Editing Essive case (section)

==Finnish==
In [[Finnish language|Finnish]], it is marked by adding "{{lang|fi|-na}}/{{lang|fi|-nä}}" (depending on the [[Vowel harmony#Finnish|vowel harmony]]) to the stem of the noun.<ref name="Niemi"/>
:Examples:
:''{{lang|fi|lapsi}}'' "child" → ''lapsena'' "as a child", "when (I) was a child".

:{{lang|fi|Veljeni on säveltäjänä}} "My brother is a composer (at somewhere or a certain kind of)."
:cf: {{lang|fi|Veljeni on säveltäjä}} ('''Nom''') (My brother is a composer) vs. {{lang|fi|Veljeni on säveltäjänä}} ('''Ess''') (My brother works/acts as a composer (somewhere))
:''{{lang|fi|säveltäjä}}'' "composer" → ''{{lang|fi|säveltäjänä}}'' "state of being a composer (the given time is the present)"<ref name="Niemi"/>
:Example: '''{{lang|fi|Veljeni on säveltäjänä orkesterissa}}'' "My brother is a composer in an orchestra".
:Example: '''{{lang|fi|Veljeni on säveltäjänä ainutlaatuinen}}'' "As a composer my brother is unique".

In Finnish, the essive case is technically categorized as an old locative case, a case that, in some way, indicates spatial location. However, in the present language, the case has lost the majority of its spatial meaning. The case instead typically denotes a state that is temporary or inclined to change.<ref name="Niemi"/>

Some fixed expressions retain the essive in its ancient [[locative case|locative]] meaning, however: "at home" is {{lang|fi|kotona}}.  
:Example: ''{{lang|fi|Luen lehtiä kotona.}}'' "I read newspapers at home."

If the [[inessive case|inessive]] were used, {{lang|fi|kodissani}}, it would distinguish the activity from reading the papers, such as in the garage or in the garden (of the home).
* ''{{lang|fi|Minulla on kylpyhuone kodissani.}}'' "I have a bathroom in my home" (not in the garage or garden).

The essive case is also used in a temporal sense with certain nouns, notably the names of weekdays, and {{lang|fi|vuosi}} (year), {{lang|fi|aamu}} (morning), {{lang|fi|ilta}} (evening), and {{lang|fi|yö}} (night), as well as dates.<ref name="Niemi"/>
:''{{lang|fi|viime maanantaina}}'' "(on) last Monday."
:''{{lang|fi|kuudentena joulukuuta}}'' "on 6 December".
:''{{lang|fi|tänä päivänä}}'' "on this day"
:''{{lang|fi|viime vuonna}}'' "(during) last year"

When marking something that cannot literally change states, the essive case can implicate the presence of alternative states, even two individual, differing "worlds".<ref name="Salminen">Salminen, Taru. "Retention of abstract meaning: The essive case and grammaticalization of polyphony in Finnish." New Reflections on Grammaticalization. Philadelphia, PA: John Benjamins Publishing Co., 2002. Print.</ref> That can be seen in the following example:

:Example: ''{{lang|fi|Ostin helmen aitona.}}'' "I bought the pearl thinking it was genuine [but later found out that it was not]."<ref name="Salminen"/>

The example above illustrates the process by which marking of the essive case can be seen as creating two differing "worlds": one real and one illusionary. The "temporary" component of the meaning encoded by marking of the essive case on the Finnish word for "genuine" ({{lang|fi|aito}}) makes a distinction between the perceived state of the subject, as genuine at the time of purchase, and the actual state of subject, as not genuine as it is now perceived or at the time of the moment of speech.<ref name="Salminen"/>