This is a list of

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

words borrowed from

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig ), also known as Scots Gaelic and Gaelic, is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family) native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well as ...

. Some of these are common in

Scottish English Scottish English ( gd, Beurla Albannach) is the set of varieties of the English language spoken in Scotland. The transregional, standardised variety is called Scottish Standard English or Standard Scottish English (SSE). Scottish Standa ...

and Scots but less so in other varieties of English.

Words of Scottish Gaelic origin

Cairn at Garvera, Surselva, Graubuenden, Switzerland

;

Bard In Celtic cultures, a bard is a professional story teller, verse-maker, music composer, oral historian and genealogist, employed by a patron (such as a monarch or chieftain) to commemorate one or more of the patron's ancestors and to praise ...

:''Collins English Dictionary 21st Century Edition'' Harper Collins (2001) The word's earliest appearance in English is in 15th century Scotland with the meaning "vagabond minstrel". The modern literary meaning, which began in the 17th century, is heavily influenced by the presence of the word in ancient Greek (''bardos'') and ancient Latin (''bardus'') writings (e.g. used by the poet

Lucan Marcus Annaeus Lucanus (3 November 39 AD – 30 April 65 AD), better known in English as Lucan (), was a Roman poet, born in Corduba (modern-day Córdoba), in Hispania Baetica. He is regarded as one of the outstanding figures of the Imperial ...

, 1st century AD), which in turn took the word from the

Gaulish language Gaulish was an ancient Celtic language spoken in parts of Continental Europe before and during the period of the Roman Empire. In the narrow sense, Gaulish was the language of the Celts of Gaul (now France, Luxembourg, Belgium, most of Switze ...

. ;

Ben Ben is frequently used as a shortened version of the given names Benjamin, Benedict, Bennett or Benson, and is also a given name in its own right. Ben (in he, בֶּן, ''son of'') forms part of Hebrew surnames, e.g. Abraham ben Abraham ( h ...

: From , mountain. ; Bodach : Old man. ;

Bog A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and muskeg; a ...

: From ''bog'' , soft (related to ''boglach'' swamp), from

Old Irish Old Irish, also called Old Gaelic ( sga, Goídelc, Ogham script: ᚌᚑᚔᚇᚓᚂᚉ; ga, Sean-Ghaeilge; gd, Seann-Ghàidhlig; gv, Shenn Yernish or ), is the oldest form of the Goidelic/Gaelic language for which there are extensive writte ...

''bocc''.MacBain, A. (1911) ''An Etymological Dictionary of the Gaelic Language'' 14th century.Hoad, T.F. (ed) (1986) ''Oxford Concise Dictionary of English Etymology'' Oxford ; Bothan : A hut, often an illegal drinking den. (cf

Bothy A bothy is a basic shelter, usually left unlocked and available for anyone to use free of charge. It was also a term for basic accommodation, usually for gardeners or other workers on an estate. Bothies are found in remote mountainous areas of Sco ...

) ; Caber toss: An athletic event, from the Gaelic word "cabar" which refers to a wooden pole. ; Cailleach : An old woman, a hag, or a particular ancient goddess. ;

Cairn A cairn is a man-made pile (or stack) of stones raised for a purpose, usually as a marker or as a burial mound. The word ''cairn'' comes from the gd, càrn (plural ). Cairns have been and are used for a broad variety of purposes. In prehi ...

: From ''càrn''. The word's meaning is much broader in Gaelic, and is also used for certain types of rocky mountains. ; Caman: a

shinty Shinty ( gd, camanachd, iomain) is a team game played with sticks and a ball. Shinty is now played mainly in the Scottish Highlands and amongst Highland migrants to the big cities of Scotland, but it was formerly more widespread in Scotland, and ...

stick. ;

Capercaillie ''Tetrao'' is a genus of birds in the grouse subfamily known as capercaillies. They are some of the largest living grouse. Taxonomy The genus ''Tetrao'' was introduced in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the tenth edition of hi ...

: From ''capall-coille'' , meaning "horse of the woods" ;

Cèilidh A cèilidh ( , ) or céilí () is a traditional Scottish or Irish social gathering. In its most basic form, it simply means a social visit. In contemporary usage, it usually involves dancing and playing Gaelic folk music, either at a house p ...

: A 'social gathering' or, more recently, a formal evening of traditional Scottish Social Dancing. ;

Canntaireachd Canntaireachd (; ) is the ancient method of teaching, learning and memorizing ''pibroch, Piobaireachd'' (also spelt ''Pibroch''), a type of music primarily played on the Great Highland bagpipe. In the canntairached method of instruction, the teacher ...

: oral notation for pipe music. ;

Clan A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, clans may claim descent from founding member or apical ancestor. Clans, in indigenous societies, tend to be endogamous, mea ...

: From the compound form ''clann'' , from ''clann'', children or family. Old Irish ''cland''. ; Claymore: A large broadsword, from ''claidheamh mór'' , great sword. ; Coire: literally a "kettle", meaning a corrie, from the same root. ;

Crag Crag may refer to: * Crag (climbing), a cliff or group of cliffs, in any location, which is or may be suitable for climbing * Crag (dice game), a dice game played with three dice * Crag, Arizona, US * Crag, West Virginia, US * Crag and tail, a ...

: From ''creag'' , a cliff. ; Deoch an dorus (various spellings) : meaning a "drink at the door". Translated as "one for the road", i.e. "one more drink before you leave". ; Fear an taighe: an MC (master of ceremonies), Gaelic lit. "the man of the house" ; Eàrlaid: the right sometimes sold by an outgoing to an incoming tenant to enter into possession of the arable land early in Spring. ; Galore: From ''gu leor'', enough. ; Gillie: a type of servant, now usually somebody in charge of fishing and rivers, and also

ghillie suit A ghillie suit is a type of camouflage clothing designed to resemble the background environment such as foliage, snow or sand. Typically, it is a net or cloth garment covered in loose strips of burlap ( hessian), cloth, or twine, sometimes made t ...

used as a form of camouflage, from ''gille'' , boy or servant. ; Glen: From ''gleann'' , a valley. ; Gob: From ''gob'', beak or bill. ; Kyle or Kyles : Straits from Gaelic Caol & Caolais. ;

Loch ''Loch'' () is the Scottish Gaelic, Scots and Irish word for a lake or sea inlet. It is cognate with the Manx lough, Cornish logh, and one of the Welsh words for lake, llwch. In English English and Hiberno-English, the anglicised spell ...

: From ''loch'' . ; Lochaber axe : From ''Loch Abar'' ,

Lochaber Lochaber ( ; gd, Loch Abar) is a name applied to a part of the Scottish Highlands. Historically, it was a provincial lordship consisting of the parishes of Kilmallie and Kilmonivaig, as they were before being reduced in extent by the creatio ...

+ axe. ; Mackintosh: After

Charles Macintosh Charles Macintosh FRS (29 December 1766 – 25 July 1843) was a Scottish chemist and the inventor of the modern waterproof raincoat. The Mackintosh raincoat (the variant spelling is now standard) is named after him. Biography Macintosh was ...

who invented it. From ''Mac an Tòisich'' , son of the chieftain. ; Mod: A Gaelic festival, from ''mòd'' , assembly, court. ; Pet: From ''peata'', tame animal. ; Pibroch: From ''pìobaireachd'' , piping. ;

Pillion A pillion is a secondary pad, cushion, or seat behind the main seat or saddle on a horse, motorcycle, bicycle or moped. A passenger in this seat is said to "ride pillion". The word is derived from the Scottish Gaelic for "little rug", ''pillea ...

: From ''pillean'' , pack-saddle, cushion. ; Plaid: From ''plaide'' , blanket. Alternatively a Lowland Scots loanwor

from the past participle of ''ply'', to fold, giving ''plied'' then ''plaid'' after the Scots pronunciation. ; Rock ptarmigan, Ptarmigan: From ''tàrmachan'' . 16th Century. ; Shindig: From ''sìnteag'' to skip, or jump around ;

Slogan A slogan is a memorable motto or phrase used in a clan, political slogan, political, Advertising slogan, commercial, religious, and other context as a repetitive expression of an idea or purpose, with the goal of persuading members of the publi ...

: From ''sluagh-ghairm'' , battle-cry ;

Sporran The sporran (; Scottish Gaelic and Irish for " purse"), a traditional part of male Scottish Highland dress, is a pouch that performs the same function as pockets on the pocketless kilt. Made of leather or fur, the ornamentation of the sporra ...

: Via ''sporan'' from Old Irish ''sboran'' and ultimately Latin ''bursa'', purse. ; Spunk: From ''spong'' , tinder and also sponge. From Early Irish ''sponge'', from Latin ''spongia'', from Greek ''σπογγιά'', a sponge. ;

Strontium Strontium is the chemical element with the symbol Sr and atomic number 38. An alkaline earth metal, strontium is a soft silver-white yellowish metallic element that is highly chemically reactive. The metal forms a dark oxide layer when it is e ...

: from Sròn an t-Sìthein meaning "the point at the fairy hill", name of a village, near which the element was discovered. ; Tack &

Tacksman A tacksman ( gd, Fear-Taic, meaning "supporting man"; most common Scots spelling: ''takisman'') was a landholder of intermediate legal and social status in Scottish Highland society. Tenant and landlord Although a tacksman generally paid a yea ...

(a lessee) : From Scots ''tak'' (take) cf. Old Norse ''taka''. ; Trousers: from ''triubhas'' , via "trews". ; Whisky: Short form of ''whiskybae'', from ''uisge-beatha'' , water of life.

Words of Scottish or Irish Gaelic origin

The following words are of Goidelic origin but it cannot be ascertained whether the source language was

or one of the modern Goidelic languages. ; Brogue: An accent, Irish, or Scottish Gaelic ''bròg'' , shoe (of a particular kind worn by Irish and Gaelic peasants), Old Irish ''bróc'', from Norse ''brókr'' ; Hubbub: Irish, or Scottish Gaelic ''ubub'' , an exclamation of disapproval. ; Shanty : Irish or Scottish Gaelic ''sean taigh'' , an old house ; Smidgen : Irish or Scottish Gaelic ''smidean'' , a very small bit (connected to Irish ''smidirín'', smithereen), from ''smid'', syllable or a small bit. ; Strath: Irish, or Scottish Gaelic ''srath'' , a wide valley.

Gaelic words mostly used in Lowland Scots

Because of the wide overlap of

and Lowland Scots, it can be difficult to ascertain if a word should be considered Lowland Scots or Scottish English. These words tend to be more closely associated with Lowland Scots but can occur in Scottish English too. ; Airt: Point of the compass, from ''àird'' , a point. ;

: A hut, from ''bothan'' , a hut, cf. Norse ''būð'', Eng. ''booth''. ; Caird: A tinker, from ''ceaird'' , the plural of ''ceàrd'', tinkers. ; Caber: From ''cabar'' , pole. ; Cailleach: From ''cailleach'' , old woman. ; Caman: From ''caman'' , shinty stick. Also in use in Scotland the derived camanachd, shinty. ;

Cateran The term cateran (from the Gaelic ''ceathairne'', a collective word meaning "peasantry") historically referred to a band of fighting men of a Scotland Highland clan; hence the term applied to the Highland, and later to any, marauders or cattle ...

: From ''ceatharn'' , fighting troop. ; Ceilidh: From ''céilidh'' , a social gathering. ; Clachan: From ''clachan'' , a small settlement. ; Clarsach: A harp, from ''clàrsach'' , a harp. ; Corrie: From ''coire'' , kettle. ; Doch-an-doris: Stirrup cup, from ''deoch an dorais'' , drink of the door. ; Fillibeg: A kilt, from ''féileadh beag'' , small kilt. ; Ingle: From ''aingeal'' , a now obsolete word for fire. ; Kyle: From ''caol'' , narrow. ; Lochan: From ''lochan'' , a small loch. ; Machair: From ''machair'' , the fertile land behind dunes. ; Quaich: From ''cuach'' , a cup. ; Skean:McArthur. T. ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language''

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print book ...

1992 From ''sgian'' , a knife. ; Slughorn : Also from ''sluagh-ghairm'', but erroneously believed by

Thomas Chatterton Thomas Chatterton (20 November 1752 – 24 August 1770) was an English poet whose precocious talents ended in suicide at age 17. He was an influence on Romantic artists of the period such as Shelley, Keats, Wordsworth and Coleridge. Alth ...

and

Robert Browning Robert Browning (7 May 1812 – 12 December 1889) was an English poet and playwright whose dramatic monologues put him high among the Victorian poets. He was noted for irony, characterization, dark humour, social commentary, historical sett ...

to refer (apparently) to some kind of

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

. ; Inch (in the sense of an island):, from Scottish Gaelic ''innis'' . ; Och: Irish and Scottish Gaelic ''och'' , exclamation of regret. Cf. English ''agh'', Dutch and German ''ach''. ; Oe: Grandchild, Irish and Scottish Gaelic ''ogha'' , grandchild. ; Samhain : Irish and Scottish Gaelic ''Samhain'' , November and related to ''Oidhche Shamhna'',

Halloween Halloween or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve) is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Saints' Day. It begins the observan ...

. ; Shennachie:Robinson, M. (ed) ''The Concise Scots Dictionary'' Chambers 1985 Irish and Scottish Gaelic ''seanchaidh'' , storyteller. ; Sassenach: Irish and Scottish Gaelic ''Sasannach'' , An Englishman, a Saxon. ; Abthen (or Abthan): jurisdiction and territory of pre-Benedictine Scottish monastery, from

† A dagger, obelisk, or obelus is a typographical mark that usually indicates a footnote if an asterisk has already been used. The symbol is also used to indicate death (of people) or extinction (of species). It is one of the modern descendan ...

''abdhaine'' , abbacy. ; Airie:

shieling A shieling is a hut or collection of huts on a seasonal pasture high in the hills, once common in wild or sparsely populated places in Scotland. Usually rectangular with a doorway on the south side and few or no windows, they were often con ...

, from ''àiridh'' , shieling. ; Aiten: juniper, from ''aiteann'' , juniper. ; Bourach: A mess, from ''bùrach'' , a mess. ; Car, ker: Left-handed, from ''cearr'' , wrong, left. ; Crine: To shrink, from ''crìon'' , to shrink. ; Crottle: A type of

lichen A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.dye A dye is a colored substance that chemically bonds to the substrate to which it is being applied. This distinguishes dyes from pigments which do not chemically bind to the material they color. Dye is generally applied in an aqueous solution and ...

, from ''crotal'' , lichen. ; Golack: An insect, from ''gobhlag'' , an earwig. ; Keelie: A tough urban male, from ''gille'' , a lad, a young man. ; Ketach: The left hand, from ''ciotach'' , left-handed. ; Sonse: From ''sonas'' , happiness, good fortune. Also the related ''sonsy''. ; Spleuchan: A pouch, from ''spliùchan'' , a pouch, purse. ; Toshach: Head of a clan, from ''toiseach'' , beginning, front.

Place-name terminology

There are numerous additional place-name elements in Scotland which are derived from Gaelic, but the majority of these have not entered the English or Scots language as productive nouns and often remain opaque to the average Scot. A few examples of such elements are: *a(u)ch- from Gaelic ''achadh'', a field; hence

Auchentoshan distillery Auchentoshan distillery ( ) is a single malt whisky distillery in the west of Scotland. The name Auchentoshan is from Gaelic () and translates as "corner of the field". The distillery is also known as "Glasgow's Malt Whisky" due to its proxi ...

Auchinleck Auchinleck ( ; sco, Affleck ;
gd, Achadh nan Leac

*ard- from Gaelic ''àird'', a height or promontory; hence Ardnamurchan, etc. *bal- from Gaelic ''baile'', a town; hence Balgowan,

Balgay Balgay ( Gaelic: ''Baile (na) Gaoithe'') is a suburb in the west end of Dundee, Scotland. The name, derived from Gaelic, seems to mean '' 'stead of the marsh/wind' ''.Nicolaisen, W.F.H. ''Scottish Place Names'' pp139 During the 17th century, Ba ...

etc. *cam- from Gaelic ''camas,'' a bend or meander; hence

Cambuslang Cambuslang ( sco, Cammuslang, from gd, Camas Lang) is a town on the south-eastern outskirts of Greater Glasgow, Scotland. With approximately 30,000 residents, it is the 27th largest town in Scotland by population, although, never having had a ...

Cambusnethan Cambusnethan is a large village and suburb on the eastern edge of Wishaw, North Lanarkshire in Scotland. It is approximately long, straddling both sides of the A722 on a hill overlooking Wishaw. Etymology The name "''Cambusnethan"'' was his ...

*dal- from Gaelic ''dail'', a meadow (not to be confused with "dale", from the Norse ''dalr'' meaning a valley); hence Dalry *drum- from Gaelic ''druim'', a ridge; hence Drumchapel,

Drumnadrochit Drumnadrochit (; gd, Druim na Drochaid) is a village in the Highland local government council area of Scotland, lying near the west shore of Loch Ness at the foot of Glen Urquhart. The village is close to several neighbouring settlements: the v ...

etc. *dun- from Gaelic ''dun'', a fort; hence

Dundee Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...

, Dumbarton,

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

*inver- from Gaelic ''inbhir'', a river mouth or confluence; hence

Inverclyde Inverclyde ( sco, Inerclyde, gd, Inbhir Chluaidh, , "mouth of the Clyde") is one of 32 council areas used for local government in Scotland. Together with the East Renfrewshire and Renfrewshire council areas, Inverclyde forms part of the hi ...

, Inverleith *kil- from Gaelic ''cill'', a churchyard; hence

Kilmarnock Kilmarnock (, sco, Kilmaurnock; gd, Cill Mheàrnaig (IPA: ʰʲɪʎˈveaːɾnəkʲ, "Marnock's church") is a large town and former burgh in East Ayrshire, Scotland and is the administrative centre of East Ayrshire, East Ayrshire Council. ...

, Kilbride etc. *kin- from Gaelic ''ceann'', a head; hence Kinlochleven, Kinloss etc.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:List Of English Words Of Scottish Gaelic Origin Scottish Gaelic language

Scottish gaelic Scottish Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig ), also known as Scots Gaelic and Gaelic, is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family) native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well as ...

Scottish English

Words of Scottish Gaelic origin

Words of Scottish or Irish Gaelic origin

Gaelic words mostly used in Lowland Scots

Place-name terminology

See also

References