An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Rüssel

by Friedrich Kluge

Rüssel, m., ‘trunk (of an elephant), snout,’ from the equiv. MidHG. rüeȥel, m.; ModHG. has shortened the real stem vowel as in lassen, from MidHG. lâȥen. OHG. *ruoȥil, earlier *wruoȥil, are unrecorded. Comp. the equiv. AS. wrôt, East Fris. wrôte, formed without the l suffix; also OHG. ruozzen, ‘to root or tear up the earth,’ Du. wroeten and North Fris. wretten, ‘to root,’ AS. wrôtan, wrôtian, E. to root. The Teut. root wrôt, ‘to root up’ (Rüssel is lit. ‘the uprooting snout of a pig’), from pre-Teut. wrôd (yet see Wurzel), has not yet been discovered in the non-Teut. languages; perhaps Lat. rôdere, ‘to gnaw,’ is primit. allied.