Geist
/ɡaɪst/noun
A spirit, ghost, or animating intellect, especially in German philosophical and cultural usage.
Did you know?German Geist can mean both a supernatural spirit and the human intellect, while its ancient Germanic relatives became English words associated with fear and horror.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*ǵʰeysdo-
“A reconstructed root associated with fear, terror, or being frightened”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*gaistaz
“Spirit, ghost, or terrifying apparition”
Old English
Old English
gāst
“Ghost, spirit, or supernatural being”
Old High German
Old High German
geist
“Spirit, ghost, or immaterial being”
Middle High German
Middle High German
geist
“Spirit, ghost, and later the seat of thought or intellect”
Modern German
German
Geist
“Spirit, ghost, mind, intellect, or cultural and intellectual character”
19th Century
English
Geist
“A loanword referring to a spirit, intellect, or distinctive cultural mentality”