An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Matte

by Friedrich Kluge

Matte (1.), f. (an Alem. word unknown to Suab. and Bav.), from the equiv. MidHG. mate, matte, f., ‘mead, meadow’; OHG. *matta, f., is wanting (but OHG. mato-scrëch, ‘grasshopper,’ is preserved). Goth. *maþwa, *mêdwa, is not recorded; comp. E. meadow, mead, from AS. mœ̂d (gen. mœ̂dwe), ‘meadow,’ MidLG. mâde, OLG. mâtha, mada, OFris. mêth. They seem to be based on a Teut. root mâþ, med, which is connected with Lat. mêto, ‘to mow, reap,’ and which has a shorter form, mê, in ModHG. mähen.

Matte (2.), f., ‘mat,’ from MidHG. matte (late MidHG. also matze), OHG. matta, f., ‘covering woven of straw, rushes, &c., mat’; Du. mat, AS. meatte, f., E. mat. The correspondence of the HG. and LG.-Eng. dental indicates that the word was borrowed, and as a fact it was introduced during the OHG. period. It is based on Lat. matta, ‘mat made of rushes.’