kolme (Finnish)

Where does "kolme" come from?

The Finnish word 'kolme' for 'three' traces back to the Proto-Finno-Ugric root *kolme. It has remained remarkably consistent across centuries, with close linguistic relatives including Estonian 'kolm', Hungarian 'három', and various Siberian languages like Northern Mansi. This persistent core vocabulary highlights the ancient shared origins of the Finno-Ugric language family.

Full etymology tree

• kolme (Finnish), 'three'
  • inherited *kolmët (Proto-Finnic)
    • inherited *kolme (Proto-Finno-Ugric)

Ancestors

• *kolmi (Proto-Finnic)

Cognates and doublets

• колмо (Erzya)
• kolm (Estonian)
• három (Hungarian)
• хәԯум (Northern Khanty)
• хӯрум (Northern Mansi)

Descendants and derived words

• kolmio (Finnish)
• aamukolme (Finnish)
• iltakolme (Finnish)
• kahdeksankymmentäkolme (Finnish)
• kaksikymmentäkolme (Finnish)
• kolmas (Finnish)
• kolmasti (Finnish)
• kolmekulmainen (Finnish)
• kolmekuukautinen (Finnish)
• kolmekymmentä (Finnish)
• kolmekymmentäkolme (Finnish)
• kolmekymppinen (Finnish)

Updated July 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris