Illustrated Gaelic-English Dictionary [Hardcover]

Edward Dwelly (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 2001

The Dwelly dictionary is to Gaelic as the Oxford dictionary is to English. This extraordinary publication contains every Gaelic word and meaning given in previously published dictionaries, and a great number never before in print.

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English

Product Details

• Hardcover: 1052 pages
• Publisher: Birlinn Ltd (September 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1841581097
• ISBN-13: 978-1841581095
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.6 x 2.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,308,899 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #57 in Books > Education & Reference > Dictionaries & Thesauruses > Foreign Language > Celtic
  • #83 in Books > Education & Reference > Dictionaries & Thesauruses > Foreign Language > Gaelic

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars comprehensive but outdated: not for beginners, August 28, 2000

By 

Jason P. Sorens "Political Scientist" (Tonawanda, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Illustrated Gaelic-English Dictionary (Paperback)

I found the "Faclair Gaidhlig gu Beurla le Dealbhan" in my high school library of all places and was so impressed by the beauty of the Gaelic language that I began learning it at once. Dwelly's dictionary is a massive tome, possibly including just about every Gaelic word in existence at the time. The place and family names reference in the back is also quite interesting.

That having been said, this dictionary is outdated in a lot of ways. It uses the old orthography with acute accents and lots of apostrophes in odd places. Also, it lacks an English-Gaelic section, which reduces the value-for-price ratio for the Gaelic learner, who is often attempting to translate his English thoughts into Gaelic. In my view, all a learner needs is Owen's "Modern Gaelic to English Dictionary" and Thomson's "New English to Gaelic Dictionary."

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars wonderful asset for gaelic hounds, July 24, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Illustrated Gaelic-English Dictionary (Hardcover)

For this price...buy it, buy two...I paid four times that and would pay it again...all the illustrations...names of old herbs...modernized Gaelic family names reverted to old spelling and hence old meaning...a treasure

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars still a definitive resource, April 9, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Illustrated Gaelic-English Dictionary (Paperback)

Although it is a fairly old dictionary, it remains one of the three most valuable reference dictionaries for the Gaelic language. It was compiled at a time when many of the old speakers were still alive, and so it contains a lot of information about what Gaelic was like when there were more and larger Gaelic speaking communities in Scotland. This is an excellent price for it, too. If you are looking for a Gaelic-English dictionary containing many of the older words no longer put in new dictionaries or just for a useful reference tool, this is an excellent investment.