Etymology

Bregenz

B3R1E1G2E1N1Z10

Today it means: The capital of and third largest city in the state of Vorarlberg, Austria, located on the eastern shore of Lake Constance on a plateau at the foot of the Pfänder; it is best known for hosting numerous festivals throughout the summer months, most notably the Bregenzer Festspiele; the city is the administrative centre of its eponymous district. Full definition →

German Bregenz ← Latin Brigantium ← Proto-Celtic *Brigantī
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The story

  1. Gaulish · derived frombrigā“hill; fortress”
  2. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*bʰérǵʰonts“high”
  3. Proto-Celtic · derived from*Brigantī
  4. Latin · derived fromBrigantium
  5. German · borrowed fromBregenz
  6. English todayBregenz

Borrowed from German Bregenz, from Latin Brigantium or Brigantia, from Proto-Celtic *Brigantī (from *brigantī), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰérǵʰonts (“high”), from the root *bʰerǵʰ- (“high”) + *-onts (Caland adjective suffix). The Latin terms may be derived from the Proto-Celtic terms via Gaulish brigā (“hill; fortress”), though this is uncertain.

Words from the same roots

Proto-Celtic*Brigantī all →

BrigidBragançaBrigantia

Proto-Indo-European*bʰérǵʰonts all →

BragançaBrigantia

Gaulishbrigā all →

brie

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.