Jalkanen

Meaning

The prefix Jalka generally means "foot," but also can refer to the leg of a stool or an animal's paw. Jalka- thus has a loose meaning, and when the prefix is added to the common -nen Finnish name ending it loses its colloquial meaning. Like most Finnish names, whether Jalkanen has a formal meaning is ambiguous. Generally, Finnish surnames do not have the same meaning schemes as other European names. If Finnish names were used to indicate a family's original trade (as with English and German names, like Miller, Shoemaker, Brewer, Smith, etc.) then the term "foot" or "Jalka" could refer to a profession such as a cobbler or tracker.