English word origin

Etymology of Volta

Borrowed from Portuguese Volta, from volta (“turnaround, return”); at some point of time the river marked the point of return for the Portuguese traders.

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 2 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗

name

A river in West Africa; in full, Volta River. · Ellipsis of Lake Volta: a lake in West Africa. · A census-designated place in Merced County, California, United States.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Borrowed from Portuguese Volta, from volta (“turnaround, return”); at some point of time the river marked the point of return for the Portuguese traders.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Borrowed-form mentionVoltapt

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "wp",
      "args": {
        "1": "+ River"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":bor",
        "3": "pt:Volta",
        "id": "river in West Africa"
      },
      "expansion": "[Appendix:Glossary#loanword|Borrowed]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"Portuguese\", \"term\" : \"Volta\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"pt\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"Volta\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-id=\"river in West Africa\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"Volta\" id=\"English:_river_in_West_Africa\">"
    },
    {
      "name": "bor+",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "pt",
        "3": "Volta"
      },
      "expansion": "Borrowed from Portuguese Volta"
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":bor",
        "3": "pt:Volta",
        "id": "river in West Africa"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "Volta",
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    ],
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      "volta#Portuguese"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "name",
      "glosses": [
        "A river in West Africa; in full, Volta River.",
        "Ellipsis of Lake Volta: a lake in West Africa.",
        "A census-designated place in Merced County, California, United States."
      ],
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    }
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  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

name

A surname from Italian, notably borne by Italian chemist and physicist Alessandro Volta.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Borrowed from Italian Volta.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "wp",
      "args": {},
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
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        "2": ":bor",
        "3": "it:Volta<id:surname>",
        "id": "surname",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "[Appendix:Glossary#loanword|Borrowed]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"surname\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Italian\", \"term\" : \"Volta\", \"lang\" : \"it\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"Volta\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-id=\"surname\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"Volta\" id=\"English:_surname\">\nBorrowed from Italian Volta."
    },
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      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":bor",
        "3": "it:Volta<id:surname>",
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        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Borrowed from Italian Volta."
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "Volta",
      "Volta#Italian:_surname"
    ]
  ],
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  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
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Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for Volta →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger

Machine-source provenance

Source SHA-256: 5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run: 73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID: w-Vm9sdGE