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Of course, colloquially, Finns typically shorten them to

yy kah kol nel vii kuu sei kasi ysi kymppi

(or a similar variation)

with multiples of ten shorted to -kyt. So twenty-one is 'kahkytyy', the same number of syllables as in English.

Ref: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colloquial_Finnish#Numerals

Learning Finnish involves learning two dialects, spoken and written, and the spoken dialect can vary considerably even between cities 200km apart. But it's an incredibly fun language to learn. Very logically constructed, few(er) exceptions to the rules, and if you can say it, you can spell it!



I'm Finnish and I have to say I've never heard anyone say "kahkytyy" and it ... looks weird, too. "Kakskytyks" is the form I'd use. (Also, "yy kaa koo nee vii kuu seit kasi ysi kymppi" for the first 10 numbers.)

My dialect is from the Turku region, for what it's worth.


When counting something, I (in North Karelia) would say

  yy kaa koo nee vii kuu see kasi ysi 
  kymppi yytoo kaatoo ... kaksyy kakskaa kakskoo...
And when just saying a single number, I would say

  yksi kaksi kolme neljä viisi kuusi seittämän 
  kaheksan yheksän kymmenen ykstoista 
  kakstoista ... kakskytyks kakskytkaks kakskytkolme


Never heard "kahkytyy" either, "kakskytyks" is the form I'd use too (Häme represent).




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