An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/Weigand

by Friedrich Kluge

Weigand, masculine, ‘warrior, hero,’ from the equivalent Middle High German and Old High German wîgant, masculine; not an inherited term, but borrowed in the last century from Middle High German literature. It is a West Teutonic form for ‘warrior’; compare Anglo-Saxon wîgend, Old Saxon wîgand; properly a present participle of the nearly obsolete (in West Teutonic) root wī̆g, ‘to fight’ (compare Gothic weihan and *wigan, strong verb, ‘to fight’). This is identical with the Aryan root wī̆k, ‘to be strong, bold,’ which appears in Latin vincere, ‘to conquer,’ Old Irish fichim, ‘to fight,’ as well as in Old Slovenian vĕkŭ, ‘strength’ (equivalent to Old Icelandic veig, ‘strength’); compare Lithuanian wikrus, ‘brisk.’ Allied to weigern and Geweih.