Along with Latvian vilt (“to cheat, deceive”), likely derived from Proto-Indo-European *welh₁- (“to choose, want”); the semantic shift from "will, want" > "change one's wills" > "deceive" is found in other branches, including Russian виля́ть (viljátʹ, “to zigzag”), Proto-Germanic *wīlą (“craft, deceit”). An alternate theory by Pokorny connects the term to Proto-Indo-European *weh₁y- (“to weave, twist around”), adducing Proto-Germanic *wajjuz (“wall”), Latin vimen (“shoot, twig”).