Where does “lenu” come from?

lenu (Swahili) comes from Vulgar Latin lenus, from Latin lēnis, from Proto-Indo-European leh₁- — soft, calm; lazy, slow.

Definitions

Ancestry of “lenu”, step by step

lenu traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Vulgar Latin lenus

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Vulgar Latinlenus—
2Latinlēnissoft, smooth, gentle, moderate, mild, calm
3Proto-Indo-Europeanleh₁-soft, calm; lazy, slow

via Proto-Algonquian erenyiwa

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Proto-Algonquianerenyiwaman, person
Every word from Proto-Indo-European leh₁- →Every word from Latin lēnis →Every word from Vulgar Latin lenus →