Why Do We Call It Winter?

[Andee]

The English word winter comes from the Old English winter, which itself goes back to Proto-Germanic wintruz. That, in turn, comes from the Proto-Indo-European root **wed- meaning “wet” or “water.”

So at its core, winter literally meant “the wet season.” In northern Europe, this made sense because winter was the time of cold, wet, snowy, and rainy weather.

Other languages show the same idea:

Old Norse: vetr (winter)

Gothic: wintrus

Old High German: wintar

Interestingly, in many cultures the year was first divided into only two main parts — the warm season (summer) and the cold/wet season (winter). Only later did spring and autumn become distinct names and seasons in between.