Celtic how to pronounce

Why Is ‘Celtic’ Pronounced Two Ways?

Celtic refers to Irish culture and heritage, along with the historical people who migrated from the British Isles throughout much of Europe. While the early pronunciation was with an /s/ sound, reflecting its nearest origin in French, the modern standard is a hard «c» sound like /k/. This is because language historians desired the word to better reflect its Greek and Classical Latin origins. The soft «c» sound is usually reserved for sports teams now, like the Boston Celtics.

Be it in the pub or in the halls of academia, whenever the topic of Irish culture, language, music, literature—basically, anything Irish—is brought up, the words Celt and Celtic are bound to be heard. In modern-day English, those words are commonly used in reference to the Irish people and their widely-accepted traditions (of course everybody is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day; the Celtic cross or knot is a popular tattoo; the Claddagh ring makes a nice gift).

The \k\ pronunciation for Celt and Celtic dates to the 18th century.

The etymology of the noun Celt—from which the adjective Celtic is derived—is straightforward. It’s a 16th-century borrowing of the French word Celte, which itself is from Latin Celta, the singular of Celtae, which is the name for a member of an early Indo-European people from antiquity who spread over much of Europe from the British Isles and Spain to Asia Minor. The Latin name is derived from Greek Keltoi, and both the Latin and Greek words referred to the Gauls, the Celtic people who occupied the region that is now France and Belgium. See? Straightforward.

With that history laid out, we’re wondering how you pronounced all the capital ‘c’ and ‘k’ words, especially if you’re unfamiliar with French, Latin, Greek, and even English Celt and Celtic, for that matter. The question: is the ‘c’ sounded \s\ or \k\?

How to Pronounce «Celtic»

Following its French and Latin predecessors, early pronunciation of Celt was actually \SELT\. (In French and Latin, the ‘c’ is pronounced \s\, as in the last name of the French painter Paul Cézanne and in Latin century.) The pronunciation \KELT\ started being heard as early as the 18th century, which, in time, ushered in the variant spelling Kelt. The variants were introduced by language and history academics who believed that the pronunciation of Celt should reflect the initial \k\ sound in the ancient Greek Keltoi and the Classical Latin Celtae. (It wasn’t until the Middle Ages that the letter ‘c’ in Latin began being pronounced before vowels as the combination \ts\—prior, it was pronounced \k\; English speakers subsequently reduced the Latin ‘c’ to a simple \s\.) Outside of academia, the variant Kelt never caught on, and it is rarely if ever used today; however, the \k\ pronunciation for Celt and Celtic has since flourished.

S- vs K- Sound

Another influence on pronouncing Celt and Celtic with a soft ‘c’ is English’s phonetic rule for ‘c’ when followed by ‘e’ (or ‘i,’ as in circus or Cicero), which says that, in such cases, the ‘c’ is usually pronounced as \s\. Think cell, cereal, ceiling, and dance. Nevertheless, English speakers, especially those who wanted to sound knowledgeable about things Celtic, grew to prefer the hard ‘c’ pronunciation, which harkened back to the words’ ancient roots. From the 18th century onward, more and more people began sounding the words with an initial \k\. By the mid-20th century, \k\ became the norm, which is fitting since the pronunciation is in line with that of the Celtic family of languages that include Irish, Scottish Gaelic, Welsh, Breton, and the now-extinct (or, depending on who you talk to, nearly extinct) languages Manx and Cornish. Apparently, people appreciated the ethnic pronunciation.

This shift in the pronunciation of Celt is fully evinced when comparing H. W. Fowler’s 1926 Dictionary of Modern English with Robert Burchfield’s 1996 revised edition. Here’s what Fowler had to say about Celt(ic): «The spelling C-, & the pronunciation s-, are the established ones, & no useful purpose seems to be served by the substitution of k-.» Decades later, Burchfield observes a different trend: «Except for the football club Celtic (in Glasgow), which is pronounced [SEL-tik], both Celt and Celtic are pronounced with initial \k\ in standard English.» Burchfield is referring to the Scottish Celtic Football Club, founded in 1887. In America, there is basketball’s Boston Celtics, founded in 1946, whose name is also pronounced with an initial \s\.

The European away support that Celtic enjoys is phenomenal. Few clubs have a fanbase that travels in such numbers or makes as much noise, all the more remarkable when you consider the poor record that the club has away from home in recent times.
— Liam Kelly, The Celtic Star, 20 Feb. 2020

Aside from this use of the initial soft ‘c’ in sports teams’ names, Celtic with a hard ‘c’ is the standard; however, you might still sometimes hear the ‘c’ softly sounded by those who are uninitiated in the history and etymology of Celt and Celtic as well as those who are unfamiliar with the words and resort to the phonetic rules of English. (And, as happens so often in English, those phonetic rules let them down.)

Celtic – Pronunciation

“Why is Celtic pronounced Seltic rather than Keltic, as it is in every other context?”

From the Guardian
A tricky one this. Ed Mortimer started us off. “The answer is simple,” he said. “We are wrong to pronounce the word Keltic. It’s one of those words where the pronunciation has changed for some reason in one context but not in others.

Following the general rule that ‘c’ followed by ‘e’ or ‘i’ is pronounced as an ‘s’, we have Seltik, as in the football club. The same pronunciation used to apply to the adjective describing the ancient inhabitants of the western fringes of Europe, including parts of modern-day Scotland, England, Ireland, Wales, France and Spain.

The ‘s’ pronunciation still applies in French, Breton and Galician – but for some reason English has changed to the keltic variant. Put simply, the football club pronunciation is the right one.”

Graeme Gardiner offered an alternative view. “Celtic were founded in 1888 to benefit the Irish immigrant population of Glasgow’s east end. The name Celtic was chosen to reflect the common roots of the Scots and Irish, who were on the receiving end of considerable sectarian prejudice.

Unfortunately the name wasn’t used much outside academic circles and was simply mispronounced by the local population. Of course the de facto pronunciation among the faithful is Sellick.”

However, the truth, if it is to be had, seemed to be that both pronunciations are ostensibly correct, with Keltic having become the more accepted usage only in the last 30 years. Celtic, having been formed in the last century, naturally retained the Seltic pronunciation. This from the Medieval Scotland website, which a number of readers kindly pointed out:

“The reason the Boston Celtics and Glasgow Celtic and all those other sports teams founded around 1900 (give or take a couple decades) pronounce their names Seltic is not because they were founded by ignorant folk who didn’t know any better, but because they spoke English and did know the proper pronunciation of the English word ‘Celtic’.

“So what happened? Well, any number of things might explain why the in-crowd pronunciation shifted to Keltic (such as the German influence on Celtic studies, which was strong in the 19th- and early 20th-centuries) but the upshot is that it is now fashionable – almost obligatory – in certain circles to pronounce the word with a K sound rather than the original S sound.

“In fact, in certain circles (both in and out of academia) it is something of a litmus test – if you don’t use the K sound, it will be assumed you are not knowledgeable about things Celtic. But the one and only reason Keltic is now one of the correct pronunciations of the word is because that is how many educated people pronounce it. That is the only logic in the Keltic pronunciation’s favour.

“The standard rules of English, the rules of language, long use and practice, all argue in favour of Seltic, not Keltic. But it still remains that Seltic is a long-established, traditional pronunciation of the word in English. There is absolutely nothing wrong with pronouncing Celtic as Seltic.”

The pronunciation of the initial c in the English words Celt and Celtic in their various meanings can be realised either as /k/ or /s/ (that is, either hard or soft). Both can be justified philologically and both are “correct” in English prescriptive usage.

Although the word originated in an early Continental Celtic language, it came to English via Greek (Keltoi), where it is spelled with a kappa; thus /k/ is the original pronunciation. This was borrowed into Latin (Celtae), where it was likewise pronounced with /k/. However in the transition from Classical Latin to Vulgar Latin and early Romance, this sound shifted to /t?/, a process known as palatalisation, and in French further to /s/. Under French influence, the practice c representing /s/, when used before the vowels “i” and “e,” in words of Latin origin became established in English, as for example celestial, cilia, and Cicero. Thus /s/ is the inherited pronunciation in English for these words.

Until the mid-20th century, Celtic was usually pronounced with /s/ in English except by academics, but the pronunciation with /k/ has been gaining ground recently. Following the usage of philologists, /k/ is now almost invariably used with reference to Celtic culture even in non-academic contexts.

However, the /s/ pronunciation remains the most recognised form when it occurs in the names of sports teams, most notably Celtic Football Club and the Boston Celtics basketball team.

Sentence first

How to pronounce ‘Celtic’

I don’t normally mark St. Patrick’s Day in any linguistic fashion, but this year I have a short article at Mental Floss about how to pronounce Celtic – is it /ˈsɛltɪk/ ‘Seltic’ or /ˈkɛltɪk/ ‘Keltic’?

In my own usage it’s both, depending on the context, but there seems to be a lot of uncertainty and debate over which is the ‘correct’ pronunciation. So I hope my article goes some way towards resolving the matter. Here’s a excerpt:

Celtic pronounced “Keltic” is an outlier in English phonology. Nearly every other English word beginning ce- has a soft-c sound: cedar, ceiling, cell, cement, cent, cereal, certain, cesspit, and so on (cello, with its “ch-” onset, is another anomaly). So it shouldn’t surprise us that “Seltic” was once overwhelmingly the norm. The now-dominant pronunciation “Keltic” is a modern innovation.

You can read the rest at Mental Floss, and feel free to leave a comment either there or below.

[photo by Adriao]

Like this:

Related

This entry was posted on Thursday, March 17th, 2016 at 8:12 pm and is filed under language, phonetics, usage, words. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

30 Responses to How to pronounce ‘Celtic’

The word “cello” is not an anomaly. It is an Italian loan word, so it follows the pronunciation and orthographic rules of its source language.

You missed my point, which is that cello is an anomaly in English phonology. I’m aware of its origin.

I see the point that you were trying to make. But I think that a loanword cannot really be cited to make that point, because we don’t expect a loanword to conform to English pronunciation norms.

If you count “cello”, then you’d have to count every Italian loanword that has a C in that environment (“concerto”, “vermicelli”, “cappucino”, etc.).

By contrast, a good example of an anomalous pronunciation of C in front of E or I in an English word would be the electrical term “arcing”, the participle of the verb “to arc”, in which the C retains the K sound despite being followed by an I.

The context is a discussion of English words beginning with the letters ‘ce-‘. Nearly every such word starts with the sound /s/. Cello, which starts with /tʃ/, is therefore anomalous in that context. Perhaps it wasn’t the best example, but I didn’t want to ignore it.

Many people have tried to explain eloquently and failed, but you did a great job with it!

Much appreciated, Damean.

Oh, I’m kind of devastated. But not surprised.
I was really attached to Keltic. My etymology obsession tells me that Keltoi has to evolve into Keltic, it’s only logical. But you are right, when did logic ever have anything to do with it anyway. But I never hear Seltic. I thought that ‘the Selts’ only referred to some American football team or other. I only ever heard one person in all my life tell me that it should be pronounced Seltic, and unfortunately the gentleman in question was known to me to be a pathological liar, and generally creepy, so I have a negative emotional memory attached there. I’m just going to keep saying Keltic and not tell anyone I read this post. But I promise never to contradict anyone who says Seltic, if I find one.

I never hear ‘Seltic’ either except in reference to the Scottish soccer team. Even friends at college who were doing Celtic studies said ‘Keltic’, though I can’t vouch for everyone in the department. I’ll keep saying ‘Keltic’ too, since there’s no reason to forsake it on the grounds of tradition: usage does its own thing.

My personal rule is “/k/ unless speaking of sports (or speaking French), then /s/”.

Same for me, though I hadn’t thought of it as a rule before.

Loved your demolition of the idea that there ought to be just one correct pronunciation 🙂

And it was interesting to hear the history behind this word – I’d never have guessed it was borrowed from French!

Thanks, Meirav. 🙂 Yes, the history is pretty interesting, not least the fact that the contrary ‘Keltic’ pronunciation was spread by academics. They’re more usually the ones complaining about young people’s reckless and illogical use of language!

Very interesting that both are correct. Nice research. I always thought it was “seltic,” because of the Boston Celtics. But then noticed that I heard “keltic” in reference to culture, music, etc. So I had always thought maybe keltic was correct, but for whatever reason we call the team the seltics, and even though it’s incorrect we keep doing it because no one wants to ever change sports traditions.

It seems to be very pervasive, the idea that only one form of a word can be right. I know I internalised it before learning otherwise. Prescriptive grammarians have a lot to answer for in this respect. They tend to dislike variants automatically, maybe out of some bizarre need for tidiness or something. Others adopt the fallacy, and we’re left with the implicit idea that you can’t have multiple equally acceptable versions of a word. Which is a pity.

I agree, it is a pity. But I can understand the need for tidiness and dislike for variants. English is such a wild and untidy language already. Every rule has so many exceptions, and now you want to let people pronounce things multiple ways?! I get that the scholars wouldn’t like that. I like what you said in your article, that we speak the same way as the people around us. It’s funny how if I meet someone with an obviously different accent, I wouldn’t try to correct their pronunciation of something. I think “they are from someplace else, so it’s OK that it’s different.” But if I feel they are from “my” same area I might judge them. For example, when my sister says “da-ta” instead of “day-ta” I silently think “you’re doing it wrong.” I don’t know if data has a geographical norm in terms of pronunciation because I hear it both ways pretty frequently. Is one grammatically more correct?

No, the two pronunciations are totally fine. Most major dictionaries include both as standard.

Oh OK. I’ll stop thinking the other pronunciation is wrong then 🙂

My work here is done 🙂

Similarly with Gaelic, but that may be a Scottish/Irish distinction (which you may have discussed previously). So, various ways to say “Celtic Gaelic”

I haven’t discussed that before, but a friend told me recently she was corrected for saying ‘Irish’ when she meant, well, Irish. The other person felt she should say ‘Gaelic’.

That surprises me, Stan. I take it your friend was in America, because in Ireland — where the Irish language (Gaeilge) is overwhelmingly called “Irish” when speaking in English — the reverse is true: it’s calling the language “Gaelic” that may cause frowns, since the G. word is generally confined to the area of “Gaelic games” (hurling etc.) or else to that of Gaelic culture more generally (which includes the Irish, Scottish, and Manx Gaelic languages). Scottish Gaelic IS, by contrast, frequently referred to as just “Gaelic” — but in that instance the word is pronounced differently: as /ˈɡalɪk/, not /ˈɡeɪlɪk/.

Yes, it was an American friend, and the discussion took place with other Americans.

One thing I don’t understand is whether /ˈɡalɪk/ is the pronunciation in Scotland of the word Gaelic in all contexts, or whether it’s confined to the name of the language.

Interesting question, John! I guess that one way to find out might be to collar the next passing Scotsman and ask him what he calls that game they play in Ireland with a round inflated ball that you can throw, kick, or punch. (Probably too Ireland-specific though: I suspect that /ˈɡalɪk/ probably does relate just to the language spoken in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland.)

How to pronounce celtic?

Asked by: Cydney Upton

Celtic refers to Irish culture and heritage, along with the historical people who migrated from the British Isles throughout much of Europe. While the early pronunciation was with an /s/ sound, reflecting its nearest origin in French, the modern standard is a hard «c» sound like /k/.

Is Celtic pronounced Seltic or Keltic?

The 1926 edition says “Seltic” is preferred, and the 1996 edition says that “Keltic” is preferred except for the Boston Celtics and the Glasgow, Scotland, soccer team called the Celtic Football Club.

How do the Irish say Celtic?

Why is Celtic not Keltic?

How do you pronounce Celtic name?

How to Pronounce ‘Celtic.’ ‘Whiskey’ or ‘Whisky’? Grammar Girl #762

24 related questions found

Is Celtic Irish or Scottish?

Today, the term Celtic generally refers to the languages and respective cultures of Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Cornwall, the Isle of Man, and Brittany, also known as the Celtic nations. These are the regions where four Celtic languages are still spoken to some extent as mother tongues.

What is the Celtic religion beliefs?

Celtic religion was polytheistic, believing in many deities, both gods and goddesses, some of which were venerated only in a small, local area, but others whose worship had a wider geographical distribution.

Are Scots Celtic?

While Highland Scots are of Celtic (Gaelic) descent, Lowland Scots are descended from people of Germanic stock. During the seventh century C.E., settlers of Germanic tribes of Angles moved from Northumbria in present- day northern England and southeastern Scotland to the area around Edinburgh.

Where did Celts come from?

The Celts were a collection of tribes with origins in central Europe that shared a similar language, religious beliefs, traditions and culture.

How do you pronounce Boston Celtic?

«While the team name is pronounced «Sell-ticks,» the word «Celtic» is pronounced «Kell-tick» in Ireland.»

What does the Celtic knot signify?

Is Celtic and Gaelic the same?

Is the Celtic knot pagan?

The Origin of the Trinity Knot Design

According to archaeologists and scholars, the Trinity Knot first appears as a pagan design. Used by Celts, it appears it was adopted and repurposed as a symbol of the Holy Trinity by early Irish Christians in the 4th century.

Is it IKEA or Ikea?

Americans have been pronouncing the name of the Swedish furniture store Ikea all wrong, «Today» found out. Instead of emphasizing the the first letter and saying «eye-kee-ah,» the way the word was intended to be pronounced is apparently «ee-kay-uh.»

What did Celts call themselves?

During the last few centuries before 1 AD the Romans and the Greeks thought of themselves as the civilised inhabitants of the known world. They considered the people who lived to the north as barbarians. The Greeks called them Keltoi (Celts) and the Romans called them Galli (Gauls).

What are Scottish facial features?

Scottish women, for the most part, have a light brown or red hair, which makes them very elegant and aristocratic. Uniqueness to the appearance is given also by light skin (sometimes with freckles).

Is Scottish and Irish DNA the same?

What are the 7 Celtic Nations?

Ireland, Scotland, Isle of Man, Wales, Cornwall, Brittany, Galtcia and Asturias. There is also Patagonia.

What is the oldest religion?

The word Hindu is an exonym, and while Hinduism has been called the oldest religion in the world, many practitioners refer to their religion as Sanātana Dharma (Sanskrit: सनातन धर्म, lit. »the Eternal Dharma»), which refers to the idea that its origins lie beyond human history, as revealed in the Hindu texts.

Who do Celts worship?

The Celtic religion, druidism, was closely tied to the natural world and they worshipped their gods in sacred places like lakes, rivers, cliffs and bushes. The moon, the sun and the stars were especially important, the Celts thought that there were supernatural forces.

What do Celtic Pagans call themselves?

People who belong to the religion call themselves «Celtic Reconstructionists» or «Celtic Reconstructionist Pagans». Sometimes they just call themseleves «CRs». The Celts were the people who lived long ago in many parts of Europe, but mainly in the countries of Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and Gaul (modern-day France).

What is Black Irish nationality?

The definition of black Irish is used to describe Irish people with dark hair and dark eyes thought to be decedents of the Spanish Armada of the mid-1500s, or it is a term used in the United States by mixed-race descendants of Europeans and African Americans or Native Americans to hide their heritage.

Why is England not considered Celtic?

Are Welsh people Celtic?

Today, Wales is seen as a Celtic nation. The Welsh Celtic identity is widely accepted and contributes to a wider modern national identity. During the 1st centuries BC and AD, however, it was specific tribes and leaders which were named.

Is Celtic Pronounced “Keltic” or “Seltic”?

The Celtic pronunciation question of “keltic” versus “seltic” is one of those “religious issues.” I’ve checked all the major English dictionaries, including my two personal favorites, the American Heritage Dictionary of The English Language (Unabridged, Fifth Edition) and the Oxford English Dictionary. All of the dictionaries agree; either pronunciation is acceptable, though “keltic” is preferred, and is usually listed first.

The Derivation Argument and Celtic Pronunciation

There are some who argue that “keltic” is the “correct” pronunciation because both Irish and Welsh use the letter C to indicate the sound represented by the letter K in English. This is a spurious argument since the ancient Celts did not refer to themselves as “Celts.” The word Celt is derived from Keltoi, the name the Greeks gave the “barbarian” tribes along the Danube and Rhone rivers. The Romans borrowed the Greek name, but spelled it Celtae, and the word entered French in the form Celtes, from which English derives Celt.

Celtic Pronunciation: The Scholarly Preference

I prefer “keltic” as the Celtic pronunciation to refer to the Celtic languages and cultures, and so all of the English-speaking Medievalists and Celticists (that’s “kelticists”) I know.

When I’m asked whether “keltic” or “seltic” is the correct Celtic pronunciation, I like to point out that by preferring “keltic” for the speakers of Celtic languages, we avoid confusing the speakers of an Indo-European language with professional basketball players (in Boston) or football players (in Glasgow). But, either pronunciation is technically correct; see your local dictionary.