Westerwald

From Old High German Westerwald (1048). By surface analysis, West (“west”) +‎ -er- +‎ Wald (“forest”). The term originally referred to a smaller territory around Bad Marienberg, which had this name due to its location to the west of Herborn. The modern use only established itself in the 19th century.

• IPA^(key): /ˈvɛstɐˌvalt/, (less often also) /ˌvɛstɐˈvalt/

• Audio (Germany (Berlin)):

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• Hyphenation: Wes‧ter‧wald; pre-1996: We‧ster‧wald

der Westerwald m (proper noun, strong, usually definite, definite genitive des Westerwaldes or des Westerwalds)

1. Westerwald (a low mountain range in northeastern Rhineland-Palatinate as well as bordering areas of North Rhine-Westphalia and Hesse, Germany)
   • ca. 1930, Traditional, “Westerwaldlied”:

     O du schöner Westerwald / Über deinen Höhen pfeift der Wind so kalt / Jedoch der kleinste Sonnenschein / Dringt tief ins Herz hinein

     O you beautiful Westerwald / Above your heights the wind whistles so cold / But even the smallest sunshine / Enters deep into the heart

• “Westerwald” in Duden online