An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/trachten

by Friedrich Kluge

trachten, vb., ‘to aim (at), aspire (to),’ from MidHG. trahten, OHG. trahtôn, wk. vb., ‘to think, esteem, consider, strive, invent, excogitate’; corresponding to Du. trachten, AS. trahtian. Based on Lat. tractare, ‘to treat, reflect on,’ whence Ital. trattare, Fr. traiter, ‘to treat.’ The genuine Teut. origin of OHG. trahtôn is undoubted, hence it has been thought to be primit. allied to Gr. δέρκομαι, Sans. dṛç, ‘to see.’