| Summary: | In Kant's works the term >transcendent' is frequently rendered or explained by the German <überschwenglich<, a phrase that has received little attention as a philosophical term. The essay demonstrates the term's origin in the language of the German mystics of the 13th century (Tauler, Seuse, Meister Eckhart) and its subsequent use in Lutheran mysticism (A. Silesius) and pietism (G. Arnold, J. L. Zimmermann). It is argued that this background would have been partially known to Kant, and that it may explain that and how he employed the phrase. Kant's phrasing has been dominant ever since; however, the essay concludes by pointing out the term's use by some philosophers (Schelling, Heidegger) who probably took it directly from the mystical tradition.
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