a Celtic language that includes the speech of ancient Ireland and the dialects that have developed from it, especially those usually known as Irish, Manx, and Scottish Gaelic. Gaelic constitutes the Goidelic subbranch of Celtic.
Also called Q-Celtic. the subbranch of Celtic in which the Proto-Indo-European kw -sound remained a velar. Irish and Scottish Gaelic belong to Goidelic.
