Hungarian Historical Phonology leány

lëány 'daughter, girl; Tochter, Mädchen'

First attestation/Old Hungarian data

[coming]

Important dialectal forms

ján 'Tochter, Mädchen'

jány 'Tochter, Mädchen'

leány 'Tochter, Mädchen'

lëhány 'Tochter, Mädchen'

lëhân 'Tochter, Mädchen' [???]

lëjány 'Tochter, Mädchen'

lëvány 'Tochter, Mädchen'

lián 'Tochter, Mädchen'

liány 'Tochter, Mädchen'

liván 'Tochter, Mädchen'

livány 'Tochter, Mädchen'

lyán 'Tochter, Mädchen'

lyiány 'Tochter, Mädchen'

(UEW)

Uralic/Ugric/Pre-Hungarian reconstruction

Disputed

UEW: *lȣjɜ ‘small, young or weak, feeble; klein, jung; od. schwach, kraftlos‘

Status of the Ugric etymology

Improbable

Loan etymology

None suggested

Cognates suggested in earlier research

UEW:

? Khanty: North (Kaz) lǫjamtĭʌ-, lǫjamtĭjəʌ- 'schwach, schlecht, kraftlos werden (infolge des Alters)' < ? PKh

? Mansi: East (K) läi̯ 'klein', West (LM) läi zart, kraftlos, jung', North (N) lai 'zart, kraftlos, jung' < PMs *läi

Commentary

The Ugric etymology is listed as uncertain in the UEW and it is indeed quite problematic. As UEW notes, the etymology can be accepted only if the part lë- in the opaque compound lëány is related to the Ob-Ugric words meaning 'weak'. There is no trace of a meaning 'weak' in Hungarian, so the explanation is quite speculative. Also, the different vocalism in the various dialectal forms in Hungarian (see above) make it difficult to determine whether Hungarian lë- could be related to Mansi *läi. The relationship between the Mansi word and North Khanty lǫjamtĭʌ- is not regular, and no Proto-Ob-Ugric form can be reconstructed. The Ugric etymology seems improbable.

Conclusion

Phonological and semantic problems make the Ugric etymology unlikely.

References

UEW s.v. lȣjɜ: ? PUg Uralonet