Etymology Explorer › Scottish Gaelic

Where does “Faoi” come from?

Faoi (Scottish Gaelic) comes from Scottish Gaelic Faoilleach, from Scottish Gaelic faol, from Middle Irish fáel, from Proto-Celtic *wailos, from Proto-Indo-European waylos, from Proto-Indo-European wáy, from Proto-Indo-European uwáy — to see oneself.

Ancestry of “Faoi”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Scottish GaelicFaoilleach—
2Scottish Gaelicfaolwolf
3Middle Irishfáelwolf
4Proto-Celtic*wailos—
5Proto-Indo-Europeanwayloswolf; howler
6Proto-Indo-Europeanwáyoh!; ah!; woe!
7Proto-Indo-Europeanuwáyto see oneself
Every word from Proto-Indo-European uwáy →