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Welsh Society

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Reply 340
"Duw duw" is common round here. "Duw duw, you dirty mochyn. Ych y fi, chwarae teg."

Well maybe not quite like that...
Reply 341
Now there's another Mail article going nuts over the fact that parents in Llangefni don't want this particular guy to be Santa for their kids as he doesn't speak Welsh, obviously because their pre-infant school children don't speak a word of English.

And the comments.... shoot me....

Here's a good one.. "Welsh, like the Cornish language which has sprung back to life are fine to learn for cultural reasons, but are of little value linguistically! The languages might as well be dead!"

What... why... how can you even compare it to Cornish which actually became extinct at one point, and nowadays consists entirely of a couple thousand learners and a handful of kids being brought up as native speakers by said learners... *opens whisky*
(edited 11 years ago)
Original post by Curzon
"Duw duw" is common round here. "Duw duw, you dirty mochyn. Ych y fi, chwarae teg."

Well maybe not quite like that...


We say "Jew Jew Jew" .. not even joking :redface:
Original post by Curzon
Now there's another Mail article going nuts over the fact that parents in Llangefni don't want this particular guy to be Santa for their kids as he doesn't speak Welsh, obviously because their pre-infant school children don't speak a word of English.

And the comments.... shoot me....

Here's a good one.. "Welsh, like the Cornish language which has sprung back to life are fine to learn for cultural reasons, but are of little value linguistically! The languages might as well be dead!"

What... why... how can you even compare it to Cornish which actually became extinct at one point, and nowadays consists entirely of a couple thousand learners and a handful of kids being brought up as native speakers by said learners... *opens whisky*

The Daily Heil is having a right laugh at our expense at the moment. First that BiLingo *******s, then Roger Lewis, then this. It's quite cute.
Reply 344
Original post by Kaiser MacCleg
The Daily Heil is having a right laugh at our expense at the moment. First that BiLingo *******s, then Roger Lewis, then this. It's quite cute.


What next I wonder. Surely they can't give up yet, their readers seem to be enjoying this very much.
Census figures show a decline in the number of Welsh speakers

Can't say I'm surprised, but it's a kick in the teeth all the same. What remains to be seen is how much of this demographic change is down to out-migration, how much is down to parents realising that a lesson a week doesn't mean their kids can speak Welsh, and how much is down to the death of older Welsh speakers. I think factors 1) and 2) probably have a lot more to do with this decline than 3), but I can't say that that belief is grounded in anything other than anecdotal evidence. Some pretty significant milestones have been passed with this census, though - now less than half the population of both Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion can speak Welsh.

But on the bright side, Wales is now the most atheistic part of the UK. :biggrin:

Full figures available here
(edited 11 years ago)
Original post by Kaiser MacCleg
Census figures show a decline in the number of Welsh speakers

Can't say I'm surprised, but it's a kick in the teeth all the same. What remains to be seen is how much of this demographic change is down to out-migration, how much is down to parents realising that a lesson a week doesn't mean their kids can speak Welsh, and how much is down to the death of older Welsh speakers. I think factors 1) and 2) probably have a lot more to do with this decline than 3), but I can't say that that belief is grounded in anything other than anecdotal evidence. Some pretty significant milestones have been passed with this census, though - now less than half the population of both Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion can speak Welsh.

But on the bright side, Wales is now the most atheistic part of the UK. :biggrin:

Full figures available here


I personally think it's mostly down to the fact outside of school people don't practice welsh. In my schoolm(a welsh one) we can all speak welsh but only do so infront of teachers to avoid rows
Reply 347
There's the economy. People are moving away from traditional Welsh speaking areas, and often in their place come English immigrants... what was it, just over 20% of the population was born in England? Something that has been ignored in all the media reports of an increase in foreign population...

When people don't find a reason to stay in the Welsh speaking communities, which are then also saturated with English speaking immigrants, the living language is going to suffer badly. The mostly English speaking areas have seen an increase in Welsh speakers, and that's probably a combination of speakers moving to these areas for work and because of Welsh medium schools, but like you say Miracle Day kids at these schools often hardly use the language otherwise. I know someone for example who is fluent and went to a Welsh school along with his brothers, but he and his brothers speak English to each other, as I read Carwyn Jones' kids do also.

The stats on nationality are interesting though. I think it was 60% or thereabouts that stated they were only Welsh, not British - and you have to remember that a good chunk of the whole aren't even Welsh anyway, so the real figure would be even higher. It's actually a similar story in England too. Seems Britishness is losing out... interesting with the Scottish referendum around the corner.
(edited 11 years ago)
Reply 348
Hey guys! How's it going? :smile:
Original post by Gales
Hey guys! How's it going? :smile:


Hey! How's life in the big city?

I'm having a terrible month so far. :erm:
Ble mae pawb?

It's so empty in here :cry2:

Dwi bron 'di gorffen blwyddyn cyntaf yn prifysgol :h:

Anyone watching Eisteddfod Yr Urdd? I went last year when it was at Glynllifon, had a great time. A few of us from my course might be performing at the Eisteddfod Cenedlaethol in Denbighshire this year, can't wait :smile:
Hey there, just joined the Welsh Society and will take this opportunity to say I'm proud to be Welsh :biggrin:
Exams are finally over. 'Bout time. :tongue:
Original post by madders94
Anyone watching Eisteddfod Yr Urdd? I went last year when it was at Glynllifon, had a great time. A few of us from my course might be performing at the Eisteddfod Cenedlaethol in Denbighshire this year, can't wait :smile:

Nah, I never watch the Urdd. Can't wait for the Cenedlaethol though - it's not far from home this year, so I'll probably be there most days in the week. An Eisteddfod is always great fun.
Original post by Kaiser MacCleg
Exams are finally over. 'Bout time. :tongue:

Nah, I never watch the Urdd. Can't wait for the Cenedlaethol though - it's not far from home this year, so I'll probably be there most days in the week. An Eisteddfod is always great fun.


Cool, I may see you there then :tongue: just waiting for details from the uni of what we actually have to do there haha :lol: yeah it's nice and close to my uni, next year the Urdd one is half an hour from my house :smile:
Heading back to Cardiff in a week's time (I live there normally; I go to uni in Canterbury) and it must be said I'm looking forward to it. I love Canterbury to bits, but when I've been away awhile it's always nice to go back :smile:
Reply 356
Noswaith dda!

What are you favourite songs in Welsh? Mine is Cariad Oer by Elin Fflur :smile:

Also, is Elin Fflur's version of Harbwr Diogel the best?

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