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I’ve been learning Welsh for around 2 years ish. Now, I’m a relatively confident speaker. Even though I’m still learning, as you can see from my study streams, I consider myself, and I’m considered by others, to be a user of the language. Or as they say, siaradwr newydd (new speaker). During those streams, I keep getting the same questions over and over again from chat, like: Why are you learning Welsh? How did you start? What’s your connection to this country? Well, to that last question, I can confidently say: none. Unless you count being born in the Prince of Wales Hospital, in Hong Kong. But then again, I’ve heard that fella isn’t necessarily the most popular around these parts, so never mind. As for the other questions, I’ve only given partial or jokey answers over the past months. But now that I’m going on my first ever road trip around North Wales, I can finally take the time and tell you the full story. Welcome to Rhapsody in Lingo, my name is Israel, and here’s the story of how I ended up speaking Welsh. When I started, I had heard some things about the language, but not much. It did sound and look interesting. What spurred me to start learning was moving to Manchester, because of its easy access by rail to North Wales, where the proportion of Welsh speakers is much higher than the South. So now my official reason for learning the language is because it’s geographically the closest language to learn. Makes sense, doesn’t it? Over the years, I’ve paid several visits to parts of North Wales, but what I haven’t done is to do a road trip around it, because I don’t drive. And if you know anything about Wales, you know that it’s a pain in the arse to get around it without a car. Plus you miss out on the best parts. I mean, for God’s sake, the Transport for Wales network doesn’t even cover Caernarfon, and it’s widely considered one of the most culturally representative parts of the country. It’s also the place to go if you want to speak Welsh. That’s why I haven’t been brave enough to just go somewhere and talk to the locals in the language. But I’m getting ahead of myself. And now that I’m taking my parents on a road trip, meaning I’m planning and they’re driving, I’m finally ready to embark on this journey that so many have gone on, even before they ever learn to say shwmae. But where are we right now? Why, Conwy, of course! It’s one of the few places that I have been to. But enough talking. Press the like button, and let’s go! First thing we do is head into Eryri, also known as Snowdonia, for the Muggles. It’s a beautiful landscape, as I’m about to find out for myself, but anglophone visitors have long bemoaned the Welsh place names and road signs, claiming that the confusion leads to a higher risk of traffic accidents. Which is absolutely true! Because as we all know, every country with bilingual road signs have gone extinct from car crashes. To be fair, we did get stuck somewhere when dad couldn’t see the word “Way out” underneath “Ffordd allan”.

That’s why lots of people, past and present, have been FORCED to resort to measures like making up English names, or reinterpreting the names in English. ‘Klandudno.’ ‘Conway?’ ‘Harleck?’ ‘Port-madduck?’

We’re in Betws-y-Coed, or as English people sometimes say, Don’t feel bad for not knowing how to read a different alphabet or pronounce a different language, like you wouldn’t go to Denmark and expect to pronounce every place name perfectly on first try. Kamelåså (comment if you know the joke!) It would only be questionable if you were to blaaaaame the local language for being different from yours, wouldn’t it? But to be honest, what’s probably true is that these names are harder for people like us, for whom English is already a difficult foreign language. But that’s mainly because we aren’t exposed to the names. I have the advantage of having studied many languages (subscribe to see how I do it) but when I was planning this trip, my Cantonese-speaking dad’s first reaction to the itinerary was: I can’t say any of these names! Let’s see if I can get them to do it now! Betws – Betws, y – y, Coed – Coed. Betws-y-Coed – Betws-y-Coed. Betws-y-Coed – Betws-y-Coed. Conwy – Conwy.

Blaenau – Blaenau. Ffestiniog – Ffestiniog.

Bedd – bedd. Gelert – gelert. Beddgelert – Beddgelert. Yeah.

Who knew! You can’t pronounce it if you don’t know how to, but once you learn it, you can. It’s almost like it’s a different language! The fact that simply using a language The fact that simply using a language could be controversial
is part of what drew me towards the Welsh language,

because it’s similar to situations that I see play out where I’m from. I saw my own lived experience reflected in this part of my host country. You could say it
resonated with me.

Well technically, because of the way my language is written,
the signs don’t really annoy the visitors. But increasingly, you see people online complaining about locals not speaking the languages of the visitors, or just speaking their own language. The situation is slightly different in Wales, because nowadays, every Welsh speaker also speaks English. But the fact that they don’t ALWAYS speak English annoys some people for some reason. People who seem to think that the Welsh language is used, or even invented, just to mess with those who are not in the in-group. One common stereotype slash joke is that people switch from English to Welsh as soon as they see an Englishman walk into the pub. Well, I’m not English, but I sure as hell look like I’m not from these parts. So maybe let’s give it a try and see if anyone switches?

[Music]

I’m more concerned whether they’d be willing to speak it to me, because my understanding is if you’re local, you know people, you know who speaks it and who doesn’t. But if you’re visiting from outside, the best you can do is to guess and risk it.

People often tell me to start every conversation with shwmae and end them with diolch. Because locals will know those phrases, at the very least. And if they speak it, great! You can continue the conversation in Welsh. But if they don’t, the worst that can happen is you get a ‘sorry I don’t speak Welsh’ awkwardly, and then you move on in English.

But my social anxiety means that I could never take this risk and confront this awkward situation, so my alternative is to know someone, or know someone who knows someone.

Which brings us to…

My first time meeting Welsh speakers in Wales was here, in Llangollen. I met someone from Hong Kong who lives here (locals will know who that is by this point), and thanks to the help of their car, I’ve visited the town twice so far. As well as the magnificent Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, of course! The best thing about the small town vibe is that everyone knows everyone, so they just took me around town and told everyone I spoke Welsh. That was how I had my first authentic daily-life interaction in Welsh, not with a teacher, not in any language group, but just normal people talking about their lives in Welsh. And that’s when the language became real to me. You know, there are lots of people learning languages as a hobby. I know lots of those people myself. And with the advent of online language learning, so many people, like me, have managed to learn languages purely virtually. Which is amazing, but to me, it doesn’t feel like a real language, with real speakers in real local communities, until you’re there, you see the shops, the signs, the menus, and you hear it all around you. It’s almost like: wow, it’s not just in my head! People use the language even when I’m not around! Ch’mod?

[Music]

But everyone has told me time and time again: if you want to speak Welsh, go to the cofis. Who are the cofis, you might ask? Welcome to Caernarfon. Caernarfon is widely considered the heartland of Welsh-speaking Wales. It’s held various politically significant positions over the years, and in 1955, was in the running for the capital of Wales, though obviously it lost to Cardiff. It was a runner-up, but it was nowhere close. Today, Caernarfon and surrounding areas have the highest percentage of Welsh speakers anywhere, including within Gwynedd, which is already the county with the highest proportion. It’s got its own famous dialect, and it might just be the only place where you might look weird for not speaking Welsh. I guess that includes me right now.

I’m obsessed with the fact that they’re not even a tiny bit fazed. You lot on YouTube may enjoy the shocking of natives, but the lack thereof feels so accepting and welcoming, like it’s perfectly normal for me to be doing this. But even here, English is still a part of everyday life. Yes, over 80% of the residents speak Welsh, but if you moved here, you could probably survive in English. Well then, are there communities that exclusively speak Welsh among themselves? Or were there? The next destination is a relatively boring place, at first glance. But I’ve heard so many stories about it, and when I go to other parts of the country, I occasionally see the same name, the same slogan, again and again, reminding me of this history, and nudging me to pay a visit.

In the mid 20th century, Capel Celyn was one of the last Welsh-only communities left. But, well, long story short, in 1965 (incidentally when my parents were born) it was turned into this. A school, a post office, a chapel, an actual cemetery, now lie underneath a reservoir, in order to supply water to Liverpool for industry. This was a defining moment in the history of the Welsh language, and one that really stayed with me. All the traces and records of a vibrant community language, being submerged in here. I can’t help but imagine my own language being drowned out (mostly figuratively but who knows) by a dominating neighbour. That’s why I’ve been so keen on using this little platform that I have to raise the profiles of the languages that I love, to use them as much as I can, as much as society will allow it. Use it to learn things, use it with companies, use it with the government, with the tax department, like in my own immigration process, with the citizenship test. To show that these languages exist, and they are very much alive and deserve to be used in every facet of life, as much as every other language does. That’s how a language continues to live, by being used, not being put in a museum. Shout it in people’s ears.

Make them visible and audible. Piss off people if you have to.

In spring 2023, not long after I started taking learning Welsh
seriously, I gave a talk in Edinburgh comparing the stories of Welsh, Taiwanese, and Cantonese. You can watch the talk here. That was when the other national park, Bannau Brycheiniog, had recently adopted the Welsh name as the only official name, and caused an entire [ __ ]storm, where anglophones were like: you can’t stop me calling it Brecon Beacons! That was an official pushback against using English as the default mode of communication in the country. What do you think? Definitely dooooon’t start a war in the comments, pleeeease. Nowadays, the Welsh language is less commonly known outside of these isles. I mean, I didn’t know about it until I moved to Britain. One of the things that IS known to outsiders, however, is The original name was Llanfair Pwllgwyngyll, often shortened to Llanfairpwll on signs, because it’s pretty long already. The outrageously long one, though, was made up in the 19th century, as a tourism gimmick, and
it mentions lots of different locations in the nearby area.

Imagine using a name as a gimmick!
Who needs a monument, or a special local food, when you can just change the name of your village. But evidently, it worked! I mean, people are here, I’m here, and my friends have come here upon learning the name. Even on this channel, I’ve used the name as a punchline on multiple occasions.

Places

You know.

If you, like me, are amused by Llanfair Pwllgwyngyll, check out my first visit to this place, where I walked around the area, trying to find all the locations that it mentions.

But it’s more than a party trick for me. This name has a special place in my heart, because it was my gateway towards learning Welsh seriously. I started practising the Welsh alphabet by learning this name, bit by bit, slowly with lots of practice. Even though it was a gimmick to sell the village, it sold me on the language. This trip ends here, but I’m sure there’ll be many more. If you’d like to support my work and my learning, consider becoming a member on this channel. To learn more about this language, check out my compilation of fun facts. If you’re on the fence about learning, check out the video on why Welsh might just be the easiest language to speak.

[Choir singing Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau in the pub]

Now that’s one take. Ah, that’s so hard to say when it’s so cold!