# glad to hear from Finland



## Setwale_Charm

My Finnish has been deteriorating dramatically since Estonian occupied most of its place in my life)
 So could some Finns here please rescue the situation and remind me how to construct such a simple phrase as: I am glad to hear from Finland.

 Is that: Olen iloinen Suomestä kuul***? or something more idiomatic?


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## ilirmiku

Kuulen mielelläni Suomesta
or
Saan mielelläni uutisia Suomesta


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## jonquiliser

Hello,



ilirmiku said:


> Kuulen mielelläni Suomesta
> or
> Saan mielelläni uutisia Suomesta



Saying this is rather a suggestion that you would like to have news from Finland, i.e. no one has sent you any (or someone did and thinks, for some reason, that you might not want any ).

Setwale's phrase could perhaps rather be phrased _Olen iloinen kuulla Suomest*a*_, or _Kiva kuulla teistä/sinusta/Suomesta_, or perhaps _Mukava lukea Suomesta kuulumisia_.


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## Setwale_Charm

Paljon kiitoksia.


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## DrWatson

jonquiliser said:


> Setwale's phrase could perhaps rather be phrased _Olen iloinen kuullessani Suomesta_, or _Kiva kuulla teistä/sinusta/Suomesta_, or perhaps _Mukava lukea Suomesta kuulumisia_.


This is a special temporal construction. I don't remember the English name for it, but the plain infinitive can't be used here. However, it's not that common in colloquial language and can usually be replaced by a subordinate clause.


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## jonquiliser

Oh, how curious, thanks for pointing it out. But doesn't "Olen iloinen kuullessani Suomesta" imply that you're pleased in the moment, i.e. ~ "I'm glad when hearing from Finland"?


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## DrWatson

jonquiliser said:


> Oh, how curious, thanks for pointing it out. But doesn't "Olen iloinen kuullessani Suomesta" imply that you're pleased in the moment, i.e. ~ "I'm glad when hearing from Finland"?


You're right there, too, but that's the way you have to put it. I reckon it may have something to do with the subject. If there is one (I, you, he, etc.), you have to use this special infinitive which mostly does translate to "while/when doing smth". However, the normal infinitive is required when you use an impersonal construction, e.g:

*On mukavaa kuulla Suomesta.* = It's nice to hear from Finland

Just another quirk in Finnish, I'm afraid.


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## Setwale_Charm

Thank you both for your most useful contributions.


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