Etymologically
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leisten

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Pronunciation

  • /ˈlaɪ̯stn̩/, [ˈlaɪ̯stən][1]

Forms

leisten (third-person singular present leistet, past tense leistete, past participle geleistet, auxiliary haben)[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle High German leisten, inherited from Old High German leisten, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *laistijan, inherited from Proto-Germanic *laistijaną (“to follow”).[2][3][1] The same verb is Old Saxon lēstian, Gothic 𐌻𐌰𐌹𐍃𐍄𐌾𐌰𐌽 (laistjan, “to follow”), Old English lǣstan (“to follow, perform, endure”) and Old Frisian lāsta, and it continues in English last (“to endure”).[2][3][4]

The verb is formed from a Germanic noun meaning “track, footprint”, Proto-Germanic *laistiz, which survives in Leisten, the shoemaker's last, and in Gothic 𐌻𐌰𐌹𐍃𐍄𐍃 (laists, “track, goal”), Old English lāst (“footprint”) and Old Norse leistr (“sock, foot”).[2][3][5][6] Its first sense was therefore “to follow a track”, and the modern sense grew out of “to follow a command”.[2][3][7]

Pfeifer and Duden trace the family to a root Proto-Indo-European *leis- (“track, furrow”), also behind Gleis, lehren, lernen and List,[3][6] while Köbler marks the connection with Pokorny's root as uncertain.[8]

Earliest recorded meaning

Old High German leisten is first recorded at the beginning of the 9th century, in the Old Bavarian prayer, and then in Otfrid, Notker and Williram, meaning “to carry out, fulfil, keep (a promise), show”.[8][9][10] The Strasbourg Oaths already use the past participle geleistit of keeping an oath.[11]

Semantic evolution

In Gothic and partly in Old English the verb still had the concrete sense “to follow, accompany”, while in Old Saxon, Old High German and Middle High German it meant doing what is owed or prescribed.[11] Middle High German used it for keeping a commitment, as in einen tac leisten “to attend an assembly” and gîselschaft leisten “to ride in as a hostage”,[10] and in the law of debt for the obligation to stay at an inn as a hostage until a debt was paid.[12] Early New High German added paying a debt or a fine and performing a service.[13]

Paul notes that the verb came to be used where there was no obligation, as in jemandem Gesellschaft leisten, and that the idea of ability came to the fore, as in praise of what someone achieves in music or politics.[7] With a noun it became a light verb: Hilfe leisten “to help”, Widerstand leisten “to resist”.[10][3] The colloquial sich etwas leisten “to afford, treat oneself to” arose in the second half of the 19th century, at first ironically and probably in student slang.[7][3]

The noun Leistung, late Middle High German leistunge “undertaking an obligation”, has meant “the result of work” since Zwingli.[7][3]

Timeline

  • Early 9th century – Old High German leisten appears in the Old Bavarian prayer.[8]
  • 1060–1065 – Middle High German leisten is used by Williram.[14]
  • 16th century – The noun Leistung is recorded in the sense “achievement”.[3]
  • 1846 – First record of leistungsfähig “efficient, capable”.[7]
  • Second half of the 19th century – sich etwas leisten “to afford” arises in colloquial use.[7][3]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To achieve or accomplish: Die junge Mannschaft hat in dieser Saison Großes geleistet.[15][1]
  2. To do or carry out (work): Sie hat diesen Monat zwölf Überstunden geleistet.[15]
  3. Of a machine, to produce a certain output: Die Pumpe leistet zwei Kilowatt.[15]
  4. As a light verb with a noun, to give or render: Hilfe leisten “to help”, Widerstand leisten “to resist”, einen Eid leisten “to swear an oath”.[15][3]
  5. (colloquial, with reflexive dative) To treat oneself to, afford: Nach der Prüfung leisten wir uns ein Abendessen im Restaurant. Sich etwas leisten können is to have the money for it.[15][1]
  6. (colloquial, with reflexive dative) To allow oneself something impudent or improper.[16][15]

Word family

  • Leisten
  • Gleis
  • lehren
  • lernen
  • List
  • English last

Usage notes

The proverb Schuster, bleib bei deinem Leisten “cobbler, stick to your last” belongs to the noun Leisten, as does alles über einen Leisten schlagen “to treat everything alike”, recorded in 1625.[7][15]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d Kluge, Friedrich; Seebold, Elmar (2011), Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache, 25th ed., Berlin / Boston: De Gruyter, p. 571
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Pfeifer, Wolfgang, et al. (1993), Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Deutschen, 2nd ed., Berlin: Akademie-Verlag; digital revised version in the DWDS, dwds.de
  4. ^ Orel, Vladimir (2003), A Handbook of Germanic Etymology, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 233
  5. ^ Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill
  6. ^ a b Duden. Das Herkunftswörterbuch: Etymologie der deutschen Sprache (2020), 6th ed., Duden vol. 7, Berlin: Dudenverlag, p. 507
  7. ^ a b c d e f g Paul, Hermann (2002), Deutsches Wörterbuch: Bedeutungsgeschichte und Aufbau unseres Wortschatzes, 10th ed., ed. Helmut Henne, Heidrun Kämper and Georg Objartel, Tübingen: Niemeyer
  8. ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 6th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling
  9. ^ Schützeichel, Rudolf (2012), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 7th ed., Berlin / Boston: De Gruyter, p. 196
  10. ^ a b c Lloyd, Albert L.; Springer, Otto; Lühr, Rosemarie, et al. (1988–), Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Althochdeutschen, Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht; online ewa.saw-leipzig.de, p. 5, 1148
  11. ^ a b Grimm, Jacob; Grimm, Wilhelm (1854–1961), Deutsches Wörterbuch, 16 vols. in 32, Leipzig: Hirzel; digital: Wörterbuchnetz, Trier Center for Digital Humanities, p. 12, 722
  12. ^ Lexer, Matthias (1872–1878), Mittelhochdeutsches Handwörterbuch, 3 vols., Leipzig: Hirzel; digital: Wörterbuchnetz, Trier Center for Digital Humanities, p. 1, 1870
  13. ^ Anderson, Robert R.; Goebel, Ulrich; Reichmann, Oskar, eds. (1989–), Frühneuhochdeutsches Wörterbuch, Berlin / New York: De Gruyter; FWB-online, fwb-online.de
  14. ^ Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Mittelhochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling
  15. ^ a b c d e f g Duden. Das große Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache in zehn Bänden (1999), 3rd ed., Mannheim: Dudenverlag
  16. ^ Wiktionary, das freie Wörterbuch (German Wiktionary), de.wiktionary.org