Estonian translations

EHLION's specialized translations from and into Estonian are accurate, clear and fluent, whatever your line of business. We're equally comfortable tackling your technical documentation we are translating your website content, apps, and numerous other formats and media. Our specialized Estonian translators offer recognized qualifications, specialist knowledge in their subject areas, and extensive professional experience.

Estonian | eesti keel | [e:st,i ke:l]

Did you know...?

Did you know that Estonian uses far more vowel combinations than most other languages spoken in Europe? Many common words contain a succession of four or more vowels, including “jäääär” (ice margin), “kõueöö” (night-time storm), and “puuõõnsus” (tree hollow). In Estonian grammar, there are no genders or articles, but it does have 14 cases, which means that each regular noun can be declined in 14 different ways. These declinations are indicated by suffixes attached to the end of the noun, which are often used instead of prepositions. Another interesting fact is that Estonians say “Terviseks!” when drinking a toast and also when somebody sneezes. In both cases it means “to your health”.

FACT FILE Estonian

Estonian belongs to the Finno-Ugric family of languages. It is very closely related to Finnish and has certain similarities with Hungarian. Roughly one million people speak Estonian as their native language. It is the sole official language of the Republic of Estonia. Though its unusual pronunciation and endless processions of vowels make Estonian seem inaccessible at first, it does contain a number of English loanwords. These include words such as intervjuu (interview), kauboi (cowboy), džemper (jumper, sweater) and kood (code).

The authoritative reference work for correct Estonian spelling is the dictionary "Eesti õigekeelsussõnaraamat ÕS 2013" (the online edition is available here eki.ee/dict/qs/ ), published by Eesti Keele Instituut (https://portaal.eki.ee/), the Institute of the Estonian Language. The role of this institute is to promote the use of “standard Estonian”, a task that includes the compilation and publication of dictionaries. It also conducts research into the history of the language and collects data on Estonian dialects.