leiðangr

Old Norse

Etymology

From leiða (“to lead”) +‎ angr (“narrowing, tightening, squeezing”, the literal sense behind “affliction, distress”). For the sense development of leiðangr, compare English press, press-gang (“the forcing of men into the navy”). See also Old Norse árangr (“produce of the earth brought forth in a year”), einangr (“narrow passage”), and farangr (“baggage”) and Icelandic berangur (“open space”, literally “bare narrowness”).

Noun

leiðangr m (genitive leiðangrs)

  1. lething; a levy, especially by sea (including men, ships and money)
  2. war contribution, war tax

Declension

Declension of leiðangr (strong a-stem)
masculine singular plural
indefinite definite indefinite definite
nominative leiðangr leiðangrinn leiðangrar leiðangrarnir
accusative leiðangr leiðangrinn leiðangra leiðangrana
dative leiðangri leiðangrinum leiðǫngrum leiðǫngrunum
genitive leiðangrs leiðangrsins leiðangra leiðangranna

Descendants

  • Icelandic: leiðangur
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: leidang
  • Swedish: ledung
  • Danish: leding
  • → English: lething
  • → Russian: лейданг (lejdang)

Further reading

Zoëga, Geir T. (1910) “leiðangr”, in A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press; also available at the Internet Archive

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