a tax threshold,” and does not carry the same emotional weight. For a Finnish expression like kynnyskysymys or matala kynnys kysyä, we might talk about “approachability” or “accessibility,” but these still do not capture the Finnish sense of an emotional or psychological barrier.

Working Life

The difficulty in translating terms from working life reflects the fact that Anglosphere working conditions are very different from those in Finland, where worker conditions and protections can often be better.

For instance, while työilo literally means "work joy," reflecting a sense of happiness at work, "job satisfaction" is the closest term in English. Indeed, työilo or hyvää työpäivää might sound rather sarcastic in English. Similarly, työkyky would be "work capacity," but the Finnish term includes mental and physical health and well-being, whereas the English term is more focused on physical mobility. Työehtosopimus is a collective labour agreement, which is increasingly rare in the Anglosphere and may require explanation (in the US and UK, less than 15% of workers are in a trade union).

Some concepts simply don’t exist in English. For example, YT-neuvottelut refers to cooperative negotiations between employers and employees, but in the US and UK, layoffs often occur without any negotiation, so this might need to be explained. Pekkaspäivä could be translated as “a personal day,” but this is not a benefit for workers in English-speaking countries; rather, it’s a day that must be deducted from the holiday allowance.

Virkistuspäivä is a "recreation day" or “team day,” but while the Finnish version blends community building and work-life balance, the English terms are much more black-and-white — the former purely for fun, and the latter based on a training programme. English seems to maintain a sharper distinction between working life and well-being. In fact, we talk about "work-life balance" or "work versus life" as if real life exists only outside of work, whereas Finns speak about "work versus free time," which is much more balanced.

These tricky translations are fascinating in what they reveal about the differences between our cultures, the Finnish respect for rules and peace, and the lower expectations of working life in the Anglosphere. If you would like to learn more about cultural differences, please contact Galimatias at our website or take advantage of our promotional offer: