Gewær

Gewær is a historical Dutch adjective used in Middle Dutch and Early Modern Dutch to denote a person who is wary, cautious, or vigilant. The spelling gewær, with variants such as gewár or gewaar, appears in several manuscripts and printings from the 13th through the 17th centuries. Because of its rarity and regional variation, the precise nuance of gewær shifts by time and place, but it commonly conveys a sense of being observant and ready to respond to potential danger rather than merely being alert.

Etymology and related forms: Gewær is usually connected to the native Dutch vocabulary for perception and caution. It is related to the modern word waar (true, perceptible) and to other perceptual adjectives that reflect awareness. Some scholars note a parallel with Frisian forms that express similar notions of watchfulness, underscoring a cross-dialectal interest in vigilance.

Usage: In historical texts gewær functioned as an attributive or predicative adjective. Its exact sense—whether morally neutral or pejorative—varied by context: some passages describe prudent or careful behavior, while others imply suspicion or wariness in a person or situation.

Modern status: The adjective has largely fallen out of use in contemporary Dutch and Frisian, with modern synonyms such as waakzaam or oplettend dominating. Gewær is encountered mainly in philological or dialect studies and in discussions of historical language.

Significance: The term offers a window into attitudes toward personal security, risk, and social conduct in medieval and early modern Netherlands, illustrating how language encodes vigilance in everyday life.