Bard are known as "the Bard of Avon" (often simply "the Bard") and "the Bard of Bengal" respectively. The word is a Celtic loan word from Scottish Gaelic "bàrd", Irish "bard", Welsh "bardd". In 16th-century Scotland, it was a derogatory term for an itinerant musician; nonetheless it was later romanticised by Sir Walter Scott. In medieval Gaelic and Welsh society, a "bard" (Scottish and Irish Gaelic) or "bardd" (Welsh) was a professional poet, employed to compose eulogies for his lord (see planxty). If the employer failed to pay the proper amount, the bard would then compose a satire (c.f. "fili", "fáith").
Bard College a philosophy journal, are also student-published. "Bard Papers" is a privately funded literary magazine operated jointly between faculty and students. Other prominent student groups include: the International Students Organization and other cultural organizations, Anti-Capitalism Feminist Coalition, Body Image Discussion Group, Self-Injury Support and Discussion, Bard Film Committee, Queer Student Association, Trans Life Collective, Student Labor Dialogue, Bard Debate Union, Bard Model UN, Surrealist Training Circus, Bard Bike Co-Op, and college radio station WXBC. Bard is also home to the Root Cellar, a completely student-run, multipurpose space that serves as an Infoshop, vegan café, and venue for small-scale shows. Bard has