Welsh speakers

[robjohn44]

Okay following on from the Cymru thread.....Who speaks fluent welsh on here then?. I don't, could never get my head around it at school. Cannot sing the national anthem just hum and der and try my best. Ain't got a clue of it's translation maybe someone could translate it on here for us. Welsh was never spoken in my house growing up nor in the corner shops in the villages....I respect that it's spoken in the west and in the north but it's a very small minority. Oh and lastly the English middle classes think it's so in vogue at the minute to learn Welsh.

Will always be Wales to me the nationalists can get lost its pathetic.

[robjohn44]

Care to explain how it's jingoistic and anti-migrant?

its an elite government/education class who are bonkers who think its our culture it aint !!!!!!!!!!!

[+ the native hipster]

I've read some bollocks on here over the years and that's right up there with the best.

fair point i need educating , please show me the errors i made in the interpretation of the ditty, thank you.

[Taunton Blue Genie]

Three of my grandparents came from Welsh speaking families. Two of them were from Aberystwyth/Tregaron area and Welsh was their everyday language. My other grandmother came from a welsh speaking family from Ystrad Mynach. I'm not sure why but her parents didn't pass the language down to her , which is a shame because they would have spoke Wenhwyseg , which was the South East Wales dialect of Welsh and has/had some pretty interesting characteristics compared to West and North dialects.

As a result of having grown up in the Ystrad Mynach area myself, and despite having attended welsh medium primary in Tir y Berth and Bargoed, my Welsh was a bit patchy. It improved a bit after my parents moved us down west and I'm getting more and more interested in the language the older I get.

I live in the Basque Country now ,but speak to my daughter in Welsh, despite the incredulity of the locals who believe it almost criminal that I don't use English around her. People here are obsessed with learning English and, much as certain generations of Welsh speakers did, consider English the language of "successful" people.

My 14 month old daughter currently has "dwr" and "llaeth" under her belt. Her mother speaks to her in Basque. I doubt she'll ever become a global business leader but she'll be cool as fck, which I guess is what really matters.

A few months ago I met a retired Basque language teacher and his wife on a bus in Cairo. Such is his resentment about the historical treatment of his culture and language by the Spanish government that he tries to avoid using Spanish where possible - and in the absence of mobile phone settings being available in Basque he has all the settings,menus and all else in English.
I hope to visit him next year.

[El Horno]

Yes, I speak Welsh daily. Had a smattering from my mother's side of the family when I was young and then had it knocked out of me growing up in Penarth. Pushed myself through an A Level and went on to do a degree (with an extra year because it was my second language). Every job I have had since has had a Welsh speaking element and I wouldn't have got any of them without being able to speak the language. I've worked in education and the third sector. My hard work has rewarded me every singe day of my life since. It's not just about the language and culture either (although, that's a huge bonus) it's about bilingualism - it improves problem solving skills and has enabled me to hold conversations with people in Italian, Catalan, Spanish etc just by having a more well rounded understanding of languages and a wider vocabulary generally.

[TWGL1]

Yes, I speak Welsh daily. Had a smattering from my mother's side of the family when I was young and then had it knocked out of me growing up in Penarth. Pushed myself through an A Level and went on to do a degree (with an extra year because it was my second language). Every job I have had since has had a Welsh speaking element and I wouldn't have got any of them without being able to speak the language. I've worked in education and the third sector. My hard work has rewarded me every singe day of my life since. It's not just about the language and culture either (although, that's a huge bonus) it's about bilingualism - it improves problem solving skills and has enabled me to hold conversations with people in Italian, Catalan, Spanish etc just by having a more well rounded understanding of languages and a wider vocabulary generally.

You’re experience is why I sent my son to a Welsh speaking school. He’s doing very well for his age (6)

[El Horno]

You’re experience is why I sent my son to a Welsh speaking school. He’s doing very well for his age (6)

Awesome. I wish I'd had that opportunity. It'll open doors, for sure.