2026-07-24 14:01 UTC
Hiberno-English word/phrase of the day:
Cailleach
(Also: "calleach", "callioch", "calyagh".)
"Cailleach" is a word for an "old woman", "hag" (but it's distinct from "seanbhean"); the term is reserved for a very old woman or witch-like creature.
Cailleach ('old woman' or 'hag' in modern Irish) comes from the Old Irish "caillech" (veiled one or nun), an adjectival form of "caille" (veil), an early loan from Latin "pallium" (woollen cloak).
#ireland #slang #language
Replies (1)
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@Fionnbharr@mastodon.ie 2026-07-24 14:01
A "cailleach bed" was a bed by the fire. A "cailleach no looha" (In irish: "cailleach na luaithe") was an "old woman of the ashes". "They say there's great wisdom in that cailleach no looha." And a "caillichín" could either be a "precocious little girl" or a "small old woman". #ireland #slang #language