Home UK English cead mile failte

Meaning of cead mile failte in English:

cead mile failte

Pronunciation /ˌkeɪd miːlə ˈfɔːltʃə/

noun

Irish

  • Especially in Ireland: a warm welcome; good hospitality.

exclamation

Irish

  • As a greeting: welcome; (literally) ‘a hundred thousand welcomes’.

Origin

Early 19th century; earliest use found in Sydney Morgan (bap. 1783, d. 1859), novelist and socialite. Originally from Irish céad míle fáilte a hundred thousand welcomes from céad hundred + míle thousand (Early Irish míle from classical Latin mília, mílle see milli-) + fáilte welcome.