Etymology

From Middle High German gelt, from Old High German gelt ‎(“payment, money”) (compare German Geld), from Proto-Germanic *geldą ‎(“reward, gift, money”) (compare Dutch geld ‎(“money”), Danish gjæld ‎(“debt”), Swedish gäld ‎(“debt”), English geld), from Proto-Indo-European *gheldh- ‎(“to pay”).