# Do you wish that you could speak Welsh?



## brianx (Feb 25, 2007)

I'm from Newport so will never need to. There are lots of adult education classes that could teach me but I just feel that it would be wasted. There are more Polish speakers in Newport. Do you think that it's worth learning the language (Welsh not Polish)?


----------



## Herbsman. (Feb 25, 2007)

I wish I could be bothered to learn to speak Welsh.


----------



## Johnny Canuck3 (Feb 25, 2007)

I'd like to learn Welsh. Then I'd go yell it in bars, and people would think I was speaking Pictish.


----------



## editor (Feb 25, 2007)

I dearly wish that I'd been given a proper eduction  in Welsh when I was at school.


----------



## Space Girl (Feb 25, 2007)

editor said:
			
		

> I dearly wish that I'd been given a proper eduction  in Welsh when I was at school.



when I was in school it was compulsary to learn Welsh for the whole 5 years and take an o'level in it, which took away one of my free options and I certainly thought that Spanish would have been better for me, at the time it was it as a waste of my time as Welsh was very much a dead language, now I see the benifit of it for the language and the country but in reality it has done me no favours, I don't use it (but I do like the fact that I can use it if I want/need to) and it took away the chance of learning something else that would be more benificial to me and my life.


----------



## Gromit (Feb 25, 2007)

I dropped Welsh the first moment I could at age 13. 
As far as I was concerned it was a dead dying language and a waste of time.

However, the language didn't die. More and more people speak it now than they did then.

Its becoming part of national pride to speak welsh and so for the third time I'm taking up welsh lessons with work. Hopefully I'll see them through this time and not get sidetracked by the demands of work.
My job brings me into contact with people from all over wales and so speaking welsh could be an advantage. Besides the course is free so why not.

I don't know what job you do brianx but is it conceivable that one day you could one day apply for a job for which speaking welsh was not essential but could tilt the balance if they had to choose between two equal candidates but one spoke welsh. Plus are you always going to live in Newport?

No one used to speak Welsh in Cardiff either but as the city becomes more prosperous its becoming strangly fashionable and snobbish to speak welsh.


----------



## ddraig (Feb 25, 2007)

I am proud to say that i do speak the Cymraeg and since moving back to Cardiff to preserve it and sort out my accent i get to use it at work now and again and have a mate there who i speak Welsh to.

i was worried i'd have to socialise with snobs to be able to use it and there wasn't obvious to me where to go in town to speak Welsh, i even did a couple of bar shifts in Clwb Ifor Bach which was a laugh.

try some of the thread's here, including the 'siarad cymraeg' and 'basic Welsh' ones, there's also an argument of sorts in the 'politico' thread.
http://www.urban75.net/vbulletin/search.php?searchid=2203888

*Cymru (a Cymraeg) am Byth!*


----------



## Gromit (Feb 25, 2007)

ddraig said:
			
		

> i even did a couple of bar shifts in Clwb Ifor Bach which was a laugh.



Every time I've spoken welsh to staff in Ifor Bach they've replied in English (not that I go there often, once in a blue moon). 
Most annoying when you are trying to practice on them but my accent obviously sucks and gives me away straight away.


----------



## hiccup (Feb 25, 2007)

I wish I could speak Welsh. It was my Dad's first language, but I never learnt it. Not much call for it growing up in west London.


----------



## rhys gethin (Feb 25, 2007)

hiccup said:
			
		

> I wish I could speak Welsh. It was my Dad's first language, but I never learnt it. Not much call for it growing up in west London.



If you wan't to speak a language, learn it.   There are classes in most parts of England now, and certainly in London. 

13% of the population in Newport can speak Cymraeg, so the Poles must be _sweeping_ in by there Brianx.All those plumbers!


----------



## trashpony (Feb 25, 2007)

I tried to learn it when I was at university in Wales. I couldn't find the classroom which was in one of the Welsh-speaking halls of residence so I asked someone where it was in English and they answered me in Welsh. So I thought fuck you then and went home. 
So if it wasn't for that one tosser, I might be able to speak it. 

My grandad forgot how to speak English when he got Alzheimers. Which was a bit inconvenient as he was in Charing X Hospital.


----------



## lewislewis (Feb 25, 2007)

editor said:
			
		

> I dearly wish that I'd been given a proper eduction  in Welsh when I was at school.



Me too! 

Also, the comment about Polish speakers outnumbering Welsh speakers in Newport, haha that cannot be true.


----------



## rhys gethin (Feb 25, 2007)

lewislewis said:
			
		

> Me too!
> 
> Also, the comment about Polish speakers outnumbering Welsh speakers in Newport, haha that cannot be true.



The last person I argued with about this reckoned there were more Urdu speakers there, or was it Punjabi?   Cosmopolitan place, that old 
Casnewydd!   I wonder do any of them speak English?


----------



## Strumpet (Feb 25, 2007)

editor said:
			
		

> I dearly wish that I'd been given a proper eduction  in Welsh when I was at school.



Me too... 
MiniStrumpet goes to welsh school and is fluent. I really must learn basic welsh at some point. Although she has taight me alot since starting school.


----------



## Gromit (Feb 25, 2007)

trashpony said:
			
		

> I tried to learn it when I was at university in Wales. I couldn't find the classroom which was in one of the Welsh-speaking halls of residence so I asked someone where it was in English and they answered me in Welsh. So I thought fuck you then and went home.
> So if it wasn't for that one tosser, I might be able to speak it.



I presume you ask him to repeat in english and he refused?
Rather than him thinking you already knew some welsh and wanted to practice.

Unfortunately you do come across tossers who treat non-welsh speakers like dirt so you think fuck em. Then they moan that the government isn't doing enough to promote and support the welsh language.

Wankers like that really do piss me off.

The best people to promote a language isn't the government but the people who speak it. You promote it by being so nice that people reach out to you not by pushing them away.


----------



## trashpony (Feb 25, 2007)

Marius said:
			
		

> I presume you ask him to repeat in english and he refused?
> Rather than him thinking you already knew some welsh and wanted to practice.
> 
> Unfortunately you do come across tossers who treat non-welsh speakers like dirt so you think fuck em. Then they moan that the government isn't doing enough to promote and support the welsh language.
> ...



Yes I did. I said that I was sorry but I didn't speak Welsh. I didn't explain that I was looking for a Welsh class but I didn't want to ingratiate myself - it was just about being polite. It was a big problem at Aberystwyth when I was there - the division between English speaking and Welsh speaking students and how hostile some of the Welsh speakers were. Hopefully it's improved since then.


----------



## Firky (Feb 25, 2007)

I think its pretty shit that you can't teach in Wales unless you're fluent in some tribal mutterings that only a handful of people bother with on a day to day basis.


----------



## LilMissHissyFit (Feb 25, 2007)

editor said:
			
		

> I dearly wish that I'd been given a proper eduction  in Welsh when I was at school.


I agree. I was taught it, badly from the ages 10-13 by a miserable old windbag nicknamed mini hitler, nothing could have or was more boring and so I dropped it at the first oppostunity.
Im not in favour of the current policy of it being compulsory until 16 because I think its completely counterproductive but if its taught well enough and its used kids will want to carry on learning it.
Its laziness IMO having a policy of  compulsion in our schools


----------



## Firky (Feb 25, 2007)

This isn't particular to the Welsh but other tribal munterings both here and and abroad... is there any real need to cherish and it keep it alive? Language is in a constant state of flux and is always evolving. There is no real need to do so. Langauge is a meme in its own right and should not be preserved and cotton balled away - it should be allowed to evolve and if that means extiniction so be it. 

The Geordie dialect is one of the oldest forms of English. 'Ganning yem' is the same phonetically as the Swedish for 'going home', however fewer and fewer people are keeping it alive. As the world gets smaller via the new communication devices so does our language. I probably say 'cunt' an awful lot more due to Urban, and teapea has me picking up bits of Essex (and she also dabbles in a bit of geordie). What's the point of moth balling and keeping a language that is almost dead for the sake of heritage and nationalism?

I like it when patois becomes ingrained in a language however. Pyjamas!!!


----------



## rhys gethin (Feb 25, 2007)

firky said:
			
		

> This isn't particular to the Welsh but other tribal munterings both here and and abroad... is there any real need to cherish and it keep it alive? Language is in a constant state of flux and is always evolving. There is no real need to do so. Langauge is a meme in its own right and should not be preserved and cotton balled away - it should be allowed to evolve and if that means extiniction so be it.
> 
> The Geordie dialect is one of the oldest forms of English. 'Ganning yem' is the same phonetically as the Swedish for 'going home', however fewer and fewer people are keeping it alive. As the world gets smaller via the new communication devices so does our language. I probably say 'cunt' an awful lot more due to Urban, and teapea has me picking up bits of Essex (and she also dabbles in a bit of geordie). What's the point of moth balling and keeping a language that is almost dead for the sake of heritage and nationalism?
> 
> I like it when patois becomes ingrained in a language however. Pyjamas!!!



As they say in England, Drop dead!


----------



## lewislewis (Feb 25, 2007)

LilMissHissyFit said:
			
		

> I agree. I was taught it, badly from the ages 10-13 by a miserable old windbag nicknamed mini hitler, nothing could have or was more boring and so I dropped it at the first oppostunity.
> Im not in favour of the current policy of it being compulsory until 16 because I think its completely counterproductive but if its taught well enough and its used kids will want to carry on learning it.
> Its laziness IMO having a policy of  compulsion in our schools



Bad teaching was the reason I dropped it too/didn't excel, when/if I have kids they'll be going straight to a Welsh-medium school.


----------



## Gromit (Feb 25, 2007)

lewislewis said:
			
		

> Bad teaching was the reason I dropped it too/didn't excel, when/if I have kids they'll be going straight to a Welsh-medium school.



If they let them. Some won't if they don't have welsh speaking parents to help with the home work.


----------



## LilMissHissyFit (Feb 25, 2007)

If they let them???
They cannot stop them. Whether the parents speak welsh is completely immaterial. The assembly have made it a priority to fund welsh medium education,children have a right to be educated in welsh if the parents wish it. A friend of mine who has children in both welsh and english medium schools reckons the welsh schools recieve huge amounts of funding, have fantastic facilities etc.
She doesnt speak welsh, her husband does but the language status of the parents doesnt not stop any child attending. The only time Ive heard of a child being turned away was when the parents had lived abroad for several years and wanted their children to return to welsh medium and were told their language skills were too poor to be able to access the curriculum at the appropriate age/year level


----------



## Space Girl (Feb 25, 2007)

The school I went to had both English and Welsh streams, it was rural school with a large catchement area, Preselli school which was the next nearest school (at least 20 miles away) was the same, however it now only teaches in Welsh, it's bad enough having to travel miles to go to your nearest school but to have to travel even futher to a school that teaches in English IMO is unacceptable. 

I have nothing wrong against the language and I think it should be taught in all schools in Wales but to what expence? Non-Welsh speaking children having to travel miles to another school because certain school are not taught in English and Welsh or that anyone in a school that makes it compulsary until you are 16 missing out on another subject to study


----------



## Django's dad (Feb 25, 2007)

No, not for me I'm afraid.

I've just sent the boy Django to a Meithrin (Welsh Nursery)....& if I start learning Welsh...I'll have to help him with his homework instead of watchin crap tele & eating chips...

...I'd be mad to throw away hobbies like that !!!


----------



## hiccup (Feb 26, 2007)

trashpony said:
			
		

> ...It was a big problem at Aberystwyth when I was there - the division between English speaking and Welsh speaking students and how hostile some of the Welsh speakers were. Hopefully it's improved since then.



There was still a fair bit of hostility when I was there (97 - 2000)


----------



## Ranbay (Feb 26, 2007)

editor said:
			
		

> I dearly wish that I'd been given a proper eduction  in Welsh when I was at school.




^^ This


----------



## Belushi (Feb 26, 2007)

I spoke welsh as a nipper but then moved to England when I was 11 and have forgotted nearly all of it. I wish I hadn't, its a beautiful language and it needs as many speakers as possible.


----------



## hiccup (Feb 26, 2007)

rhys gethin said:
			
		

> If you wan't to speak a language, learn it.   There are classes in most parts of England now, and certainly in London.
> 
> ...



I know, I should. A welsh-speaking mate just moved to London too, so I'd have someone to practice with. There's a welsh church in Ealing (where I live), maybe they do classes...


----------



## Larry O'Hara (Feb 26, 2007)

Marius said:
			
		

> I presume you ask him to repeat in english and he refused?
> Rather than him thinking you already knew some welsh and wanted to practice.
> 
> Unfortunately you do come across tossers who treat non-welsh speakers like dirt so you think fuck em. Then they moan that the government isn't doing enough to promote and support the welsh language.
> ...



on the positive side, I was doing some research in the National Library of Wales at Aberystwyth recently, and was very impressed that
--all the staff spoke Welsh among themselves
--they instantly switched to English when I spoke to them
--the staff were far more helpful than equivalents in say the British Library.

I came away very impressed, and heartened at the way Welsh was being genuinely used.


----------



## editor (Feb 26, 2007)

Space Girl said:
			
		

> The school I went to had both English and Welsh streams, it was rural school with a large catchement area, Preselli school which was the next nearest school (at least 20 miles away) was the same, however it now only teaches in Welsh, it's bad enough having to travel miles to go to your nearest school but to have to travel even futher to a school that teaches in English IMO is unacceptable.


Seeing as kids taught in the medium of Welsh tend to do better than those from English-only schools, and the fact that they'll come out speaking English just as well as anyone else, I really can't really see the problem.


----------



## Buds (Feb 26, 2007)

I have a GCSE in Welsh and can barely speak a word of the language. But then I live in an almost exclusively English speaking area of Wales so there's not much call for it really. 




			
				editor said:
			
		

> Seeing as kids taught in the medium of Welsh tend to do better than those from English-only schools, and the fact that they'll come out speaking English just as well as anyone else, I really can't really see the problem.



I can't speak for the rest of the country but this isn't the case in Gwent. Welsh medium schools are some way short of the standard of English medium schools at both Primary and Secondary levels.


----------



## Brockway (Feb 26, 2007)

trashpony said:
			
		

> I tried to learn it when I was at university in Wales. I couldn't find the classroom which was in one of the Welsh-speaking halls of residence so I asked someone where it was in English and they answered me in Welsh. So I thought fuck you then and went home.
> So if it wasn't for that one tosser, I might be able to speak it.
> 
> My grandad forgot how to speak English when he got Alzheimers. Which was a bit inconvenient as he was in Charing X Hospital.



Yes, how dare they not speak to you in English. And some people think the English are arrogant colonizing wankers...


----------



## Brockway (Feb 26, 2007)

hiccup said:
			
		

> There was still a fair bit of hostility when I was there (97 - 2000)



Hopefully there's more hostility.


----------



## rhys gethin (Feb 26, 2007)

Buds said:
			
		

> I have a GCSE in Welsh and can barely speak a word of the language. But then I live in an almost exclusively English speaking area of Wales so there's not much call for it really.
> 
> 
> 
> I can't speak for the rest of the country but this isn't the case in Gwent. Welsh medium schools are some way short of the standard of English medium schools at both Primary and Secondary levels.



Possibly good teachers don't have a great urge to live amongst people who show such daft hostility to one of the greatests gifts they can be offered, but on the whole I think this is probably on the same level as the vast numbers of Poles and sub-continentals Newport people seem so readily to fantasise as crowding their streets.   Why should Gwent be so different from everywhere else, after all?   Perhaps it goes back to the days when their masters were telling the simple folk of Gwent that they were _English_, and hotly denying anyone had _ever_ spoken our language there.   I was born in Machen, myself, where both my parents certainly spoke it , as had some of my great-grandparents in Mynyddislwyn.   'Welsh' used to be very badly taught, but partial blindness and deafness were taught very well indeed, I am beginning to think.


----------



## Space Girl (Feb 26, 2007)

editor said:
			
		

> Seeing as kids taught in the medium of Welsh tend to do better than those from English-only schools, and the fact that they'll come out speaking English just as well as anyone else, I really can't really see the problem.



the problem is that children who do not speak Welsh can not go to their local school as they only teach in Welsh


----------



## Buds (Feb 26, 2007)

rhys gethin said:
			
		

> Possibly good teachers don't have a great urge to live amongst people who show such daft hostility to one of the greatests gifts they can be offered, but on the whole I think this is probably on the same level as the vast numbers of Poles and sub-continentals Newport people seem so readily to fantasise as crowding their streets.   Why should Gwent be so different from everywhere else, after all?   Perhaps it goes back to the days when their masters were telling the simple folk of Gwent that they were _English_, and hotly denying anyone had _ever_ spoken our language there.



Perhaps there are good teachers living amongst us "daft" Gwent folk but perhaps there is a lower concentration of them teaching in Welsh medium schools? 

I never said that Gwent is different from the rest of Wales but having been to school in the area and worked in schools in area I feel I am more confident offering a comment on educational performance here than I would be on Dyfed or Gwynedd. 

I think you need to get that chip of your shoulder mate.


----------



## editor (Feb 26, 2007)

Space Girl said:
			
		

> the problem is that children who do not speak Welsh can not go to their local school as they only teach in Welsh


With respect, what do you expect if you're living in Wales?


----------



## Belushi (Feb 26, 2007)

Space Girl said:
			
		

> the problem is that children who do not speak Welsh can not go to their local school as they only teach in Welsh



I'm not sure why that should be a problem, there were plenty of children with monolingual English speaking parents when I went to a Welsh language primary in the 70 - I suspect there are probably many more now.

My (English) Mum learnt Welsh at night classes so she could understand what my Dad was saying to us


----------



## llantwit (Feb 26, 2007)

editor said:
			
		

> With respect, what do you expect if you're living in Wales?


Whith respect, 79.5% of people in Wales don't speak Welsh.


----------



## Belushi (Feb 26, 2007)

llantwit said:
			
		

> Whith respect, 79.5% of people in Wales don't speak Welsh.



You think they'd have picked it up from the roadsigns by now


----------



## llantwit (Feb 26, 2007)

Some people will never get it.


----------



## editor (Feb 26, 2007)

llantwit said:
			
		

> Whith respect, 79.5% of people in Wales don't speak Welsh.


With respect, nearly a quarter of the population said that they could understand Welsh in 2001 and that figure is likely to have risen in the past five years.

In 2001, nearly 40% of children aged 10 to 15 and 25 per cent of 16 to 19 year olds were able to speak, read and write Welsh.

http://www.statistics.gov.uk/cci/nugget.asp?id=447


----------



## Gromit (Feb 26, 2007)

llantwit said:
			
		

> Whith respect, 79.5% of people in Wales don't speak Welsh.



But how many speak welsh in that community. The above stat is scewed by the high population centres in South Wales where little welsh is spoken but there are parts of Wales where communities struggle to speak english.

Aside from that if you set up home in a dutch community would you expect the lessons to be held in english purely because a lot of duth can speak english? Just cause we are attached to England it doesn't mean we should have any less right to our own language than Holland does.

To my mind as it’s the English who deliberately tried to destroy our language I don’t think the welsh assembly should be paying for the promotion of the language. I think England should be paying reparations the same as the perpetrator of any war crime would. Yes that how I see England’s undermining of our culture, a war crime.


----------



## llantwit (Feb 26, 2007)

Marius said:
			
		

> To my mind as it’s the English who deliberately tried to destroy our language I don’t think the welsh assembly should be paying for the promotion of the language. I think England should be paying reparations the same as the perpetrator of any war crime would. Yes that how I see England’s undermining of our culture, a war crime.


Don't disagree with you - but the situation we live with now is that Wales is a bilingual country, and I believe Space Girl was making a point about kids not being able to go to thier local school and be taght in English.
Anyway - this a whole can of worms I don't really want to get into again. I don't care about it strongly enough, tbh.


----------



## rhys gethin (Feb 26, 2007)

Buds said:
			
		

> Perhaps there are good teachers living amongst us "daft" Gwent folk but perhaps there is a lower concentration of them teaching in Welsh medium schools?
> 
> I never said that Gwent is different from the rest of Wales but having been to school in the area and worked in schools in area I feel I am more confident offering a comment on educational performance here than I would be on Dyfed or Gwynedd.
> 
> I think you need to get that chip of your shoulder mate.



What chip is that then?   Do you work in a 'Welsh medium school'?   If not, what exactly are you comparing with what, and on what basis?    I'm a fairly experienced teacher, but I wouldn't consider myself competent to lay down the law about schools - Catholic or Muslim ones, say - that I had no experience of.   I have never lived in Dyfed or Gwynedd - I moved from Machen to the Rhondda and (since my parents didn't teach me) learned my Cymraeg mainly in England, but everything I read or am told says that bilingual children do better than those who speak only a foreign language imposed on their grandparents, for a whole host of reasons.   But then, perhaps the population of Newport come from the Moon and do not share normal human experience!


----------



## Space Girl (Feb 26, 2007)

editor said:
			
		

> With respect, what do you expect if you're living in Wales?



As English is the first language of Wales then I would expect that non Welsh speaking children can go to their local school and be taugh in English, and that those who are Welsh speakers can be taught in Welsh, it's how my school worked and it worked well.


----------



## tarannau (Feb 26, 2007)

Space Girl said:
			
		

> As English is the first language of Wales then I would expect that non Welsh speaking children can go to their local school and be taugh in English, and that those who are Welsh speakers can be taught in Welsh, it's how my school worked and it worked well.



Wouldn't they learn both there to be fair? It doesn't really matter which primary language they learn in my book - children can make the most remarkable adaptations when young. The little 4 year old next door to my folks is tri-lingual in German, English and French, switching between all three flawlessly and without effort.

Secondary school's different mind, but I wouldn't be unduly concerned if my children learnt Welsh as their primary language at junior school, as long as they weren't prohibited from speaking English. You've got home time to teach them a decent language after all...


----------



## Buds (Feb 26, 2007)

rhys gethin said:
			
		

> What chip is that then?



This one




			
				rhys gethin said:
			
		

> Perhaps it goes back to the days when their masters were telling the simple folk of Gwent that they were English, and hotly denying anyone had ever spoken our language there.






			
				rhys gethin said:
			
		

> Do you work in a 'Welsh medium school'? If not, what exactly are you comparing with what, and on what basis? I'm a fairly experienced teacher, but I wouldn't consider myself competent to lay down the law about schools - Catholic or Muslim ones, say - that I had no experience of.



No I don't work in a Welsh medium school (no need for inverted commas) but I travel to lots of different schools in the area, including Catholic schools, so I have a fair idea of what is happening in the county with regards to education.

I'm comparing exam results that are published every year and also personal experience, friends who have been to Welsh medium schools who have excelled at speaking Welsh but have struggled in other areas.




			
				rhys gethin said:
			
		

> I have never lived in Dyfed or Gwynedd - I moved from Machen to the Rhondda and (since my parents didn't teach me) learned my Cymraeg mainly in England, but everything I read or am told says that bilingual children do better than those who speak only a foreign language imposed on their grandparents, for a whole host of reasons.



I don't understand what you're getting at here, whose grandparents have had a foreign language imposed on them?  




			
				rhys gethin said:
			
		

> But then, perhaps the population of Newport come from the Moon and do not share normal human experience!



This may well be true but not being from Newport myself I wouldn't know.


----------



## Gromit (Feb 26, 2007)

Buds said:
			
		

> I don't understand what you're getting at here, whose grandparents have had a foreign language imposed on them?  .



Read about how the Welsh Knot (or not) was one of the methods used to subjugate the welsh into speaking English.


----------



## Space Girl (Feb 26, 2007)

tarannau said:
			
		

> Wouldn't they learn both there to be fair? It doesn't really matter which primary language they learn in my book - children can make the most remarkable adaptations when young. The little 4 year old next door to my folks is tri-lingual in German, English and French, switching between all three flawlessly and without effort.
> 
> Secondary school's different mind, but I wouldn't be unduly concerned if my children learnt Welsh as their primary language at junior school, as long as they weren't prohibited from speaking English. You've got home time to teach them a decent language after all...



Yes, they should learn both, if you live in Wales you should be taught Welsh, this is not my issue, my issue is that if you do not speak Welsh you should not have to travel miles to be able to go to a school that can teach you in the language you understand, this does not relate to primary schools as young kids very easily pick up new languages but secondary school kids are a different thing altogether.


----------



## editor (Feb 26, 2007)

Marius said:
			
		

> Read about how the Welsh Knot (or not) was one of the methods used to subjugate the welsh into speaking English.


Interesting article that. 



> So my grandad learned English at school. And he learned it in the wider community too, where road signs and town names were written in English, and only in English, even where the roadusers following the signs spoke Welsh. And if he had official business to attend to, he had no choice but to do it in English, as official forms were available only in English. And should he fall foul of the law, he’d better find an English-speaking lawyer, because a Welsh speaker in Welsh-speaking Wales would still be tried in English


----------



## lewislewis (Feb 27, 2007)

Buds said:
			
		

> I have a GCSE in Welsh and can barely speak a word of the language. But then I live in an almost exclusively English speaking area of Wales so there's not much call for it really.
> 
> 
> 
> I can't speak for the rest of the country but this isn't the case in Gwent. Welsh medium schools are some way short of the standard of English medium schools at both Primary and Secondary levels.



Really? The demand for Welsh language schools is currently higher than English medium schools. I think Welsh-medium education should be expanded to meet this growing demand.


----------



## brianx (Feb 27, 2007)

Thanks for everyone's comments. We were overrun with welsh-speakers yesterday as Gruff Rhys was in town and they were a glamorous bunch. I think that there is some "you have to admit that I'm decidedly more welsh tha yo" snobbery with some welsh-speakers.  
I think that I would like to start an evening class this autumn but it's not an easy language to learn I think.


----------



## Ben Bore (Feb 28, 2007)

brianx said:
			
		

> Thanks for everyone's comments. We were overrun with welsh-speakers yesterday as Gruff Rhys was in town and they were a glamorous bunch. I think that there is some "you have to admit that I'm decidedly more welsh tha yo" snobbery with some welsh-speakers.
> I think that I would like to start an evening class this autumn but it's not an easy language to learn I think.



Once you get over your perceived snobbery thing biranx,   I'm sure you'll find that Welsh speakers are just normal human beings.  If you decide to take up classes, and then you're looking for places to use your newly acquired Welsh socially, then Cymraeg Casnewydd meet up once a month in the Wetherspoons on Commercial St and I also maintain a little site called Dysgwyr De Ddwyrain which gathers info on classes, events in the south east region and also handy on-line resources for Welsh learners.

Hope I didn't offend anyone in Newport on Monday by speaking Welsh at the Gruff Rhys gig, or tonight either when I'm in Newport County's clubhouse before the match with Wrecsam.


I don't know how many Polish people now live and work in Newport, but during last census (I know, that's 6 years ago now)


3.8 % of Newport's population was born outside the UK [source]
10 % of Newport's population could speak Welsh [source] (doesn't state fluency) 
5 % of Newport's population from ethnic backgrounds other than White*** *[source]


At the moment, only 50% of kids who attend Welsh medium nursery (Cylch Meithrin) go on to Welsh medium primary school. This could be down to the fact that parents don't want to see their child having to travel long distances to the only Welsh medium primary school in the east of the city.
There are currently 360 pupils at Ysgol Gynradd Cymraeg Casnewydd.
276 (30% of) pupils at Ysgol Gyfun Gwynllyw (Welsh Comp in Torfaen) live in Newport.
[source]
*
***Not that a persons ethnicity prevents them from speaking a language, but I doubt that there are many people from a White ethnic background that speak Hindi or Urdu.  As this 5% consists of many different ethnic groups, they are likely to be speakers of many different languages.  Just thought it might clear up the idea that more speak Urdu than speak Welsh.


----------



## rhys gethin (Feb 28, 2007)

BB - My 13% came from an official council publication of two years ago, which was on the web.   Can't find it now, but people from Newport agreed that was published.   Presumably based on a post-census survey.


----------



## Udo Erasmus (Feb 28, 2007)

Prosiect unigryw rhwng cerddorion o Balesteina a Chymru


CERDDORIAETH HEB FFINIAU




Y daith gwybodaeth amgen



Nos Lun, Mawrth y 12ed yng Nghanolfan THE GATE, stryd Keppoch, oddi ar City Road, Y Rath, Caerdydd



Drysau'n agor am 8.00



Ticedi'n £4 (gostyngiadau ££)



Am wybodaeth bellach, cysyllter a

Adam Johannes
thomas_muntzer_Cardiff@hotmail.co.uk



Bydd Tareq Rantisi a Mohamed Najem o Fethlehem yn ymuno a Gwilym Morus a Luke Evans o Fangor.



Cymysgedd o gerddoriaeth draddodiadol o Balesteina gyda cherddoriaeth draddodiaol o Gymru - canu penillion - mewn cyd-destun cyfoes



Yn 2005, aeth Gwilym Morus, y cerddor o fri, ar daith i Fethlehem ble cyfansoddodd ddwy gan gyda cherddorion Palesteinaidd. Arweiniodd hyn at ryddhau cryno ddisg, O Fethlhehem i Fangor. Ar ol rhaglen ddogfen ar S4C ynghyd a sylw gan nifer o DJs rhyngwladol, mae'r prosiect yn ymweld a Chaerdydd gyda gig yn fyw fydd yn cynnwys caneuon wedi eu cyfansoddi ar y cyd yn ystod y flwyddyn aeth heibio.


----------



## irishshapes (Feb 28, 2007)

having studied Gaelic at home for all of school, compulsary till your fainl year, therefore most people must do it for 12ish years, i sometimes wish i was still fluent!
fucked now, though would have prefered to speak french or spanish fluent now though, would be far more productive!

it has been mentioned above about some of the welsh speakers who insist on speaking welsh in front of non welsh speakers, i have pulled a couple on it before and they insist that it is preferable to speaking in english, and nothing against me! they having only changed from english when i arrived in the room (generaly a pub)
quite good fun when i proceed to communicate with my irish friends in gealic! they are far from happy, and more than likely to try and speak in english now!
in fact the look on their faces is a picture! most welsh speakers i have met like this are just stuck up cunts, but i am not tarnishing all welsh like this


----------



## Brockway (Feb 28, 2007)

Why should Welsh-speakers stop speaking Cymraig just because there are English speakers in the room? If Welsh is their first language it is the natural thing to do surely. It doesn't make them snobby cunts.


----------



## llantwit (Feb 28, 2007)

irishshapes said:
			
		

> ... it has been mentioned above about some of the welsh speakers who insist on speaking welsh in front of non welsh speakers, i have pulled a couple on it before and they insist that it is preferable to speaking in english, and nothing against me! they having only changed from english when i arrived in the room (generaly a pub)
> quite good fun when i proceed to communicate with my irish friends in gealic! they are far from happy, and more than likely to try and speak in english now!
> in fact the look on their faces is a picture! most welsh speakers i have met like this are just stuck up cunts, but i am not tarnishing all welsh like this








You gonna bandy around setreotypes like the Welsh switching languages when an outsider comes in the pub you better apply this flameproof coating, my friend.


----------



## llantwit (Feb 28, 2007)

Brockway said:
			
		

> Why should Welsh-speakers stop speaking Cymraig just because there are English speakers in the room? If Welsh is their first language it is the natural thing to do surely. It doesn't make them snobby cunts.


You speak Welsh yet, Brockway?


----------



## Belushi (Feb 28, 2007)

irishshapes said:
			
		

> and nothing against me! they having only changed from english when i arrived in the room (generaly a pub)



How do you know they were speaking English before you entered the room?


----------



## Ben Bore (Feb 28, 2007)

rhys gethin said:
			
		

> BB - My 13% came from an official council publication of two years ago, which was on the web.   Can't find it now, but people from Newport agreed that was published.   Presumably based on a post-census survey.



Yeah there tends to be a survey half way between the censuses, the WLB run one, but I can't find anything online (typical)




			
				irishshapes said:
			
		

> hey insist that it is preferable to speaking in english, and nothing against me! they having only changed from english when i arrived in the room (generaly a pub)



Give me strength  




			
				irishshapes said:
			
		

> most welsh speakers i have met like this are just stuck up cunts, but i am not tarnishing all welsh like this



Phew, really glad you cleared that up for us.

I'm going to have to retire from this thread, I can feel my blood pressure rising fast


----------



## Sweaty Betty (Feb 28, 2007)

I have a GCSE in welsh and i can  ask to go to the toilet , say i love horse riding and mention a few foods  

As for the snobbery stuck up thing, whilst im sure its in the minority, it certainly exists among some welsh speakers ime.......


----------



## brianx (Feb 28, 2007)

Take one of those chill pills Ben. Life's too short my friend.


----------



## Ben Bore (Feb 28, 2007)

brianx said:
			
		

> Take one of those chill pills Ben. Life's too short my friend.



It's ok now, I'm lying down as I type this


----------



## Sweaty Betty (Feb 28, 2007)

We have a welsh speaking family up the road, infact we have about a dozen, but this one family think thay are far superior to us all, oweing to their welsh speaking and their connections with s4c, they are the most prissy bunch of wankers i have ever met.....


----------



## Belushi (Feb 28, 2007)

haylz said:
			
		

> We have a welsh speaking family up the road, infact we have about a dozen, but this one family think thay are far superior to us all, oweing to their welsh speaking and their connections with s4c, they are the most prissy bunch of wankers i have ever met.....



Sure, but thats probably because theyre middle class rahter than because they're welsh speakers


----------



## ddraig (Feb 28, 2007)

llantwit said:
			
		

> You gonna bandy around setreotypes like the Welsh switching languages when an outsider comes in the pub you better apply this flameproof coating, my friend.



init!


----------



## Sweaty Betty (Feb 28, 2007)

ddraig said:
			
		

> init!




He is my favourite welsh speaker


----------



## Sweaty Betty (Feb 28, 2007)

Belushi said:
			
		

> Sure, but thats probably because theyre middle class rahter than because they're welsh speakers




yes 

but the combination is deadly, i want to smack that smarmy little mouth of hers


----------



## Grandma Death (Feb 28, 2007)

Not at all. I lived in wales for 32 years...and I felt no need to learn the language. Its not an internationally used language so really there is little point personally in me learning it.


----------



## rhys gethin (Feb 28, 2007)

Grandma Death said:
			
		

> Not at all. I lived in wales for 32 years...and I felt no need to learn the language. Its not an internationally used language so really there is little point personally in me learning it.



Didn't even learn to use a capital letter for the place either?    Little point in personally learning it, I suppose, even out of politeness to those whose Country it was.


----------



## Brockway (Feb 28, 2007)

llantwit said:
			
		

> You speak Welsh yet, Brockway?



Like a fucking native.


----------



## Brockway (Feb 28, 2007)

haylz said:
			
		

> As for the snobbery stuck up thing, whilst im sure its in the minority, it certainly exists among some welsh speakers ime.......



No shit Haylz. Get this though love - you find some English speakers who are snobby too. Honest to God. Can I point you in the direction of Rhiwbina and Lisvane?


----------



## Sweaty Betty (Feb 28, 2007)

Brockway said:
			
		

> No shit Haylz. Get this though love - you find some English speakers who are snobby too. Honest to God. Can I point you in the direction of Rhiwbina and Lisvane?




oh i know mate, they can be some of the worst as well(butchers aprons and all that jazz).....but the welsh speaker luvvies from s4c are a breed i dont get on with


----------



## brianx (Mar 1, 2007)

Does it matter if Welsh "isn't an international language"? Dutch isn't an international language but everyone in the Netherlands speaks Dutch as their first language and can usually speak English and at least one other foreign language. I'd love to learn Welsh but don't want to learn a language for the sake of it. If Gruff Rhys and his glamorous friends were in town every week it would be a chance to speak Welsh but except for when the Eisteddfodd(sp) was here a few years ago I've never heard any person speak Welsh in Newport. 
I'll pop along to Wetherspoon's to have a pint of SA and chat if I can get started on the lingo. Thanks for the info Ben.
Happy St David's day everyone.


----------



## Grandma Death (Mar 2, 2007)

brianx said:
			
		

> Does it matter if Welsh "isn't an international language"? Dutch isn't an international language but everyone in the Netherlands speaks Dutch as their first language and can usually speak English and at least one other foreign language. .




Dutch is spoken in not only the netherlands but also belgium and parts of france-also some 22 million people use it as their main language (whereas only around 700,000 speak welsh). You cannot even begin to compare it to the welsh language.


----------



## Brockway (Mar 2, 2007)

*Charlotte Church apologist*




			
				brianx said:
			
		

> Does it matter if Welsh "isn't an international language"? Dutch isn't an international language but everyone in the Netherlands speaks Dutch as their first language and can usually speak English and at least one other foreign language. I'd love to learn Welsh but don't want to learn a language for the sake of it. If Gruff Rhys and his glamorous friends were in town every week it would be a chance to speak Welsh but except for when the Eisteddfodd(sp) was here a few years ago I've never heard any person speak Welsh in Newport.
> I'll pop along to Wetherspoon's to have a pint of SA and chat if I can get started on the lingo. Thanks for the info Ben.
> Happy St David's day everyone.



Well how many people in Newport (Llanrumney East  ) do you hear speaking Spanish, German or French? That doesn't stop plenty of Newportonians learning those languages. Anyway learn Welsh and you can enjoy the pleasures of S4C. Now there's an incentive....


----------



## Brockway (Mar 2, 2007)

Grandma Death said:
			
		

> Dutch is spoken in not only the netherlands but also belgium and parts of france-also some 22 million people use it as their main language (whereas only around 700,000 speak welsh). You cannot even begin to compare it to the welsh language.



Welsh is cooler though - it's the language of Merlin and a link to our pre-Anglo-Saxon past.


----------



## Ben Bore (Mar 2, 2007)

So what's do folks think the cut of point for a language to be 'worth it' should be?

900,000, 1.5million, 5m, 10m, 20m?


----------



## Grandma Death (Mar 2, 2007)

Ben Bore said:
			
		

> So what's do folks think the cut of point for a language to be 'worth it' should be?
> 
> 900,000, 1.5million, 5m, 10m, 20m?



Face facts....welsh is a tiny minority language used pretty much in wales only. I love the language its great and wouldnt want to see it die off-but the bottom line is outside of wales there is pretty much zero need for its use. Doesnt make it an less 'worth' but in terms of scale & frequency of use its dwarved by say Dutch as was the example given.


----------



## ddraig (Mar 2, 2007)

Patagonia dude
Pat-a-gonia


----------



## chilango (Mar 2, 2007)

Grandma Death said:
			
		

> Dutch is spoken in not only the netherlands but also belgium and parts of france-also some 22 million people use it as their main language (whereas only around 700,000 speak welsh). You cannot even begin to compare it to the welsh language.



Welsh is spoken in parts of England.

Patagonia obviously.

I 've used Welsh in the USA on two seperate occasions.

It also proved useful in Brittany.

Wherever I lived abroad, people have been delighted that Welsh exists and have been keen to learn a few phrases.

...so your point is?


----------



## Grandma Death (Mar 2, 2007)

chilango said:
			
		

> Welsh is spoken in parts of England.
> 
> Patagonia obviously.
> 
> ...



My point is obvious-in case you missed it.

700,000 People worldwide speak welsh and 611,000 of those are in wales. Outside of wales there is hardly much call for it-on the scale of languages its hardly used outside of wales.

Infact its hardly used on this planet full stop. 

Im just stating facts-there is little _practical_ use in learning a language so few people use. Of course there is every reason to learn it to preserve its culture and heritage/and or if you are going to patagonia for your holidays if thats what rings your bell


----------



## Gromit (Mar 2, 2007)

3 million people would be speaking Welsh if it wasn't for the english.

Iceland has a population of 300,000. 
You'll be telling them next not to bother speaking Icelandic as so few people use it. Stop wasting your time and get yourself a more popular language you silly ice people.

And don't even get me started on the Malteese!!!


----------



## chilango (Mar 2, 2007)

Grandma Death said:
			
		

> My point is obvious-in case you missed it.
> 
> 700,000 People worldwide speak welsh and 611,000 of those are in wales. Outside of wales there is hardly much call for it-on the scale of languages its hardly used outside of wales.
> 
> ...



What? see my post above...

I use Welsh regularly here in Mexico, I used it France, Portugal, the USA etc. 

I even delivered a sermon in Welsh at a catholic church in the _barrios_ of Guatemala City a coupla years ago (that was pretty strange mind!)


----------



## Grandma Death (Mar 2, 2007)

chilango said:
			
		

> What? see my post above...
> 
> I use Welsh regularly here in Mexico, I used it France, Portugal, the USA etc.
> 
> I even delivered a sermon in Welsh at a catholic church in the _barrios_ of Guatemala City a coupla years ago (that was pretty strange mind!)



Yes for _you_ its been practical but _generally_ for most people it serves no practical purpose whatsoever.


----------



## chilango (Mar 2, 2007)

Grandma Death said:
			
		

> Y_generally_ for most people



...thats the problem with yer argument though innit. Your just generalising based upon your exeperiences, and it doesn`t work.

Just as my experiences can`t be generalised to "everybody really needs to learn welsh to use outside Wales".

Point is, it is a living language that has both national and international value, and whilst you can of course get by without it, your experiences are, I would argue, a little impoversihed in its absence.


----------



## Grandma Death (Mar 2, 2007)

Marius said:
			
		

> You'll be telling them next not to bother speaking Icelandic as so few people use it.



Im not telling _anyone_ to *not* learn welsh. Try reading my posts.


----------



## Grandma Death (Mar 2, 2007)

chilango said:
			
		

> ...thats the problem with yer argument though innit. Your just generalising based upon your exeperiences, and it doesn`t work.
> 
> .



No im 'generalising' on the amount of fluent speakers & their geographical location which obviously leads me to the conclusion that its a minority language which, on a practical level, there isnt really a need to learn (for me that is).


----------



## Gromit (Mar 2, 2007)

Grandma Death said:
			
		

> Im not telling _anyone_ to *not* learn welsh. Try reading my posts.



No but you are saying there is little practical use if few people use a language. Wales, Iceland and Malta beg to disagree.

The fact few people use something doesn't make it worthless.


----------



## Grandma Death (Mar 2, 2007)

Marius said:
			
		

> No but you are saying there is little practical use if few people use a language. Wales, Iceland and Malta beg to disagree.
> 
> The fact few people use something doesn't make it worthless.



Again read my posts. Im not saying the welsh language is 'worthless' Im saying its not practical unless you are one of the minority of people who speak it.

Hence my reason to not learn it.


----------



## Gromit (Mar 2, 2007)

Grandma Death said:
			
		

> Again read my posts. Im not saying the welsh language is 'worthless' Im saying its not practical unless you are one of the minority of people who speak it.
> 
> Hence my reason to not learn it.



I've scrolled back and i can't say that its obvious from your posts but you've spelt it out now so fine.

For me it is practical to learn it because I'm far more likely to come into contact with someone who speaks welsh then i am with someone who speaks french or german no matter how many people speak it world wide.


----------



## ddraig (Mar 2, 2007)

decent discussion, esp chilango 





no need for new buns 

i'm lucky enough to have a mate at work i can and do speak Welsh to  and when i answer the phone i say good morning bore da ... and afternoon pnawn da and would hopefully be able to hold a decent enough convo and help the person on the other end (not that i've been asked yet mind)

Cymraeg is v v important to me and as previously mentioned it's the main reason i decided to move back home to Cymru to sort out my fading Cymro-ness. i can't speak to my gran in engerlish for starters.
i would however like to speak it more and have been meaning to go to one of ben bore's shindigs in the mochyn ddu but am generally a bit slack mun  

in answer to the thread title, i'm lucky enough to have been brought up bi-lingual and now wish i could use it more day to day and see and help the *hen iaith parhau* (the old language prolong/persist/persevere/be preserved?). eta actually help me out here please.... what is engerlish for 'parhau'?


----------



## brianx (Mar 2, 2007)

I understand Grandma Death's argument that because it isn't spoken widely there is no practical value in learning the language, but if more people in south east Wales did learn the language there would be more chance to speak Welsh on a day to day basis and there would then be a practical benefit in speaking Welsh. 
I travel to Holland a lot for work and they are surprised (and disappointed) that someone from Wales can't speak Welsh, that's why I used the Netherlands as my example as Marius has pointed out Iceland would be better.
I do envy people who can speak Welsh and repect to those that weren't born speaking the language but have made the effort to learn.


----------



## brianx (Mar 2, 2007)

chilango said:
			
		

> What? see my post above...
> 
> I use Welsh regularly here in Mexico, I used it France, Portugal, the USA etc.
> 
> I even delivered a sermon in Welsh at a catholic church in the _barrios_ of Guatemala City a coupla years ago (that was pretty strange mind!)


Hello chilango,
Please don't think I'm being facetious but in the places that you've spoken Welsh and given sermons do the people understand a word that you're saying? 'kin 'ell you've got big balls mun!!


----------



## chilango (Mar 2, 2007)

brianx said:
			
		

> Hello chilango,
> Please don't think I'm being facetious but in the places that you've spoken Welsh and given sermons do the people understand a word that you're saying? 'kin 'ell you've got big balls mun!!



depends.

in the usa on a coupla occasions people have come up to me and started the conversation in welsh. once in LA, once in the middle of the desert in arizona, odd but true. Most other places people want to learn a few phrases in welsh - which we then use, in guatemala nah! i then translated what i said into spanish, it was to underline the priests concern that they should keep using their indigenous langauges and not lose their heritage and all that....tbh, it was freaky enough giving a sermon in a catholic church in a guatemalan barrio full stop.


----------



## brianx (Mar 2, 2007)

chilango said:
			
		

> depends.
> 
> in the usa on a coupla occasions people have come up to me and started the conversation in welsh. once in LA, once in the middle of the desert in arizona, odd but true. Most other places people want to learn a few phrases in welsh - which we then use, in guatemala nah! i then translated what i said into spanish, it was to underline the priests concern that they should keep using their indigenous langauges and not lose their heritage and all that....tbh, it was freaky enough giving a sermon in a catholic church in a guatemalan barrio full stop.


Thanks chilango,
I think that what you say about not losing your heritage is important. If we're not careful the whole world will be speaking American and although it would be good to not have language as a barrier between people it would be sad if we don't have our own cultures. 
I think that I will try to learn Welsh this autumn.
You're the John Cale of Urban  A Welshman from India.


----------



## Grandma Death (Mar 2, 2007)

brianx said:
			
		

> I understand Grandma Death's argument that because it isn't spoken widely there is no practical value in learning the language, but if more people in south east Wales did learn the language there would be more chance to speak Welsh on a day to day basis and there would then be a practical benefit in speaking Welsh.
> I travel to Holland a lot for work and they are surprised (and disappointed) that someone from Wales can't speak Welsh, that's why I used the Netherlands as my example as Marius has pointed out Iceland would be better.
> I do envy people who can speak Welsh and repect to those that weren't born speaking the language but have made the effort to learn.



Yes thats right. But I think its minority status will mean unfortunately even in its  main country of origin it will, even there, remain a minority language. The same can be said about scottish gaelic for example.


----------



## samk (Mar 2, 2007)

Marius said:
			
		

> 3 million people would be speaking Welsh if it wasn't for the english.
> 
> Iceland has a population of 300,000.
> You'll be telling them next not to bother speaking Icelandic as so few people use it. Stop wasting your time and get yourself a more popular language you silly ice people.
> ...


But modern icelandic is apparently unchanged enough from old norse to still be able to read the viking sagas. Welsh poetry really doesn't have the same street cred, does it?


----------



## Karac (Mar 2, 2007)

samk said:
			
		

> But modern icelandic is apparently unchanged enough from old norse to still be able to read the viking sagas. Welsh poetry really doesn't have the same street cred, does it?


Welsh speakers can still read the old poems of Aneirin and Taleisin from the 6th Century with little difficulty


----------



## ddraig (Mar 2, 2007)

Karac said:
			
		

> Welsh speakers can still read the old poems of Aneirin and Taleisin from the 6th Century with little difficulty


  init! and some of the stuff in tolkein is a bit mad to read/hear for a Welsh speaker.


----------



## Karac (Mar 2, 2007)

ddraig said:
			
		

> init! and some of the stuff in tolkein is a bit mad to read/hear for a Welsh speaker.


A lot of Tolkeins stuff was based on the Welsh-he was a real Cymrophile


----------



## niclas (Mar 3, 2007)

Karac said:
			
		

> A lot of Tolkeins stuff was based on the Welsh-he was a real Cymrophile



Smash his windows, the dirty bastard!


----------



## chio (Mar 3, 2007)

One of the clearest radio stations I can hear is in Welsh; I wish I could understand what they were on about 

(I'm near Manchester.)


----------



## llantwit (Mar 3, 2007)

niclas said:
			
		

> Smash his windows, the dirty bastard!


----------



## samk (Mar 3, 2007)

chio said:
			
		

> One of the clearest radio stations I can hear is in Welsh; I wish I could understand what they were on about
> 
> (I'm near Manchester.)


I sometimes find it nice to listen to stations in a language i don't understand for some non-distracting background noise


----------



## llantwit (Mar 3, 2007)

samk said:
			
		

> I sometimes find it nice to listen to stations in a language i don't understand for some non-distracting background noise


Me too, actually. I listen to Radio Cymru like that. I find it relaxing sometimes, not to understand everything.


----------



## brianx (Mar 3, 2007)

llantwit said:
			
		

> Me too, actually. I listen to Radio Cymru like that. I find it relaxing sometimes, not to understand everything.


Hello Llantwit try the Bob Dylan themed music hour. Fantastic music but can't undersatnd a word that the great man's saying.


----------



## llantwit (Mar 3, 2007)

brianx said:
			
		

> Hello Llantwit try the Bob Dylan themed music hour. Fantastic music but can't undersatnd a word that the great man's saying.


----------



## gwilyms son (Mar 4, 2007)

*welsh speakers /writers helping welsh learners on this forum*

hello 
i,m from a welsh background and but for other reasons my family have come to live in stockport cheshire work etc. i think it would be good if people using this forum as a stepping stone to further progress in welsh by people writing  welsh and the learners writing back in welsh and tell them where they have gone wrong,i am been learning welsh for a while now and as you can imagine living in stockport you cant really bounce off anyone.anybody want to pm me for a chat in welsh to bring me upto speed


----------



## Brockway (Mar 4, 2007)

There are a few Welsh speakers on here mate but I don't think Welsh is allowed because it can't be properly monitored. Somebody was on here before talking about a forum, a bit like this, where Welsh was the main language. Can't remember what it was called though.


----------



## gwilyms son (Mar 4, 2007)

*not allowed*

see history never goes away the welsh get shafted again whoever heard of a welsh forum where u cant,t speak or write welsh bet if muslims/polish were allowed on here i wonder if their first way of communication would be allowed
answers on a £20 pound note please


----------



## brianx (Mar 4, 2007)

This is a Welsh forum Gwilym.The Editor is a Cardiff boy and it's originally a Cardiff City fanclub thing. Don't worry someone will let you know of Welsh language meetiings in your area. Please be patient.


----------



## Brockway (Mar 4, 2007)

Poles and muslims ARE allowed on here. Moslem is a religion by the way.  There are plenty of Welsh-speaking moslems.  

It's not anti-welsh, the bloke who runs the website is Welsh - he just doesn't speak his native tongue, so can't monitor it, which is fair enough.


----------



## gwilyms son (Mar 4, 2007)

*waiting*

ok watching and waiting no pun intended to religion by the way but you when apassions burning anyway where you lot from


----------



## ddraig (Mar 4, 2007)

hey hey you can speaka da  Cymraeg ere!! just have to provide a translation as in the sticky for this forum.
there are a couple of links at he start of this thread for others, if not do a search for Cymraeg  
croeso mab gwilym


----------



## ddraig (Mar 4, 2007)

gwilyms son said:
			
		

> ok watching and waiting no pun intended to religion by the way but you when apassions burning anyway where you lot from


dirty diff


----------



## brianx (Mar 4, 2007)

gwilyms son said:
			
		

> ok watching and waiting no pun intended to religion by the way but you when apassions burning anyway where you lot from


Gwilym. the people on here are lovely. But it's not the Sun or Talksport, if you upset them they will kill you with words. Please try to understand where they're coming from and they will help you. You're obviously very young but think before you post please.


----------



## gwilyms son (Mar 4, 2007)

*young nows theres a compliment*

dont do talk sport and deffo dont read the sun 
and forty five is not young unless your 90 lol


----------



## brianx (Mar 4, 2007)

gwilyms son said:
			
		

> dont do talk sport and deffo dont read the sun
> and forty five is not young unless your 90 lol


There's no hope for you then my friend. Good luck.


----------



## gwilyms son (Mar 4, 2007)

*hope*

whats your job then that makes you so fruitful as to judge me,simple question


----------



## Sweaty Betty (Mar 4, 2007)

brianx said:
			
		

> There's no hope for you then my friend. Good luck.



harsh


----------



## Sweaty Betty (Mar 4, 2007)

hello gwylim.....sut mae?


----------



## gwilyms son (Mar 4, 2007)

*thats more like*

hello haylz ............sut mae?


----------



## gwilyms son (Mar 4, 2007)

*good luck*

hey guess what just had some good luck brianx has stopped posting me bliss another empty head clogging the net up


----------



## niclas (Mar 4, 2007)

Gwilym 
 Cer i www.maes-e.com os am sgwrs Gymraeg am bopeth dan haul. 

 Go to www.maes-e.com for a Welsh-language chat about everything under the sun.


----------



## brianx (Mar 5, 2007)

haylz said:
			
		

> harsh


You're right haylz, sorry Gwilym.


----------



## LilMissHissyFit (Mar 5, 2007)

gwilyms son said:
			
		

> see history never goes away the welsh get shafted again whoever heard of a welsh forum where u cant,t speak or write welsh bet if muslims/polish were allowed on here i wonder if their first way of communication would be allowed
> answers on a £20 pound note please



Dont be ridiculous. There are people from all over the world here and the rule is equality of participation.
You can post in whatever language you wish but you must provide an english translation so others can participate if they dont understand the language youve posted in.
So quit with the hard done by racist crud about immigrants being allowed etc etc.... because thats not fair or accurate


----------



## Sweaty Betty (Mar 6, 2007)

brianx said:
			
		

> You're right haylz, sorry Gwilym.



aww what a nice boy


----------



## rhys gethin (Mar 6, 2007)

chio said:
			
		

> One of the clearest radio stations I can hear is in Welsh; I wish I could understand what they were on about
> 
> (I'm near Manchester.)




I'm prepared to bet there's a class in that city.   Try the WEA, for a start.


----------



## chilango (Mar 6, 2007)

There certainly used to be plenty of Welsh speakers in Manc, and a Welsh chapel or two.


----------

