Etymology

lough

L1O1U1G2H4

Today it means: A lake or long, narrow inlet, especially in Ireland. Full definition →

Irish loch ← Old Irish loch ← Proto-Celtic *loku
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lough · noun1

  1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*lókus“pond, pool”
  2. Proto-Celtic · derived from*loku“lake, pool”
  3. Old Irish · derived fromloch
  4. Irish · borrowed fromloch
  5. English todaylough

Borrowed from Irish loch (from Old Irish loch), from Proto-Celtic *loku (“lake, pool”), from Proto-Indo-European *lókus (“pond, pool”). Doublet of lay, loch, and Looe.

lough · noun2

  1. Proto-Celtic · derived from*lokus“lake, pool”
  2. Proto-Brythonic · derived from*lux
  3. Cumbric · derived from*luch
  4. Middle English · inherited fromlough
  5. English todaylough

From Middle English lough, logh, luh, borrowed from Cumbric *luch, derived from Proto-Brythonic *lux, from Proto-Celtic *lokus (“lake, pool”).

Words from the same roots

Proto-Indo-European*lókus all →

laycunette

Middle Englishlough all →

lowloch

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.