Talk:ładny
Add topicEtymology
[edit]I wonder abot its PIE etymology. The Russian colleagues say it comes from *ladъ, of unknown origin. I wonder how it is related to gładki and Lada. Zezen (talk) 13:10, 8 February 2016 (UTC)
Update:
Etymological meaning – obscure [see PRETTY, 3A.3, p. 127] Structural meaning ‘arranged in a row, well-ordered’ (ut supra) The adjective *ladьnъ may have a double formal motivation because it may be a derivative both of the noun *ladъ as well as of the verb *laditi. However, it is only in single instances that we may define this motivation on the basis of the semantics of adjectives (see: Innovative meanings). The meanings based on continuants ‘well-ordered’ > ‘pretty,’ ‘good’ (Eastern), ‘strapping, shapely’ The majority of the continuants of *ladьnъ indicate the structural meaning of ‘well-arranged/put together, well-ordered,’ which refers primarily to inanimate objects.
From: The Development of Words Across Centuries. An Outline of a ... (online)
Sorry for the ugly paste from PDF.