Irish
/ˈaɪrɪʃ/noun
Relating to Ireland, its people, or the Irish language.
Did you know?The English name ultimately comes from Old Irish Ériu, the name of a goddess-like figure of Ireland, so the country’s modern label is tied to a mythic ancestor rather than a simple geographic term.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Celtic
PCelt
*Īwerjū
“Likely ‘fertile land’ or ‘land of abundance’”
Old Irish
Old Irish
Ériu
“Name of Ireland, also personified as a female figure”
Latin
Latin
Īveriā / Hibernia
“Ireland; later a poetic Latin name for the island”
Middle English
English
Irishe
“Of or from Ireland”
Modern English
English
Irish
“Relating to Ireland, its people, or the Irish language”