An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/Sprache

by Friedrich Kluge

Sprache, feminine, ‘speech, language, utterance,’ from the equivalent Middle High German sprâche, Old High German sprâhha. An abstract of sprechen (compare Anglo-Saxon sprœ̂č), ‘to speak, say, utter,’ which comes from the equivalent Middle High German sprëchen, Old High German sprëhhan, a strong verb peculiar to the West Teutonic languages; compare Old Saxon sprëkan, Dutch spreken, Anglo-Saxon sprëcan. The corresponding English to speak (and speech), from Anglo-Saxon spëcan (and spœ̂č), points to a Teutonic root spek, which appears also in Middle High German spëhten, ‘to chatter.’ The Teutonic root sprek has no cognates in the non-Teutonic languages; it is perhaps related to Sanscrit sphûrj, ‘to rustle.’ For an obsolete term, also meaning ‘to speak,’ see under Beichte; the current term in the Upper German dialects is reden.