Kernewek
Cornish
Indo-European (Celtic, Brythonic)
Cornish (Kernewek) is a revived Brythonic Celtic language native to Cornwall in southwestern Britain, sister to Welsh and Breton. The original native-speaker tradition died out in the late 18th century with Dolly Pentreath of Mousehole (d. 1777), often cited as the last monoglot speaker, though traces lingered into the 19th century. Modern revived Cornish dates from Henry Jenner's 1904 Handbook of the Cornish Language, building on medieval mystery plays (Beunans Meriasek, Beunans Ke) and the Tregear homilies. Three competing orthographies (Unified, Kemmyn/Common, Modern/Standard Written Form) were unified by the SWF in 2008. ~600 fluent users today via the Cornish Language Partnership (Maga) and Mebyon Kernow movement; UK government recognition under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages (2002) and full revived-language status from UNESCO in 2010.
Where it is spoken
87 core words in Cornish
sushi
Sources
- Jenner, Henry (1904) A Handbook of the Cornish Language. London: David Nutt
Words compared
Compared with languages in the same classification: Indo-European (Celtic, Brythonic)
| Meaning | Cornish | Breton | Welsh | Swedish | Limburgish | Norwegian | Saterland Frisian |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | dowr /dɔuɾ/ | dour /duːɾ/ | dŵr /duːr/ | vatten /vatːɛn/ | water /vatər/ | vann /vɑnː/ | Woater /ˈvɔːtər/ |
| Fire | tan /tan/ | tan /tɑ̃ːn/ | tân /tɑːn/ | eld /ɛld/ | vuur /vyːr/ | ild /ilː/ | Fjuur /fjuːr/ |
| Sun | howl /haʊl/ | heol /heːɔl/ | haul /haɨl/ | sol /suːl/ | zón /zɔn/ | sol /suːl/ | Sunne /ˈsʊnə/ |
| Moon | loor /loːɾ/ | loar /lwaːɾ/ | lleuad /ɬɛɨ̯ad/ | måne /moːnɛ/ | maon /maːʊn/ | måne /moːnə/ | Moune /ˈmoːu̯nə/ |
| Star | sterenn /ˈstɛrɛn/ | steredenn /steˈreːdɛn/ | seren /ˈsɛrɛn/ | stjärna /ˈɧæːɳa/ | sjter /ʃtɛr/ | stjerne /ˈstjæːɳə/ | Stiern /stiərn/ |
| Night | nos /noːz/ | noz /noːs/ | nos /noːs/ | natt /natː/ | nach /nax/ | natt /nɑtː/ | Noacht /nɔːxt/ |
| Rain | glaw /ɡlɛu/ | glav /ɡlɑːw/ | glaw /ɡlau̯/ | regn /rɛŋn/ | Rään /rɛːn/ | regn /rɛjn/ | Rien /rin/ |
| Snow | ergh /ɛrx/ | erc'h /ɛrx/ | eira /əɨra/ | snö /snøː/ | sjnee /ʃneː/ | snø /snøː/ | Snee /sneː/ |
| Wind | gwyns /ɡwɪnz/ | avel /ˈavɛl/ | gwynt /ɡwɪnt/ | vind /vɪnd/ | wind /vɪnt/ | vind /vɪnː/ | Wíend /viːnd/ |
| Earth | dor /doːr/ | douar /ˈduːar/ | pridd /priːð/ | jord /juːrd/ | eerd /eːrt/ | jord /juːr/ | Äide /ˈɛɪ̯də/ |
| Stone | men /mɛːn/ | maen /mɛːn/ | carreg /ˈkarɛɡ/ | sten /steːn/ | steen /steːn/ | stein /stæɪn/ | Steen /steːn/ |
| Mountain | menydh /ˈmɛnɪð/ | menez /ˈmeːnɛs/ | mynydd /ˈmənɨð/ | berg /bærj/ | berg /ˈbɛrəç/ | fjell /fjɛlː/ | Bierich /ˈbiːrɪx/ |
| Sea | mor /mɔːr/ | mor /moːr/ | môr /moːr/ | hav /hɑːv/ | zieë /ziə/ | hav /hɑːv/ | See /seː/ |
| Mother | mamm /mam/ | mamm /mɑ̃m/ | mam /mam/ | mamma /mamːa/ | mam /mam/ | mor /muːr/ | Mäme /ˈmɛːmə/ |
| Father | tas /taːs/ | tad /taːd/ | tad /tɑːd/ | pappa /papːa/ | pap /pap/ | far /fɑːr/ | Babe /ˈbaːbə/ |
| Daughter | myrgh /mɪrx/ | merc'h /mɛrx/ | merch /mɛrx/ | dotter /ˈdɔtːɛr/ | dochter /dɔxtər/ | datter /ˈdatːər/ | Dochter /ˈdɔxtər/ |
| I | my /mɪ/ | me /me/ | fi /viː/ | jag /jɑːɡ/ | ich /ɪç/ | jeg /jæɪ/ | iek /ik/ |
| You | ty /tɪ/ | te /te/ | ti /tiː/ | du /dʉː/ | doe /du/ | du /dʉː/ | du /du/ |
| We | ni /niː/ | ni /ni/ | ni /niː/ | vi /viː/ | veer /veːr/ | vi /viː/ | wie /vi/ |
| Name | hanow /ˈhanɔw/ | anv /ˈãːno/ | enw /ˈɛnu/ | namn /namn/ | naam /naːm/ | navn /nɑʋn/ | Noome /ˈnoːmə/ |
| Person | den /deːn/ | den /deːn/ | person /ˈpɛrsɔn/ | människa /ˈmɛnːɪɧa/ | Minsch /minʃ/ | menneske /ˈmɛnːəskə/ | Moanske /ˈmɔːnskə/ |
| Head | penn /pɛn/ | penn /pɛn/ | pen /pɛn/ | huvud /ˈhʉːvɵd/ | kop /kɔp/ | hode /ˈhuːdə/ | Haud /haːu̯d/ |
| Eye | lagas /ˈlaɡas/ | lagad /laɡat/ | llygad /ɬəɡad/ | öga /øːɡa/ | oug /ɔux/ | øye /øjə/ | Oge /ˈoːɣə/ |
| Ear | skovarn /ˈskɔvarn/ | skouarn /ˈskwarn/ | clust /klɪst/ | öra /øːra/ | oear /uər/ | øre /øːrə/ | Oor /oːr/ |
| Nose | tron /troːn/ | fri /friː/ | trwyn /truːɨ̯n/ | näsa /ˈnɛːsa/ | naas /naːs/ | nese /ˈneːsə/ | Noose /ˈnoːzə/ |
| Mouth | ganow /ˈɡanɔʊ/ | genou /ˈɡeːnu/ | ceg /keːɡ/ | mun /mɵn/ | móndj /mʊɲɟ/ | munn /mʉnː/ | Muule /ˈmuːlə/ |
| Tooth | dans /danz/ | dant /dãnt/ | dant /dant/ | tand /tand/ | tandj /tantʃ/ | tann /tɑnː/ | Tusk /tʊsk/ |
| Tongue | taves /ˈtavəs/ | teod /tɛwt/ | tafod /ˈtavɔd/ | tunga /ˈtɵŋa/ | tóng /tɔŋ/ | tunge /ˈtʊŋə/ | Tunge /ˈtʊŋə/ |
| Hand | leuv /lœv/ | dorn /dɔɾn/ | llaw /ɬaʊ/ | hand /hand/ | handj /hanʲ/ | hånd /hɔnː/ | Hounde /ˈhoːu̯ndə/ |
| Foot | troos /troːz/ | troad /troat/ | troed /troːɨ̯d/ | fot /fuːt/ | voot /voːt/ | fot /fuːt/ | Fout /foːu̯t/ |
| Heart | kolon /ˈkɔlɔn/ | kalon /kalɔ̃n/ | calon /kalɔn/ | hjärta /ˈjæʈːa/ | hart /hart/ | hjerte /ˈjæʈə/ | Haat /haːt/ |
| Bone | askorn /ˈaskɔrn/ | askorn /ˈaskorn/ | asgwrn /ˈasɡʊrn/ | ben /beːn/ | knaok /knɔːk/ | bein /bæɪn/ | Bunke /ˈbʊŋkə/ |
| Blood | goos /ɡoːz/ | gwad /ɡwaːt/ | gwaed /ɡwaɨd/ | blod /bluːd/ | blood /bloːt/ | blod /bluː/ | Bloud /bloːu̯d/ |
| Poop | kawgh /kauɣ/ | kac'h /kax/ | cach /kaːx/ | bajs /bajs/ | poep /pup/ | bæsj /bæʃ/ | Skiet /skiːt/ |
| Love | kerensa /kɛˈɾɛnsa/ | karantez /kaɾɑ̃ntes/ | cariad /karjad/ | kärlek /ɕæːɭɛk/ | leefde /leːfdə/ | kjærlighet /ˈçæːɭɪˌheːt/ | Ljoowe /ˈljoːvə/ |
| Tree | gwedhen /ˈɡwɛðən/ | gwezenn /ˈɡweːzɛn/ | coeden /kɔɨdɛn/ | träd /trɛːd/ | boum /bʌʊm/ | tre /treː/ | Boom /boːm/ |
| Dog | ki /kiː/ | ki /kiː/ | ci /kiː/ | hund /hɵnd/ | hóndj /hɔnʲ/ | hund /hʉnː/ | Huund /huːnd/ |
| Cat | kath /kaːθ/ | kazh /kaːs/ | cath /kɑːθ/ | katt /katː/ | kat /kat/ | katt /kɑtː/ | Kat /kat/ |
| Fish | pysk /pisk/ | pesk /pesk/ | pysgodyn /pəsˈɡɔdɨn/ | fisk /fɪsk/ | vis /vɪs/ | fisk /fɪsk/ | Fisk /fɪsk/ |
| Bird | edhen /ɛðɛn/ | evn /ẽːvn/ | aderyn /aˈdɛrɨn/ | fågel /ˈfoːɡɛl/ | veugel /ˈvøːɣəl/ | fugl /fʉːɡl/ | Fugel /ˈfuːɣəl/ |
| Butterfly | tykki Duw /ˈtɪki dyʊ/ | balafenn /balaˈfɛn/ | glöyn byw /ˈɡlɔɨn ˈbɪu/ | fjäril /ˈfjæːrɪl/ | kapel /kaˈpɛl/ | sommerfugl /ˈsɔmərfʉːl/ | Flitterke /ˈflɪtərkə/ |
| Egg | oy /ɔɪ/ | vi /viː/ | wy /uːɨ/ | ägg /ɛɡː/ | ei /ɛi/ | egg /æɡ/ | Oai /ɔːɪ̯/ |
| Bear | arth /arθ/ | arzh /ars/ | arth /arθ/ | björn /bjœːɳ/ | beer /beːr/ | bjørn /bjœːɳ/ | Boar /bɔːr/ |
| Horse | margh /marx/ | marc'h /marx/ | ceffyl /ˈkɛfɨl/ | häst /hɛst/ | Péërt /peə̯rt/ | hest /hɛst/ | Houngst /hoːu̯ŋst/ |
| House | chi /tʃiː/ | ti /tiː/ | tŷ /tɨː/ | hus /hʉːs/ | hoes /huːs/ | hus /hʉːs/ | Huus /huːs/ |
| Milk | leth /lɛθ/ | laezh /leːs/ | llaeth /ɬaːɨθ/ | mjölk /mjœlk/ | melk /mɛlk/ | melk /mɛlk/ | Molk /molk/ |
| Honey | mel /meːl/ | mel /meːl/ | mêl /meːl/ | honung /ˈhoːnɵŋ/ | honing /ˈhoːnɪŋ/ | honning /ˈhɔnːɪŋ/ | Huunich /ˈhuːnɪx/ |
| Salt | holan /ˈhɔlan/ | holen /ˈhoːlɛn/ | halen /ˈhalɛn/ | salt /salt/ | zout /zɔut/ | salt /sɑlt/ | Soalt /sɔːlt/ |
| Wine | gwin /ɡwiːn/ | gwin /ɡwiːn/ | gwin /ɡwiːn/ | vin /viːn/ | wien /ʋiːn/ | vin /viːn/ | Wien /vin/ |
| Rice | ris /riːs/ | riz /riːs/ | reis /reis/ | ris /riːs/ | ries /riːs/ | ris /riːs/ | Ries /riːs/ |
| Chocolate | choklet /ˈtʃɔklɛt/ | chokolad /ʃoˈkoːlat/ | siocled /ˈʃɔklɛd/ | choklad /ɕʊˈklɑːd/ | sjoekelaat /ʃukəˈlaːt/ | sjokolade /ʃukuˈlɑːdə/ | Sukkeloade /sʊkəˈlɔːdə/ |
| Iron | horn /hɔɾn/ | houarn /ˈhuːaɾn/ | haearn /ˈheɨarn/ | järn /jæːɳ/ | iezer /ˈiːzər/ | jern /jæːɳ/ | Iersen /ˈiəzn̩/ |
| Wheel | ros /roːz/ | rod /roːd/ | olwyn /ˈɔlʊɨn/ | hjul /juːl/ | wiel /ʋiːl/ | hjul /juːl/ | Jool /juːl/ |
| Book | lyver /ˈlɪvɛr/ | levr /lɛvr/ | llyfr /ɬɪvr/ | bok /buːk/ | book /boːk/ | bok /buːk/ | Bouk /boːu̯k/ |
| Eat | dybri /ˈdɨbɾi/ | debriñ /debɾĩː/ | bwyta /bʊɨta/ | äta /ɛːta/ | ete /eːtə/ | spise /spiːsə/ | iete /ˈitə/ |
| Drink | eva /ˈɛva/ | evañ /eːvɑ̃/ | yfed /əvɛd/ | dricka /drɪkːa/ | drinke /drɪŋkə/ | drikke /drɪkːə/ | drinke /ˈdrɪŋkə/ |
| Sleep | koska /ˈkɔska/ | kousket /ˈkuskət/ | cysgu /ˈkəsɡɨ/ | sova /ˈsuːva/ | slaope /ˈslɔːpə/ | sove /ˈsuːvə/ | släipe /ˈslɛɪpə/ |
| One | onen /ˈɔnən/ | unan /yːnɑ̃n/ | un /ɨːn/ | en /eːn/ | eine /ɛɪnə/ | en /eːn/ | aan /aːn/ |
| Two | dew /dɛʊ/ | daou /dɔw/ | dau /daɨ/ | två /tvoː/ | twee /tweː/ | to /tuː/ | twäin /tvɛɪ̯n/ |
| Three | tri /triː/ | tri /triː/ | tri /triː/ | tre /treː/ | drie /driː/ | tre /treː/ | trjo /trjɔ/ |
| Four | peswar /ˈpɛzwar/ | pevar /ˈpɛːvar/ | pedwar /ˈpɛdwar/ | fyra /ˈfyːra/ | veer /veːr/ | fire /ˈfiːrə/ | fjauer /ˈfjaːu̯ər/ |
| Five | pymp /pɪmp/ | pemp /pɛmp/ | pump /pɨmp/ | fem /fɛmː/ | vief /viːf/ | fem /fɛm/ | fieuw /fiu̯/ |
| Hundred | kans /kans/ | kant /kãnt/ | cant /kant/ | hundra /ˈhɵndra/ | hóndert /ˈhɔndərt/ | hundre /ˈhʉndrə/ | hunnert /ˈhʊnərd/ |
| Hello | dydh da /dɪð daː/ | demat /deːmat/ | helô /hɛˈloː/ | hej /hɛj/ | hallo /halo/ | hei /hɛɪ/ | Moin /mɔy̯n/ |
| Thank you | meur ras /mœːɾ ɾaːs/ | trugarez /tɾyɡaɾes/ | diolch /diːɔlx/ | tack /takː/ | merci /mɛrsi/ | takk /tɑkː/ | Tonk /tɔŋk/ |
| Good | da /daː/ | mat /maːt/ | da /dɑː/ | bra /brɑː/ | good /ɡoːt/ | bra /brɑː/ | goud /ɣoːu̯d/ |
| New | nowydh /ˈnɔwɪð/ | nevez /ˈneːves/ | newydd /ˈnɛwɨð/ | ny /nyː/ | nuuj /nyːj/ | ny /nyː/ | näi /nɛɪ̯/ |
| Red | rudh /ryːð/ | ruz /ryːs/ | coch /koːx/ | röd /røːd/ | road /roːt/ | rød /røː/ | rood /roːd/ |
| White | gwynn /ɡwɪn/ | gwenn /ɡwɛn/ | gwyn /ɡwɪn/ | vit /viːt/ | wit /ʋɪt/ | hvit /ʋiːt/ | wiet /vit/ |
| Black | du /dyː/ | du /dyː/ | du /dɨː/ | svart /svart/ | zwart /zʋart/ | svart /svɑʈ/ | swot /svɔt/ |
| Green | gwyrdh /ɡwɪrð/ | gwer /ɡwɛr/ | gwyrdd /ɡwɪrð/ | grön /ɡrøːn/ | greun /ɡrøːn/ | grønn /ɡrœnː/ | gräin /ɣrɛɪ̯n/ |
| Blue | glas /ɡlaːz/ | glas /ɡlɑːs/ | glas /ɡlaːs/ | blå /bloː/ | blauw /blɑu/ | blå /bloː/ | blau /blaːu̯/ |
| Cuckoo | koukou /ˈkukuː/ | koukoug /ˈkukuk/ | cog /koːɡ/ | gök /jøːk/ | kókkók /ˈkoːkoːk/ | gjøk /jøːk/ | Kukuuk /ˈkukuk/ |
| Computer | jynn-amontya /dʒɪn əˈmɔntja/ | urzhiataer /yrzjaˈtaɛːr/ | cyfrifiadur /kəvrɪvˈjaːdɨr/ | dator /ˈdɑːtɔr/ | computer /kɔmˈpjuːtər/ | datamaskin /ˈdɑːtamaˌʃiːn/ | Computer /kɔmˈpjuːtər/ |
| Wi-Fi | DiWi /ˈdiwi/ | — | — | wifi /ˈwiːfi/ | — | wifi /ˈviːfi/ | — |
| Sushi | sushi | sushi /ˈsyʃi/ | swshi /ˈsʊʃi/ | sushi /ˈsʉːɧi/ | sushi /ˈsuʃi/ | sushi /ˈsʉːʃi/ | — |
| Tea | te /teː/ | te /teː/ | te /teː/ | te /tʰeː/ | tei /tɛi/ | te /tʰeː/ | Tee /teː/ |
| Coffee | koffi /ˈkɔfi/ | kafe /ˈkafe/ | coffi /ˈkɔfi/ | kaffe /ˈkafːɛ/ | koffie /ˈkɔfi/ | kaffe /ˈkɑfːə/ | Koafje /ˈkɔːfjə/ |
| Sugar | sugra /ˈsuɡra/ | sukr /sykɾ/ | siwgr /ˈʃʊɡʊr/ | socker /ˈsɔkːɛr/ | sókker /ˈsɔkər/ | sukker /ˈsʊkːər/ | Sukker /ˈsʊkər/ |
| Orange | owraval /ɔwˈraval/ | orañjez /oˈrãʒɛs/ | oren /ˈɔrɛn/ | apelsin /apɛlˈsiːn/ | sinaasappel /ˈsinaːsapəl/ | appelsin /ɑpəlˈsiːn/ | — |
| Ninety-nine | nownsek ha peswar ugens /naʊnzɛk ha ˈpɛzwar ˈɪɡənz/ | naontek ha pevar-ugent /nãwntek a pewaɾˈyːɡɛn/ | naw deg naw /nau dɛɡ nau/ | nittionio /ˈnɪtːiuˌniːu/ | — | nittini /ˈnɪtːiˌniː/ | — |
| Dopamine | Dopamin /dɔˈpamɪn/ | dopamin /doˈpamin/ | dopamin /dɔˈpamɪn/ | dopamin /dɔpaˈmiːn/ | dopamine /doːpaˈminə/ | dopamin /dʉpaˈmiːn/ | — |
Page 1/11
Open the interactive map: Word Map · HanMap · Name Map · Word Order · Tree
Part of LangMap — a linguistic visualization project. This is a static, crawlable summary; the interactive maps offer pronunciation audio, filters, and a globe view.
Made by Heuron Inc. · GitHub · cho@heuron.com · LangMap home