Walha
Encyclopedia
Proto-Germanic language
Proto-Germanic , or Common Germanic, as it is sometimes known, is the unattested, reconstructed proto-language of all the Germanic languages, such as modern English, Frisian, Dutch, Afrikaans, German, Luxembourgish, Danish, Norwegian, Icelandic, Faroese, and Swedish.The Proto-Germanic language is...
word, meaning "foreigner", "stranger", "Roman", "Romance-speaker", or "Celtic-speaker". The adjective derived from this word can be found in , Old High German
Old High German
The term Old High German refers to the earliest stage of the German language and it conventionally covers the period from around 500 to 1050. Coherent written texts do not appear until the second half of the 8th century, and some treat the period before 750 as 'prehistoric' and date the start of...
walhisk, meaning "Romance", in Old English welisċ, wælisċ, wilisċ, meaning "Romano-British
Romano-British
Romano-British culture describes the culture that arose in Britain under the Roman Empire following the Roman conquest of AD 43 and the creation of the province of Britannia. It arose as a fusion of the imported Roman culture with that of the indigenous Britons, a people of Celtic language and...
" and in Old Norse
Old Norse
Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....
as valskr, meaning "French". Thus it will be derived from an Proto-Germanic form such as *walhiska-.
It is attested in the Roman Iron Age
Roman Iron Age
The Roman Iron Age is the name that Swedish archaeologist Oscar Montelius gave to a part of the Iron Age in Scandinavia, Northern Germany and the Netherlands....
Tjurkö Bracteate
Tjurkö bracteate
The Tjurkö Bracteates, listed by Rundata as DR BR75 and DR BR76, are two bracteates found on Tjurkö, Eastern Hundred, Blekinge, Sweden, bearing Elder Futhark runic inscriptions, in Proto-Norse.-Description:...
inscription as walhakurne "Roman/Gallic grain", apparently a kenning
Kenning
A kenning is a type of literary trope, specifically circumlocution, in the form of a compound that employs figurative language in place of a more concrete single-word noun. Kennings are strongly associated with Old Norse and later Icelandic and Anglo-Saxon poetry...
for "gold" (referring to the "bracteate
Bracteate
A bracteate is a flat, thin, single-sided gold medal worn as jewelry that was produced in Northern Europe predominantly during the Migration Period of the Germanic Iron Age...
" itself). The term was used by the ancient Germanic peoples to describe inhabitants of the former Roman Empire
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
, who were largely romanised and spoke Latin or Celtic languages.
From *Walhaz to welsch
Walh is probably derived from the name of the tribe which was known to the Romans as VolcaeVolcae
The Volcae were a tribal confederation constituted before the raid of combined Gauls that invaded Macedon circa 270 BC and defeated the assembled Greeks at the Battle of Thermopylae in 279 BC...
(in the writings of Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar was a Roman general and statesman and a distinguished writer of Latin prose. He played a critical role in the gradual transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
) and to the Greeks as Ouólkai (Strabo
Strabo
Strabo, also written Strabon was a Greek historian, geographer and philosopher.-Life:Strabo was born to an affluent family from Amaseia in Pontus , a city which he said was situated the approximate equivalent of 75 km from the Black Sea...
and Ptolemy
Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy , was a Roman citizen of Egypt who wrote in Greek. He was a mathematician, astronomer, geographer, astrologer, and poet of a single epigram in the Greek Anthology. He lived in Egypt under Roman rule, and is believed to have been born in the town of Ptolemais Hermiou in the...
). With the Old Germanic name *Walhaz, plural *Walhôz, adjectival form *walhiska-, this neighbouring people of the Germanic people were meant some centuries before Christ. It is assumed that this term specifically referred to the Celtic Volcae
Volcae
The Volcae were a tribal confederation constituted before the raid of combined Gauls that invaded Macedon circa 270 BC and defeated the assembled Greeks at the Battle of Thermopylae in 279 BC...
, because by a precise application of the first Germanic sound change
Grimm's law
Grimm's law , named for Jacob Grimm, is a set of statements describing the inherited Proto-Indo-European stops as they developed in Proto-Germanic in the 1st millennium BC...
the exact Germanic equivalent *Walh- would have come out. Subsequently, this term Walhôz has rather indiscriminately been applied to the southern neighbours of the Germanic people, which is shown in geographic names such as Walchgau and Walchensee
Walchensee
Walchensee or Lake Walchen is one of the deepest and largest alpine lakes in Germany, with a maximum depth of and an area of . The lake is south of Munich in the middle of the Bavarian Alps. The entire lake, including the island Sassau is part of the municipality of Kochel...
in Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
. These southern neighbours, however, were then already completely romanised. Thus, by Germanic speakers this name was generalized first onto all Celts, and later onto all Romans
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
. The Old High German
Old High German
The term Old High German refers to the earliest stage of the German language and it conventionally covers the period from around 500 to 1050. Coherent written texts do not appear until the second half of the 8th century, and some treat the period before 750 as 'prehistoric' and date the start of...
Walh became Walch in Middle High German
Middle High German
Middle High German , abbreviated MHG , is the term used for the period in the history of the German language between 1050 and 1350. It is preceded by Old High German and followed by Early New High German...
, and adjectival OHG walhisk became MHG welsch, e.g. in the Romance of Alexander by Rudolf von Ems
Rudolf von Ems
Rudolf von Ems was a mediaeval Austrian epic poet.-Life:Rudolf von Ems was born in the Vorarlberg in Austria. He took his name from the castle of Hohenems near Bregenz, and was a knight in the service of the Counts of Montfort. His works were written between 1220 and 1254...
-–resulting in Welsche in Early New High German
Early New High German
Early New High German is a term for the period in the history of the German language, generally defined, following Wilhelm Scherer, as the period 1350 to 1650.Alternative periodisations take the period to begin later; e.g...
and Modern German as the exonym for all Romanic speakers.
Today, Welsch is not standard German usage except in Switzerland. This term is not only historical but also a more sophisticated and a little pejorative word to describe a Frenchman or an Italian.
Toponyms and exonyms
Numerous names of non-Germanic, and in particular RomanceRomance languages
The Romance languages are a branch of the Indo-European language family, more precisely of the Italic languages subfamily, comprising all the languages that descend from Vulgar Latin, the language of ancient Rome...
-speaking, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an regions derive from the word Walh, in particular the exonyms
- Walachia and VlachsVlachsVlach is a blanket term covering several modern Latin peoples descending from the Latinised population in Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe. English variations on the name include: Walla, Wlachs, Wallachs, Vlahs, Olahs or Ulahs...
- "RomaniansRomaniansThe Romanians are an ethnic group native to Romania, who speak Romanian; they are the majority inhabitants of Romania....
"
Consider the following terms historically present in several Central and Eastern European, and other neighbouring languages:
- in PolishPolish languagePolish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
: Włochy, the name of ItalyItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, and Wołoch, referring to VlachsVlachsVlach is a blanket term covering several modern Latin peoples descending from the Latinised population in Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe. English variations on the name include: Walla, Wlachs, Wallachs, Vlahs, Olahs or Ulahs...
and historically RomaniansRomaniansThe Romanians are an ethnic group native to Romania, who speak Romanian; they are the majority inhabitants of Romania....
. - in HungarianHungarian languageHungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
: "Oláh", referring to Romanians, "Vlachok" referring to Romanians/Vlachs, generally; "Olasz", referring to Italians. - in Serbo-CroatianSerbo-CroatianSerbo-Croatian or Serbo-Croat, less commonly Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian , is a South Slavic language with multiple standards and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro...
: Vlah (влах) - to Romanians or other Romanian/Vlach subgroup. - in UkrainianUkrainian languageUkrainian is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. It is the official state language of Ukraine. Written Ukrainian uses a variant of the Cyrillic alphabet....
: Voloh (волох) - to Romanians. - in RussianRussian languageRussian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
: Valah (валах) - to Romanians. - in GreekGreek languageGreek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
: Vlahi/Vlakhi (Βλάχοι) - to Romanians or other Romanian/Vlach subgroup (e.g. Macedo-Romanians, Megleno-RomaniansMegleno-RomaniansThe Megleno-Romanians or Meglen Vlachs or Moglenite Vlachs, are a small Eastern Romance people, currently inhabiting seven villages in the Moglena region spanning the Pella and Kilkis prefectures of Central Macedonia, Greece, and one village, Huma, across the border in the Republic of...
, etc.) - in GermanGerman languageGerman is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
: Vlachen or Walachen - to Romanians of other Romanian/Vlach subgroups; Wallach - a Romanian horse, i.e. a horse that has been geldedGeldingA gelding is a castrated horse or other equine such as a donkey or a mule. Castration, and the elimination of hormonally driven behavior associated with a stallion, allows a male horse to be calmer and better-behaved, making the animal quieter, gentler and potentially more suitable as an everyday...
, as the Romanians gelded their war horsesHorses in warfareThe first use of horses in warfare occurred over 5,000 years ago. The earliest evidence of horses ridden in warfare dates from Eurasia between 4000 and 3000 BC. A Sumerian illustration of warfare from 2500 BC depicts some type of equine pulling wagons...
for practical reasons. - in CzechCzech languageCzech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers; it is the majority language in the Czech Republic and spoken by Czechs worldwide. The language was known as Bohemian in English until the late 19th century...
and SlovakSlovak languageSlovak , is an Indo-European language that belongs to the West Slavic languages .Slovak is the official language of Slovakia, where it is spoken by 5 million people...
: Valach - to Romanians or to their Slavic-speaking descendants inhabiting Moravian WallachiaMoravian WallachiaMoravian Wallachia is a mountainous region located in the easternmost part of Moravia, Czech Republic, near the Slovakian border. The name Wallachia was formerly applied to all the highlands of Moravia and neighboring Silesia, although in the nineteenth century a smaller area came to be defined...
; a gelded horse. - in TurkishTurkish languageTurkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
: Ulah - to Romanians or other Romanian/Vlach subgroup. - In Slovene: Laški, archaic name referring to Italians; it is also the name of several settlements in SloveniaSloveniaSlovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
, like LaškoLaškoLaško is a spa town and municipality in eastern Slovenia. Traditionally the area was part of the Lower Styria region. The municipality is now included in the Savinja statistical region. The town is located at the foothills of the Hum hill on the Savinja River. It is first mentioned in written...
near CeljeCeljeCelje is a typical Central European town and the third largest town in Slovenia. It is a regional center of Lower Styria and the administrative seat of the Urban Municipality of Celje . The town of Celje is located under Upper Celje Castle at the confluence of the Savinja, Ložnica, and Voglajna...
, or Laški RovtLaški RovtLaški Rovt is a settlement on the right bank of the Sava Bohinjka river in the Bohinj municipality in the Upper Carniola region of Slovenia.-External links:*...
near BohinjBohinjBohinj is a municipality in the Upper Carniola region of northwestern Slovenia, covering the 20 km long and 5 km wide Bohinj basin of the Sava Bohinjka river within the Julian Alps, characterized by the periglacial Lake Bohinj...
. Laško is also the old Slovene name for the area around MonfalconeMonfalconeMonfalcone is a town and comune of the province of Gorizia , located on the coast of the Gulf of Trieste. Monfalcone means "Mount of Falcon" in Italian....
and RonchiRonchi dei LegionariRonchi dei Legionari is a comune in the Province of Gorizia in the Italian region Friuli-Venezia Giulia, located about 30 km northwest of Trieste and about 14 km southwest of Gorizia....
in Italy, on the border with Slovenia. These names are linked to the presence of larger nuclei of Romance-speaking populations at the time where the Slavs settled the areaSlavic settlement of the Eastern AlpsSlavic settlement of the Eastern Alps region was a historic process that took place between the 6th and 9th century AD, having culminated in the final quarter of the 6th century...
in the 6th century.
In Western European languages:
- in EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
:- WalesWalesWales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, Welsh (with the prefix Wal-) - CornwallCornwallCornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
(with the suffix -wall) - The names of many towns and villages throughout the North and West of EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
such as WalsdenWalsdenWalsden is a large village in the town of Todmorden in the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale, West Yorkshire, England, close to the Greater Manchester border...
in West YorkshireWest YorkshireWest Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
. - In English usage the words Gaul and Gaulish are used synonymously with Latin Gallia, Gallus and Gallicus. However the similarity of the names is probably accidental: the English words are borrowed from French Gaule and Gaulois, which appear to have been borrowed themselves from walha-. Germanic w is regularly rendered with French gu / g (cf. guerre = war, garder = ward), and the diphthong au is the regular outcome of al before a following consonant (cf. cheval ~ chevaux). Gaule or Gaulle can hardly be derived from Latin Gallia, since g would become j before a (cf. gamba > jambe), the regular outcome of Latin Gallia would have been *Jaille in French. This also applies to the French name for WalesWalesWales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, which is le pays de Galles. - waledich or wallditch, (weahl + ditch) was the pre-Victorian name of Avebury stone circle, in AveburyAveburyAvebury is a Neolithic henge monument containing three stone circles which is located around the village of Avebury in Wiltshire, south west England. Unique amongst megalithic monuments, Avebury contains the largest stone circle in Europe, and is one of the best known prehistoric sites in Britain...
, WiltshireWiltshireWiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers... - WalnutWalnutJuglans is a plant genus of the family Juglandaceae, the seeds of which are known as walnuts. They are deciduous trees, 10–40 meters tall , with pinnate leaves 200–900 millimetres long , with 5–25 leaflets; the shoots have chambered pith, a character shared with the wingnuts , but not the hickories...
, from Old English walhnutu (wealh+ hnutu) meaning "Roman nut", as it was introduced from GalliaGalliaGallia may refer to:*Gaul , the region of Western Europe occupied by present-day France, Belgium and other neighbouring countries...
("GaulGaulGaul was a region of Western Europe during the Iron Age and Roman era, encompassing present day France, Luxembourg and Belgium, most of Switzerland, the western part of Northern Italy, as well as the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the left bank of the Rhine. The Gauls were the speakers of...
") and ItalyItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. - Galwalas, Old English name for people of Gaul or France
- Wales
- Numerous attestations in GermanGerman languageGerman is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
:- in village names ending in -walchen, such as StraßwalchenStraßwalchenStraßwalchen is a market town in the district of Salzburg-Umgebung in the state of Salzburg in Austria....
or Seewalchen, mostly located in the SalzkammergutSalzkammergutThe Salzkammergut is a resort area located in Austria. It stretches from City of Salzburg to the Dachstein mountain range, spanning the federal states of Upper Austria , Salzburg , and Styria . The main river of the region is the Traun, a tributary of the Danube...
region and indicating Roman settlement - In GermanGerman languageGerman is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
Welsch or Walsch, outdated for "Romanic", and still in use in Swiss Standard GermanSwiss Standard GermanSwiss Standard German, referred to by the Swiss as Schriftdeutsch, or Hochdeutsch, is one of four official languages in Switzerland, besides French, Italian and Romansh...
for Romands. - in numerous placenames, for instance Walensee and WalenstadtWalenstadtWalenstadt is a municipality in the Wahlkreis of Sarganserland in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland. It is located on Lake Walen .-Geography:...
, as well as Welschbern and Welschtirol (now almost always VeronaVeronaVerona ; German Bern, Dietrichsbern or Welschbern) is a city in the Veneto, northern Italy, with approx. 265,000 inhabitants and one of the seven chef-lieus of the region. It is the second largest city municipality in the region and the third of North-Eastern Italy. The metropolitan area of Verona...
and Trentino), also in:- WelschbilligWelschbilligWelschbillig is a municipality in the Trier-Saarburg district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany....
, in the MoselleMoselleMoselle is a department in the east of France named after the river Moselle.- History :Moselle is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790...
valley, where Moselle romanic was spoken; - Welschen Ennest (community of KirchhundemKirchhundemKirchhundem is a community in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It belongs to the Olpe district.- Location :The community of Kirchhundem lies in the Olpe district’s southeast in the south Sauerland and belongs to the so-called Bilsteiner Bergland...
, district OlpeOlpe (district)Olpe is a Kreis in the south-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighboring districts are Märkischer Kreis, Hochsauerland, Siegen-Wittgenstein, Altenkirchen, Oberbergischer Kreis.- History :...
, SauerlandSauerlandThe Sauerland is a rural, hilly area spreading across most of the south-eastern part of North Rhine-Westphalia, in parts heavily forested and, apart from the major valleys, sparsely inhabited...
); - WelschenrohrWelschenrohrWelschenrohr is a municipality in the district of Thal in the canton of Solothurn in Switzerland.-History:Welschenrohr is first mentioned in 1179 as Rore. An important watch manufacturing place up to the 1960s, its economy was heavily affected by the late 1960s watch crisis...
in the Swiss canton of SolothurnSolothurnThe city of Solothurn is the capital of the Canton of Solothurn in Switzerland. The city also comprises the only municipality of the district of the same name.-Pre-roman settlement:...
; - Welschensteinach in the district OrtenauOrtenauThe Ortenau is a historical territory in Baden-Württemberg, located on the right bank of the River Rhine. It covers approximately the same area as the Ortenaukreis, a present-day district....
in Baden-WürttembergBaden-WürttembergBaden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine, and is the third largest in both area and population of Germany's sixteen states, with an area of and 10.7 million inhabitants...
;
- Welschbillig
- in several German exonyms like: Welschkohl, Welschkorn, Welschkraut
- The walnutWalnutJuglans is a plant genus of the family Juglandaceae, the seeds of which are known as walnuts. They are deciduous trees, 10–40 meters tall , with pinnate leaves 200–900 millimetres long , with 5–25 leaflets; the shoots have chambered pith, a character shared with the wingnuts , but not the hickories...
was originally a Welsh nut, i.e. it came through France and/or Italy to Germanic speakers (German: Walnuss, Dutch Okkernoot or Walnoot, Danish Valnød, Swedish Valnöt) - There is a street in RegensburgRegensburgRegensburg is a city in Bavaria, Germany, located at the confluence of the Danube and Regen rivers, at the northernmost bend in the Danube. To the east lies the Bavarian Forest. Regensburg is the capital of the Bavarian administrative region Upper Palatinate...
named Wahlenstrasse, seemingly once inhabited by Italian merchants. In other German places like DuisburgDuisburg- History :A legend recorded by Johannes Aventinus holds that Duisburg, was built by the eponymous Tuisto, mythical progenitor of Germans, ca. 2395 BC...
one can find a Welschengasse, or an Am Welschenkamp, referring to French speaking inhabitants - In Southern Austria, "welsch" is a prefix that generally means Italian. E.g. the wine variety "welschriesling", common in Styria, Slovenia, Croatia and Hungary (actually not related to the white riesling variety). It is often used as a rather sweeping, pejorative word for the nearest people of Latin/romanic origin (the remaining neighbours of Austria being "Tschuschen" - Slavs - and "Piefke" (Germans).
- Kauderwelsch (Danish: kaudervælsk, Norwegian: kaudervelsk, Dutch: koeterwaals) is a German word for gibberish and derives from the Rhaetoroman dialect from Chur in Graubünden in Switzerland.
- WelcheWelcheWelche is a Gallo-Romance dialect of Lorrain spoken in Bas-Rhin and Haut-Rhin in the western Alsace in France. The varieties of this dialect are the variety of Bruche, the variety of Villé, the variety of Lièpvre, the variety of Kaysersberg and the variety of Orbey...
, the French spelling of Welsch, refers to an historical Romance dialect in Alsace bordering German-speaking AlsaceAlsaceAlsace is the fifth-smallest of the 27 regions of France in land area , and the smallest in metropolitan France. It is also the seventh-most densely populated region in France and third most densely populated region in metropolitan France, with ca. 220 inhabitants per km²... - RotwelschRotwelschRotwelsch or Gaunersprache is a secret language, a cant or thieves' argot, spoken by covert groups primarily in southern Germany and Switzerland.-Origin and development:...
is the language of traveller communities in Germany.
- in village names ending in -walchen, such as Straßwalchen
→ See also http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsche
- In DutchDutch languageDutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
:- The Belgian region of Wallonia, cf. Dutch Waals ("Walloon"), Walenland.
- In most Oïl languages and IrishIrish languageIrish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
, walhaz was borrowed and altered by changing the initial w to g (cf. English "war" French guerre, English "William" vs. French Guillaume or even English "ward" vs. "guard", borrowed into English from French) resulting in Gaul- : Gaule "Gaul", Gaulois "Gaulish"- French (pays de) Galles, gallois > Italian Galles, gallese "Wales", "Welsh".
- The traditional Irish term Galltacht, "region of Ireland where a foreign language is spoken" (in this case, English), as opposed to the GaeltachtGaeltachtis the Irish language word meaning an Irish-speaking region. In Ireland, the Gaeltacht, or an Ghaeltacht, refers individually to any, or collectively to all, of the districts where the government recognises that the Irish language is the predominant language, that is, the vernacular spoken at home...
, where Irish is spoken.
Pennsylvania Dutch
In Pennsylvania German languagePennsylvania German language
The Pennsylvania German language is a variety of West Central German possibly spoken by more than 250,000 people in North America...
, "Welsch" generally means "strange" as well as "Welsh," and is sometimes, although with a more restricted meaning, compounded with other words. For example, the words in Pennsylvania German for "turkey" is "Welschhaahne" and "Welschhinkel," which literally mean "French (or Romanic) chicken". "Welschkann" is the word for maize
Maize
Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...
and literally translates to "French (or Romanic) grain." The verb "welsche" means "to jabber."
Yiddish
The Yiddish term "Velsh" or "Veilish" is used of Jews of Spanish and Italian origins, and in particular of their Hebrew script. Similarly the corresponding Hebrew root "la'az" or "lo'ez", literally meaning "foreign", is used of the Judeo-Italian languagesJudeo-Italian languages
Judeo-Italian languages are the varieties of Italian used between the 10th and the 20th centuries in Italy, Corfu and Zante.-The term "Judaeo-Italian":...
and of vocabulary of Romance origin in Yiddish. In the Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
ic commentaries of Rashi
Rashi
Shlomo Yitzhaki , or in Latin Salomon Isaacides, and today generally known by the acronym Rashi , was a medieval French rabbi famed as the author of a comprehensive commentary on the Talmud, as well as a comprehensive commentary on the Tanakh...
and the Tosafists
Tosafot
The Tosafot or Tosafos are medieval commentaries on the Talmud. They take the form of critical and explanatory glosses, printed, in almost all Talmud editions, on the outer margin and opposite Rashi's notes...
, the translations of individual words into Old French
Old French
Old French was the Romance dialect continuum spoken in territories that span roughly the northern half of modern France and parts of modern Belgium and Switzerland from the 9th century to the 14th century...
are known as lo'azim.
Welsch/Walsch in family names
The element Wels(c)h/Wals(c)h also shows up in family names:- in Dutch:
- De Waal, De Waele, Waelhens, Swalen, Swelsen; but not van der WaalsVan der Waals-People:* Fransje van der Waals , Dutch medical physician* Johannes Diderik van der Waals , Dutch physicist-Physics:* the Van der Waals force, named after the physicist* the Van der Waals equation, named after the physicist...
(< river or water name Waal).
- De Waal, De Waele, Waelhens, Swalen, Swelsen; but not van der Waals
- in English:
- WelshWelsh (surname)-Etymology:It appears that the etymology of the name Welsh is derived from the Anglo-Saxon word wilisc meaning 'foreigner', 'stranger', or 'non-Anglo-Saxon'. These terms were used by the ancient Germanic peoples to describe inhabitants of the former Roman Empire, who were largely romanised and...
, WelchWelch (surname)Welch is a surname meaning foreign or Welsh.For the Etymology of the name, see WelshFamous Welches include to:* Adonijah Welch , American politician* Alexander Welch , Canadian politician* Andrew Welch, businessman...
, WalshWalsh (surname)Walsh is an Irish surname, meaning "Breton," or "foreigner," literally "Welshman," taken to Ireland by the Welsh during the Norman Invasion of Ireland. It is most common in County Mayo and County Kilkenny. It is the fourth most common surname in Ireland, and the 325th most common in the United...
, WalchWalchWalch is a surname, commonly associated and substituted for "domination," and may also refer to:* Christian Wilhelm Franz Walch , German theologian* Ernst Walch* Garnet Walch, Australian writer* Hynden Walch...
, WhaleWhale (surname)Whale is an English surname of unclear origin; however, it could be a derivation of Walh, a word generally used by Anglo-Saxon colonists to refer to native Britons, Romans or Celts after the Anglo-Saxon conquest of England. The Avebury stone circle, in Wiltshire, itself was referred to as waledich...
, WallaceWallace (surname)-People:* A. J. Wallace , American football player* Alfred Russel Wallace, British naturalist and biologist, who identified the Wallace Line and co-discovered natural selection* Andy Wallace * Andy Wallace...
, WallisWallis (surname)One of several people:*Barnes Wallis , a British scientist - inventor of the Bouncing bomb*D.J. Wallis, an American bodybuilder*Douglas T. Wallis son of Thomas Wallis British Art Deco architect.*Diana Wallis, a British politician...
, WaughWaughWaugh is a surname , and may refer to:*Arthur Waugh, English author and publisher **Alec Waugh, British novelist...
- Welsh
- in German:
- Welsch, Welschen, Welzen, Welches, Wälsch, Walech, WalchWalchWalch is a surname, commonly associated and substituted for "domination," and may also refer to:* Christian Wilhelm Franz Walch , German theologian* Ernst Walch* Garnet Walch, Australian writer* Hynden Walch...
, Wahl, WahleWahleWahle:* Ernst Wahle , a German archaeologist* Georg Heinrich Wahle , German lawyer* Jakob Wahle ∞ Barbara Schenk** Julius Wahle , Jewish Austrian literary scholar...
, WahlenWahlenWahlen is a municipality in the district of Laufen in the canton of Basel-Country in Switzerland.-Geography:Wahlen has an area, , of . Of this area, or 55.4% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 33.6% is forested...
, Wahlens, Wahlich, Wälke (in part indirectly through forenames such as Walcho), '
- Welsch, Welschen, Welzen, Welches, Wälsch, Walech, Walch
- in Greek:
- Vlachos, Vlachou
- in HungarianHungarian languageHungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
:- Oláh
- Jewish-Polish:
- BlochBlochBloch is a surname.#Jewish : regional name for someone in Eastern Europe originating from Italy or France, from Polish "Włoch" meaning "Italian" .#German and Swedish: Variant of Block...
, a Jewish family name, that derives from Polish Włochy
- Bloch
- in Polish:
- Włoch, Wołoch, Wołos, Wołoszyn, Wołoszek, Wołoszczak, Wołoszczuk, Bołoch, Bołoz
- in RomanianRomanian languageRomanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...
- Olah, Olahu, Valahu
- Slavic:
- Vlach, Vlah (cyr. Влах) (forename, also for BlaiseBlaiseBlaise is a personal name and a place name. It can refer to:-France:* Blaise-sous-Arzillières, a village and commune in the Marne département of north-eastern France...
)
- Vlach, Vlah (cyr. Влах) (forename, also for Blaise
Historic persons:
- Geremia da Valacchia (Jon Stoika, 1556–1625), b. in Tzazo, Romania, beatified in 1983
- :hr:Sveti Vlaho, Saint BlaiseSaint BlaiseSaint Blaise was a physician, and bishop of Sebastea . According to his Acta Sanctorum, he was martyred by being beaten, attacked with iron carding combs, and beheaded...
, patron saint of DubrovnikDubrovnikDubrovnik is a Croatian city on the Adriatic Sea coast, positioned at the terminal end of the Isthmus of Dubrovnik. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations on the Adriatic, a seaport and the centre of Dubrovnik-Neretva county. Its total population is 42,641...
, an Armenian martyr. - Nicolaus OlahusNicolaus OlahusNicolaus Olahus ; January 10, 1493, Sibiu-January 15, 1568, Trnava/Nagyszombat) was the Archbishop of Esztergom, Primate of Hungary, and a distinguished Roman Catholic prelate.-Early life:...
(1493–1568) Archbishop of Esztergom
See also
- Theodiscus
- Etymology of Vlach
- Names of the CeltsNames of the CeltsThe various names used since classical times for the people known today as the Celts are of disparate origins.The name and is used in Greek and Latin, respectively, as the name of a people of the La Tène horizon in the region of the upper Rhine and Danube during the 6th to 1st centuries BC in...
- Welsch, Walsch
- Vlach
- WallachWallachWallach is a word of Germanic origin:* meaning a gelding* referring especially to Latin people, particularly Romanians and Italians. See the history of the term Vlach.- Family name :* Eli Wallach , American actor...