This page contains musical terms and other music-related words in the six modern Celtic languages.
Click on the English versions that are links and you will be taken to the Celtiadur, where you can see what each word means, and how some of them are pronounced. There are also details of related words and expressions, and words in older versions of the Celtic languages, such as Middle Welsh and Old Irish. More Celtic Cognates
| Gaeilge (Irish) |
Gàidhlig (Gaelic) |
Gaelg (Manx) |
Cymraeg (Welsh) |
Kernewek (Cornish) |
Brezhoneg (Breton) |
English |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ceol | ceòl | kiaull | cerddoriaeth miwsig |
ilow menystrouthi |
sonerezh muzik |
music |
| ochtach | ochdach | shiaull | wythawd | ethves oktav |
eizhvetez | octave |
| scála | sointread | scaail | graddfa | skeul | skeulenn | scale |
| mór | mòr màidsear |
mooar | mwyaf | meur | muiañ | major |
| mion | mion meanar |
myn | lleddf | le minor |
leiañ | minor |
| nóta | nòta | notey | nodyn | notya | notenn | note |
| gléas eochair |
uchdach | gleaysh | allwedd cleff |
alhwedh | alc'hwez kelc'h |
key clef |
| cliath | clàr | cleeah | erwydd | — | regenneg | stave |
| géar | geur | gear | llonnod | lymm | lemm | sharp |
| maol | maol | meayl | meddal | — | bouc'h | flat |
| soprán | soprane | soprane | soprano | soprano | soprano | soprano |
| alt | alto | alt | alto | alto | alto | alto |
| teanór | tenor | tennor | tenor | tenor | ténor tenored |
tenor |
| baratón | baraton | baritone | baritôn | — | usvoud bariton |
baritone |
| dord | beus borbhanach |
cronney dord |
bas | faborden | boud | bass |
| cruit | cruit | cruitçh | crwth | krowd | — | harp crwth fiddle |
| cláirseach | clàrsach | claasagh | — | — | — | harp |
| teillén | teilinn† | tellyn | telyn | telyn | telenn | harp |
| druma | druma | drum | drwm tabwrdd |
tabour | taboulin | drum |
| fliúit | duiseal feadan feadag |
feddan | ffliwt ffifflen chwibanogl |
tollgorn | flet c'hwitell |
flute |
| fead feadóg |
fead feadag |
fed feddan |
gwynt | gwnys | gwent | whistle wind |
| fidheall fidil |
fidil veidhlín |
fiddyl biol |
ffidil ffidl |
fyll | violoñs biolin |
fiddle violin |
| giotár | giotàr | gitar | gitâr | gitar | kitar gitar |
guitar |
| pib pib mála |
piob | piob | pibgod bagbib brochbib |
pib pibow sagh |
binioù | bagpipes |
Complete Cognates, Partial Cognates . Cognates arranged thematically: Adjectives | Animals | Birds | Clothes | Colours | Conjunctions | Countries | Directions | Food and Drink | Landscape | Buildings | Languages | Metals | Musical terms | Numbers | Parts of the body | People | Pronouns | Prepositions | Sea creatures | Time expressions | Trees and Plants | Verbs | Weather | Tools | Other words | Names
The Celtiadur blog is a collection of Celtic cognates, with definitions, pronunciation, etymologies - includes the modern Celtic languages, older versions of these languages, such as Middle Welsh, Middle Breton and Old Irish, and their extinct and reconstructed relatives and ancestors, including Gaulish, Proto-Brythonic and Proto-Celtic.
On the Celtic Pathways podcast I discuss connections between the Celtic languages, and look for words with Celtic roots in non-Celtic languages, such as English, French, Spanish, Galician and Portuguese.
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If you would like to make any corrections or additions to this page, or if you can provide recordings, please contact me.
Stòr-fhaclan Co-dhàimheil Ceilteach (Database of Celtic cognates)
http://www.smo.uhi.ac.uk/gaidhlig/faclair/scc/lorg.php
McBain's Etymological Dictionary of the Gaelic Language
http://www.ceantar.org/Dicts/MB2/
Breton, Celtiberian, Cornish, Cumbric, Gaulish, Irish, Lepontic, Lusitanian, Manx, Scottish Gaelic, Welsh
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