leitis

== Latvian == === Etymology === 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. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): [ˈlɛ̄ītis] === Noun === leĩtis m (2nd declension, female equivalent 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 ==== 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 ==== ==== Synonyms ==== lietuvietis lietuvis ==== Related terms ==== Lietuva lietuviešu valoda, lietuvju valoda, leišu valoda lietuvisks === References ===