Where does “jänistys” come from?

jänistys (Finnish) comes from Finnish jänistää, from Finnish jänis, from Proto-Finnic jänis — hare.

jänistys (Finnish): chickening out, losing courage

Definitions

  1. chickening out, losing courage

Ancestry of “jänistys”, step by step

jänistys traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Finnish jänistää

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1FinnishjänistääTo chicken out, lose courage
2Finnishjänishare; mountain hare, "Lepus timidus"; stowaway
3Proto-Finnicjänishare

via Finnish us

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Finnishus-ing
Every word from Proto-Finnic jänis →Every word from Finnish jänis →Every word from Finnish jänistää →