An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/Star

by Friedrich Kluge

Star, masculine, ‘starling,’ from the equivalent Middle High German star, masculine, Old High German stara, feminine; corresponding to Anglo-Saxon stœr, stearn, English stare, Old Icelandic stare, starre, ‘starling’; primitively allied to Latin sturnus. English starling indicates the derivation of Modern High German Sperling (Old High German sparo). — Star, masculine, ‘cataract’ (of the eye), has been deduced in Modern High German from Middle High German starblint (d) Old High German starablint (compare Dutch staarblind), adjective, ‘blind from a cataract,’ which has no connection with the name of the bird, since it more probably belongs to the same root as Modern High German starren (Old High German starên), ‘to look fixedly, stare.’ In Anglo-Saxon, besides stœrblind, a curious form, pûrblind occurs, the first component of which is Anglo-Saxon pûr, ‘bittern’; compare Greek γλαύκωμα, from γλαύξ, ‘owl.’ Hence the instinctive connection between the name of the bird and the disease is quite comprehensible.