List of English Words of Scottish Gaelic Origin - Gaelic Words Mostly Used in Lowland Scots

Gaelic Words Mostly Used in Lowland Scots

Because of the wide overlap of Scottish English 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.

Bothy

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

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

From sgian, a knife.

Slughorn

Also from sluagh-ghairm, but erroneously believed by Thomas Chatterton and Robert Browning to refer (apparently) to some kind of trumpet.

Inch

And island, from Irish and Scottish Gaelic innis .

Och

Irish and Scottish Gaelic och, exclamation of regret.

Oe

Grandchild, Irish and Scottish Gaelic ogha, grandchild.

Samhain

Irish and Scottish Gaelic Samhain, November and related to Oidhche Shamhna, Halloween.

Shennachie

Irish and Scottish Gaelic seannachaidh, storyteller.

Sassenach

Irish and Scottish Gaelic Sasannach, An Englishman, a Saxon.

Abthen (or Abthan)

jurisdiction and territory of pre-Benedictine Scottish monastery, from †abdhaine, abbacy.

Airie

shieling, 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 used as a dye, from crìon, 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.