The Database of Semantic Shifts in the languages of the world

left (vs. right) → bad luck 5 realizations Multi-area

ID	Relation type	Meaning 1	Direction	Meaning 2

Comment
Chantraine, Pierre, "Les noms de la gauche en grec", Comptes rendus de l'Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres 99.3 (1955) 374-377.

ACCEPTED Realization 1
type		Polysemy
language		Amharic
lexeme		gra
meaning 1	'left (direction'	wädä gra alä 'to go to the left, to be on the left'
direction	→
meaning 2	'unfavorable, unlucky (affair, matter); difficult; improper, not customary''	gra honä; 'to be or become bad (food)' (lit. to become left);
reference
comment		K 1924

ACCEPTED Realization 2
type		Polysemy
language		Ancient Greek
lexeme		σκαιός
meaning 1	left
direction	→
meaning 2	unlucky, ill-omened, mischievous
reference		LSJ
comment

ACCEPTED Realization 3
type		Polysemy
language		Classical Arabic
lexeme		ʔašʔam-
meaning 1	'left'	ʔal-yad-u š-šuʔmā 'left hand'
direction	→
meaning 2	'most unlucky, unfortunate, inauspicious'
reference
comment		Lane 1400; cf. also šaʔama ʕalayhim 'he drew upon them ill luck'

ACCEPTED Realization 4
type		Polysemy
language		Classical Arabic
lexeme		šimāl-
meaning 1	left
direction	→
meaning 2	bad luck	ṭayr-u š-šimāl-in; ‘birds of ill luck’;
reference
comment		Lane 1601

ACCEPTED Realization 5
type		Polysemy
language		Hungarian
lexeme		bal
meaning 1	left	Bal fül, bal kéz, bal láb Left ear, left hand, left foot
direction	→
meaning 2	unlucky, having bad luck	Sorsa balra fordult. Balul ütött ki a dolog. His fate took a turn for the worse (literally: "His fate turned left"). Things went wrong.
reference		MEK 1978
comment