Ar Lannau'r Dyfrdwy... unwaith eto...

Talfyriad post 'Clecs Cilgwri' /An abreviation of a Clecs Cilgwri  post  (vocab below)  

Ges i tip da gan Nigel a Mike yr wythnos yma i drio'r llwybr beicio sy'n glynu at lannau'r Dyfrdwy o Bont Penarlág i Gaer, a dyna be wnes i ddydd gwener.   Mae'n ffordd hyfryd o gyrraedd Caer... ac i osgoi'r traffic!    Digwydd bod, ro'n i'n ddigon ffodus i weld yr 'Afon Dyfrwdwy' (y llong yn y llun), yn cludo adain Airbus380,  sy'n cael eu cynhyrchu ym Mrychdyn (Broughton) yn ymyl yr afon.  Mi gaeth y barge  hwn ei adeiladu'n arbennig i fynd ag adenydd yr awerynau enfawr 'ma lawr y Dyfrdwy hyd at Borthladd Mostyn.  Mae'r llong yn isel iawn iawn er mwyn gadael iddo fo fynd o dan y pontydd.

Adain 'Airbus' ar ei ffordd lawr y Dyfrdwy

Ar ol dilyn yr afon am saith milltir, wnes i ffeindio fy hun yng nghanol Caer, heb hyd yn oed gweld yr un gar!   Wnes i adael y Dyfrdwy ger y lociau oedd yn arfer cysylltu'r camlas â'r afon, cyn i mi dreulio tipyn o amser yn ffeindio towpath camlas y Shropshire Union -  mae'n hawdd dechrau ar yr ochr anghywir, sy'n arwain i nunlle!   Ond dyma ffordd hyfryd arall o gyraedd neu adael Caer, ac wnes i ffeindio fy hun yng nghanol y cefn gwlad mewn ychydig o funudau.   Ar ol tua pedwar milltir wnes i droi oddi ar llwybr y camlas a ffeindio fy ffordd yn ol i'r Two Mills (lle wnes i gychwyn) ar y lonydd tawel.  Gwibdaith hyfryd :)

cyrraedd - reach/arrive
glynu at - sticks to
osgoi - avoid
digwydd bod - as it happens
ffodus - fortunate
cludo - to transport
adain (pl. adenydd) - wing
cynhyrchu - to produce
adeiladu - to build
mynd ag - to take (lit. to go with)
aweryn(au) - aeroplane(s)
hyd at - as far as/up to
er mwyn - in order to
gadael - leave/allow/let
o dan - under
pont(ydd) - bridge(s)
hyd yn oed - even
cysylltu - to connect
camlas - canal
treulio -  to spend time
nunlle - nowhere
oddi ar - from on (ie. troi oddi ar = turn from on/turn off)
gwibdaith - excursion
lonydd - lanes

Eisteddfod y Dysgwyr 2011

Roedd Eisteddfod y Dysgwyr (Gogledd Ddwyrain Cymru) 2011 yn llwyddiant ysgubol dwi'n credu, efo nifer mawr (dros 200) yn mwynhau noson o gystadlu cyffeillgar. Gobeithio wnaethoch chi fwynhau'r profiad o wylio a chystadlu hefyd!

Uchafbwyntiau (highlights) y noson - yn ól ymateb y cynulleidfa - oedd   a) perfformiad o 'Galon Lan' (os dwi'n cofio'n iawn) ar y bagbibau (bagpipes), a   b) 'medley' o glasuron Abba gan griw o ddysgwyr lliwgar o ardal Wrecsam,   ac wrth gwrs c) cystadleuaeth y sgetsh ;)

Da iawn i bawb wnaeth cyfrannu at noson wych, a llongyfarchiadau mawr i Les Barker o Fwlchgwyn ger Wrecsam am ennill y Cadair.

Dyma fideo o'r sgetsh gwnaeth ennill (wel yr unig sgetsh a dweud y gwir..)! 



geirfa

llwyddiant ysgubol - sweeping success
ennill-win
cystadlu-compete
cyfeillgar-freindly
profiad - experience
yn o^l - according to (it can of course mean 'back' as well)
cynulleidfa-audience
lliwgar-colourful
cystadleuaeth-competition
cyfrannu-contribute

Reasons to Learn Welsh... Un, Dau, Tri,

Not that we need any more reasons to learn Welsh!  but research, this time from the USA, adds further weight to the benefits of bilingualism, in particular as a way of reducing the risk of developing Alzheimers.    Other forms of mental activity are of course thought to be beneficial, as are lifestyle choices, but by using two languages there is apparently a subconcsious level of activity continuously going on in specific areas of the brain which is particularly helpful.   Those of us learning Welsh know only too well the level of mental activity required, so this I suppose won't come as a huge suprise, though those who are 'naturally' bilingual perhaps take it for granted!?

Here's the Western Mails report on the same story.

Pen Lly^n (The Lly^n Peninsula)

English follows:

Wnaethon ni dreulio wythnos hyfryd ym Mhen Lly^n, lle gaethon ni dywydd andros o braf (diolch byth!).  Gobeithio wnaethoch chi mwynhau eich gwyliau chi, lle bynnag yn y byd yr aethoch chi.

Ges i nifer o gyfleoedd ymarfer fy Nghymraeg, o siop sglodion yn Nefyn, i siop sglodion Aberdaron a nifer o lefydd rhwng y ddau! Mae tafodiaeth cryf Pen Lly^n yn gallu bod yn eitha annodd i ddysgwyr i'w ddeall, a ches i drafferth cwpl o weithiau,  ond fel y cyfriw ges i ymateb cadarnhaol i fy Nghymraeg 'sgowsaidd'.  Fel dwedodd yr hogan oedd yn gweithio yn siop bach y traeth ger Tudweiliog: 'Mae unrhyw Gymraeg yn well na dim Cymraeg o gwbl'. Cymerais i hon fel rhywbeth cadarnhaol, ond yn ól Jill, 'canmoliaeth gwatwarus' gallai hynny wedi bod... pwy a wir!

Yn son am Ben Lly^n, mae 'na gyfres newydd yn dechrau ar S4C yr wythnos yma, am yr ardal hyfryd yma.   Mae cyfres 'Pen Llyn Harri Parri' yn cael ei gyflwyno wrth reswm gan Harri Parri (am enw da!), brodor o Ben Lly^n, ond un sydd wedi byw yng Nghaernarfon ers degawdau.   Mae o'n ymweled á llefydd ei blentyndod, a rhai dydy o byth wedi ymweled á nhw o'r blaen.   Trowch yr is-deitlau ymlaen (mae gynno fo dafodiaeth cryf!) a mwynhewch y golygfeydd ysblenydd!

Porth Towyn ger Tudweiliog

We spent a lovely week at the end of August on the Lly^n peninsula, where we had really fine weather (thank goodness).  I hope you enjoyed your holidays, wherever in the world you went.
I had a number of oppurtunities to practice my Welsh, from a chip shop in Nefyn to the chip shop in Aberdaron, and a few places between the two!   The strong Lly^n dialect can be hard for learners to understand, and I had problems a couple of times, but on the whole I had a positive response to my 'scowsish' Welsh.  As the girl who was working in the small beach shop near Tudweiliog said: 'Any Welsh is better than none'. I took this to be something positive, but according to Jill this could have been a backhanded compliment... who knows! 

Talking of Pen Lly^n,  there's a new series starting on S4C this week about this lovely area.   The series, 'Pen Llyn Harri Parri' is presented of course by Harri Parri (great name!), a native of the Llyn, but one who has lived in Caernarfon for decades.  He visits the places of his childhood, and some which are completely new to him.    Put the subtitles on, (he's got a thick accent!) and enjoy the splendid views! 

Diwedd yr Haf....

Today the clocks back (I think... spring forward, fall back is the only way I remember) which means the end of summer (diwedd yr haf), or at least 'British summertime'. Below is a small piece which shouldn't be too hard for those half way through Mynediad to understand (where there is a mutation I've highlighted it in italics :


Mae hi'n amser 'newid y clociau' unwaith eto. Yng Nghilgwri, mae hi wedi bod penwythnos digon tymhorol, efo glaw a gwynt, ond dydy hi ddim wedi bod yn rhy oer.
Mae'r ysgolion wrth cwrs wedi cau am (g)wyliau yr hanner tymor, ac mi fydd rhai bobol yn dianc am wythnos yn yr heulwen efallai, neu yn mynd i fwynhau yr hydref rhywle yng Nghymru. A dweud y gwir, dwi'n eitha hoffi'r hydref, er dwi ddim yn edrych ymlaen at ddyddiau byrion y gaeaf sydd ar y gorwel.



unwaith - once
digon - enough
newid - change
tymhorol - seasonal
a dweud y gwir - to tell the truth
eitha - rather
byrion - short(plural) byr = short (singular)
gorwel - horizon

Google translate....

Google have recently added Welsh to their 'translate' tool which is quite something given that only around 50 or so of the worlds languages are there. Cymraeg appears to be the first of the Celtic languages made available.

As I'm sure everyone's aware, translation tools are a mixed blessing and are responsible for many of the disasterous and unintelligable translations that appear on the internet, as well as on 'occasional' signs in Wales. One fine example was of an establishment near Ruthin that translated Brasserie as 'Y Bronglwm', which as you can guess is the Welsh for bra!

However if you're not sure of something it's a useful tool, and obviously translating from Welsh to English you'll spot any results that makes no sense. English to Welsh though is a bit more risky for the learner...