QUESTION Are there other words in English (other than place names) that derive from the Irish language?

THE English language has a couple of dozen frequently used words that are derived from Irish.

Banshee, an omen of death, comes from the Irish word bainsídhe, woman of the fairies. Bog comes from bogach, the Irish word for marsh or peatland.

Boreen comes from bóithrin, meaning a narrow country road.

Boycott comes from events rather than a word in Ireland. In 1880, Charles Boycott, an English land agent, evicted several tenants on Achill Island in Co. Mayo and as a result was boycotted by everyone, including the postman.

Brogue, a type of men’s shoe, originates in rural Ireland where they were worn in very wet conditions. The word comes from the Irish word for shoe, bróg.

Clock comes from the Celtic words clagan and clocca, both of which meant ‘bell’.

Colleen comes from the Irish word cailín, meaning young girl.

Craic, fun or enjoyment, comes from the English word crack that came into use in Ireland through Ulster Scots and then assumed a Gaelic form, craic. It is often condemned by linguistic experts as a false Irish word.

Dig, used to appreciate or understand, comes from the Irish verb

tuig, meaning to understand. Galore, meaning plentiful, comes directly from the Irish phrase go

leor, which translates as plenty. Glen, in popular use in Scotland, comes from the Irish word gleann, meaning valley or vale.

Gob, English slang for someone’s mouth, comes from the Irish word for mouth. Puss, slang for someone’s face, comes from the Irish word for lips or mouth, pus.

Hooligan, a widely used word for a young troublemaker, comes from a fictional Irish family that featured in an 1890s music hall song. Kibosh, as in putting the kibosh on something, is derived from the chaip bháis, or the cap of death that was once worn by judges in Ireland when they were handing down a death sentence.

Leprechaun comes from the old Irish word luchorpán, meaning small body.

Shebeen, or unlicensed place selling alcohol, is derived from

slíghbhín or slíbhín, meaning an untrustworthy person.

Trousers comes from the old Irish words triubhas or triús, used for trousers worn in ancient times. Whiskey in Ireland and whisky in Scotland is a derivation of the old Irish name for the drink, uisce

beatha or water of life.