Page:An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language.djvu/254

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by chance not recorded. It is a specifically Teut. derivative of the root mal, ‘to grind,’ of which the form mel is authenticated by Slav. and Ir.; see mahlen. While the vb. mahlen is common to West Aryan, the form of the word Mehl, from the root mel, is peculiar to Teut.; it may also be remarked that the subst. is found in E., though not the corresponding vb. There is also a derivative from the same root in Kelt.; comp. W. blawd, Bret. bleud (from mlât).

Mehltau, m., ‘mildew, blight,’ corrupted from the equiv. MidHG. miltou, n., OHG. mili-tou, n.; comp. AS. meledeáw (miledeáw), E. mildew. The opinions as to the origin of the first component are various. The most probable derivation is that from Goth. miliþ, n., ‘honey’ (comp. OIc. milska, f., ‘sweet drink’), to which in West Teut. a subst. mili (Gr. μέλι, stem μέλιτ-, Lat. mel) is possibly akin; hence Mehltau, ‘honeydew’?. It is less probable that the word was borrowed from or was primit. allied to the equiv. Gr. μίλτος, so that Tau may have been an explanatory addition (comp. Lindwurm and Windhund). It is also possible that OHG. mili-, AS. mele-, mile-, is connected with Mehl, and a special formation from the root mel, ‘to grind.’ In that case the ModHG. change of Miltau into Mehltau is warranted by etymology; Mehltau is defined as ‘a greyish-white, meal-like coating on plants in summer.’

mehr, adj. and adv., ‘more,’ from MidHG. mêr; compar. of viel; also, doubly compared, mêrer, mē̆rre, ‘greater or larger’ (of space, number, and value); further indeclin. mêre, mêr, mê, ‘plus’; OHG. mêr, undeclin. neu. and compar. adv., ‘more, plus, magis, amplius,’ adj. mêro, ‘major, greater’ (also with the addition of the compar. suffix mêrôro, mêriro, ‘major’). OHG. mêro originated in maizo, Goth. maiza, the -iza- of which is the OTeut. compar. suffix (comp. besser, Goth. batiza; höher, Goth. hauhiza); comp. AS. mâ, adv. and neu. subst., ‘more,’ adj. mâra, E. more. The corresponding superl. is meist. Goth. maiza, for *majiza, belongs, with the Goth. superl. maists (see meist), to the Teut. adj. mê-rs, ‘projecting,’ discussed under Märchen.

mehrer, adj., ‘greater, several,’ from MidHG. mêrer, compar. adj. See mehr.

meiden, vb., ‘to avoid, shun, refrain,’

from MidHG. mîden, ‘to dispense with, suffer want, eschew, forsake, refrain from’; OHG. mîdan, ‘to hide oneself from, keep secret, eschew, refrain from’; comp. OSax. mîthan, AS. mîðan, ‘to hide, conceal, refrain from.’ The orig. sense of the cognates seems to be ‘to hide, remain far from,’ but definitely related terms are wanting; Lat. amitto, Lith. pa-metù, ‘to thrown away,’ are not connected. For other words similar in sound see under miß and missen.

Meier, n., ‘head-servant on an estate, land-steward, farmer,’ from MidHG. meier, meiger, m., OHG. meior, meier, m.; it corresponds to the early MidLat. major domus, which lit. denoted ‘the steward of the household servants’; hence OHG. and MidHG. meier, ‘steward of an estate, manager or lessee of an estate.’ From Lat. major, Fr. maire is also derived.

Meile, f. (rare in Suab. and Bav.), ‘mile’ (about five E. miles), from the equiv. MidHG. mîle, OHG. mîla, mîlla (for mîlja), f.; corresponding to Du. mijl, AS. mîl, E. mile, Scand. míla, f., ‘mile’; from Lat. mîlia (passuum), ‘thousand paces,’ whence also Ital. miglia, Fr. mille. It prop. denotes ‘a measure of a thousand paces (sing. mille passuum).’ The more frequent plur. mîlia was adopted in Rom. and G., chiefly as a fem. sing., without the addition of passuum (Ital. formed the sing. miglio, ‘mile,’ from the plur. miglia). The word was borrowed in the first cent. contemporaneously with Straße (Ital. lega, Fr. lieue, ‘league,’ a later word of Kelt. origin, was never adopted in G.).

Meiler, m., ‘charcoal-kiln,’ from late MidHG. meiler, mîler, m., ‘stack of wood for making charcoal’; the î of the MidHG. prim. form is attested by ModHG. and LG. dials. The word cannot be derived from Slav. (Czech milíř, Pol. mieleřz, ‘charcoal kiln,’ are themselves of G. origin). Since it may have denoted orig. a definite number of objects (comp. Carinth. meiler, ‘a definite number of bars in a stack of pig-iron’), we might connect it with Lat. mîliarium, ‘thousand’ (see the similar case of Decher).

mein, poss. pron., ‘my,’ from MidHG. and OHG. mîn; in the same form it is the common Teut. poss. pron. from the stem me- of the pers. pron. (mir, mich, thus even in MidHG. and OHG.). This stem me- (in Goth. mi-s, ‘to me,’ mi-k, ‘me,’ acc.) is