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Definition 2024
Walvis
walvis
walvis
See also: Walvis
Dutch
Dutch whalers near Spitsbergen (Abraham Storck, 1690)
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈʋɑl.vɪs/
Etymology
From Middle Dutch walvisch, from Old Dutch walvisk, from *wal (“whale”), presumably to clarify the meaning. Old Dutch *wal is from Proto-Germanic *hwalaz, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kʷálos (“sheatfish”). See also waldier, walrus, grindewal.
Cognate with West Frisian walfisk, German Walfisch. The simple form is cognate with German Wal, English whale, Danish hval, Swedish val.
Noun
walvis m (plural walvissen, diminutive walvisje n)
Derived terms
Descendants
- Afrikaans: walvis