From Old Norse leyfa, from Proto-Germanic *(uz)laubijaną.

• IPA^(key): /ˈleiːva/
• Rhymes: -eiːva
• Homophone: leifa

leyfa (weak verb, third-person singular past indicative leyfði, supine leyft)

1. to allow, to permit, to give permission for [with accusative ‘something’]
2. to allow, to permit, to give (someone) permission for [with dative ‘someone’, along with accusative ‘something’ or að (+ infinitive) ‘to do something’]
   • Timothy 2:11-12 (English, Icelandic)

     Konan á að læra í kyrrþey, í allri undirgefni. Ekki leyfi ég konu að kenna eða taka sér vald yfir manninum, heldur á hún að vera kyrrlát.

     A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she must be silent.

   Ég leyfði honum að leika sér með boltann.

   I gave him permission to play with his ball.

• leyfi

From Proto-Germanic *laubijaną, whence also Old English līfan, lēfan, lȳfan, Old High German gilouben (“believe”) and irlouben (“allow”) (German glauben, erlauben), Gothic 𐌿𐍃𐌻𐌰𐌿𐌱𐌾𐌰𐌽 (uslaubjan, “allow”). Ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *lewbʰ- (“to hold dear; love”).

leyfa

1. to allow, permit
2. to praise
   • c. 825, Bragi “the Old” Boddason, Ragnarsdrápa, stanza 1:

     Vilið, Hrafnketill, heyra,
     hvé hreingróit steini
     Þrúðar skalk ok þengil
     þjófs ilja blað leyfa?

     Do you wish, Hrafnketill, to hear how I shall praise the leaf of the footsoles of the thief of Þrúðr <goddess> [= Hrungnir > SHIELD], bright-planted with colour, and the prince?

   • c. 850, anonymous author, Hávamǫ́l:

     At kveldi skal dag leyfa · konu er brennd er
     mę́ki er reyndr er, · mey er gefin er,
     ís er yfir kømr, · ǫl er drukkit er.

     At evening shall one praise day, a woman when she is burned, a sword when it is tested, a maiden when she is married off, ice when one comes over, ale when it is drunk.

• leyfi n (“permission”)
• leyfð f (“praise”)
• lof n (“praise, leave, permission”)

• Icelandic: leyfa
• Faroese: loyva
• Norwegian Nynorsk: løyva
  • → Norwegian Bokmål: løyve

• Zoëga, Geir T. (1910), “leyfa”, in A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press; also available at the Internet Archive

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

leyfa

1. genitive plural of leyfi