Aach (variants Ach , Ache ; Aa ) is a widespread Upper German hydronym , from an Old High German aha (Proto-Germanic * ahwō ) ' running water ' (ultimately from PIE * hakʷā- ' (moving) water ' ). The word has also been reduced to a frequent suffix -ach in Alemannic and Austro-Bavarian toponymy. The word is cognate with Old English ǣ (reflected in English placenames as -ea , also Yeo , Eau ), Old Frisian ē , Old Saxon aha , Low Franconian Aa , Old Norse á , Gothic aƕa , all meaning ' river, running water ' .
4-488: Ache or Aches may refer to: Numerous rivers are known as Ache in German, see Aach (toponymy) : Aach (toponymy) The Old High German contraction from -aha to -aa , -â in compound hydronyms present from an early time (early 9th century). The simplex noun aha remained uncontracted, however, and Old High German -aha (Modern German -ach ) could be restituted in compounds at any time. Related
8-543: Is Salzach , now classed as a Fluss ( ' river ' ) but formerly as Ache as it was only navigable by raft , not by regular riverboats. Hydronymy in -ach generally indicates a Germanic settlement in the early medieval or migration period , while names in -bach indicate names of the high medieval period. In French , the Old Frankish form evolved into aix , as in Aix-en-Provence , Aix-les-Bains ;
12-597: Is the German Aue (variant Au ) with a meaning ' river island , wetland , floodplain , riparian woodland ' , i.e. a cultivated landscape in a riparian zone . It is derived from the same root, but with a -yo- suffix (Proto-Germanic * awjō ). This word was also reduced to a suffix, as -au (as in Reichenau ). It is frequent as a river name, as in Große Aue , Aue (Elbe) , Aue (Weser) , etc., as well as
16-526: The name of a settlement, as in Aue, Saxony ; Au, St. Gallen ; Au, Vorarlberg ; Au am Rhein ; Au am Leithaberge ; etc. The river-name Aach in Upper Germany is reserved for broad, but non-navigable, running streams with noticeable gradient sufficient to power water mills ; it contrasts with Fluss used for navigable rivers on one hand, and with Bach for minor brooks or rivulets. An instructive example
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