Small wooden houses or cottages, typically found in mountainous regions, especially in the Alps.
From Swiss French 'chalet', originally meaning a herdsman's hut in Alpine pastures. The word comes from Old French 'chasel', meaning 'farmhouse', ultimately from Latin 'casa' (house). It entered English in the 18th century through tourism to Switzerland.
Chalets were originally humble shepherd shelters in Swiss mountains, but tourism transformed them into symbols of luxury alpine vacations - it's amazing how a word for a simple hut became associated with expensive ski resorts!
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