Wales
/weɪlz/
proper noun
Origin
Proto-Germanic
*walhaz — foreigner, Roman, Celt
Overview
Meaning Now
- A country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain.
- A collective term historically applied to foreign or non-Germanic peoples.
Literal older meaning
foreigners / Romans
Language path
Proto-Germanic → Old English → Modern English
Earliest form
Wealas
Earliest period
Old English period
Journey
The name 'Wales' is of Germanic origin, derived from the same root that gave rise to 'Wallonia' and 'Vlach'. It reflects how Germanic-speaking tribes identified Celtic and Latin-speaking populations as 'foreigners' or 'strangers' during the Migration Period.
Evolution
- Proto-Germanic
*walhaz
“foreigner or speaker of a Celtic or Latin language”
Used by Germanic peoples to refer to their Romanized neighbors.
- Old English
Wealas
“the Welsh or foreigners”
Used to denote the Britons.
- Middle English
Wales
“the land of the Welsh”
Standardized as a toponym.
Connections
Word parts
Wal
root
foreigner
-es
ending
plural or genitive marker in older Germanic context
Related across languages
Old High German
Walha
foreigner, Roman
Old Norse
Valir
the French or Gauls
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Related to Wales
External references use DefinedTerm semantics.