Where does “kukuvajkë” come from?

kukuvajkë (Albanian) comes from Albanian vaj, from Proto-Albanian uai, from Proto-Indo-European wáy, from Proto-Indo-European uwáy — to see oneself.

kukuvajkë (Albanian): owl

Definitions

  1. owl

Ancestry of “kukuvajkë”, step by step

kukuvajkë traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Albanian vaj

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Albanianvajoil; woe!, alas!
2Proto-Albanianuai—
3Proto-Indo-Europeanwáyoh!; ah!; woe!
4Proto-Indo-Europeanuwáyto see oneself

via Albanian kuku

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Albaniankukumourn; The sound of an owl singing
Every word from Proto-Indo-European uwáy →Every word from Proto-Indo-European wáy →Every word from Proto-Albanian uai →