Pictish Language: The Mysterious Ogham Inscriptions of Scotland Leon-Alexander von Sabelfeld (2024) Pictish Language: The Mysterious Ogham Inscriptions of Scotland Abstract The Pictish language has always been a mystery for us. Most of our knowledge is based on toponymic sources, Gaelic annals and personal names, but we have always had another source for this language - oghams, which came to Pictland with Celtic Christianity in the 500's. Most people see Pictish as a “dialect of Brythonic”, not allowing other theories to be discussed. Due to the lack of information and studies about Pictish oghams, in this article, I firstly discuss base information known about Pictish, and later try to interpret and decipher scholastic oghams found in various places of Eastern and Northern Scotland, Northern Isles and England, which are believed to be connected to Pictish language. After giving all listed oghams a possible interpretation, I discuss and suggest various theories of Pictish origin, development of the language, its possible history and substrate, concluding all suggested information at the end. Table of Contents 1. Part I – The inscriptions and the language 2 1.1 Which sources of Pictish do we have? 2 1.2 Why and when did the Pictish language die out? 3 2. Part II - Interpretation 4 2.10 nehhtvrobbaccennevv maqqotalluorrh 4 2.11 qmi 4 2.12 ammaqqtallv lv bahhrrassudds 5 2.13 vuunon itedovob b 6 2.14 (m)onnorranrr 6 2.15 irataddoarens 6 2.16 crroscc: nahhtvvddadds: dattr: ann bennises: meqqddrroan 7 2.17 rginngchqodtosombs 8 2.18 iru 9 2.19 allhhallorreddmaqqnuuvvhrre 9 2.20 idbmirrhannurractkevvcerroccs 10 2.21 ttlietrenoiddors ..uhtuoaged… 10 2.22 (…)besmeqqnanammovvez 11 2.23 duv nodnnatmaqqnahhto… 12 2.24 drosten ipe uoret ett forcus 12 2.25 ineittemen mats 13 2.27 resad fili spusscio 14 2.28 iddarqnnnvorrenn iku(a) iosie 14 2.29 nehtetri 15 2.30 ettecuhetts: ahehhttannn: hccvvevv: nehhtons 15 2.31 etteca… ..v: dattua …rtt.. 16 2.32 inehhetestieq…inne 16 2.33 ...ehteconmors …dov …ddrs 17 1