Why do we use the expression "to welsh on a bet" when speaking about the loser of a wager failing to pay up? Are Welsh people notorious for doing this?

Senior Moments

It is actually 'welch on a bet' Then again I may be mistaken as I found that it was English bookies who, having too many long shot winners against them, fled over the border to 'boondock' Wales to become the original welshers and escape irate bettors looking for their payoff. Dec 18 03, 6:19 AM

RickF

My dictionary gives welch/welsh in this context as '19th C - origin unknown' so SM's explanation is probably as valid as any According to the OED - "Welch - see welsh(2)" - but it doesn't say it has any connection with Welsh(1) Dec 18 03, 8:10 AM

mibmob

Brewer's says: Welsher One who lays a bet, but absconds if he loses. It means a Welshman, and is based upon the nursery rhyme, “Taffy was a Welshman, Taffy was a thief.” Dec 18 03, 11:03 AM

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