Ouest
/wɛst/noun
The French word for west.
Did you know?French ouest ultimately comes from Proto-Germanic *westrą, the same ancient directional root behind English west, showing how compass words can survive across languages for thousands of years.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*wes-
“to go down, to settle; associated with the setting sun”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*westrą
“west, the direction of the setting sun”
Old English
OE
west
“west”
Old French
OF
ouest
“west”
Modern French
FR
ouest
“west”