wealh
Old English
Alternative forms
- ƿealh — wynn spelling
Etymology
From Proto-Germanic *walhaz, from a Celtic name also represented by Latin Volcae. Having originally apparently referred to a neighboring Celtic tribe, it was broadened to refer to any inhabitant of the Western Roman Empire and then, in Britain, narrowed to refer to native Britons, and later to Welsh people in particular. Owing to the high numbers of native British slaves in some areas, it also came to be used to refer to slaves (compare semantic formation of Slav), though only alongside – never supplanting – its ethnic meaning.[1]
Pronunciation
Noun
wealh m (nominative plural wēalas)
Declension
Declension of wealh (strong a-stem)