Etymograph

English

vendace

Vendace comes from Old French vendoise, from Proto-Celtic *windos ‘white’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *weyd- ‘to see’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*weyd-1‘to see’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*windo-1uncertainnasal infix of *weyd-
  3. Proto-Celticc. 1300–800 BCE*windos2‘white’reconstructed
  4. Gaulishc. 500 BCE–500 CE*windēsyā2reconstructed
  5. Late Latinc. 200–600 CE*vindēsia2reconstructed
  6. Old Frenchc. 842–1400vendoise2
  7. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600vendoise2
  8. Middle Scotsmodern*vendois2reconstructed
  9. Scotsc. 1450–presentvendace2
  10. Englishtodayvendace2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Celtic *windos, which cites Matasović
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English vendace

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*weyd-Wiktionary, Proto-Celtic *windos, which cites Matasović‘to see’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*windo-Wiktionary, Proto-Celtic *windos, which cites Matasovićuncertainnasal infix of *weyd-
  3. Proto-Celticc. 1300–800 BCE*windosWiktionary, English vendace‘white’reconstructed
  4. Gaulishc. 500 BCE–500 CE*windēsyāWiktionary, English vendacereconstructed
  5. Late Latinc. 200–600 CE*vindēsiaWiktionary, English vendacereconstructed
  6. Old Frenchc. 842–1400vendoiseWiktionary, English vendace
  7. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600vendoiseWiktionary, English vendace
  8. Middle Scotsmodern*vendoisWiktionary, English vendacereconstructed
  9. Scotsc. 1450–presentvendaceWiktionary, English vendace
  10. EnglishtodayvendaceWiktionary, English vendace

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *weyd- ‘to see’

story, video, guy, idea, provide, review, visit, interview, evidence, guide, advice, vision, witness, wise, historic, wisdom, visa, advise, invisible, wit, idol, wizard, historian, evident, visibility, vista, witty, revise, guise, steroid, tabloid, prudent, revue, envious, improvise, druid, vide, avis, jurisprudence, purview, 119 more

Today it means

noun Either of two types of whitefish, Coregonus albula and Coregonus vandesius.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “vendace”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Proto-Celtic *windos. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *weyd- / vendace

Shirt and support for this word