Genitive: whose?

The genitive answers Kelle? (“whose?”). The owner comes BEFORE the thing: Mari raamat, venna auto, linna keskus.

The form often differs from the nominative: vend → venna, õde → õe, laps → lapse, linn → linna, kool → kooli, raamat → raamatu.

Names and vowel-ending words often stay the same: Mari raamat, isa auto, maja uks. The genitive is also used with postpositions: laua peal, Läänemere ääres.