An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/Friedhof

by Friedrich Kluge

Friedhof, masculine, ‘churchyard’; the original sense is not exactly ‘peaceful enclosure,’ but rather ‘an enclosed place’; akin to Middle High German vride, ‘enclosure, a place hedged in’; Middle High German vrîthof, Old High German frîthof, ‘enclosed space around a church,’ must have given rise to Freithof. In their origin Friede and Middle High German vrît-hof are of course allied; yet vrît-hof must be connected chiefly with Gothic frei-djan, ‘to spare,’ Old High German frîten, ‘to cherish, love, protect’; akin also to einfriedigen.