Etymology

cp. OIcel víg-t, neut./adv. of vígr ‘in fighting state, serviceable’ < PGmc *wīga-; cp. OE orwīge ‘defenceless’ (interpreted by Heid as a derivation on the wk. n. OE wīg (< *wīgan) rather than as directly cognate), MHG wīge ‘militant’. Given the -t, wyʒt was perhaps borrowed and first used as an adv. 

PGmc Ancestor

*wīga-

Proposed ON Etymon (OIcel representative)

vígr ‘in fighting state, serviceable’
(ONP vígr (adj.))

Other Scandinavian Reflexes

Icel vígur, Norw andvig, runic Sw wīgaʀ, Sw vig

OE Cognate

orwīge ‘defenceless’

Phonological and morphological markers

<p>ON adjectival (adverbial) <em>-t</em></p>

Summary category

A2*c

Attestation

Predominantly N and E and alliterative in ME.

Occurrences in the Gersum Corpus

Gaw 1762; Cl 617; Pat 103

Parsed as an adv. at Gaw 1762 by TGD, GDS and OED, but sometimes as an adj. (thus Madden, Morris, AW, PS) and open to either interpretation (‘wiʒt wallande ioye’); see further wyʒt (adj.). Note that this instance is not cited in MED s.v.v. wight (adj.) or (adv.).

Bibliography

MED wight (adv.) , OED wight (adj. and adv.) (B) , HTOED , Dance wiʒt