1523, from M.Du.
wagen, waghen, from P.Gmc.
*wagnaz (cf. O.E.
wægn, Mod.Eng.
wain, O.S., O.H.G.
wagan, O.N.
vagn, O.Fris.
wein, Ger.
Wagen), from PIE
*woghnos, from
*wegh- "to carry, to move" (cf. Skt.
vahanam "vessel, ship," Gk.
okhos, L.
vehiculum, O.C.S.
vozu "carriage, chariot," Rus.
povozka, Lith.
vazis "a small sledge," O.Ir.
fen, Welsh
gwain "carriage, cart;" see
weigh). In Du. and Ger., the general word for "a wheel vehicle;" Eng. use is a result of contact through Flemish immigration, Dutch trade, or the Continental wars. It has largely displaced the native cognate,
wain. Spelling preference varied randomly between
-g- and
-gg- from mid-18c., before Amer.Eng. settled on the etymological
wagon, while
waggon remained common in Great Britain.
Wagon train is attested from 1810. Phrase
on the wagon "abstaining from alcohol" is 1904, originally
on the water cart.