Where does “лихо” come from?

лихо (Russian) comes from Russian лихо́й, from Old East Slavic лихъ, from Proto-Slavic lixъ, from Proto-Indo-European leykʷ- — to leave.

лихо (Russian): evil, ill, misfortune, trouble; An odd number,...

Definitions

  1. evil, ill, misfortune, trouble; An odd number,...

Ancestry of “лихо”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Russianлихо́йevil, hard, sinister
2Old East Slavicлихъbad; superfluous, excessive, bad
3Proto-Slaviclixъremaining, unnecessary, superfluous, bad
4Proto-Indo-Europeanleykʷ-to leave
Every word from Proto-Indo-European leykʷ-Every word from Proto-Slavic lixъEvery word from Old East Slavic лихъ
лихо — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer