𐌻𐌰𐌹𐍅𐌰
Gothic
Etymology
Ultimately from Latin leō. Saskia Pronk-Tiethoff reconstructed the term in 2013 as *liwa before being aware of its attestation (which was discovered as a genitive plural laiwanē in the Gothica Bononiensia, which were first published around that very time), attributing the Slavic forms to a Gothic intermediary based on a hypothetical i-vocalism as she thought would be expected from a Gothic term derived from leō. The form laiwa is not an entirely certain reading due to the poor legibility of the manuscript; the correct reading may still be liwa, but Falluomini (2017) favours the form with -ai-.
Some Gothic given names attested in Latinized form may also contain this term. This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈlɛ.wa/
Noun
𐌻𐌰𐌹𐍅𐌰 • (laiwa) m
- (hapax) lion (animal)
- 6th century, anonymous author, folio 1 verso (after Falluomini 2017) of the Gothica Bononiensia sermon (referring here to Daniel 6:22, 27):
- ... 𐌸𐌿𐌴𐌹 𐌳𐌰𐌽𐌹𐌴𐌻 𐌿𐍃 𐌱[𐌰]𐌻𐌾𐍉𐌽𐌳𐌰𐌽𐌴 𐌻𐌰𐌹𐍅𐌰𐌽𐌴 𐌼𐌿𐌽𐌸𐌰𐌼 𐌼𐌰𐌽𐍅𐌾𐌰𐌽𐌴 𐌳𐌿 𐍆𐍂𐌰𐍃𐌻𐌹𐌽𐌳𐌰𐌽 𐌲𐌰𐌽𐌰𐍃𐌹𐌳𐌴𐍃.
- ... þuei daniēl us b[a]ljōndanē laiwanē munþam manwjanē du fraslindan ganasidēs.
- You who saved Daniel from the mouths of roaring lions ready to devour [him]
- 6th century, anonymous author, folio 1 verso (after Falluomini 2017) of the Gothica Bononiensia sermon (referring here to Daniel 6:22, 27):
Declension
May theoretically have been either masculine or neuter, but as Latin leō and Koine Greek λέων (léōn) are both masculine, the Gothic term is probably masculine as well.
| Masculine an-stem | ||
|---|---|---|
| Singular | Plural | |
| Nominative | 𐌻𐌰𐌹𐍅𐌰 laiwa |
𐌻𐌰𐌹𐍅𐌰𐌽𐍃 laiwans |
| Vocative | 𐌻𐌰𐌹𐍅𐌰 laiwa |
𐌻𐌰𐌹𐍅𐌰𐌽𐍃 laiwans |
| Accusative | 𐌻𐌰𐌹𐍅𐌰𐌽 laiwan |
𐌻𐌰𐌹𐍅𐌰𐌽𐍃 laiwans |
| Genitive | 𐌻𐌰𐌹𐍅𐌹𐌽𐍃 laiwins |
𐌻𐌰𐌹𐍅𐌰𐌽𐌴 laiwanē |
| Dative | 𐌻𐌰𐌹𐍅𐌹𐌽 laiwin |
𐌻𐌰𐌹𐍅𐌰𐌼 laiwam |
Descendants
- → Proto-Slavic: *lьvъ
- East Slavic:
- South Slavic:
- West Slavic:
References
- Pronk-Tiethoff, Saskia E. (2013) The Germanic loanwords in Proto-Slavic (in English), Amsterdam - New York: Rodopi, →ISBN