Valet: Wikis




From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Valet and Varlet are terms for male servants who serve as personal attendants to their employer.


Word origins

In the Middle Ages, the valet de chambre to a ruler was a prestigious appointment for young men. In England however, unlike France, these court roles later came to be called "grooms".

In English, valet as "personal man-servant" is recorded since 1567, though use of the term in the French-speaking English medieval court is older, and the variant form varlet is cited from 1456 (OED). Both are French importations of valet (the t being silent in French) or varlet, Old French variants of vaslet "man's servant," originally "squire, young man," assumed to be from Gallo-Romance *vassellittus "young nobleman, squire, page," diminutive of Medieval Latin vassallus, from vassus "servant", possibly cognate to an Old Celtic root wasso- "young man, squire" (source of Welsh gwas "youth, servant," Breton goaz "servant, vassal, man," Irish foss "servant").


The modern use is usually short for the valet de chambre (French for 'valet of the chamber' - in modern terms the bedroom, though not originally so), described in the following section.

Since the 16th century, the word has traditionally been pronounced as rhyming with pallet, though an alternative pronunciation, rhyming with chalet, as in French, is now common, especially in American English.[1] The Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary lists both pronunciations.

Domestic valet

A valet or gentleman's gentleman is a gentleman's male servant, the closest male equivalent to a lady's maid.



At a court, even minor princes and high officials may be assigned one, but in a smaller household the butler (the majordomo in charge of the household staff) might have to double as his employer's valet. In a bachelor's household the valet might perform light housekeeping duties as well.



Alexandre Bontemps, the most senior of the thirty-six valets to Louis XIV of France, was an extremely powerful figure, who ran the Chateau de Versailles. In courts, valet de chambre was a position of some status, often given to artists, musicians, poets and others, who generally spent most of their time on their specialized work. The role was also, at least during the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance, a common first step or training period in a nobleman's career at court.

Valets, like butlers and most specialized domestic staff, have become relatively rare, and a more common — though still infrequent — arrangement is the general servant performing combined roles.

Famous fictional valets

Other valets

Valet is also used for people performing specific services:

  • valet — a professional wrestling term for a person who accompanies a wrestler to the ring - originally a beefy man but now usually a busty woman.

Other forms of valet-like personnel include:

Clothes valet

Clothes valets are also referred to as a men's valet. A majority are free standing and made out of wood.



See also


  1. ^

1911 encyclopedia

Up to date as of January 14, 2010
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From LoveToKnow 1911

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