slew

Where does the word "slew" come from? It comes from Old Irish slúag, and was adopted directly into English (1839).

Slew’s story begins in Old Irish: slúag meant “host, crowd.” 'host, army'; joined with gairm 'cry' as sluagh-ghairm, the battle cry, it is also the source of English 'slogan'. It reached English by 1839 as slew. First recorded in the US in 1839, in decades of heavy Irish immigration that peaked with the Great Famine of 1845-52. Today, slew means a large number or quantity.

1. Stage 1 · Old Irish · medieval slúag "host, crowd", 'host, army'; joined with gairm 'cry' as sluagh-ghairm, the battle cry, it is also the source of English 'slogan'.
2. Stage 2 · American English · 1839 slew "a large number", first recorded in the US in 1839, in decades of heavy Irish immigration that peaked with the Great Famine of 1845-52.