Do You Know Why Boston Is Called Celtics?
It goes way back in history. Popularly, Boston is known as Celtics because of the basketball team “Boston Celtics”.
History Behind Celtics
Boston is known for one of the many things; Boston Celtics. The town has its Irish history. Which indirectly points out the different pronunciations they have.
Since Walter A. Brown first founded the Celtics in 1946, we’ve always referred to them as the “Sel-tics,”
Why Do Some Bostonians Say ‘Seltics’ Instead of ‘Celtics’?
The avenue of pronunciation has been ingrained in Bostonians since the days of Bill Russell, Bob Cousy, and Tommy Heinsohn.
But anyone familiar with the culture rooted in the Emerald Isle knows that the “Seltic” diction more or less stands as an outlier, especially beyond the realm of sports. So why is there a discrepancy in terms of the pronunciation of “Celtic” — and are the Boston “Seltics” just another example of Bostonians (and Glasgow residents) taking an established linguistic practice and tossing it out the window?
Celtic (F.C.) goes back to the late 19th century … And then there’s a New York Celtics team that dies out and then Boston sort of picks up that name because of the Irish heritage, and so on. And by that time, ‘Seltic’ is common.”
Why is it called the Boston Celtics, and what is the meaning of the word?
Referencing former Boston Herald Traveler sportswriter George Sullivan’s comprehensive account of the Celtics’ first 50 years, Richard Johnson — curator of The Sports Museum — revealed that Walter Brown didn’t exactly need to delve very deep for inspiration,
According to “Howie McHugh”, who was the first publicist on the team. And the quote from Howie, who was there at the time —
Walter Brown said,
“Wait, I’ve got it: The Celtics. We’ll call them the Boston Celtics. The name has a great basketball tradition. And Boston is full of Irishmen. Yes, that’s it. We’ll put them in green uniforms and call them the Boston Celtics.”
Boston Celtics are an American-based, basketball team. They are played in “The National Basketball Association” (NBA)
It was founded in 1946 as one of the original eight teams. The Celtics hold a position for the record-breaking wins of any NBA team. They have been known to opossum against the “Lakers” since the 1960s.
Four Celtics players (Bob Cousy, Bill Russell, Dave Cowens, and Larry Bird) have won the NBA Most Valuable Player Award; overall, Celtics players have won an NBA-record 10 MVP awards.
Both the nickname “Celtics” and their mascot “Lucky the Leprechaun” are a nod to Boston’s historically large Irish population, and also to the Original Celtics, a barnstorming basketball team that played in the early 20th century.
The Celtics rose in the 1950s after the allotted team lead and coach “Red Auerbach,”
After Russell retired, as a player-coach, and the first African-American head coach in any US sport, in 1969, the team entered a period of rebuilding. In the mid-1970s, the Celtics became contenders once again, winning championships in 1974 and 1976 under the leadership of head coach Tom Heinsohn with center Dave Cowens, forward John Havlicek, and point guard Jo Jo White. In the 1980s, the Celtics returned to dominance. The team experienced a renewed rivalry with the “Showtime” Lakers, who were led by Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Anchored by the “Big Three” of Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, and Robert Parish, the Celtics won championships in 1981, 1984, and 1986, the latter two with head coach K. C. Jones.