List of English words of Irish origin

This is a list of English language

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

words from the Celtic

Celtic languages

The Celtic languages are descended from Proto-Celtic, or "Common Celtic"; a branch of the greater Indo-European language family...

Irish language

Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...

. For English words which originated in Ireland from other sources see Hiberno-English

Hiberno-English

Hiberno-English is the dialect of English written and spoken in Ireland .English was first brought to Ireland during the Norman invasion of the late 12th century. Initially it was mainly spoken in an area known as the Pale around Dublin, with Irish spoken throughout the rest of the country...

.

Dictionary abbreviations:

AHD: The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, hosted at Bartleby.com
M-W: Meriam-Webster, hosted at webster.com
OED: The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English (7th ed. 1982)
RH: Random House Unabridged Dictionary, hosted at Dictionary.com

English words from the Irish language

banshee

Banshee

The banshee , from the Irish bean sí is a feminine spirit in Irish mythology, usually seen as an omen of death and a messenger from the Otherworld....

: (from Irish bainsídhe/beansídhe, "female fairy")(M-W), "woman of the fairies" (AHD) or "...of a fairy mound" (RH). The Modern Irish word for woman is bean /bæn/ and síd(h) (or sí in modern spelling) is an Irish term referring to a 'fairy mound'. (See Sidhe

Sídhe

The aos sí are a supernatural race in Irish mythology and Scottish mythology are comparable to the fairies or elves. They are said to live underground in the fairy mounds, across the western sea, or in an invisible world that coexists with the world of humans...

.)
bog

Bog

A bog, quagmire or mire is a wetland that accumulates acidic peat, a deposit of dead plant material—often mosses or, in Arctic climates, lichens....

: (from bogach meaning "marsh/peatland") a wetland (OED).
boreen

Boreen

Boreen or bohereen is an anglicised, Hiberno-English term normally meaning a narrow, frequently unpaved, rural road in Ireland. "Boreen" also appears sometimes in names of minor urban roads such as Saint Mobhi Bóithrín , commonly known as Mobhi Boreen in Glasnevin, Dublin....

: (from bóithrín meaning "small road") a narrow rural road in Ireland.
brogues

Brogues

The Brogue is a style of low-heeled shoe or boot traditionally characterized by multiple-piece, sturdy leather uppers with decorative perforations and serration along the pieces' visible edges...

: (from bróg meaning "shoe") a type of shoe

Shoe

A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot while doing various activities. Shoes are also used as an item of decoration. The design of shoes has varied enormously through time and from culture to culture, with appearance originally being tied to function...

(OED).
brogue

Brogue

A brogue is a strong accent, notably in Irish dialects of English. For example, in the folksong "Finnegan's Wake", the character of the song, Tim Finnegan, was said to have a "beautiful brogue so rich and sweet"....

: A strong regional accent

Accent (linguistics)

In linguistics, an accent is a manner of pronunciation peculiar to a particular individual, location, or nation.An accent may identify the locality in which its speakers reside , the socio-economic status of its speakers, their ethnicity, their caste or social class, their first language In...

, especially an Irish one. Presumably used originally with reference to the footwear

Footwear

Footwear consists of garments worn on the feet, for fashion, protection against the environment, and adornment. Being barefoot is commonly associated with poverty, but some cultures chose not to wear footwear at least in some situations....

of speakers of the brogue (OED).
clabber, clauber: (from clábar) wet clay or mud; curdled milk.
clock

Clock

A clock is an instrument used to indicate, keep, and co-ordinate time. The word clock is derived ultimately from the Celtic words clagan and clocca meaning "bell". A silent instrument missing such a mechanism has traditionally been known as a timepiece...

: O.Ir. clocc meaning "bell"; also Welsh cloch but the giving language is Irish mediated by Irish missionaries.. The same source has german Glocke "bell".
colleen

Girl

A girl is any female human from birth through childhood and adolescence to attainment of adulthood. The term may also be used to mean a young woman.-Etymology:...

: (from cailín meaning "young woman") a girl

Girl

A girl is any female human from birth through childhood and adolescence to attainment of adulthood. The term may also be used to mean a young woman.-Etymology:...

(usually referring to an Irish girl) (OED).
craic: fun

Fun

Fun is the enjoyment of pleasure and, according to Johan Huizinga, "an absolutely primary category of life, familiar to everybody at a glance right down to the animal level." Fun may be encountered in many human activities during work, social functions, recreation and play, and even seemingly...

, used in Ireland for fun/enjoyment, often when mixed with alcohol and/or music. The word is actually English in origin; it entered into Irish from the English "crack" via Ulster Scots. The Gaelicised spelling craic was then reborrowed into English. The craic spelling, although preferred by most of the Irish people, has garnered some criticism as a faux-Irish word. but yet has no direct English translation as used in modern terms.
cross

Cross

A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two lines or bars perpendicular to each other, dividing one or two of the lines in half. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally; if they run obliquely, the design is technically termed a saltire, although the arms of a saltire need not meet...

: The ultimate source of this word is Latin crux, the Roman gibbet

Gibbet

A gibbet is a gallows-type structure from which the dead bodies of executed criminals were hung on public display to deter other existing or potential criminals. In earlier times, up to the late 17th century, live gibbeting also took place, in which the criminal was placed alive in a metal cage...

which became a symbol of Christianity. Some sources say the English wordform comes from Old Irish cros. Other sources say the English comes from Old French crois and others say it comes from Old Norse kross.
drum (ridge)

Ridge

A ridge is a geological feature consisting of a chain of mountains or hills that form a continuous elevated crest for some distance. Ridges are usually termed hills or mountains as well, depending on size. There are several main types of ridges:...

, drumlin

Drumlin

A drumlin, from the Irish word droimnín , first recorded in 1833, is an elongated whale-shaped hill formed by glacial ice acting on underlying unconsolidated till or ground moraine.-Drumlin formation:...

: (from drom/druim meaning "ridge") a ridge often separating two long narrow valleys; a long narrow ridge of drift

Drift (geology)

In geology, drift is the name for all material of glacial origin found anywhere on land or at sea , including sediment and large rocks...

or diluvial formation. Drumlin is a linguistic diminutive

Diminutive

In language structure, a diminutive, or diminutive form , is a formation of a word used to convey a slight degree of the root meaning, smallness of the object or quality named, encapsulation, intimacy, or endearment...

of drum, and it means a small rounded hill of glacial formation, often seen in series (OED). A landscape of many Drumlins occurs in some parts of Ireland (including counties Cavan and Armagh). Drumlin is an established technical word in geology, but drum is almost never used.
drisheen

Drisheen

Drisheen is often viewed as a type of black pudding made in Ireland. Irish black pudding is made from a mixture of cow's, pig's and/or sheep's blood, milk, salt, fat and breadcrumbs, which is boiled and sieved and finally cooked using the main intestine of an animal as the sausage skin. The...

: (from drisín or drúishin).
dulse

Dulse

Palmaria palmata Kuntze, also called dulse, dillisk, dilsk, red dulse, sea lettuce flakes or creathnach, is a red alga previously referred to as Rhodymenia palmata Greville. It grows on the northern coasts of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. It is a well-known snack food...

: (from Old Irish duilesc).
esker

Esker

An esker is a long winding ridge of stratified sand and gravel, examples of which occur in glaciated and formerly glaciated regions of Europe and North America...

: (from eiscir) an elongated mound

Mound

A mound is a general term for an artificial heaped pile of earth, gravel, sand, rocks, or debris. The most common use is in reference to natural earthen formation such as hills and mountains, particularly if they appear artificial. The term may also be applied to any rounded area of topographically...

of post-glacial gravel, usually along a river valley

River Valley

River Valley is the name of an urban planning area within the Central Area, Singapore's central business district.The River Valley Planning Area is defined by the region bounded by Orchard Boulevard, Devonshire Road and Eber Road to the north, Oxley Rise and Mohamed Sultan Road to the east, Martin...

(OED). Esker is a technical word in geology.
Fenian

Fenian

The Fenians , both the Fenian Brotherhood and Irish Republican Brotherhood , were fraternal organisations dedicated to the establishment of an independent Irish Republic in the 19th and early 20th century. The name "Fenians" was first applied by John O'Mahony to the members of the Irish republican...

: (from Fianna
Fianna
Fianna were small, semi-independent warrior bands in Irish mythology and Scottish mythology, most notably in the stories of the Fenian Cycle, where they are led by Fionn mac Cumhaill....

meaning "semi-independent warrior band") a member of a 19th century Irish nationalist group (OED).
fiacre

Fiacre

Saint Fiacre was born in Ireland in the seventh century. is an ancient pre-Christian name from Ireland. The meaning is uncertain, but the name may mean "battle king", or it may be a derivative of the word "raven"...

: a small four-wheeled carriage

Carriage

A carriage is a wheeled vehicle for people, usually horse-drawn; litters and sedan chairs are excluded, since they are wheelless vehicles. The carriage is especially designed for private passenger use and for comfort or elegance, though some are also used to transport goods. It may be light,...

for hire, a hackney-coach. Saint Fiacre was a seventh century Irish-born saint who lived in France for most of his life. The English word fiacre comes from French. (OED)
Gallowglass

Gallowglass

The gallowglass or galloglass – from , gallóglach – were an elite class of mercenary warrior who came from Norse-Gaelic clans in the Hebrides and Highlands of Scotland between the mid 13th century and late 16th century...

: (from gallóglaigh).
galore

Galore

Galore: The Singles 1987-1997 is the second singles compilation by The Cure. It contains singles from the years 1987–1997. The song "Wrong Number" is the only new song on the album.-Track listing:#"Why Can't I Be You?" – 3:14#"Catch" – 2:45...

: (from go leor meaning "til plenty") a lot (OED).
glen

Glen

A glen is a valley, typically one that is long, deep, and often glacially U-shaped; or one with a watercourse running through such a valley. Whittow defines it as a "Scottish term for a deep valley in the Highlands" that is "narrower than a strath."...

: From gleann klaunˠ̪, a valley.
gob

Gob

Gob may refer to:* Gob, an Irish and British slang term meaning mouth* Whoopie pie, a type of dessert food* Gob , a punk band from Vancouver, BC, Canada* Gob , 1994* Gob , 2011...

: (literally beak
Beak
The beak, bill or rostrum is an external anatomical structure of birds which is used for eating and for grooming, manipulating objects, killing prey, fighting, probing for food, courtship and feeding young...

) mouth

Mouth

The mouth is the first portion of the alimentary canal that receives food andsaliva. The oral mucosa is the mucous membrane epithelium lining the inside of the mouth....

, though used in colloquial Irish more often to refer to a 'beaky' nose, i.e. a sticky-beak. Perhaps from Irish. (OED)
griskin: (from griscín) a lean cut of meat from the loin of a pig.
hooligan

Hooliganism

Hooliganism refers to unruly, destructive, aggressive and bullying behaviour. Such behaviour is commonly associated with sports fans. The term can also apply to general rowdy behaviour and vandalism, often under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs....

: (from the Irish family name Ó hUallacháin, anglicised as O'Houlihan) one who takes part in rowdy behaviour and vandalism.
keening

Keening

Keening is a form of vocal lament associated with mourning that is traditional in Scotland and Ireland.-Etymology:"Keen" as a noun or verb comes from the Irish/Scots Gaelic term "caoineadh" and references to it from the seventh, eighth and twelfth centuries are extensive.-History:Written sources...

: (from caoinim (ˈkˠiːnʲimʲ) meaning "I wail") to lament, to wail mournfully (OED). No relation to "keen" = eager.
kibosh, kybosh: to finish, to end. The OED says the origin is obscure and possibly Yiddish. Other sources, suggest that it may be from the Irish an chaip bháis meaning "the cap of death" (a reference to the "black cap" worn by a judge passing sentence of capital punishment, or perhaps to the gruesome method of execution called pitchcapping

Pitchcapping

Pitchcapping refers to a form of torture devised by British forces in 18th century Ireland which was widely used against suspected rebels during the period of the 1798 Rebellion, most famously on Anthony Perry, one of the leaders of the Wexford Rebels....

); or else somehow connected with "bosh", from Turkish "boş" (empty).
Leprechaun

Leprechaun

A leprechaun is a type of fairy in Irish folklore, usually taking the form of an old man, clad in a red or green coat, who enjoys partaking in mischief. Like other fairy creatures, leprechauns have been linked to the Tuatha Dé Danann of Irish mythology...

: (from leipreachán or leath bhrogán) (OED).
loch

Loch

Loch is the Irish and Scottish Gaelic word for a lake or a sea inlet. It has been anglicised as lough, although this is pronounced the same way as loch. Some lochs could also be called a firth, fjord, estuary, strait or bay...

, lough

Lough

A lough is a body of water and is either:* A lake* A sea lough, which may be a fjord, estuary, bay, or sea inlet.It can also be used as a surname, with various pronunciations: law, loch, low, lowe, loth, loff....

: (from loch) a lake, or arm of the sea. According to the OED, the spelling "lough" was originally a separate word with a similar meaning but different pronunciation, perhaps from Old Northumbrian: this word became obsolete, effectively from the 16th century, but in Anglo-Irish its spelling was retained for the word newly borrowed from Irish.
machree: From Irish mo chroidhe meaning "of my heart," hence "my dear!"
phoney: (probably from the English fawney meaning "gilt brass ring used by swindlers", which is from Irish fainne meaning "ring") fake.
poteen: (from póitín) hooch, bootleg alcoholic drink (OED)
shamrock

Shamrock

The shamrock is a three-leafed old white clover. It is known as a symbol of Ireland. The name shamrock is derived from Irish , which is the diminutive version of the Irish word for clover ....

: (from seamróg) a clover, used as a symbol for Ireland (OED).
Shan Van Vocht

The Sean-Bhean bhocht

The Sean-Bhean bhocht, Irish for the "Poor old woman" , is a traditional Irish song from the period of the Irish Rebellion of 1798, and dating in particular to the lead up to a French expedition to Bantry Bay, that ultimately failed to get ashore in 1796.The Sean-Bhean bhocht is used to personify...

: (from sean-bhean bhocht meaning "poor old woman") a literary name for Ireland in the 18th and 19th centuries.
shebeen

Shebeen

A shebeen was originally an illicit bar or club where excisable alcoholic beverages were sold without a licence.The term has spread far from its origins in Ireland, to Scotland, Canada, the United States, England,...

: (from síbín meaning "a mugful") unlicensed house selling alcohol (OED).
shillelagh

Shillelagh (club)

A shillelagh is a wooden walking stick and club or cudgel, typically made from a stout knotty stick with a large knob at the top, that is associated with Ireland and Irish folklore.- Construction :...

: (from sailéala meaning "a club") a wooden club or cudgel made from a stout knotty stick with a large knob on the end.
Sidhe

Sídhe

: (ʃiː) the fairy folk of Ireland, from (aos) sídhe (OED). See banshee

Banshee

The banshee , from the Irish bean sí is a feminine spirit in Irish mythology, usually seen as an omen of death and a messenger from the Otherworld....

.
sleveen, sleiveen: (from slíghbhín/slíbhín) an untrustworthy or cunning person. Used in Ireland and Newfoundland (OED).
slew: (from sluagh meaning "a large number") a great amount (OED). Note: as in a slew of new products, not as in slay.
slob

Slob

Slob may refer to:* SLOB is a memory allocation mechanism in Linux Kernel that suffers from internal fragmentation.* "Slob", 2002 song by Weezer from their album, Maladroit* SLOB, Ian Anderson album, The Secret Language of Birds...

: (from slab) mud (OED). Note: the English words slobber and slobbery do not come from this; they come from Old English.
smithereens

Smithereens

Smithereens may refer to:* Smithereens , a 1982 film by Susan Seidelman* The Smithereens, a rock band from New Jersey* Smithereens a book by Shaun Micallef* Natives of Smithers, a town in Canada...

: small fragments, atoms. In phrases such as 'to explode into smithereens'. This is the word smithers (of obscure origin) with the Irish diminutive ending. Whether it derives from the modern Irish smidrín or is the source of this word is unclear (OED).
sporran

Sporran

The Sporran is a traditional part of male Scottish Highland dress. It is a pouch that performs the same function as pockets on the pocketless Scottish kilt....

: Via Gaelic sporan from Irish sparan "purse," of uncertain origin.
tilly

Tilly

Tilly may refer to:People* James Tilly Matthews, the first fully documented case of paranoid schizophrenia* Charles Tilly, sociologist* Jacques Louis François Delaistre de Tilly, French general in the Napoleonic Wars* Jennifer Tilly, actress, poker player...

: (from tuilleadh meaning "a supplement") used in Newfoundland to refer to an additional article or amount unpaid for by the purchaser, as a gift from the vendor (OED). This appears to be a colloquialism confined to Newfoundland. Used in Dublin to refer to the amount of spirits left in a bottle after the last measure has been filled and added to the
glass containing the last measure, by the barman, to the satisfaction of the customer!
Tory

Tory

Toryism is a traditionalist and conservative political philosophy which grew out of the Cavalier faction in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. It is a prominent ideology in the politics of the United Kingdom, but also features in parts of The Commonwealth, particularly in Canada...

: originally an Irish outlaw, probably from the Irish verb tóir meaning "pursue" (OED).
whiskey

Whisky

Whisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Different grains are used for different varieties, including barley, malted barley, rye, malted rye, wheat, and corn...

: (from uisce beatha meaning "water of life") (OED).

English words from the Irish language

See also