dzīvnieks

Etymology
From, or perhaps. The original meaning of this word was “living person,” “inhabitant” (now, ). The modern meaning of “animal” or “living being” first appeared in the 1860s, in writings by J. Alunāns, following the model of 🇨🇬, and was registered in dictionaries in the 1870s. Formerly other expressions had been used for this meaning (e.g., or also more specific terms like or ).

Noun

 * 1) animal living being that feeds on organic matter and is capable of moving but not of abstract thinking