Reconstruction:Proto-Slavic/lěnь

This Proto-Slavic entry contains reconstructed terms and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence.

Proto-Slavic

Etymology

From Proto-Indo-European *leh₁-, alongside Latin lenis (“calm, gradual”) and Lithuanian lėtas (“slow, tranquil”).

Noun

*lěnь f

1. laziness

Declension

Declension of *lěnь (i-stem)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*lěnь	*lěni	*lěni
genitive	*lěni	*lěnьju, *lěňu*	*lěnьjь, *lěni*
dative	*lěni	*lěnьma	*lěnьmъ
accusative	*lěnь	*lěni	*lěni
instrumental	*lěnьjǫ, *lěňǫ*	*lěnьma	*lěnьmi
locative	*lěni	*lěnьju, *lěňu*	*lěnьxъ
vocative	*lěni	*lěni	*lěni

^* The second form occurs in languages that contract early across /j/ (e.g. Czech), while the first form occurs in languages that do not (e.g. Russian).

Related terms

• *lěnivъ
• *lěnъ
• *lětь

Descendants

• East Slavic:
  • Russian: лень (lenʹ, “laziness”)
  • Ukrainian: лінь (linʹ, “laziness, lazy person”)
• South Slavic:
  • Old Church Slavonic:

    Cyrillic: лѣнь (lěnĭ, “laziness”)

    Glagolitic: ⰾⱑⱀⱐ (lěnĭ)

  • Serbo-Croatian:

    Cyrillic script: ли̏јен (“laziness”)

    Latin script: lȉjen

  • Slovene: lė̑n (“laziness”)
• West Slavic:
  • Czech: léň (“laziness”) (obsolete, dialectal)
  • Polish: leń (“lazy person”)
  • Slovak: lieň (“laziness”) (poetic, dialectal)
  • Sorbian:
    • Upper Sorbian: lěni

Further reading

• Vasmer, Max (1964–1973) “лень”, in Oleg Trubachyov, transl., Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), Moscow: Progress