Where does “orðaleikur” come from?

orðaleikur (Icelandic) comes from Icelandic leikur, from Old Norse leikr, from Middle Low German lek, from Latin lāicus, from Ancient Greek λαϊκός, from Ancient Greek λᾱός, from Proto-Hellenic lāwós, from Proto-Indo-European leh₂wos — to bark, howl; to be concealed.

orðaleikur (Icelandic): a word game, a word play, a play on words

Definitions

  1. a word game, a word play, a play on words

Ancestry of “orðaleikur”, step by step

orðaleikur traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Icelandic leikur

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Icelandicleikurplaying, play; a game; a match, a game
2Old Norseleikrgame; sport; contest
3Middle Low Germanlek
4Latinlāicuslay (of the laity)
5Ancient Greekλαϊκόςof the people; popular
6Ancient Greekλᾱόςpeople; men; the people
7Proto-Helleniclāwóspeople, crowd
8Proto-Indo-Europeanleh₂wospeople
9Proto-Indo-Europeanleh₂-to bark, howl; to be concealed

via Icelandic orð

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Icelandicorðword; remarks; request
2Old Norseorðword
3Proto-Germanicwurdąword
4Proto-Indo-Europeanwerdʰo-word
5Proto-Indo-Europeanwerh₁-to speak, say
Every word from Proto-Indo-European leh₂-Every word from Proto-Indo-European leh₂wosEvery word from Proto-Hellenic lāwós