An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/nie

by Friedrich Kluge

nie, adv., from the equiv. MidHG. nie, OHG. nio, neo, ‘never’; a compound of ni and eo, ‘not ever,’ like OSax. nio from ni io, AS. nâ from ne â; in Goth. the two words were kept separate, ni aiw, ‘never.’ With regard to the negative ni see nicht; and for OHG. io, Goth. aiw, Comp. je.