† langbainn.

Etymology: Apparently < early Scandinavian (compare Old Icelandic langabein , langbein , Old Swedish langaben , used as a byname, apparently for a long-legged person) < the Germanic base of long adj.¹ + the Germanic base of bone n.¹ Compare Longshanks n.The Scandinavian cognate of bone n.¹ occurs as a simplex denoting the lower leg, especially in Swedish and Danish, but also occasionally in Old Icelandic. See further bone n.¹ The motivation for use as a term of abuse in English is unclear; it may have had connotations of vagrancy. Attested earlier as a byname and surname (occasionally with the first element remodelled after long adj.¹): Langabeinus (1086), Langebeyn (1101–7), Will. Longebayn (1296), Ad. Langeban, Will. Langebayn (both 1301), etc.