An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/Matratze

by Friedrich Kluge

Matratze, feminine, ‘mattress,’ from Middle High German matraȥ, materaz, masculine and neuter, ‘couch stuffed with wool, divan’; compare Dutch matras, English mattress. The High German form with tz is formed from Middle Latin matratium, which, with its corresponding Romance cognate, French matelas, is usually derived from an Arab source; Arabic matrah, ‘pillow,’ literally ‘place where something is thrown.’