Where does “jääkaru” come from?

jääkaru (Estonian) comes from Estonian jää, from Proto-Finnic jää, from Proto-Uralic jäŋe — ice.

jääkaru (Estonian): polar bear

Definitions

  1. polar bear

Ancestry of “jääkaru”, step by step

jääkaru traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Estonian jää

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Estonianjääice
2Proto-Finnicjääice
3Proto-Uralicjäŋeice

via Estonian karu

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Estoniankarubear
2Proto-Finnickarhubear
3Proto-Finnickarhedarough, coarse
Every word from Proto-Uralic jäŋe →Every word from Proto-Finnic jää →Every word from Estonian jää →
jääkaru — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer