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Post by ARENA on Jun 22, 2018 10:19:35 GMT
Overheard on a bus in Newport yesterday...
A woman in a niqab was talking to her son in a foreign language.
After a couple of minutes a passenger turned and said "When your in England, you should speak English!"
Another passenger turned to him and said, "Were in Wales and they are speaking Welsh"
From the local Newport newspaper
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Post by Deleted on Jun 22, 2018 10:49:33 GMT
I find this obsession with local language strange and counter productive The Welsh want to use Welsh, the Scots want to use Scottish, the Cornish want to use Cornish, and so on In this day and age of instant communication it seems strange to saddle yourself with having to translate from one language to another for no real advantage |
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Post by starlilolill on Jun 22, 2018 15:00:18 GMT
I'm so tempted to say 'you are obviously English!' - there I've said it now!
I am a Scot, I don't speak Gaelic but I admire the people who do - one day I will get the hang of it!
It's good to keep your culture alive IMHO.
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Post by aubrey on Jun 22, 2018 15:49:50 GMT
I find this obsession with local language strange and counter productive The Welsh want to use Welsh, the Scots want to use Scottish, the Cornish want to use Cornish, and so on In this day and age of instant communication it seems strange to saddle yourself with having to translate from one language to another for no real advantage
They speak English when speaking to an English person, but Welsh (etc) amongst themselves. There's nowt wrong with that: although I did like a line in Kingsley Amis's "The Old Devils":
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Post by aubrey on Jun 22, 2018 15:50:46 GMT
Otherwise, this is a sticker I used to have on one of my speakers, given away with an album by The Residents:
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Post by Deleted on Jun 22, 2018 16:38:52 GMT
I'm so tempted to say 'you are obviously English!' - there I've said it now! I am a Scot, I don't speak Gaelic but I admire the people who do - one day I will get the hang of it! It's good to keep your culture alive IMHO. I just don't see the point of using something that has limited usage, and complicates communication Nothing wrong with keeping the culture alive but best to do it in a language that everyone understands surely
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Post by Deleted on Jun 23, 2018 4:03:35 GMT
I'm so tempted to say 'you are obviously English!' - there I've said it now! I am a Scot, I don't speak Gaelic but I admire the people who do - one day I will get the hang of it! It's good to keep your culture alive IMHO. I just don't see the point of using something that has limited usage, and complicates communication Nothing wrong with keeping the culture alive but best to do it in a language that everyone understands surely
I think you've picked the wrong fight here, Jimmy  Too many polyglots here... Language is more than just a means of communication. It influences our culture and culture influences our language. They're intertwined. Lose a language and you lose a culture. But let's follow through with your idea. The language with most native speakers sounds like a good choice. Time to dig out your Mandarin study books... |
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Post by starlilolill on Jun 23, 2018 11:42:46 GMT
As I understand it if you can speak two or more languages you live longer!!!
I have a thing about culture - if we all had the same 'culture' life would be exceedingly boring IMHO of course.
Here in France the patois of each area is quite distinct. Our neighbours, weekends only as they both work for Air France in Paris, find the local dialect quite strange - it isn't really but as Natalie is from the Pyrenees I can understand where she is coming from. It is very much a French/Spanish mixture down south!
Vive la difference is what I say!
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Post by Deleted on Jun 23, 2018 18:38:58 GMT
As I understand it if you can speak two or more languages you live longer!!! I have a thing about culture - if we all had the same 'culture' life would be exceedingly boring IMHO of course. Here in France the patois of each area is quite distinct. Our neighbours, weekends only as they both work for Air France in Paris, find the local dialect quite strange - it isn't really but as Natalie is from the Pyrenees I can understand where she is coming from. It is very much a French/Spanish mixture down south! Vive la difference is what I say! We once holidayed in Harlech. Visiting the shops and attractions they were quite happy to take your money speaking English but would then revert to talking to each other in Welsh. We and our children learned nothing about their culture, and have never been back To me it was all just ignorance
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Post by Deleted on Jun 24, 2018 5:21:24 GMT
As I understand it if you can speak two or more languages you live longer!!! Research suggests that being bilingual changes our brains and improves our cognitive abilities as well as delaying things like dementia. I have a thing about culture - if we all had the same 'culture' life would be exceedingly boring IMHO of course. Here in France the patois of each area is quite distinct. Our neighbours, weekends only as they both work for Air France in Paris, find the local dialect quite strange - it isn't really but as Natalie is from the Pyrenees I can understand where she is coming from. It is very much a French/Spanish mixture down south! Vive la difference is what I say! We once holidayed in Harlech. Visiting the shops and attractions they were quite happy to take your money speaking English but would then revert to talking to each other in Welsh. We and our children learned nothing about their culture, and have never been back To me it was all just ignorance
Why didn't you learn some Welsh? I'm sure the locals would have been pleased that you'd taken the time to learn their language. I know mines are. |
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Post by starlilolill on Jun 24, 2018 11:55:27 GMT
Jimmy, we will have to agree to disagree!
Enjoy your weekend.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 24, 2018 16:22:00 GMT
Jimmy, we will have to agree to disagree! Enjoy your weekend. Thanks, you too  |
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Post by althea on Jun 25, 2018 16:02:07 GMT
I am always amazed that people come into Wales and are shocked to hear the Welsh people speaking Welsh.
Are you so surprised when you go to Spain and hear Spanish spoken?
If you knew the history of Wales and the Welsh language,it's a miracle that any can still speak Welsh.
The English tried to exterminate the Welsh language and children were beaten for speaking Welsh in schools.
Croeso Y Cymru,Jimmy. That means you would be very welcome in Wales.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 25, 2018 17:47:10 GMT
I am always amazed that people come into Wales and are shocked to hear the Welsh people speaking Welsh. Are you so surprised when you go to Spain and hear Spanish spoken? If you knew the history of Wales and the Welsh language,it's a miracle that any can still speak Welsh. The English tried to exterminate the Welsh language and children were beaten for speaking Welsh in schools. Croeso Y Cymru,Jimmy. That means you would be very welcome in Wales. But Wales is part of the United Kingdom where the language is English. Spain is not |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 25, 2018 23:49:10 GMT
I am always amazed that people come into Wales and are shocked to hear the Welsh people speaking Welsh. Are you so surprised when you go to Spain and hear Spanish spoken? If you knew the history of Wales and the Welsh language,it's a miracle that any can still speak Welsh. The English tried to exterminate the Welsh language and children were beaten for speaking Welsh in schools. Croeso Y Cymru,Jimmy. That means you would be very welcome in Wales. But Wales is part of the United Kingdom where the language is English. Spain is not Oh Jimmy, you were doing so well until you forgot that Welsh is an official language in Wales |
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Too many polyglots here... 
