The French

French language

French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...

 word gave is a generic name referring to torrential rivers, in the west side of the Pyrenees

Pyrenees

The Pyrenees is a range of mountains in southwest Europe that forms a natural border between France and Spain...

. In the central part of the Pyrenees, the name neste has the same function.

The word gave derivates from an old Gascon

Gascon language

Gascon is usually considered as a dialect of Occitan, even though some specialists regularly consider it a separate language. Gascon is mostly spoken in Gascony and Béarn in southwestern France and in the Aran Valley of Spain...

 gabar, attested as gabarrus in medieval Latin. Based on a pre-celtic root *gab meaning 'hollow' (thus 'throat'), it refers to lower places, valleys and rivers. It is widely found in placenames of Gascony

Gascony

Gascony is an area of southwest France that was part of the "Province of Guyenne and Gascony" prior to the French Revolution. The region is vaguely defined and the distinction between Guyenne and Gascony is unclear; sometimes they are considered to overlap, and sometimes Gascony is considered a...

 as Gabardan, Gavarret, Gavarnie

Gavarnie

Gavarnie is a commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées department in south-western France.-See also:* Cirque de Gavarnie* Gavarnie Falls*Communes of the Hautes-Pyrénées department-References:*...

, Gabas

Gabas, Pyrénées-Atlantiques

Gabas is a hamlet in the valley of the Gave d'Ossau in the French Pyrenees. It is located where that river is formed by the confluence of two mountain streams, the Gave de Bious and the Gave du Brousset, which flow respectively from the western and eastern sides of the Pic du Midi d'Ossau.The...

, etc. The name of the Gabali

Gabali

The Gabali were a Gallic Tribe from Gallia Aquitania, in the mountainous region, where the Oltis and the Elaver emerge. They were subject to the Averni....

(the ancient people living in Gévaudan

Gévaudan

Gévaudan is a historical area of France, nowadays situated in Lozère département. It took its name from the Gabali, a Gallic tribe subordinate to the Arverni.- History :...

) is supposed to be related to this stem.

The final -r is missing because it was no more pronounced in Gascon: gabar > gabà > [ɡabɵ].

Gaves in the Pyrenees

• gaves réunis
• gave d'Arrens
• gave d'Aspe
  Gave d'Aspe
  The Gave d'Aspe is the torrential river flowing through the Aspe Valley, one of the three main valleys of the High-Béarn , in the Southwest of France.It is formed in the Aspe Circus, below the Aspe peak ....
  
  ,
• gave d'Aspé
  Aspe
  Aspe is a town and municipality located in the comarca of Vinalopó Mitjà, in the province of Alicante, Spain.The town is located in the valley of the river Vinalopó, 25 km from Alicante city...
  
  ,
• gave de Baralet,
• gave de Bélonce,
• gave de Bious,
• gave de Brousset,
• gave de Cauterets,
• gave de Cestrède,
• gave d'Estaubé,
• gave du Lavedan,
• gave de Gaube,
• gave de Gavarnie,
• gave de Héas,
• gave d'Ilhéou,
• gave de Jéret,
• gave de Labat de Bun ou gave d'Estaing,
• gave de Larrau
  Gave de Larrau
  The Gave de Larrau is a torrential river of the French Basque Country , in the Southwest of France. It is the left tributary of the Saison River...
  
  ,
• gave du Lavedan,
• gave de Lescun,
• gave de Lourdios,
• gave de Lutour,
• gave du Marcadau,
• gave de Mauléon
• gave d'Ossau
  Gave d'Ossau
  The Gave d'Ossau is the torrential river flowing through the Ossau Valley, one of the three main valleys of the High-Béarn , in the Southwest of France....
  
  ,
• gave d'Ossoue,
• gave d'Oloron
  Gave d'Oloron
  The Gave d'Oloron is a river of south-western France near the border with Spain. It takes its name from the city Oloron-Sainte-Marie, where it is formed from the rivers Gave d'Aspe and Gave d'Ossau.It joins the Gave de Pau in Peyrehorade...
  
  ,
• gave de Pau
  Gave de Pau
  The Gave de Pau is a river of south-western France and a left tributary of the Adour. It takes its name from the city Pau, through which it flows. The river is in length, and its source is at the Cirque de Gavarnie in the Pyrenees mountains....
  
  ,
• gave de Sainte-Engrâce,
• gave de Soussouéou.