An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/Abt

by Friedrich Kluge

Abt, masculine, ‘abbot,’ from the equivalent Middle High German apt, abbet, abbât, Old High German and Middle High German abbā̆t, masculine; compare Dutch abt, Anglo-Saxon abbod (with an abnormal d), and less frequently abbot, English abbot. Borrowed with a change of accent in Old High German from Middle Latin abbât- (nominative singular abbas), ‘abbot’; compare Italian abáte, French abbé, Old Irish abb, accusative abbaith. It will be seen under Kreuz that in words borrowed from Latin the stem of the oblique cases as well as the nominative often forms the base; with regard to the ecclesiastical terms borrowed in Old High German compare among others Mönch, Nonne, Papst, Priester, Probst.