Where does “matkapyörä” come from?

matkapyörä (Finnish) comes from Finnish matka, from Proto-Finnic matka, from Proto-Uralic mëtka — passage.

matkapyörä (Finnish): touring motorcycle; touring bicycle

Definitions

  1. touring motorcycle; touring bicycle

Ancestry of “matkapyörä”, step by step

matkapyörä traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Finnish matka

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Finnishmatkatrip; journey; distance
2Proto-Finnicmatkaway, path; journey, trip; distance
3Proto-Uralicmëtkapassage

via Finnish pyörä

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Finnishpyöräwheel; caster; Short for polkupyörä
2Proto-Finno-Ugric*pöörä—
Every word from Proto-Uralic mëtka →Every word from Proto-Finnic matka →Every word from Finnish matka →