Where does “tsékʼi” come from?

tsékʼi (Navajo) comes from Navajo tsé, from Proto-Athabaskan *tseˑ, from Proto-Athabaskan-Eyak-Tlingit *caj.

tsékʼi (Navajo): on a rock/stone

Definitions

  1. on a rock/stone

Ancestry of “tsékʼi”, step by step

tsékʼi traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Navajo tsé

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Navajotsérock, stone, boulder
2Proto-Athabaskan*tseˑstone
3Proto-Athabaskan-Eyak-Tlingit*caj—

via Navajo bikʼi

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Navajobikʼiupon it, on it
Every word from Proto-Athabaskan-Eyak-Tlingit *caj →Every word from Proto-Athabaskan *tseˑ →Every word from Navajo tsé →