Rolling my r's.

[Sam Winter]

hyvää iltapäivää lovelies!
so i've gotten really good at speaking the language and reciting the alphabet however i still haven't mastered rolling the r's and i'm starting to fear i genetically can't, do you have any good tips on how to? i don't wanna have to give up my dreams just because of one letter you know lol

[dbrit]

I have never been able to roll my r's............ fearing that ever being able to speak Finnish may be impossible

[leisl]

Some dialects don't even care and you can substitute a soft "d" and get away with it. It's actually a fluttered "d" sound anyway, in terms of how it's produced. Make the d sound but move your tongue further back and do it softer.

[Jukka Aho]

hyvää iltapäivää lovelies!
so i've gotten really good at speaking the language and reciting the alphabet however i still haven't mastered rolling the r's and i'm starting to fear i genetically can't, do you have any good tips on how to? i don't wanna have to give up my dreams just because of one letter you know lol :D

If you’re really serious about it and cannot find instructions that would work, you might want to consider utilizing the expertise of a speech therapist:

https://www.diacor.fi/palvelut/puhe--ja-aaniterapia
https://www.mehilainen.fi/terveyspalvel ... uheterapia

(Mind you, there are Finnish children and adults alike who cannot roll their R’s either or have some other problems, and these guys help them.)

Their time is expensive: about 100 euros per hour. But the main point, I think, is getting professional tips and hands-on guidance; maybe even learning about some tricks and tools you could use in the initial phases. You’ll be doing actual exercises at home on your own time.

[AldenG]

Siis ärräkoulu.

[Rekkari]

My Finnish wife (born and raised in Finland, Helsinki dialect) says that rolling the 'r' is not critical, especially for a foreigner. It's just part of your foreign accent and you'll be forgiven. For a native speaking Finn, however, the inability to properly roll the 'r' makes one sound like they need speech therapy.

Perrrrrkele!

Can you make the 'thppppppp' (aka 'fart') sound by placing your tongue between your lips? If so, there's probably hope for you. The trilled 'r' is very similar except, of course, your tongue is held lightly against the roof of your mouth just behind the front teeth instead of between the lips. And it's voiced. The tip of the tongue must be kept relaxed but with just enough upward pressure so that it flutters as air is forced over it.

Here's the classic sentence for practice:
Ärrän kierrän ympäri orren, ässän pistän taskuun.

[Pursuivant]

Not all Finns can roll properly. I can't. The former president can't... the ex-chair of the Left Alliance has a very distinctive "speech fault" and she's quite confident public speaker
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=l_HkBG9qMz8

[Pursuivant]

Halonen "gurgles" her r's and she also has the s going for an f... So, as said before, don't worry too much
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=KzFvu2zWUYs

[leisl]

Not all Finns can roll properly. I can't. The former president can't...

Nor can I. Of course if someone asks to hear the rolled r then I can do it on its own. Or in the lovely perrrrrrrrkele. But in most of my words you don't hear it. I have never been told that I talk funny. Or that I have a speech problem.

It's really not a big deal. The only reason people think it is so important is that some people roll it really heavily. So it stands out.

[tuulen]

Rolling a Finnish "r" is actually quite easy, just let it naturally roll from the tip of the tongue. Pull the tongue to behind the upper front teeth, placing the tip of the tongue at the topside of the mouth and then just gently blow, while letting the tip of the tongue vibrate against the topside of the mouth. Yes, that is much easier to do than you might otherwise believe. rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

Northern Germany uses a tip-of-tongue rolled "r" just as Finland does, but southern Germany teaches how "r" is pronounced at the base of the tongue, at the top of the throat. The southern German "r" is pronounced while using an "open" throat, yet that same "open" throat is what is needed to properly pronounce the Finnish rolled "r". That might sound complicated but it really is easy to do.

[judderbar]

My daughter went to speech therapy for a few sessions at age 6 and we got a book of daily exercises to do at home. D was said to cause the tounge to strengthen for the R so she was doing lots of Dun Don Dim and had the R perfect in about one month. We didnt really need the lessons after the first two or so.