An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Fleisch

by Friedrich Kluge

Fleisch, n., ‘flesh, meat, pulp (of fruit),’ from the equiv. MidHG. vleisch, OHG. fleisk, n.; it has the same meaning in West Teut. and Scand. Strange to say, a Goth. *flaisk, *flaiskis, n. (or þl- comp. fliehen), is not recorded, the term used being leik or mims, n. Comp. Du. vleesch, AS. flœ̂sc, E. flesh; OIc. flesk is used only of ‘pork,’ and more especially of ‘ham’ and ‘bacon,’ while kjǫt was the common Scand. word for ‘meat.’ It may well be imagined that the Scand. specialised meaning of the word was the oldest, and that the meaning common to West Teut. was established only by generalisation; comp. OIc. flikke, AS. flicce, E. flitch (dial. flick), as well as AS. (Kent.) flœc for flœ̂sc, ‘meat.’ Russ. poltĭ, Lith. páltis, ‘flitch,’ cannot, on account of their vowel-sounds, be cognates. The k of the OTeut. word is probably a suffix; comp. Du. vleezig, ‘plump’?. — eingefleischt, ‘incarnate,’ simply ModHG. formed like the Lat. incarnatus, ‘embodied.’