Welsh

From Middle English Walsch, Welische, from Old English wīelisċ (“foreigner; Celt”), from Proto-Germanic *walhiskaz (“Celt; later Roman”), from *walhaz (“Celt, Roman”) (compare Old English wealh), from the name of the Gaulish tribe, the Volcae (recorded only in Latin contexts). Historically the tribe's name has been linked to an animal, likely Gaulish *wolco- (“wolf”), as Caesar described the Celts having fought with huge dogs, in turn from Proto-Indo-European *wĺ̥kʷos.[1]

This word was borrowed from Germanic into Slavic (compare Old Church Slavonic Влахъ (Vlakhŭ, “Vlachs, Romanians”), Byzantine Greek Βλάχος (Blákhos)).

Compare Walloon, walnut, Vlach, Walach, Gaul, Cornwall.

• IPA^(key): /wɛlʃ/

• Audio (US)

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Welsh (not comparable)

1. (now historical) (Native) British; pertaining to the Celtic peoples who inhabited much of Britain before the Roman occupation. [from 5^thc.]
   • 1985, Michael Wood, In Search of the Trojan War:

     The Tudors, it was argued, were of Welsh or ancient British descent.

2. (near obsolete) Foreign; non-native. [10^th-16^thc.]
   • 1485, Sir Thomas Malory, chapter xxiij, in Le Morte Darthur, book XVIII:

     By my hede sayd syr Gareth I wylle ryde vnto my lord sir launcelot for to helpe hym / […] / ye shalle not soo said sir Bors by my counceylle / onles that ye were desguysed / ye shalle see me dysguysed said syre Gareth / and there with al he aspyed a wallysshe knyghte where he was to repose hym

3. Of or pertaining to Wales. [from 11^thc.]
4. Of or pertaining to the Celtic language of Wales. [from 16^thc.]
5. Designating plants or animals from or associated with Wales. (See Derived terms.) [from 17^thc.]

Welsh (countable and uncountable, plural Welsh)

1. (uncountable) The Welsh language. [from 10th c.]
   • 1832, Queen Victoria, journal, 6 Aug 1832:

     9 minutes to 2. We just stopped to have our horses' mouths washed, and there all people spoke welsh.

2. (collectively, plural) The people of Wales. [from 11th c.]
3. A breed of pig, kept mainly for bacon.

• (language): Cymric, Kymric

• Welshland
• Welshman

Welsh

1. A surname​ for someone who was a Welshman or a Celt.

• Wiktionary's coverage of Welsh terms

• ISO 639-1 code cy, ISO 639-3 code cym
• Ethnologue entry for Welsh, cy

From English Welsh.

• audio

  (file)

• IPA^(key): /ʋɛlʃ/

Welsh n (uncountable)

1. Welsh, the language.

• Wels (unusual), Kymrisch

Welsh (not comparable)

1. Welsh

• Wels (unusual)