English
layship
From lay + -ship.
Formed from lay + -ship
Proto-Indo-European *legʰ- ‘to lie’
…
Proto-Germanic *lagjaną ‘to lay’
Proto-West Germanic *laggjan ‘to lay’
Old English leċġan ‘to lay’
Middle English leyen ‘to lay’
English lay
Today it means
noun laymanship (the condition of being a layman.)
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / layship