Etymology

Formed within English on scaþe (n.), perhaps on the model of OIcel skaðlauss (adj.) 'unscathed, without loss', though it easily could have been formed independently. Various compound forms occur in OE, e.g. sceaðful 'hurtful', and although none with -lēas, cp. German schadlos 'harmless'. ME scath- is always derived from ON because of the absence of palatalization of initial /sk/.

PGmc Ancestor

*skaþōn

Proposed ON Etymon (OIcel representative)

skaði ‘harm, damage’; cp. skaðlauss (adj.) 'unscathed, without loss'
(ONP skaði (sb.); skaðlauss (sb.))

Other Scandinavian Reflexes

Norw skadesløs, ODan skathaløs, Sw skadeslös

OE Cognate

cp. sceaða (n.) ‘injurious person’ (and rarely ‘injury’)

Phonological and morphological markers

absence of palatalization of */sk/

Summary category

A1*c

Attestation

Exclusively N in the handful of ME citations in MED and OED; OED also records some more widespread 19c attestations. The n. is attested fairly widely throughout ME and MnE dial, but especially N and E and alliterative texts (and MED surname evidence (sense 5) comes only from Lan., Lin. and Yks.).

Occurrences in the Gersum Corpus

WA 2992

Bibliography

MED scāthlē̆s (adj.) , OED scatheless (adj.) , HTOED , Nielsen skadesløs; see further scaþe (n.).