leitis
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See also: leitís
Latvian[edit]
Etymology[edit]
From *leit- (related to Latin lītus (“sea coast, beach”) < *leitos), from Proto-Baltic *lei-, *lie- with an extra -t, from Proto-Indo-European *ley-, *lī- (“to pour, to flow, to drip”). The stem was perhaps originally a reference to people from the "land of the rain" or "land of the rivers." It is also possible that there was an original river or lake name *Leitā, from which *leitā-tyā, *leityā > leiša, from which the nominative leitis could be derived.[1]
Pronunciation[edit]
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Noun[edit]
leitis m (2nd declension, feminine form: leitiete)
- a (male) Lithuanian
- strādnieki... kalpi, vai tie būtu vācieši, leiši, krievi, ebreji, mums draugi ― workers... servants, be they Germans, Lithuanians, Russians, Jews, are friends to us
- (genitive plural): Lithuanian, pertaining to Lithuania and its people
- leišu valoda ― the Lithuanian language
- Aspazija pieraksta leišu sakāmvardus un mīklas ― Aspazija recorded Lithuanian proverbs and riddles
Usage notes[edit]
The basic, neutral term is lietuvietis. The words leitis and lietuvis are synonyms, but are much less often used, usually poetically, or in historical contexts (referring to ancient Lithuanians).
Declension[edit]
Declension of leitis (2nd declension)
Synonyms[edit]
Related terms[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ Karulis, Konstantīns (1992) “lietuvieši”, in Latviešu Etimoloģijas Vārdnīca (in Latvian), Rīga: AVOTS, →ISBN