An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Ähre

by Friedrich Kluge

Ähre, f., ‘ear’ (of corn), from the plur. of MidHG. eher, OHG. ehir, ahir, n., ‘ear’ (of corn); corresponds to Du. aar, AS. eár (from *eahor), E. ear. As the derivative r stands for an older s, Goth. ahs, n. (gen. ahsis) and OIc. ax (also Sw. and Dan.), ‘ear' (of corn), are identical with it; so, too, OHG. ah, ‘ear’ (of corn). Comp. besides OHG. ahii, ModHG. Achel, ‘prickle, spike’ (of corn), (with regard to the ch, comp. Bav. Echer, ‘ear of corn,’ AS. and Northumb. œhher), AS. egle, ‘spikes' (of corn), E. ails, eils ‘beard of wheat or barley,’ LG. (in Brockes) Eide, ‘spike’ (of corn), Goth. *agiþ? Comp. also Ahne. The Teut. root ah, which consequently, specially means ‘spike, ear' (of corn), agrees with Lat. acus (gen. aceris), n., ‘corn-prickle.’ It may be said generally that a root ah, with the primary meaning ‘pointed,’ is very widely developed in the Aryan group; comp. Gr. ἄκανος, ‘a kind of thistle,’ ἄκαινα, ‘goad,’ ἄκων, ‘javelin,’ ἄκρος, ‘at the point,’ Lat. acus, aculeus, acies (see Ecke).