Dale (origin)

For other uses, see Dale.

A dale is an open valley. The name is used when describing the physical geography of an area. It is used most frequently in the Lowlands of Scotland and in the North of England, where the term "fell" commonly refers to the mountains or hills that flank the dale.

The word dale comes from the Old English word dael, from which the word "dell" is also derived. It is also related to Old Norse word dalr (and the modern Icelandic word dalur), which may perhaps have influenced its survival in northern England.^[1] Dale is a synonym to the word valley, which entered the English language after the Norman Conquest. Norwegian towns frequently use this term: dalekvam, dale.

There is semantic equivalency to many words and phrases, suggesting a common Indo-European affinity.

Word/phrase	Language
dal	Dutch
das Tal	German
dal	Norwegian
даліна (dalina)	Bulgarian
долина (dolina)	Russian

References

1. ^ Oxford English Dictionary