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Ptarmigan

2 stages from Scottish Gaelic to English.

Today it means a grouse of mountain and Arctic regions that turns white in winter

Where does the word "ptarmigan" come from? It comes from Scottish Gaelic tàrmachan, adopted directly into English (1680s).

1
Stage 1 of 2
tàrmachan
Scottish Gaelic · medieval
"ptarmigan"
the mountain grouse that turns white in winter, found on high Scottish tops such as the Cairngorms
2
Stage 2 of 2
ptarmigan
English · 1680s
"mountain grouse"
the silent p- was added by Sir Robert Sibbald in his Scotia Illustrata (1684), wrongly assuming a Greek origin like pteron 'wing'
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Ptarmigan’s story begins in Scottish Gaelic: tàrmachan meant “ptarmigan.” The mountain grouse that turns white in winter, found on high Scottish tops such as the Cairngorms. It reached English by 1680s as ptarmigan. The silent p- was added by Sir Robert Sibbald in his Scotia Illustrata (1684), wrongly assuming a Greek origin like pteron 'wing'. Today, ptarmigan means a grouse of mountain and Arctic regions that turns white in winter.