melc'hwed
Breton
Etymology
From Proto-Brythonic *melw- (“soft”), from Proto-Celtic *meldo- (“pleasant, mild”), *mlido (“soft”), from Proto-Indo-European *ml̥dus (“soft, weak”); compare Breton melw (“snot”)); akin to Cornish melhwes, Welsh malwod. Also see Gaulish *multon- (“sheep”), which could be related. Cf. also Romanian melc (“snail”).
Noun
melc’hwed f (singulative melc’hwedenn)
- snails
- slugs
Synonyms
- (snails): maligorn
- (slugs): buoc’h lard
Hyponyms
- melc’hwed krogennek (“snail”)
Mutation
Mutation of melc'hwed
| Breton consonant mutation | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| unmutated | soft | aspirate | hard | |
| singular | melc'hwedenn | velc'hwedenn | unchanged | unchanged |
| plural | melc'hwed | velc'hwed | unchanged | unchanged |
Further reading
- Matasović, Ranko (2009), “meldo-”, in Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 9), Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, pages 262