monni

• IPA^(key): /ˈmonːi/, [ˈmo̞nːi]
• Rhymes: -onːi
• Syllabification^(key): mon‧ni

Borrowed from Middle Low German monne.

monni

1. A sort of fish.
   1. wels catfish, sheatfish, Silurus glanis

      Synonym: säkiä

   2. catfish, sheatfish (freshwater catfish of the genus Silurus)
   3. (taxonomy) catfish (fish of the order Siluriformes consisting of 37 families, hundreds of genera and some 3,000 species)

      Synonym: monnikala

2. (dialectal, rare) child

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:lapsi

• “monni”, in Kielitoimiston sanakirja [Dictionary of Contemporary Finnish]‎ (in Finnish) (online dictionary, continuously updated), Kotimaisten kielten keskuksen verkkojulkaisuja 35, Helsinki: Kotimaisten kielten tutkimuskeskus (Institute for the Languages of Finland), 2004–, retrieved 2023-07-01
• “monni”, in Suomen murteiden sanakirja [Dictionary of Finnish Dialects]‎ (in Finnish) (online dictionary, incomplete, continuously updated), Helsinki: Kotimaisten kielten keskus (Institute for the Languages of Finland), 2022, →ISSN.

Probably through figurative use of etymology 1 (as in the sense "child"; compare kuha, simppu). The military sense is attested since the early 20th century and has many variants, but this is likely the original based on attestation dates.[1]

monni

1. (military slang) rookie, recruit, newbie

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:monni

   • 1928, Arvo Kolima, translated by Private Juurikas, me and the newbies – stories from the old barracks, Sotamies Juurikas, minä ja monnit – juttuja vanhasta kasarmista, WSOY:
   • 1945 [1944], Carl Mothander, translated by Katri Ingman, Paroneista bolševikkeihin: viron viimeaikaisia oloja ja tapahtumia, K.J. Gummerus, translation of Baroner, bönder och bolsjeviker i Estland, page 67:

     Muistin vielä sen simputuksen, jonka alaisiksi me »monnit» olimme joutuneet »vanhojen miesten» ja »kantajääkäreiden» taholta pienessä norrlantilaisessa varuskuntakaupungissa silloin, kun vuosisatamme ei vielä ollut monenkaan vuoden ikäinen.

     I still remembered the hazing we "newbies" had been brought under by the "old men" and "permanent infantry" in the small Norrlander garrison town when our century was barely a few years of age.

• “Monni”, in Suomen murteiden sanakirja [Dictionary of Finnish Dialects]‎ (in Finnish) (online dictionary, incomplete, continuously updated), Helsinki: Kotimaisten kielten keskus (Institute for the Languages of Finland), 2022, →ISSN, retrieved 23 August 2022.
• Sotilasslangin tarkastelua (Master's Thesis, in Finnish), Jenna Säärelä, 2018

• monin

From Proto-Samic *monē, from Proto-Uralic *muna.

• (Kautokeino) IPA^(key): /ˈmonniː/

monni

1. egg

• Koponen, Eino, Ruppel, Klaas, Aapala, Kirsti, editors (2002–2008), Álgu database: Etymological database of the Saami languages‎, Helsinki: Research Institute for the Languages of Finland