An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/haben

by Friedrich Kluge

haben, vb., ‘to have, possess,’ from the equiv. MidHG. haben, OHG. habên; corresponding to OSax. hebbian, Du. hebben, AS. habban, E. to have, OIc. hafa, Goth. haban; a common Teut. vb. with the stem habai-. Its identity with Lat. habere can scarcely be doubted. It is true that Lat. h initially requires, according to the laws of substitution, a Teut. g, and Teut. h a Lat. c (comp. Gast, Gerste, Geist, and Hals, Haut, and heben). Probably Lat. habê- and Teut. habai- are based upon an Aryan prim. form khabhêj; the correspondence between Teut. h and Lat. h is only possible on the assumption of an Aryan kh. On this supposition haben and heben in their etymology are primit. allied, just as Lat. habere and capere.