häly

Häly is a Finnish noun meaning alarm or alert signal. It denotes the audible or visible signal that prompts a response in emergencies, safety, or security contexts. In everyday language, häly can refer to the act of sounding an alarm as well as the signal itself, though more specific terms such as hälytys are commonly used for an actual alarm event.

The related verb hälyttää means to alert or to sound an alarm, and the noun hälytys indicates an alarm or alert event. In technical language, häly appears in compounds describing systems and signals, such as hälytysjärjestelmä (alarm system) and hälytyssignaali (alarm signal).

Usage and scope: Häly is primarily used in Finnish. It is not widely attested as a separate term in other languages and is not commonly used as a standalone proper name. The concept encompasses both the notification mechanism and the moment of alarm that initiates a response.

Etymology: The root is linked to Finnic verb forms related to signaling or calling attention. The word forms part of a family of terms including hälytys and hälyttää that express warning and alert functions within safety and emergency communications. See also hälytys, hälyttää, hälytysjärjestelmä, hälytyssignaali.