Walhaz

Brass replica of the Tjurkö Bracteate showing the word walhakurne ('Roman coin')

*Walhaz (ᚹᚨᛚᚺᚨᛉ) is a reconstructed Proto-Germanic word, meaning "foreigner", "stranger", "Roman", "Romance-speaker", or "Celtic-speaker". The term was used by the ancient Germanic peoples to describe inhabitants of the former Western Roman Empire, who were largely romanised and spoke Latin or Celtic languages. The adjectival form is attested in Old Norse valskr, meaning "French", Old High German walhisk, meaning "Romance", Modern German welsch, used in Switzerland and South Tyrol for Romance-speakers, Dutch Waals "Walloon", Old English welisċ, wælisċ, wilisċ, meaning "Romano-British", and Modern English Welsh. The form of these words imply that they are descended from a Proto-Germanic form *walhiska-. It is attested in the Roman Iron Age Tjurkö Bracteate inscription as walhakurne "Roman/Gallic grain", apparently a kenning for "gold" (referring to the "bracteate" itself).

From *Walhaz to welsch

Walh is almost certainly derived from the name of the tribe which was known to the Romans as Volcae (in the writings of Julius Caesar) and to the Greeks as Οὐόλκαι / Ouólkai (Strabo and Ptolemy). This tribe occupied territory neighbouring that of the Germanic people and seem to have been referred to by the Old Germanic name *Walhaz (plural *Walhôz, adjectival form *walhiska-). It is assumed that this term specifically referred to the Celtic Volcae, because application of the first Germanic sound change to that word produces the form *Walh-. Subsequently, this term Walhôz was applied rather indiscriminately to the southern neighbours of the Germanic people, as evidenced in geographic names such as Walchgau and Walchensee in Bavaria. These southern neighbours, however, were then already completely Romanised. Thus, Germanic speakers generalised this name first to all Celts, and later to all Romans. The Old High German Walh became Walch in Middle High German, and adjectival OHG walhisk became MHG welsch, e.g. in the Romance of Alexander by Rudolf von Ems-–resulting in Welsche in Early New High German and Modern German as the exonym for all Romance speakers.

Today, Welsch is not in standard German usage except in Switzerland. This term is used there not only in a historical context, but also as a somewhat pejorative word to describe Swiss speakers of Italian and French.

From *Walhaz to Vlach

Main article: Vlachs

In Central and Eastern Europe, the word for Romanic people was borrowed from the Germanic Goths (as *walhs) into Proto-Slavic some time before the 7th century. The first source using the word was the writings of Byzantine historian Kedrenos, from the mid-11th century.

From the Slavs the term passed to other peoples, such as the Hungarians ("oláh", referring to Vlachs, more specifically Romanians, "olasz", referring to Italians), Turks ("Ulahlar") and Byzantines ("Βλάχοι", "Vláhi") and was used for all Latin people of the Balkans.

Over time, the term Vlach (and its different forms) also acquired different meanings, like "shepherd" – from the occupation of many of the Vlachs throughout Central and Eastern Europe.

The Polish words Włoch (pl. Włosi), "Italian", and Włochy, "Italy", and the Slovenian lah, a mildly derogatory word for "Italian", can also be mentioned.

Other opinions

The Romanian philologist Ilie Gherghel, compared data from old historians like Genesios and from the Greek lexicon Suidas, and in a study about "Vlach" word concluded that it appeared for the first time in the Eastern Roman Empire According to this theory, the word "Vlach" was spread to the Germanic world through Vikings, who came in contact with the Eastern Roman Empire.

Toponyms and exonyms

See also: Germanic placename etymology

Numerous names of non-Germanic, and in particular Romance-speaking, European and near-Asian regions derive from the word Walh, in particular the exonyms

• Walachia and Vlachs – "Romanians"

Consider the following terms historically present in several Central and Eastern European, and other neighbouring languages:

• in Polish: Włochy, the name of Italy, and Wołoch, referring to Vlachs and historically Romanians.
• in Hungarian: "Oláh", referring to Romanians, "Vlachok" referring to Romanians/Vlachs, generally; "Olasz", referring to Italians.
• in Serbo-Croatian and Bulgarian: Vlah (влах) – to Romanians or other Romanian/Vlach subgroup.
• in Ukrainian: Voloh (волох) – to Romanians.
• in Russian: Valah (валах) – to Romanians.
• in Greek: Vlahi/Vlakhi (Βλάχοι) – to Romanians or other Romanian/Vlach subgroup (e.g. Macedo-Romanians, Megleno-Romanians, etc.)
• in German: Wlachen or Walachen – to Romanians of other Romanian/Vlach subgroups; Wallach – a Romanian horse, i.e. a horse that has been gelded, as the Romanians gelded their war horses for practical reasons.
• in Czech and Slovak: Valach – to Romanians or to their Slavic-speaking descendants inhabiting Moravian Wallachia; a gelded horse.
• in Turkish: Eflak – to Walachia and "Ulahlar" to Romanians or other Romanian/Vlach subgroup.
• In Slovene: Laški, archaic name referring to Italians; it is also the name of several settlements in Slovenia, like Laško near Celje, or Laški Rovt near Bohinj. Laško is also the old Slovene name for the area around Monfalcone and Ronchi 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 area in the 6th century.

In Western European languages:

• in English:
  • Wales, Welsh
  • Cornwall
  • The names of many towns and villages throughout the North and West of England such as Walsden in West Yorkshire and Wallasey, near Liverpool.
  • 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 coincidental: 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), so the regular outcome of Latin Gallia would have been *Jaille in French. This also applies to the French name for Wales, which is le pays de Galles.
  • waledich or wallditch, (weahl + ditch) was the pre-Victorian name of Avebury stone circle, in Avebury, Wiltshire
  • Walnut, from Old English walhnutu (wealh+ hnutu) meaning "Roman nut", as it was introduced from Gallia ("Gaul") and Italy.
  • Galwalas, Old English name for people of Gaul or France

• Numerous attestations in German:
  • in village names ending in -walchen, such as Straßwalchen or Seewalchen, mostly located in the Salzkammergut region and indicating Roman settlement
  • In German Welsch or Walsch, outdated for "Romanic", and still in use in Swiss Standard German for Romands.
  • in numerous placenames, for instance Walensee and Walenstadt, as well as Welschbern and Welschtirol (now almost always Verona and Trentino), also in:
    • Welschbillig, in the Moselle valley, where Moselle Romance was spoken;
    • Welschen Ennest (community of Kirchhundem, district Olpe, Sauerland);
    • Welschenrohr in the Swiss canton of Solothurn;
    • Welschensteinach in the district Ortenau in Baden-Württemberg;
    • Welschnofen (Nova Levante), in opposition to Deutschnofen (Nova Ponente), in Alto Adige, Italy. In Welschnofen lived until the eighteenth century a Ladin community, while in Deutschnofen lived a German community.
  • in Walser German, Wailschu refers to Italian/Piedmontese
  • in several German exonyms like: Welschkohl, Welschkorn, Welschkraut
  • There is a street in Regensburg named Wahlenstrasse, seemingly once inhabited by Italian merchants. In other German places like Duisburg 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 of Chur in Switzerland.
  • Welche, the French spelling of Welsch, refers to an historical Romance dialect in Alsace bordering German-speaking Alsace
  • Rotwelsch is the language of traveller communities in Germany.

→ See also de:Welsche

• In Dutch:
  • The Belgian region of Wallonia, cf. Dutch Waals ("Walloon"), Walenland
  • The former island of Walcheren.

• In most Oïl languages 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". (These terms are not related to the terms Gallic or Gaelic – which are likewise etymologically unrelated to each other – despite the similarity in form and meaning. See Names of the Celts for more information.)
  • French (pays de) Galles, gallois > Italian Galles, gallese "Wales", "Welsh".

• In Irish:
  • The term Gallus (Gaul) was borrowed into Irish as Gall [ɡalˠ]. It later became a term for Vikings (Norsemen), and then Anglo-Normans, and later meant English, or generally "foreigner." Several place names, such as Donegal, Moneygall and Fingal, refer to Gall, and it is not entirely clear which type of foreigner is referred. The term Galltacht is used, analogously to Gaeltacht, to refer to English-speaking regions of Ireland.

Pennsylvania German

In the Pennsylvania German language, "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 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.

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 Waals (< river or water name Waal).
• in English:
  • Welsh, Welch, Walsh, Walch, Whale, Wallace, Wallis, Waugh
• in German:
  • Welsch, Welschen, Welzen, Welches, Wälsch, Walech, Walch, Wahl, Wahle, Wahlen, Wahlens, Wahlich, Wälke (in part indirectly through forenames such as Walcho), '
• in Greek:
  • Vlahos
• in Hungarian:
  • Oláh
• In Irish: (all derived from Gall)
  • Mac Diarmada Gall, Dubhghall, Gallbhreatnach, Ó Gallchobhair, Mac an Ghallóglaigh
• Jewish-Polish:
  • Bloch, a Jewish family name, that derives from Polish Włochy
• in Polish:
  • Włoch, Wołoch, Wołos, Wołoszyn, Wołoszek, Wołoszczak, Wołoszczuk, Bołoch, Bołoz
• in Romanian
  • Olah, Olahu, Vlah, Vlahu, Valahu, Vlahuță, Vlahovici, Vlahopol, Vlas, Vlasici, Vlăsianu, Vlăsceanu, Vlaș, Vlașcu
• Slavic:
  • Vlach, Vlah (cyr. Влах) (forename, also for Blaise)

Historic persons

• ro:Ieremia Valahul (Italian: Geremia da Valacchia) (Jon Stoika, 1556–1625), Capuchin priest, b. in Tzazo, Moldavia ("Vallachia Minor" or "Piccola Valacchia", i.e. Small Wallachia) Romania, beatified in 1983
• Saint Blaise (Croatian: Sveti Vlaho, Greek: Agios Vlasios), patron saint of Dubrovnik, an Armenian martyr
• Nicolaus Olahus (Latin for Nicholas, the Vlach; Hungarian: Oláh Miklós, Romanian: Nicolae Valahul) (1493–1568), Archbishop of Esztergom

Other words

• The walnut was originally known as the Welsh nut, i.e. it came through France and/or Italy to Germanic speakers (German Walnuss, Dutch okkernoot or walnoot, Danish valnød, Swedish valnöt). In Polish orzechy włoskie translates to ‘Italian nuts’ (włoskie being the adjectival form of Włochy).

See also

• Vlachs
• Theodiscus
• Names of the Celts
• Wallach