"long, slender hair," 1704, plural villi, from modern use of Latin villus "tuft of hair, shaggy hair, wool, fleece" (see velvet).
Entries linking to villus
velvet n.
early 14c., probably from Old Provençal veluet, from Vulgar Latin *villutittus, diminutive of Vulgar Latin *villutus "velvet," literally "shaggy cloth," from Latin villus "shaggy hair, nap of cloth, tuft of hair," probably a dialectal variant of vellus "fleece," from PIE *wel-no-, suffixed form of *uelh- "to strike" (see svelte).