An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/Schwäher

by Friedrich Kluge

Schwäher, masculine, ‘father-in-law,’ from Middle High German swëher, Old High German swëhur, masculine, ‘father-in-law,’ late Old High German also ‘brother-in-law’; compare Anglo-Saxon sweór (from sweohor), ‘father-in-law’ (obsolete even at the end of the Anglo-Saxon period), Gothic swaihra, ‘father-in-law.’ A primitively Teutonic and old Aryan word, with the primary form swekros, swekuros; compare Greek ἑκυρός, Latin socer (for *swecuro-), Sanscrit çváçuras (tor *svaçuras), Old Slovenian swkrŭ, Lithuanian szészuras, ‘father-in-law.’ The original sense of the common Aryan word cannot be ascertained; it is, however, cognate with Schwager (Aryan swêkrós) and Schwester (Aryan swésô). Corresponding to the now almost obsolete Schwäher, there has existed from primitively Teutonic times a feminine swekrũ, ‘mother-in-law,’ just as from Sanscrit çvaçrũ (for *svaçrũ) are derived Latin socrûs (for *swecrus), Greek ἑκυρά (the Gothic form must have been *swigrus, feminine, for which swaíhrô is used). The word was current in Anglo-Saxon as swëger, which also became obsolete at an early period. Only in German was it retained, Old High German swigar, Middle High German swiger, feminine, ‘mother-in-law,’ from which Modern High German, constructed the tautological compound Schwiegermutter, while the corresponding Modern High German masculine Swiegervater, formed from the latter, supplanted tho old term Schwäher; similarly we have the compounds Schwiegereltern, -sohn, -tochter, &c. It is evident that the mother-in-law plays a more important rôle in marriage than the father-in-law.