Hag Definition

Origin of Hag

• Middle English hagge, hegge 'demon, old woman', shortening of Old English hægtesse, hægtes (“harpy, witch”), from Proto-Germanic *hagatusjōn (compare Saterland Frisian Häkse (“witch”), Dutch heks, German Hexe (“witch”)), compounds of (1) *hagaz 'able, skilled' (compare Old Norse hagr (“handy, skillful”), Middle High German behac (“pleasurable”)), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱak- (compare Sanskrit [script?] (śaknóti, “he can”)[Devanagari?]), and (2) *tusjōn 'witch' (compare dialectal Norwegian tysja (“fairy, she-elf”)).

  From Wiktionary

• Middle English gap, chasm of Scandinavian origin Old Norse högg kau- in Indo-European roots

  From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

• Middle English hagge perhaps short for Old English hægtesse witch

  From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

• Scots hag (“to cut”); compare English hack.

  From Wiktionary