This article describes the use of prepositions and postpositions in Latvian grammar.
The lists below are organized according to the case of the noun phrase following the preposition. In the plural, however, all prepositions in Latvian can be described as governing the dative case. For example:
- singular: bez manis/*man "without me-gen/*me-dat"
- plural: bez mums/*mūsu "without us-dat/*us-gen"
Examples
| Latvian | English approximate | Case | Frequency | Example phrase | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| aiz | behind | genitive | 172 | paslēpties aiz liela koka | to hide behind a large tree |
| aiz | behind | dative* | 172 | apspriede notika aiz slēgtām durvīm | the discussion took place behind closed doors |
| bez | without | genitive | 446 | ||
| kopš | since | genitive | 133 | ||
| no | from | genitive | 3524 | skaitīt no viens līdz desmit | to count from one to ten |
| pēc | after | genitive | 980 | pēc darba braucu uz mājām | after work I go home |
| pēc | after | dative* | 980 | pēc diviem mēnešiem būs pārbaudījumi | after two months there will be a test |
| pie | at, on, to | genitive | 1275 | māja pie jūras | a house on the sea |
| pirms | before (time or location with time connotation). | genitive | 0 | Viņš stāvēja pirms manis rindā | he stood before me in line |
| uz | to, on (location) | genitive | 3664 | ||
| virs | above, over | genitive | 191 | mati virs galvas | hair over the head |
| virs | above, over | dative | 191 | uzraksts virs durvīm | the inscription above the door |
| zem | under | genitive | 106 | ||
| ap | around, about, ca. | accusative | 72 | ||
| ar | with | instrumental | 4682 | ||
| caur | through | accusative | 106 | jāt caur mežu | to ride through the forest |
| caur | through | dative* | 106 | smaidīt caur asarām | to smile through the tears |
| gar | along | accusative | 24 | ||
| pa | by | accusative | 637 | iet pa ceļu | to walk along the road |
| pa | in, on, during | dative | 637 | pa naktīm | during night |
| pār | over, across | accusative | 63 | pār upi | across the river |
| par | about | accusative | 4328 | ||
| pret | against | accusative | 407 | ||
| starp | between | accusative | 191 | galds atrodas starp skapi un logu | the table is situated between the cabinet and the window |
| starp | between | dative* | 191 | sēdēt starp draugiem | to sit among friends |
| uz | to, towards | accusative | 3664 | ||
| līdz | until | dative | 619 |
- Sometimes plural nouns are found in the dative case for some prepositions.
Archaic forms
| Latvian | English approximate | Case | Example phrase | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| apakš | under | genitive | ||
| ārpus | beside, out of | genitive | ||
| iekšpus | inside | genitive | ||
| lejpus | below | genitive | ||
| otrpus | across, beyond, on the other side (of), over | genitive | ||
| šaipus | on this side (of) | genitive | ||
| viņpus | in other side | genitive | ||
| virspus | above, on | genitive | ||
| iekš | in | genitive | ||
| iz | from, out of | genitive | iz apakšzemes | from the underworld |
| priekš | for (location wise) | genitive |
Semi-prepositions
Latvian has also some adverbs, known as pusprievārdi "semi-prepositions", which can be used like prepositions or postpositions, in combination with a dative noun phrase:
- cauri - through
- garām - past, over, by
- iepretim - in front of
- līdzi - with
- pāri - over, across
- pretī - in front of, against
Postpositions
The following postpositions govern the genitive case, in both singular and plural:
- dēļ - through, of, for
- labad - for, for the sake of
- pēc - because of