Focal an Lae #72
The Word of the Day in Irish
Word: buachaill (BOO-uh-xill)
Meaning: buachaill = boy
Usage:
- buachaill bán (... BAWN) = fair-haired lad; favourite son
- buachaill bó (... BOH) = cowboy
- an buachaill críonna (uh BOO-uh-xill KREE-uh-nuh) = the old fellow = the devil
History: Old Irish “búachaill”, meaning “cow herder”, comes from Common Celtic *bowkol- (compare Welsh “bugail”, shepherd),
which comes from Indo-European *gwow-kwol-. The first element of this compound is the word *gwous (ox, bull, cow)
and the second element comes from the root *kwel- (to revolve, move around, sojourn), the sense being a person who moves around with the cattle.
The Greek reflex of this word is “boukolos” (cowherd), which gives the adjective “boukolikos” (pastoral; rustic), from which the English “bucolic”.
Scottish Gaelic: buachaille, where it still retains the original meaning of cattle herder