28.5.10

Hanes dysgwraig.... A learners tale....

I watched a fascinating programme on S4C this week, one of the 'O Flaen Dy Lygaid' (before your eyes) series which looked at the life of 'Stef Farrar', a remarkable woman who moved from Nottingham to Snowdonia after finishing her university course at Bangor. Stef decided to learn Welsh soon after moving full time to Wales and became fluent in a couple of years. In 1989 she won the prestigious Dysgwr y Flwyddyn competition at the National Eisteddfod and went on to work as a tutor. Perhaps what is most remarkable is how she changed the language of her 'aelwyd' (hearth - meaning home) when her first child was small, in order to give him the best chance to fit into the community. Today her five children are all fluent and enthusiastic Welsh speakers though her determination to use the Welsh language in the home may have contributed to her seperation from her husband, who though not unsympathetic to the language was not interested in learning. In her words he was a little 'pissed off'! As well as continuing to teach the language to adults and raise her family, Stef has been setting new British records in swimming for her age group (she's just turned 50), a childhood interest she's recently rekindled. The backdrop of the programme sadly though was her mothers illness which meant much traveling back and forth between Snowdonia and Nottingham, though things had improved a little by the end of filming. All in all a fascinating programme, well worth catching on S4Clic. (I also write about the programme on Clecs Cilgwri, though this is not a translation of it!)

18.5.10

Y dyfodol - the future

We were looking at the future tonight in blwyddyn 2,   here's a paragraph using the future of 'bod' (to be) - bydd:

Mi fydd ein hogan ni'n mynd i Fetws y Coed dydd mercher ar drip ysgol efo'r adran daearyddiaeth (geography dept.).  Dwi ddim yn gwybod be' fydden nhw yn wneud yna, ond mae'n rhaid iddyn nhw mynd á sgidiau cerdded, dillad cynnes, cot sy'n dal dwr (waterproof) - well it is Wales - a pecyn bwyd.  Mi fydden nhw'n dod yn ól i'r ysgol tua pedwar o'r gloch yn y p'nawn.  Mae'r athrawon wedi dysgu'r plant sut i ddweud 'Betws y Coed' (chwarae teg iddyn nhw!),  wnaeth Miriam dweud wrtha i 'The English call it 'betsy co-ed'...! 

Mi fydd hi'n ddiwrnod braf yn ól y rhagolwg tywydd, ond mi fydda i'n gweithio yn y gweithdy trwy'r dydd yfory yn anffodus.

9.5.10

Gwleidyddiaeth / Politics... if you've not had enough....

With all the politics in the news this week, you will have heard many words relating to the election and all its associated fallout on any Welsh news reports you've heard. Here are a few of the common ones:

Etholiad cyffredinol - general election
Etholaeth - constituency
Pleidleisio - to vote
Bwrw pleidlais - to cast a vote
pledlais - a vote
y pleidleiswyr - the voters
Y Toriaid/Ceidwadwyr - The Tories/Conservatives
Y Blaid Lafur - The Labour Party
Y Democratiaid Rhyddfrydol - Lib Dems (many just say lib dems, though it's great once you master it!)
Dadl - argument/debate
Prif Weinidog - Prime Minister
Y Senedd - Parliament
Senedd Grog - Hung Parliament
San Steffan - Westminster
Trafodaeth(au) - discussion(s)
Clymblaid - Coalition
y gwrthblaid - the opposition
Llanast - mess!

1.5.10

Adroddiad a Chanlyniadau o Wersyllt...

Mae adroddiad  am 'Eisteddfod y Dysgwyr 2010' ar wefan  'LearnCymraeg', efo rhestr o'r canlyniadau. Mae'n ar gael yn Gymraeg a Saesneg cofiwch!

adroddiad - report
(g)wefan - website
rhestr - list
Canlyniadau - results
ar gael - available
cofiwch - remember (command form)