Where does “laken” come from?

laken (Norwegian Bokmål) comes from Middle Low German lāken, from Old Saxon lakan, from Proto-Germanic lakaną, from Proto-Indo-European (s)leh₂g- — to be slack; be limp; droop; sag.

laken (Norwegian Bokmål): a bedsheet; definite singular of lake

Definitions

  1. a bedsheet; definite singular of lake

Ancestry of “laken”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Low Germanlāken—
2Old Saxonlakan—
3Proto-Germaniclakanąlinen; cloth; sheet
4Proto-Indo-European(s)leh₂g-to be slack; be limp; droop; sag
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)leh₂g- →Every word from Proto-Germanic lakaną →Every word from Old Saxon lakan →