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The Celtic languages ( / ˈkɛltɪk / KEL-tik) are a group of related languages descended from Proto-Celtic. They form a branch of the Indo-European language family. [1] The term "Celtic" was first used to describe this language group by Edward Lhuyd in 1707, [2] following Paul-Yves Pezron, who made the explicit link between the Celts described ...
- Overview
- Relationships and ancient contacts of Celtic
The question of the relationship of Common Celtic to the other Indo-European languages remains open. For some time, it was held that Celtic stood in an especially close relation to the Italic branch; some scholars even spoke of a period when an Italo-Celtic “nation” existed, toward the end of the 2nd millennium bc. The existence of a q–p relationship (see above) inside Italic too (e.g., Latin quattuor “four,” but Oscan petora) was thought by some to support this view. Much of this argument is, however, based on accidental resemblances (e.g., the Irish future tense in f- and the Latin future in b-) or on formations such as the deponent and passive verb forms ending in -r, which at one time were known mainly in Italic and Celtic but have since been found in the Hittite and Tocharian languages as well. The undeniable common features between Celtic and Italic, such as the superlative endings of adjectives (Latin -issimus; Celtic *-samos, *-isamos), are hardly sufficient to justify the assumption of a special relationship, and the whole concept of an Italo-Celtic unity has been powerfully criticized by the linguists Carl J.S. Marstrander and Calvert Watkins.
The original home of the Celts cannot be located precisely, but, on the whole, the evidence points to the eastern part of central Europe. There is more evidence for their contacts with other Indo-European peoples. One group of Celts, at least, found themselves neighbours of the Germanic peoples and were often confused with them by classical writers. It can be inferred that the Celts had attained a higher standard of social organization than the Germanic peoples from the existence of words such as Gothic reiki and andbahts (modern German Reich, Amt), apparently borrowed from Celtic *rīgion “kingdom” and *ambactos “officer.” To the Greeks and Romans, on the other hand, the Celts were inferior in culture; Celtic words in Greek are restricted to those describing Celtic institutions, such as bardoi “poets.” The borrowings from Celtic into Latin, which derive mainly from the period before the expansion of Roman power, belong to a few restricted categories, such as war (lancea “lance”), transport (carrus “baggage wagon” and carpentum “light carriage”), and agricultural products (cervesia “beer”). When the Romans finally conquered Gaul and imposed their language, a number of Celtic words came into Latin, but the Celtic terms were mainly concerned with rural life. These are more common in French dialects than in standard French, which preserves a mere handful, such as mouton “sheep,” ruche “beehive,” and arpent “land measure.”
The question of the relationship of Common Celtic to the other Indo-European languages remains open. For some time, it was held that Celtic stood in an especially close relation to the Italic branch; some scholars even spoke of a period when an Italo-Celtic “nation” existed, toward the end of the 2nd millennium bc. The existence of a q–p relationship (see above) inside Italic too (e.g., Latin quattuor “four,” but Oscan petora) was thought by some to support this view. Much of this argument is, however, based on accidental resemblances (e.g., the Irish future tense in f- and the Latin future in b-) or on formations such as the deponent and passive verb forms ending in -r, which at one time were known mainly in Italic and Celtic but have since been found in the Hittite and Tocharian languages as well. The undeniable common features between Celtic and Italic, such as the superlative endings of adjectives (Latin -issimus; Celtic *-samos, *-isamos), are hardly sufficient to justify the assumption of a special relationship, and the whole concept of an Italo-Celtic unity has been powerfully criticized by the linguists Carl J.S. Marstrander and Calvert Watkins.
The original home of the Celts cannot be located precisely, but, on the whole, the evidence points to the eastern part of central Europe. There is more evidence for their contacts with other Indo-European peoples. One group of Celts, at least, found themselves neighbours of the Germanic peoples and were often confused with them by classical writers. It can be inferred that the Celts had attained a higher standard of social organization than the Germanic peoples from the existence of words such as Gothic reiki and andbahts (modern German Reich, Amt), apparently borrowed from Celtic *rīgion “kingdom” and *ambactos “officer.” To the Greeks and Romans, on the other hand, the Celts were inferior in culture; Celtic words in Greek are restricted to those describing Celtic institutions, such as bardoi “poets.” The borrowings from Celtic into Latin, which derive mainly from the period before the expansion of Roman power, belong to a few restricted categories, such as war (lancea “lance”), transport (carrus “baggage wagon” and carpentum “light carriage”), and agricultural products (cervesia “beer”). When the Romans finally conquered Gaul and imposed their language, a number of Celtic words came into Latin, but the Celtic terms were mainly concerned with rural life. These are more common in French dialects than in standard French, which preserves a mere handful, such as mouton “sheep,” ruche “beehive,” and arpent “land measure.”
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Apr 6, 2019 · Early Celtic languages. 06/04/2019 Translation Blog Posts. Celtic cross. The Celtic languages have long existed, not just in the British Isles’ history; but also throughout mainland Europe. In the present day, there remain two categories of Celtic language: Goedelic (Irish Gaelic, Scottish Gaelic, Manx) and Brythonic (Breton, Cornish, Welsh ...
May 17, 2024 · Glens and Valleys. 17th May 2024. Here are some words for valley, glen and related things that are found in some or all of the Celtic languages, and related words in other languages. Strath Croe. Words marked with a * are reconstructions. Proto-Celtic. *stratos = valley. Old Irish (Goídelc) srath = grassland, swarth.
Old Irish Online at the University of Texas at Austin: a freely available online lessons of Old Irish among other early Indo-European language lessons there. Ancient Sound Changes and Old Irish Phonology.
Nevertheless, it provides one of a number of useful staging points from which to survey the history of the Celtic languages in the British Isles. This one is, however, particularly significant as it is the point at which Britain entered the Roman world where it was to remain for the next five centuries; and the influence of Rome was to be much ...
Summary. HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL CONTEXTS. The term Continental Celtic does not refer to a single linguistic entity – it is not a synonym for Gaulish – but to the entirety of the Celtic linguistic documentation from the ancient European continent.
