dastard

The story

1. Old Norse · derived fromdæstr“exhausted, breathless”
2. Middle English · inherited fromdastard“a dullard”
3. English todaydastard

From Middle English dastard (“a dullard”), most likely formed from *dast, a base derived from Old Norse dæstr (“exhausted, breathless”) + -ard. Compare Icelandic dasaður (“exhausted”), dialectal Swedish däst (“weary”), Middle Dutch dasaert, daasaardt (“a fool”), English dazed (“stupefied”).