A look at the set of words loaned into early Irish, the different paths they can follow, what they reveal and the scope for interdisciplinary research
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A look at some of the names given to the northern gannet (Morus bassanus) in a range of European languages, the etymologies of these words and the various characteristics of the gannet emphasised by each word. The words discussed are... more
A look at some of the names given to the northern gannet (Morus bassanus) in a range of European languages, the etymologies of these words and the various characteristics of the gannet emphasised by each word. The words discussed are English gannet, Irish gainnéad, Scottish Gaelic sùlaire, Scots solan goose, French fou de bassan, German Basstölpel, Polish głuptak, Spanish alcatraz and English albatross.
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An attempt to trace the origins of baile, which has a wide range of meanings, including 'farmstead', 'village', 'town', 'townland', 'place' and 'home'. It is one of the most common elements in Irish place-names
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A derivation for Ir. uaine, 'green' as a loan of Latin *uvineus
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I've resumed my etymology blog with a look at Ir. leaba 'bed' and its OIr. antecedent lepaid which lack any cognates outside the Goidelic languages. This has sometimes been accounted for by analysing the word as a compound (e.g. *lebboti... more
I've resumed my etymology blog with a look at Ir. leaba 'bed' and its OIr. antecedent lepaid which lack any cognates outside the Goidelic languages. This has sometimes been accounted for by analysing the word as a compound (e.g. *lebboti < leg- + boti, 'lying abode', MacBain, 1911; < leth + buith, 'being with', Greene, 1954) and therefore an innovation in Irish. A quite different origin is proposed here: a loan from Latin lapis (gen. lapidis) with semantic shift from 'stone, gravestone' to 'bed', supported by place-name evidence. 02/02/2021
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A new etymology is proposed for Irish adhmad 'wood, timber' as a loan word from Ibero-Romance, probably from Spanish ademado 'timbering'. It is also proposed that adhmad is related to Old Irish aidemm 'instrument' (which yields Modern... more
A new etymology is proposed for Irish adhmad 'wood, timber' as a loan word from Ibero-Romance, probably from Spanish ademado 'timbering'. It is also proposed that adhmad is related to Old Irish aidemm 'instrument' (which yields Modern Irish úim), and that this is a loan from Spanish ademe/adema 'brace, strut, support'. This word in turn is a loan from Arabic di‘ma or di‘āma, 'column, pillar, support'. 12/03/20.
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A new etymology is proposed for Ir. réalta and Scottish Gaelic reul 'star' as loans from one of the Ibero-Romance dialects, i.e. from Old Spanish estrella, also meaning 'star', or possibly from a Portuguese or Catalan cognate. 17/01/20.
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Thoughts on some of the barriers to the development of Irish etymology, and a proposed origin for Ir. mothar meaning 'thicket, clump of trees'. 31/10/19.
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A proposal to derive Ir. speilg, sceilg (Skellig) and béillic from Lat. spelu(n)ca 'cave, den'. Of relevance to place-names such as Skellig Michael, Temple-na-Skellig (at Glendalough), Spelga and Bealick. Revised 14/02/2021 and again... more
A proposal to derive Ir. speilg, sceilg (Skellig) and béillic from Lat. spelu(n)ca 'cave, den'. Of relevance to place-names such as Skellig Michael, Temple-na-Skellig (at Glendalough), Spelga and Bealick. Revised 14/02/2021 and again 05/02/2023. Full revised paper forthcoming in the Proceedings of ICOS XXVII (Kraków).
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A suggested derivation of Irish rincim, vn. rince, 'to dance', from Spanish brincar 'hop, jump'. 11/06/18.
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A proposal for Irish fada 'long' being inherited from a Brittonic linguistic layer in early Ireland, now updated with a follow-up on feadh 'extent, duration' and observations on the context of early loans from Latin and Brittonic.... more
A proposal for Irish fada 'long' being inherited from a Brittonic linguistic layer in early Ireland, now updated with a follow-up on feadh 'extent, duration' and observations on the context of early loans from Latin and Brittonic. 16/06/18.
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A new etymology proposed for Ir. áit 'place' as a borrowing of Latin habitatio 'dwelling'. April 2018.
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The etymology of Ir. odhar 'brown' is examined and a loan from Latin āter 'dark' via Ibero-Romance is proposed. 24/03/18.
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A new proposal for the etymology of Ir. áth, 'ford', and a critical look at previous attempts to link this word and certain others with quite remote branches of Indo-European. 18/03/18.
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A new etymology for Ir. bán, 'white; grassy, lea-land', as a loan form a Hispanic pronunciation of Vulgar Latin vānus, 'empty'. March 2018. Updated January 2023 with a note on bonègo, 'fallow', in the dialect of Aveyron, France.
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Thoughts of Romance on the etymology of Irish álainn 'beautiful'. February 2018.
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On the somewhat surprising etymology of Irish coirthe/cairthe, 'standing stone'. February 2018.