Where does “Spreewald” come from?

Spreewald (German) comes from German wald, from Middle High German walt, from Old High German wald, from Proto-West Germanic walþu, from Proto-Germanic walþuz, from Proto-Indo-European wel- — to see.

Ancestry of “Spreewald”, step by step

Spreewald traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via German wald

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Germanwaldforest; woods; woodland
2Middle High Germanwalt—
3Old High Germanwaldforest
4Proto-West Germanicwalþuforest
5Proto-Germanicwalþuzforest
6Proto-Indo-Europeanwel-to see

via German Spree

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1GermanSpreeSpree River
2Walloonsprewestarling
3Frankishsprāwo—

Words derived from “Spreewald”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European wel- →Every word from Proto-Germanic walþuz →Every word from Proto-West Germanic walþu →