Letherin

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. A fictional people or realm of the Letherii kind, appearing in Steven Erikson's Malazan fantasy novels
2. The name of an invented society or empire from the Malazan fantasy series by Steven Erikson
3. A made-up nation or folk belonging to the Malazan books, a fantasy world created by Steven Erikson

Etymology: Letherin is a Middle English spelling of an adjective meaning "made of leather." It is a variant of "leathern," which combines the noun "leather" with the suffix "-en," used to form adjectives from materials, as in "wooden" and "golden." The -in ending reflects the loose vowel spelling of Middle English, when the same sound was often written several different ways. The noun behind it, Old English "lēðer," originally meant a hide or animal skin that had been prepared for use. Its exact ancestry within the Germanic languages is uncertain. Over time the adjective fell out of everyday use, and "leathern" survives today mainly in older or literary writing.