Where does “Finne” come from?
Finne (Swedish) comes from German finne, from Middle Low German finne, from Old Saxon finna, from Proto-Germanic finnō, from Proto-Indo-European (s)pīn- — backbone, dorsal fin; backbone; dorsal fin.
Ancestry of “Finne”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | German | finne | — |
| 2 | Middle Low German | finne | — |
| 3 | Old Saxon | finna | — |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | finnō | flipper; fin |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)pīn- | backbone, dorsal fin; backbone; dorsal fin |