Etymology Dictionary

WALL,   a stone fence, a fence of stone or brick, a rampart.  (L.)   M. E. wal, appearing as walle, Chaucer, C. T. 8923.—A. S. weal, weall, a rampart of earth, a wall of stone; Grein, ii. 671.   Not by any means a Teut. word, but borrowed from the famous Lat. uallum, a rampart, whence also W. gwal, a rampart, as well as Du. wal, Swed. vall, G. wall, &c.   β. The Lat. uallum is a collective sb., signifying a row or line of stakes.—Lat. uallus, a stake, pale, palisade; lit. a protection. + Gk. ἧλος, a nail, knob.—✔WAR, to protect; cf. Skt. vri, to screen, cover, surround, ávarana, a protection, a lock, val, to cover; Fick. i. 212.   ¶ The true A. S. word for 'wall' was wág, wǽg, or wáh, Grein, ii. 643 (where the accent is wrongly omitted), whence M. E. wowe, P. Plowman, B. iii. 61 (obsolete).   Der. wall, verb, M. E. wallen, Rob. of Glouc. p. 51, l. 3; wall-flower, wall-fruit; also wall-newt, K. Lear, iii. 4. 135.   ➩ No connection with wall-eyed.