An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/Arzt
Arzt, masculine, ‘physician,’ from the equivalent Middle High German arzet, arzât, Old High German arzăt, masculine, a specifically German word, unknown to English, Scandinavian and Gothic. Its early appearance in Old High German, in which Old Teutonic lâhhi was the more prevalent form, is remarkable (compare Gothic lêkeis, ‘physician,’ Anglo-Saxon lœ̂ce, English leech; also the Modern High German proper name Lachner, from Middle High German lâchenœre, ‘enchanter,’ literally ‘physician’). The Middle Dutch form arsatre, Old Low German ercetere, ‘physician’ (Middle Low German arste), proves the origin from the oft-recurring Franconian and Middle Latin archiater (άρχιατρός), ‘physician’ (especially physician-in-ordinary to the king). There are no phonetic difficulties in connecting Old High German arzât with arzâter, arciâter, archiâter, since the Old Low German and Middle Dutch form itself points to the Middle Latin form. Moreover, the technical terms of Greek physic found their way at an early period to the West (compare Büchse, Pflaster), but always through the medium of Latin and Romance. The unique arzâte(r) was entirely unknown to Romance (Italian medico, Old French mirc, French médecin, which of course were also unknown to Teutonic). Concerning arz-, erz-, as the representative of Greek άρχι-, see Erz-. The theory advanced on account of Modern High German Mühlarzt, ‘mill-wright,’ that Old High German arzât is from Latin artista, is on phonetic and historical grounds unwarranted. Middle Latin artista was not used for medical practitioners until late in the Middle Ages (compare Modern French artiste vétérinaire); the word too is unknown in earlier Romance. On the other hand, we meet with archiatri even as far back as the Frankish king Childebert and Charlemagne. See besides Arzenei.