One of the things that steered me towards learning Welsh must have been reading Aran’s book “Some Sex and a Hill” (I take it it’s SSiW’s Aran and not some other talented Welsh guy…), months before I heard via a language podcaster about the company. He also had been denied his roots, like so many others.
I have no links to Wales, apart from an immediate liking for the language, but I have forbidden languages in my life, too. Our mother decreed the grandparents’ Plattdeutsch as extremely common and I wasn’t allowed to learn or speak it (we lived as refugees there, with them). The arrogance! Low German has since been given official UN 'Minority Language" status. The other “lost” language sounds of my life are those of Russian men, the only male voices around me, the sound of the Occupiers in 1945. For me they were a lullaby.
I wish you joy on your journey towards your family’s language!
@SanneT that’s so wonderful to hear, thank you so much, and thank you for learning Very sorry to hear about those attitudes to Plattdeutsch, I remember hearing a little bit about it from my parents when we lived near Düsseldorf. It’s never good when people try to use languages to define status by excluding.
I want to learn to speak Welsh with confidence, because I absolutely love Wales.
We were taken on holiday to West Wales from Hertfordshire every year, I don’t remember a time when we didn’t. In the 70’s my parents bought a place in Tresaith, which we still have to this day, it’s very precious to me.
I lived near Fishguard for 11 years in the 80’s/90’s & attended Welsh lessons in a classroom environment. I didn’t do well, but I didn’t do well in classrooms at school either. I picked up a very basic level of understanding from where I worked, I mean I could pick out a few words & work out what they were saying.
A few months ago I suddenly became really determined to learn, & found SSIW. I seem to be doing much better now, learning this way. Early days still but I’m doing a little bit every day.
I love Aran’s little pep talks, they do help when I’m struggling with frustration.
I’m not Welsh by birth but for some reason I feel as though I am, I feel much more at home when in Wales, & I have some much loved Welsh friends. I feel in my bones that I will live in Wales again one day.
Because I have always been fascinated by my ancestry and being 60-70% welsh, having a welsh name (sian) isn’t enough for me to feel connected to my heritage… I want to speak welsh, so that I can raise my daughter, and any future children to feel connected to their culture. The ultimate goal is to move from NZ to Wales to live!.. My fathers family moved here in '58… And I want to come home…
I want to be a Welsh speaker because my daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren can speak Welsh and I want to join them. In addition, I live in Wales and I want Wales to thrive as a nation.
My grandfather (who died when my mum was seven years old) was a Pugh. I always wanted to live in Wales, and since I’ve been here, I’ve been made to feel totally welcome. I sing in a Welsh Male Voice Choir, and my partner’s first language is Welsh. I’ve persuaded our friends not to politely switch to English in my presence, and I hope to progress from knowing what’s being talked about, which is where I am now, to being able to increasingly join in.
I want to be a Welsh speaker because I want to move to Wales one day (if they let us in again ). I have no family connections with Wales whatsoever, but the landscapes are stunning, the people lovely and the language - don’t get me started on that
I want to be a Welsh speaker because the language is gorgeous and has truly moved me, even before I understood it. I want to speak it simply because it is beautiful. And even though no one around me speaks it, I enjoy it, and I hope that when I finish this course they’re bloody proud of me for finally sticking through with something.
I want to feel connected to my Welsh heritage. I was able to briefly visit Pontypridd where my 2nd great grandmother was born and I felt such emotion. The side benefit is what good brain exercise this provides. It’s even helping me recall things in other languages.
I am Welsh, proudly Welsh, have always wanted to speak Welsh fluently, I should be able to speak my own language. It’s beautiful, it has rhythm and it’s part of my heritage.
It needs to be preserved and protected and the only way to do that is use it, and speak it and I want to be part of that process.
My goal is to be able to surprise my family at Christmas by being able to speak a decent conversation with my nephew, the only other Welsh speaker in the family. I’m going to have to work hard
After that I hope to introduce my young grandchildren to Welsh
Very sorry to hear about those attitudes to Plattdeutsch, I remember hearing a little bit about it from my parents when we lived near Düsseldorf. It’s never good when people try to use languages to define status by excluding.
). I have no family connections with Wales whatsoever, but the landscapes are stunning, the people lovely and the language - don’t get me started on that 
