Where does “නිමිති” come from?

නිමිති (Sinhalese) comes from Sanskrit निमित्त, from Sanskrit मा, from Proto-Iranian máH, from Proto-Indo-Iranian maH, from Proto-Indo-European meh₁ — prohibitive particle.

Ancestry of “නිමිති”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Sanskritनिमित्तaim, mark
2Sanskritमाdon't; accusative singular of अहम्; to sound,...
3Proto-IranianmáH—
4Proto-Indo-IranianmaHdo not; prohibitive particle
5Proto-Indo-Europeanmeh₁prohibitive particle
Every word from Proto-Indo-European meh₁ →Every word from Proto-Indo-Iranian maH →Every word from Proto-Iranian máH →