eye: [OE] In Old English times eye was ēage, which is related to a whole range of words for ‘eye’ in other European languages. Its immediate derivation is from prehistoric Germanic *augon, which was also the source of German auge, Dutch oog, Swedish öga, and many others. And *augon in its turn goes back to an Indo-European oqw-, which supplied the word for ‘eye’ to all the other Indo-European languages except the Celtic ones, including Russian óko (now obsolete), Greek ophthalmós, and Latin oculus (with all its subsequent derivatives such as French oeuil, Italian occhio, and Spanish ojo).
c. 1200, from Old English ege (Mercian), eage (West Saxon) "eye; region around the eye; apperture, hole," from Proto-Germanic *augon (cognates: Old Saxon aga, Old Frisian age, Old Norse auga, Swedish öga, Danish øie, Middle Dutch oghe, Dutch oog, Old High German ouga, German Auge, Gothic augo "eye").
Apparently the Germanic form evolved irregularly from PIE *okw- "to see" (cognates: Sanskrit akshi "the eye; the number two," Greek opsis "a sight," Old Church Slavonic oko, Lithuanian akis, Latin oculus, Greek okkos, Tocharian ak, ek, Armenian akn).
HAMLET: My father -- methinks I see my father.
HORATIO: Where, my lord?
HAMLET: In my mind's eye, Horatio.
Until late 14c. the English plural was in -an, hence modern dialectal plural een, ene. Of potatoes from 1670s. Of peacock feathers from late 14c. As a loop used with a hook in fastening (clothes, etc.) from 1590s. The eye of a needle was in Old English. As "the center of revolution" of anything from 1760. Nautical in the wind's eye "in the direction of the wind" is from 1560s.
To see eye to eye is from Isa. lii:8. Eye contact attested from 1953. To have (or keep) an eye on "keep under supervision" is attested from early 15c. To have eyes for "be interested in or attracted to" is from 1736; make eyes at in the romance sense is from 1837; gleam in (someone's) eye (n.) "barely formed idea" is from 1959. Eye-biter was an old name for "a sort of witch who bewitches with the eyes."
