niggard

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology | 1996 | 437 words | Copyright

niggard sb. stingy person; adj. stingy, miserly. XIV. alt., with substitution of suffix -ARD, of earlier †nigon (XIV–XVI), f †nig (XIII–XVII); prob. of Scand. orig. (cf. Sw. njugg, ON. hnǫggr, Norw. nögg), and ult. rel. to OE. hnēaw niggardly, corr. to MDu. nauwe (Du. nauw narrow, tight), MHG. nouwe careful, exact, (ge)nouwe scarcely (G. genau exactly).
Hence niggardly XVI; see -LY1, -LY2.

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

T. F. HOAD. "niggard." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

T. F. HOAD. "niggard." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-niggard.html

T. F. HOAD. "niggard." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-niggard.html

Learn more about citation styles