Beurla Reagaird (; previously also spelled or ) is a nearly extinct
Scottish Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic (, ; Endonym and exonym, endonym: ), also known as Scots Gaelic or simply Gaelic, is a Celtic language native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a member of the Goidelic language, Goidelic branch of Celtic, Scottish Gaelic, alongs ...
–based
cant CANT may refer to:
*CANT, a solo project from Grizzly Bear bass guitarist and producer, Chris Taylor.
*Cantieri Aeronautici e Navali Triestini
CANT (''Cantieri Aeronautici e Navali Triestini'', the Trieste Shipbuilding and Naval Aeronautics; also ...
used by the
indigenous Traveller community of the
Highlands
Highland is a broad term for areas of higher elevation, such as a mountain range or mountainous plateau.
Highland, Highlands, or The Highlands, may also refer to:
Places Africa
* Highlands, Johannesburg, South Africa
* Highlands, Harare, Zimbab ...
of Scotland, formerly often referred to by the disparaging name "
tinker
Tinker or tinkerer is an archaic term for an wikt:itinerant, itinerant tinsmith who mends household utensils.
Description
''Tinker'' for metal-worker is attested from the thirteenth century as ''tyckner'' or ''tinkler''. Some travelling grou ...
s".
Name
loosely translates as 'speech of metalworkers' in reference to their traditional occupation of being
traveling tinsmiths.
Although today refers to the
English language
English is a West Germanic language that developed in early medieval England and has since become a English as a lingua franca, global lingua franca. The namesake of the language is the Angles (tribe), Angles, one of the Germanic peoples th ...
, its original meaning is that of 'jargon' (from
Old Irish
Old Irish, also called Old Gaelic (, Ogham, Ogham script: ᚌᚑᚔᚇᚓᚂᚉ; ; ; or ), is the oldest form of the Goidelic languages, Goidelic/Gaelic language for which there are extensive written texts. It was used from 600 to 900. The ...
, 'mouth' plus the abstract forming
suffix
In linguistics, a suffix is an affix which is placed after the stem of a word. Common examples are case endings, which indicate the grammatical case of nouns and adjectives, and verb endings, which form the conjugation of verbs. Suffixes can ca ...
),
with the second element being linked to the word 'order, array, arrangement' (compare with the
Irish 'speech of the smiths').
See also
*
Bungi dialect
*
Polari
Polari () is a form of slang or Cant (language), cant historically used primarily in the United Kingdom by some actors, circus and fairground performers, professional wrestlers, merchant navy sailors, criminals and prostitutes, and particula ...
*
Shelta
Shelta (; Irish: ) is a language spoken by Irish Travellers (), particularly in Ireland and the United Kingdom. It is also widely known as the Cant, known to its native speakers in Ireland as or , and known to the academic or professional li ...
References
Scottish Travellers
Cant languages
Scottish Gaelic dialects
Mixed languages
{{ie-lang-stub