Where does “headless genitive” come from?
headless genitive (English) comes from English headless, from English -less, from Middle English -les, from Turkish -le, from Turkish ile, from Ottoman Turkish ایله, from Old Anatolian Turkish اِیلَه, from Proto-Turkic bile — with, together, also.
Ancestry of “headless genitive”, step by step
headless genitive traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English headless
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | headless | Without a head; decapitated; Without leadership;... |
| 2 | English | -less | (something); without (something). Added usually to a noun to form an adjective signifying a lack of that noun |
| 3 | Middle English | -les | Lacking (something); without (something) |
| 4 | Turkish | -le | with, shortened form of ile; by, shortened form... |
| 5 | Turkish | ile | with; and |
| 6 | Ottoman Turkish | ایله | by |
| 7 | Old Anatolian Turkish | اِیلَه | — |
| 8 | Proto-Turkic | bile | with, together, also |
via English genitive
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | genitive | Of or pertaining to that case which expresses a... |