List of English words of Brittonic origin
The number of English words known to be derived from the Brittonic language is remarkably small. In fact, as far as can be ascertained it is lower than the number of words of Gaulish origin found in the English language, which arrived through Norman French. The influence of the Brittonic language on English has been extremely limited. However, it is possible that many British words have been obscured by their close similarity to Germanic words which are perceived to offer a more likely etymology, and also that some of them have been misidentified as Gaulish via French, which are simply unattested until after the Norman invasion.
List
Conservative scholarship recognises fewer than ten' Brittonic loan-words in English. This list includes all the putatively Brittonic loan-words listed in key surveys, to which a range of suggestions for Brittonic etymologies for words attested only in Old English could be added, principally from the work of Andrew Breeze. Oxford English Dictionary etymologies are included to indicate the view of this authoritative source, distinguishing between the first, second, and third editions.| word | putative Brittonic etymology | OED etymology |
| ass | Old British *assin or Old Irish *assan, but more likely from Irish. | Celtic |
| bannock | Etymologised by the OED as from Gaelic bannach, ? < Latin pānicium < pānis bread. But possibly Old Brittonic *bannoc. | Gaelic |
| Apparently from Brittonic *basc-etto-n, meaning "little wicker thing". | unknown | |
| Possibly from Brittonic *becco-s, meaning "beak"; equally possibly from Gaulish via Latin via French. However, the OED saw the Celtic words as being borrowed from English. | French bec | |
| beck | Agricultural implement with two hooks. Rather vaguely etymologised in the OED as from a 'Celtic root bacc- | French |
| bin | Possibly from Old Brittonic *benna, but possibly borrowed in to Germanic before the separation of Old English. | Probably Celtic |
| Possibly from a Brittonic root meaning "cloak, cloth", cognate with Old Irish bratt. However, the OED and recent scholars see the English word as coming from Irish. In Old English, bratt meant "cloak", but later came to mean "ragged garment", then "beggar's garment", and then "beggar's child", whence it attained its current meaning of "unruly child". "Brat" is still used in parts of Northern England to refer to a rough working apron. | Irish bratt | |
| From Brittonic *brocco-s, meaning "badger". | Celtic | |
| carr | 'Rock'. Cf. Welsh carreg 'rock'. Given as a Celtic loan by Kastovsky. | Old Northumbrian |
| From Old Brittonic *kumba, meaning "valley". | Probably Brittonic | |
| crag | According to the OED 'apparently of Celtic origin: compare Irish and Gaelic creag, Manx creg, cregg, Welsh craig rock. None of these, however, exactly gives the English crag, cragg | Celtic |
| From Brittonic *tatV-, meaning "dad". Equally possibly an independent innovation, although well-attested in Celtic and other Indo-European languages, including German | Probably formed within English | |
| Possibly from Brittonic *damā-, meaning "female sheep or deer"; alternatively from French dame, "lady, woman". | French dame | |
| Possibly from a Brittonic root *da-, perhaps related to *damā- above. | Latin dāma | |
| dun | According to the OED, 'perhaps < Celtic: compare Irish and Gaelic donn brown, Welsh dwn | Celtic |
| From Brittonic *dunn-āco-s, *dunn-occo-s, meaning "little brown one". | Formed within English | |
| Possibly from Brittonic *u̯lan-ello-s, meaning "little woollen thing". Possibly from Gaulish via French, or loaned from Welsh. | Uncertain | |
| from Old English funta, meaning 'spring', in turn from Latin fons, but probably via Brittonic. | ─ | |
| gavelock | A kind of spear. Cf. 'Old Norse gaflak, gaflok neuter javelin, Welsh gaflach, Irish gabhla lance, Old Northern French gavelot, gaverlot, gavrelot, garlot javelin, whence Middle Dutch gavelot, gaverloot, Middle High German gabilôt | Celtic |
| Possibly from Brittonic gobbo-s, meaning "mouth, lump, mouthful". Equally possibly from Gaelic, or Gaulish via French. | Middle French gobe, goube | |
| from Old Northumbrian luh,, cf. Old Welsh *luch. | ─ | |
| mattock | The OED concludes that 'there are no Germanic cognates, and Welsh matog, Irish matóg, and Scottish Gaelic màdog are from English. Perhaps < vulgar Latin *matteūca club, cudgel.' | Latin |
| milpæþ | Old English, 'army road', possibly from the Brittonic ancestor of Welsh mil 'thousand, army'. | ─ |
| Possibly from Brittonic nuccā-, meaning "nook, cranny, small hole"; French niche would be cognate. | Unknown | |
| prass | Old English, 'pomp, array', perhaps from the Brittonic ancestor of Welsh pres 'soldiers in array'. | ─ |
| sark | Possibly from the Brittonic ancestor of Welsh seirch 'armour, trappings'. | Germanic *sarki-z |
| stor | 'Incense, wax'. | Perhaps Latin |
| tor | 'Generally held to be Celtic', according to the OED, which cites Old Welsh twrr ‘heap, pile’ and Gaelic tòrr ‘hill of an abrupt or conical form, lofty hill, eminence, mound, grave, heap of ruins’. | Celtic |
| toroc | 'Bung.' Possibly not even an English word─or an English word but not of Celtic origin. | ─ |
| wassenas | Old English, 'retainers', possibly from Brittonic. | ─ |
| yan, tan, tethera etc. | And variants. Ultimately from Brittonic *oinā, *deŭai, *tisrīs, etc., heavily corrupted by the nature of the survival. More likely a later borrowing from Welsh and Cornish. | ─ |