Where does “villieläin” come from?

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

villieläin (Finnish): wild animal; wildlife

Definitions

  1. wild animal; wildlife

Ancestry of “villieläin”, step by step

villieläin 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 villi

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Finnishvilliwild; savage; feral
2Old Swedishviller—
Every word from Proto-Uralic elä- →Every word from Proto-Finnic elädäk →Every word from Finnish elää →