hlæfdige

== Old English == === Alternative forms === hlāfdīe, hlāfdīġe, hlǣfdīe hlǣfediġ, hlēfdīe, hlēfdīġe, lǣfdī, lǣfdīe, lǣfdiġe, lǣfedī — late === Etymology === From hlāf (“bread”) +‎ dǣġe (“kneader”, from Proto-Germanic *daigijǭ); compare dāg (“dough”) and hlāford. The discrepancy in vocalism between dǣġe and the second element of hlǣfdīġe is presumably due to vowel reduction (though an older theory instead postulates a Proto-Germanic ablaut variant *dīgijǭ), while that between hlāf and the first element is due to i-umlaut from the Proto-Germanic -ij- in the second element (compare ǣnēge, ǣnlīpiġ, endlufon, enwintre; the variant hlāfdīġe is due to readjustment to hlāf). === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /ˈxlæːfˌdiː.je/, [ˈl̥æːvˌdiː.je], /ˈxlæːf.di.je/, [ˈl̥æːv.di.je] === Noun === hlǣfdīġe or hlǣfdiġe f a lady, the mistress of a household noblewoman; queen a form of courteous address; lady The Anglo-Saxon version of the story of Apollonius of Tyre the Virgin Mary ==== Usage notes ==== As feminine equivalents of æþeling, eorl, and þeġn never developed, this was generally the title given to every noblewoman from the rank of baroness to princess. The second vowel /iː/ seemingly shortened to /i/ by the Late Old English period. ==== Declension ==== Weak n-stem: ==== Descendants ==== Middle English: lady, laddy, lade, ladi, ladie, ladij, ladye, lavedi, lavedy, lafdi, leafdi, leawedi, lefdi, lehedi (Early Middle English), lafvedi, læfdi, lævedi, leivedi, leofdi (Laȝamon's Brut), laffdiȝ (Ormulum), lafedy, laday, lavydy, laydy (Late Middle English), ledy, lefdy, lefdye, levede, levedi, levedy, levidi (especially East Saxon, West Midland, Yorkshire), lhevedi, lhevedy (Kent)English: lady (see there for further descendants)Middle Scots: ladyScots: lady, leddyYola: laady→ Icelandic: lafði ==== References ==== Angus Cameron, Ashley Crandell Amos, Antonette diPaolo Healey, editors (2024), “hlǣfdige”, in Dictionary of Old English: A to Le ⁠, Toronto: University of Toronto, →OCLC. Bammesberger, Alfred (July 2002), “On the prehistory of Old English hlǣfdige”, in Language Sciences, volume 24, numbers 3-4, Pergamon, →DOI, →ISSN, →OCLC, pages 213–219