Page:An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language.djvu/404

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thoughts.’ The word (comp. Argwohn) did not originally contain the secondary meaning ‘want of foundation,’ as is shown by OSax. wân, AS. wên, Goth. wêns, ‘expectation, hope.’ Hence the derivative wähnen, ‘to think, believe, suppose,’ MidHG. wœnen, OHG. wânnen (from *wânjan), ‘to mean, suppose, hope,’ comp. the equiv. Goth. wênjan, AS. wênan, OSax. wânian. The nominal stem wêni is not related to any terms in non-Teut. (Aryan root wê?, ghwê, ghê?), unless it be connected with the root wen, ‘to love,’ from which OHG. and OSax. wini, ‘friend,’ Sans. van, ‘to love,’ and Lat. venerari, ‘to venerate,’ are derived.

Wahnsinn, m., ‘frenzy, madness, delirium.’ It has properly no connection whatever with the preceding word; it first occurs in ModHG., and is an imitation of the earlier Wahnwitz, m., ‘delirium,’ which is based on MidHG. wănwitzec, wănwitze, OHG. wănawizzi, adj., ‘unintelligible, void of understanding.’ Wahnwitz is the sole relic of an old method of forming compounds with wăna-, ‘wanting,’ which is especially preserved in Scand.; comp. also OHG. wanaheil, ‘sickly,’ lit. perhaps ‘deficient in health’; thus too OHG. wanawizzi, ‘deficient in sense.’ Goth. wans, ‘deficient, lacking,’ OIc. vanr, ‘lacking,’ is an old partic. with the suffix ana, from the Aryan root ū̆, ‘to be empty,’ from which öde is derived; comp. the Zend root û, ‘to want,’ Sans. ûna, ‘wanting,’ and OHG. wanôn, ‘to diminish.’

wahr, adj., ‘true, real, genuine,’ from the equiv. MidHG. and OHG. wâr (also MidHG. wœre, OHG. wâri); corresponding to OSax. wâr, Du. waar, ‘true.’ A genuine Teut. word, found only in a few languages; Lat. vêrus, OIr. fír, ‘true’ (and also OSlov. věru, ‘belief’), are primitively allied to it; its primit. meaning has not been discovered. In Goth., only *tuzwêrs, ‘doubtful,’ appears to be cognate; but Goth. unwêrs, ‘indignant,’ OHG. mitiwâri, ‘mild,’ probably belong to another class. The word for ‘true’ in Goth. is sunjis, in AS., sôþ, which are related to ModHG. sein, Aryan root es; ‘the true’ is thus ‘the existent,’ which suggests a connection between Lat. vêrus, equiv. to Teut. wêro-, through the medium of a prehistoric form, *wes-ró-, with the Aryan root wes, ‘to be’ (see Wesen).

wahren, vb., ‘to watch over, preserve,’

from MidHG. warn, wk. vb., ‘to notice, be careful, pay attention to’; OHG. only in biwarôn (the same as MidHG. bewarn, ModHG. bewahren, ‘to keep, preserve’). Comp. the corresponding OSax. warôn, ‘to pay attention to.’ From Ger. is derived Fr. se garer, ‘to guard against, mind’; but Fr. garnir (Ital. guarnire), ‘to furnish, stock,’ is based on the equiv. OHG. warnôn, MidHG. warnen, which, like wahren, is derived from the same root war, ‘to take care of, look after.’ To this is allied OHG. and OSax. wara, MidHG. war, f., ‘attention,’ still preserved in wahrnehmen, ‘to perceive,’ from MidHG. war nëmen, OHG. and OSax. wara nëman, ‘to pay attention to, perceive’ (in OHG. and MidHG. construed with the genit.), lit. ‘to have regard to.’ The Teut. root. war, ‘to take heed, notice,’ is rightly regarded as primit. cognate with Gr. ὁράω, ‘I see’ (Aryan root wor, to which warten is also allied).

währen, vb., ‘to last, continue,’ from the equiv. MidHG. wërn, OHG. wërên, wk. vb.; allied to OSax. warôn, ‘to last.’ The r of these verbs is based on an old s, which leads to a connection with the Aryan root wes, ‘to be’ (comp. Wesen). Deriv. während, prep. and conj., ‘during, pending, whilst,’ properly a partic.

Wahrung, f., ‘fixed value or standard,’ from MidHG. wërunge, ‘guaranteed alloy.’

wahrnehmen, see wahren.

Wahrsager, m., ‘soothsayer, prophet,’ from the equiv. late MidHG. (rare) wârsager, which is properly LG. Comp. OSax. wârsago, ‘prophet,’ and weissagen.

Währwolf, see Werwolf.

Wahrzeichen, n., ‘mark, token, omen, signal,’ from MidHG. warzeichen, n., ‘token, mark,’ for which the equiv. MidHG. and OHG. wortzeichen (OSax. wordtêkan), n., is ordinarily used. The word has been corrupted; its primit. form and meaning are obscure. Comp. also the cognate, OIc. jartein, ‘token of recognition.’

Waid, m., ‘woad, blue dye,’ from the equiv. MidHG. and OHG. weit, m.; corresponding to the equiv. Du. weede, AS. wâd, E. woad, Goth. *waida- (for which wizdila, ‘woad,’ is found,’ whence MidLat. guasdium, Fr. guède). From Teut. is derived the equiv. Rom. cognate, Ital. guado. Lat. vitrum, ‘woad,’ is historically related to the Teut. cognates, which may be based on pre-Teut. waitó.

Waidmann, see Weide (2).