Where does “sormieläin” come from?

sormieläin (Finnish) comes from Finnish eläin, from Finnish elää, from Proto-Finnic elädäk, from Proto-Uralic elä- — to live.

sormieläin (Finnish): aye-aye

Definitions

  1. aye-aye

Ancestry of “sormieläin”, step by step

sormieläin traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Finnish eläin

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Finnisheläinanimal
2FinnishelääTo live, be alive; To live
3Proto-Finnicelädäkto live
4Proto-Uralicelä-to live

via Finnish sormi

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Finnishsormifinger
2Proto-Finnicsormifinger
3Proto-Finno-Ugricsorme—
Every word from Proto-Uralic elä- →Every word from Proto-Finnic elädäk →Every word from Finnish elää →