Arsch
/aʁʃ/noun
A vulgar German word for the buttocks or anus.
Did you know?Arsch descends from the same ancient Indo-European root that produced English “arse” and “ass,” showing how bodily taboos preserve extremely old words.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*orsos
“Rear or buttocks; a reconstructed term for the backside”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*arsaz
“The backside or buttocks”
Old High German
OHG
ars
“Buttocks or anus”
Middle High German
MHG
ars
“The backside; a vulgar bodily term”
Modern German
German
Arsch
“Buttocks or anus; also used in insults and compounds”