This page contains words for metals that are cognate in some or all of 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
These words are cognate in all six Celtic languages.
| Gaeilge (Irish) |
Gàidhlig (Gaelic) |
Gaelg (Manx) |
Cymraeg (Welsh) |
Kernewek (Cornish) |
Brezhoneg (Breton) |
English |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| airgead | airgead | argid | arian | arghans | arc'hant | silver |
| copar | copar | cobbyr copuir |
copr | kober | kouevr | copper |
| dúr | dùr | douyr | dur | dur | dir | steel hard dour |
| iarann | iarann | yiarn | haearn | horn | houarn | iron |
| méin | mèinn | meain | mwyn mŵn |
moon | men† | mineral ore metal mine |
| miotal | miotal meiteal |
metal | metel metal |
metol | metal | metal mettle |
| ór | òr | airh | aur | owr | aour | gold |
| stán | staoin stàin |
stainney | ystaen staen |
sten | staen | tin pewter |
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These words are cognate in some of the Celtic languages.
| Gaeilge (Irish) |
Gàidhlig (Gaelic) |
Gaelg (Manx) |
Cymraeg (Welsh) |
Kernewek (Cornish) |
Brezhoneg (Breton) |
English |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| bíchearb | bichearb | — | — | — | — | mercury quicksilver |
| cóbalt | còbalt | cobalt | cobalt | — | kobalt | cobalt |
| cruach | cruaidh | creoighey | — | — | — | steel |
| luaidhe | luaidhe | leoaie | — | — | — | lead |
| mearcair | — | — | mercwri | — | merkur | mercury |
| nicil | niceal | nickyl | nicel | — | nikel | nickel |
| — | — | — | plwm | plomm plobm |
plom | lead |
| prás | pràis | prash | pres | brest | — | brass |
| — | stàilinn | staillin | — | — | — | steel |
| umha | umha | ooha | efydd | — | — | copper bronze brass |
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Complete Cognates, Partial Cognates . Cognates arranged thematically: Adjectives | Animals | Birds | Clothes | Colours | Conjunctions | Countries | Directions | Food and Drink | Landscape | Buildings | Languages | Metals | Musical terms | Names | Numbers | Parts of the body | People | Prepositions | Pronouns | Sea creatures | Time expressions | Tools | Trees and Plants | Vehicles | Verbs | Weather | Other words
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.
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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