mlẽ

Middle Vietnamese

Alternative forms

• (Northern Vietnamese) mnhẽ

Etymology

From Old Chinese 理 (OC *m(ə).rəʔ) (B-S).

Attested in the Dictionarium Annamiticum Lusitanum et Latinum (1651), a dictionary based chiefly on the Northern dialects.

Pronunciation

• (Đông Kinh) [mlɛ^C2]

Noun

mlẽ

1. reason

Descendants

• Northern Vietnamese: nhẽ (from the form with nasal assimilation)
• Central-Southern Vietnamese: lẽ (inherited reflex in Central and Southern dialects, modern Northern usage much influenced by the usage in Central-Southern dialects)

References

• De Rhodes, Alexandre (1651), “mlẽ”, Dictionarium Annamiticum Lusitanum et Latinum.