jenots
The Latvian word for raccoon is jenots.
jenots refers to the raccoon, the nocturnal omnivorous mammal native to North America (Procyon lotor).
Meaning: nocturnal omnivore living in North America, Procyon lotor (noun)
Did you know?
- The word jenots is a loanword from the German 'Waschbär', but it entered Latvian via the Russian 'enot', which was borrowed from the German 'Waschbär'.
- Latvian distinguishes between a raccoon jenots and a raccoon dog jenots suks, though the latter is a completely different species native to Asia.
- There are no historical Latvian idioms involving the word jenots, as the animal was unknown to the culture for most of its history.
Examples in context
- Jenots ir ļoti gudrs dzīvnieks.The raccoon is a very smart animal.
Example conversation
Jānis and Laura are looking at photos from a trip to North America.
- JānisSkaties, šeit ir mazs jenots!Look, here is a little raccoon!
- LauraViņš izskatās ļoti mīļš.He looks very cute.
- JānisJenots maza mīļš, bet viņš ir lāpēcīgs.The raccoon is cute, but he is a scavenger.
- LauraTā ir interesanta dabas radīšana.That is an interesting creation of nature.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “raccoon” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
