Definition of Shelta

1. Proper noun. (Ireland) A cant used by members of the Travelling Community, based on older versions of the Irish language with modern English influences. ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Definition of Shelta

1. an esoteric jargon of Gaelic [n -S]

Lexicographical Neighbors of Shelta

shelling
shellings
shellless
shelllike
shellpad
shellproof
shells
shellshock
shellshocked
shellsuit
shellsuited
shellsuits
shellwork
shellworks
shelly
shelta (current term)
sheltas
shelter
shelter deck
shelter dog
shelter dogs
shelter tent
shelterbelt
shelterbelts
sheltered
sheltered workshop
sheltered workshops
shelterer
shelterers
sheltering

Literary usage of Shelta

Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:

1. Chamber's Encyclopaedia: A Dictionary of Universal Knowledge (1892)
"257-266) in an erudite paper on ' The Irish Origin and Antiquity of shelta ' adduced numerous references to this jargon in early Irish MSS. ..."

2. Journal of the Gypsy Lore Society by Gypsy Lore Society (1889)
"However it may conflict with the belief that shelta, rather than Romanes, ... That writer particularly says of shelta, "I class it with the Gypsy, ..."

3. American Gypsies by Albert Thomas Sinclair, George Fraser Black, New York Public Library (1917)
"Several shelta words are found in an old Irish manuscript called D nil ... shelta words are manufactured from Irish by reversing or transposing the letters ..."

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