Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “Valais” come from?

Valais comes from French Valais, derived from Latin vallis meaning "valley," which traces to Proto-Indo-European wel-.

Ancestry of “Valais”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1FrenchValais—
2Latinvallisvalley, vale; hollow; dative plural of vāllum
3Proto-Indo-EuropeanwēlH-—
4Proto-Indo-EuropeanwelH-to turn, to wind
Every word from Proto-Indo-European welH- →