Where does “tyhjämerkki” come from?

tyhjämerkki (Finnish) comes from Finnish tyhjä, from Proto-Finnic tühjä, from Proto-Balto-Slavic tuskjas, from Proto-Indo-European tews-, from Proto-Indo-European tu- — to swell; bird-cry, shriek.

Ancestry of “tyhjämerkki”, step by step

tyhjämerkki traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Finnish tyhjä

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Finnishtyhjäempty; blank; void
2Proto-Finnictühjäempty
3Proto-Balto-Slavictuskjasempty
4Proto-Indo-Europeantews-to be empty; to drain; to be happy
5Proto-Indo-Europeantu-to swell; bird-cry, shriek

via Finnish merkki

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Finnishmerkkimark, sign; character; symbol
2Old Swedishmærki—
3Old Norsemerkiboundary
4Proto-Germanicmarkōborder, boundary; region, area
5Proto-Indo-Europeanmorǵ-edge, boundary, border; frontier, border
Every word from Proto-Indo-European tu- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European tews- →Every word from Proto-Balto-Slavic tuskjas →