An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Mist

by Friedrich Kluge

Mist, m., ‘excrement, dung,’ from MidHG. and OHG. mist, m., ‘mud, manure, dunghill’; it represents *mihst, like OHG. forskôn, ‘to demand,’ for *forhskôn; see mischen. Goth. maíhstus, m., ‘excrement,’ AS. meoz (for *meoxt?), ‘excrement,’ MidE. mix, obsolete in E.; the derivative AS., MidE., and E. mixen, ‘dunghill,’ has been preserved, and appears in OHG. as mistunnea, mistina, f., and also in Franc. as misten, ‘dunghill.’ Since stu in Goth. maihstus is a suffix, HG. Mist is connected with Lith. měz-ti, ‘to dung,’ mėżlaì, ‘excrement,’ or with the Aryan root mī̆gh, ‘to make water,’ which has been retained in LG. as mîgen; comp. AS. mîgan, OIc. míga, ‘to make water.’ This latter verbal stem is found in the non-Teut. languages; comp. the Sans. root mih, Lat. mingere, Gr. ὀμιχεῖν, with the same sense; Lat. mêjo and Lith. mężu, ‘mingo,’ also belong to the same Aryan root mī̆gh. Since ὀμίχλη, ὁμίχλη, OSlov. mĭgla, Lith. miglà, ‘mist,’ are also allied to Gr. ὀμιχεῖν, ‘to make water,’ the following have also been connected with Mist, AS. and E. mist, LG. and Du. mist, ‘mist,’ Ic. mistr, ‘misty air’; Sans. méghá, ‘cloud,’ míh, ‘rain, mist,’ belong also to the root mih, which in OInd. means both ‘to make water’ and ‘raining, gushing forth.’

Mist, read AS. mîst (equiv. to LG. mîst).