Words for roads in Celtic languages.
| Proto-Celtic | *bow-itros = road (“cow path”) |
|---|---|
| Old Irish (Goídelc) | bóthar = road, way, manner, stream |
| Irish (Gaeilge) | bóthar [ˈbˠoːhəɾˠ / ˈbˠoːɾˠ / ˈbˠɔhəɾˠ] = road, way, manner |
| Scottish Gaelic (Gàidhlig) | bòthar [boː.ər] = alley, lane, road, street |
| Manx (Gaelg) | bayr = lane, road, roadway, pad, drive, avenue |
| Welsh (Cymraeg) | beidr = lane, track |
| Cornish (Kernewek) | bownder [‘bɔʊndɛr / ‘bɔʊndɐr] = lane |
Words marked with a * are reconstructions.
| Old Irish (Goídelc) | rót [r͈oːd] = road, highway |
|---|---|
| Irish (Gaeilge) | ród [ɾˠoːd̪ˠ / ɾˠɔːd̪ˠ] = road, roadstead, route, anchorage, mooring |
| Scottish Gaelic (Gàidhlig) | rathad [r̪ˠa.ad] = road, way, route, path, track |
| Manx (Gaelg) | raad [reːd̪ / raːd̪] = road, track, route, direction, roadway, trail, way; vent, vent-hole |
| Welsh (Cymraeg) | rhawd = course, way, path, journey, career, period |
| Breton (Brezhoneg) | roud = route, trace, itinerary |
Etymology: probably from the Old English rad (journey, ride
raid, expedition) [source], from the Proto-Germanic *raidō (ride, journey), from the Proto-Indo-European *reydʰ- (ride), which is also the root of the English words road and raid [source].
| Proto-Brythonic | forð [forð] = road, path, way, mannerh |
|---|---|
| Middle Welsh (Kymraec) | ford, fort, forth = road, way, street, path |
| Welsh (Cymraeg) | ffordd = road, way, street, path, passage, course, route, journey |
| Old Cornish | ford = way, road, manner |
| Cornish (Kernewek) | fordh [fɔrð] = way, road, manner |
Etymology: from the Old English ford (ford) [source], from the Proto-West Germanic *furdu (ford), from Proto-Germanic *furduz (ford), from the Proto-Indo-European *pr̥téw-/*pértus (crossing) [source]. Words for ford in the Brythonic languages come from the same PIE root.
Sources: Wiktionary, Am Faclair Beag, Online Manx Dictionary, Teanglann.ie, eDIL – Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language, In Dúil Bélrai English – Old Irish glossary, Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru, Gerlyver Kernewek, Dictionaire Favereau, TermOfis, English – ProtoCeltic WordList (PDF), Etymological Dictionary Of Proto Celtic