VP New Year

[Barman]

Oh, is that all... 

[Snoopy]

It's four years actually.

Pedant! 

All right we'll be starting our fifth year.

We'll be old enough to have to go to skool ~ although in Wales they start skool at 3 years of age.

[Barman]

It's four years actually.

Pedant! 

All right we'll be starting our fifth year.

We'll be old enough to have to go to skool ~ although in Wales they start skool at 3 years of age.

We don't have to learn Welsh do we...? 

[Nick]

Welsh isn't a real language. It's just a noise they make when English people are about

[Tipsy Gipsy]

It's four years actually.

Pedant!  

All right we'll be starting our fifth year.

We'll be old enough to have to go to skool ~ although in Wales they start skool at 3 years of age.

We don't have to learn Welsh do we...?  

Im alright I can count to 10 in Welsh, thats more than enough! 


Edited... but its a while since I mussed up the quoting thingy. 

[Snoopy]

Any country, where half the population is called Jones or Jenkins (see their Rugby team) that promotes a language with no J in its alphabet deserves all the mockery we can muster.

Oh and yes I too can count to ten, know that Gorsaf Dan is the Fire Station, y Heddlu are the Police and Araf means slow. I also know that Baa! means "I have a headache!"

[Tipsy Gipsy]

Any country, where half the population is called Jones or Jenkins (see their Rugby team) that promotes a language with no J in its alphabet deserves all the mockery we can muster.

Oh and yes I too can count to ten, know that Gorsaf Dan is the Fire Station, y Heddlu are the Police and Araf means slow. I also know that Baa! means "I have a headache!"

and Ty Bach I think is useful or have I got that wrong? 

[Just One More]

Any country, where half the population is called Jones or Jenkins (see their Rugby team) that promotes a language with no J in its alphabet deserves all the mockery we can muster.

Oh and yes I too can count to ten, know that Gorsaf Dan is the Fire Station, y Heddlu are the Police and Araf means slow. I also know that Baa! means "I have a headache!"

and Ty Bach I think is useful or have I got that wrong? 

Very useful if you're hanging curtains 

[Barman]

Any country, where half the population is called Jones or Jenkins (see their Rugby team) that promotes a language with no J in its alphabet deserves all the mockery we can muster.

Oh and yes I too can count to ten, know that Gorsaf Dan is the Fire Station, y Heddlu are the Police and Araf means slow. I also know that Baa! means "I have a headache!"

and Ty Bach I think is useful or have I got that wrong? 

Very useful if you're hanging curtains 

[Snoopy]

Ysbty = Hospital
Ambiwlans = Ambulance
AND
Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch is actually known by the locals as Llanfair PG

A single F is pronounced as a V

[Just One More]

Aah, now that I know a single f = a v, it all makes sense 

[Snoopy]

The problem with the Welsh Language is that it does not follow the same basics as most languages (ie Greek or Latin) so you get stresses where you don't expect them. They also change the spelling of words depending on what word follows it in the sentence. Lastly Welsh has not evolved over the centuries but rather has had to be reinvented (mainly by Aberysthwyth University) so there is a lot of argument between the "Purists" mainly in North Wales and the "Modernists" mainly in South Wales.
For instance in South Wales there are several words for Milk but in North Wales it is simply "Laith".
Aberysthwyth degreed that words that did not exist in Welsh such as Telephone should be "Welshified" to Telefon (and completely ignored the single F is pronounced V)
The net result is that there is not really a single Welsh language ... it goes further than simply regional dialects and a fluent Welsh speaker from this area can barely communicate with one from Cardiff.

[Just One More]

The problem with the Welsh Language is that it does not follow the same basics as most languages (ie Greek or Latin) so you get stresses where you don't expect them. They also change the spelling of words depending on what word follows it in the sentence. Lastly Welsh has not evolved over the centuries but rather has had to be reinvented (mainly by Aberysthwyth University) so there is a lot of argument between the "Purists" mainly in North Wales and the "Modernists" mainly in South Wales.
For instance in South Wales there are several words for Milk but in North Wales it is simply "Laith".
Aberysthwyth degreed that words that did not exist in Welsh such as Telephone should be "Welshified" to Telefon (and completely ignored the single F is pronounced V)
The net result is that there is not really a single Welsh language ... it goes further than simply regional dialects and a fluent Welsh speaker from this area can barely communicate with one from Cardiff.

Funnily enough I had a similar conversation with one of the lads at work last week. He lives at Abergavenny, and was explaining the different dialects, and that at his kids school they teach English as the 2nd language (his Mrs is Welsh, he's as English as you or I)

[Snoopy]

In Wales school roughly divide between those that teach in Welsh Medium and those that teach in English Medium. At either the "second" language element is compulsory to GCSE level. The biggest problems with this system are (i) There are not sufficient Welsh speaking teachers qualified in various subjects (Maths and Science are particularly difficult subjects to recruit for) and (ii) very few English speaking teachers are fluent enough to cope with every day language in Welsh.
SWWLTBO is supposed to teach bilingually but makes do with sprinkling a few Welsh words here and there throughout each lesson. It satisfies the legal requirements, just about.
Since SWWLTBO teaches mainly history she has to bone up on the Welsh dimension. Ever heard of the "Rebecca Riots"? ... It seems that in the 18th century some Welsh  farm workers ganged up to attack toll gates. To disguise themselves they dressed in wimmins clothing, hopeful that the Army sent in to sort them would not shoot at wimmin. The Welsh are terrifically proud of this "daring-do" and despite the fact that the "Riots" lasted only a short while the teaching occupies a hooge portion of the syllabus.

[Nick]

That's the Welsh for you. Any excuse to dress up as wimmin