tylluan

Welsh

Etymology

This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.
Particularly: “No etymology or cognates given by GPC, and cursory online search suggests that no literature has tried to deduce the word's etymology. That said, it seems the term may have originally referred to screech owls in particular^[1] (with the original generic "owl" term being the now-obsolete cuan; see Proto-Celtic *kuwannos (“owl”) for more on that term). Screech owls tend to prefer dwelling in and near old trees with hollows, so maybe this is a compound of tyllu (“to make a hole, perforate”) +‎ -an (“nominal suffix”), the former component derived from twll (“hole, burrow”).”

Pronunciation

(North Wales) IPA^(key): /təˈɬɨ̞ː.an/
(South Wales) IPA^(key): /təˈɬiː.an/
Rhymes: -ɨːan

Noun

tylluan f (plural tylluanod)

owl

Synonyms

cuan
gwdihŵ

Derived terms

tylluan fawr (“Eurasian eagle-owl”)
tylluan frech (“tawny owl”)
tylluan glustiog (“short-eared owl”)
tylluan wen (“barn owl”)

Mutation

Welsh mutation
radical	soft	nasal	aspirate
tylluan	dylluan	nhylluan	thylluan
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

References

R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “tylluan”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies

^ Angelika Rudiger (2022) Y Tylwyth Teg. An Analysis of a Literary Motif. (Doctor of Philosophy)‎^[1], Bangor, Wales: Bangor University, archived from the original on 2024-03-07, page 30

[1] Angelika Rudiger (2022) Y Tylwyth Teg. An Analysis of a Literary Motif. (Doctor of Philosophy)‎^[1], Bangor, Wales: Bangor University, archived from the original on 2024-03-07, page 30

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