An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/schweifen

by Friedrich Kluge

schweifen, verb, ‘to roam, rove, wander,’ from Middle High German sweifen, Old High German sweifan, ‘to cause to rotate, swing, wind’; compare Anglo-Saxon swâpan, ‘to swing, sweep, tear,’ English to swoop, to sweep, to which Anglo-Saxon and English swift, Dutch zweep, and Low German swipe, ‘whip,’ are allied.