An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Bausch

by Friedrich Kluge

Bausch, m., ‘pad, bolster,’ from MidHG. bûsch, m., ‘cudgel, blow causing blisters, swelling.’ If ‘cudgel’ is the primary sense, the word may be connected with MidHG. bôȥen, OHG. bôȥȥan, from bautan (see Amboß, Beutel, Beifuß); bût- would be another stage in gradation, and before the suffix sch from sk the dental would inevitably disappear; comp. Lat. fustis, ‘cudgel,’ from *bhûd-stis.