'I want to be a Welsh speaker because...'

I want to learn to speak Welsh because it is my family heritage and I feel it is a beautiful language that should not be lost.

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I want to learn Welsh to watch S4C. Also to be able to speak the language of my country.

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I want to learn Welsh because I would like to help my son become bilingual

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I want to be a Welsh speaker because itā€™s been a lifelong dream to regain that part of my heritage and be part of keeping the language alive.

Thatā€™s the primary reason, but I discovered another reason just a couple of weeks ago when I told my sister Iā€™d signed up for the Six Months Welsh Speaker course: she actually thought it was wonderful! This is a big deal because weā€™ve never got on very well and sheā€™s spent decades disapproving of everything I do (weā€™re both in our 60s). To have her now applaud something Iā€™m trying to do is a sensational thing!

One thing I hope will happen when Iā€™m a Welsh speaker is that I can go to gatherings such as the North American Festival of Wales and not have my single Welsh sentence be, ā€œMaeā€™n ddrwg gen i, ond dw i ddim yn siarad Cymraegā€ (Iā€™m sorry, but I donā€™t speak Welsh).

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Lovely to see new contributions in here - this is such an inspirational threadā€¦ :slight_smile: :star2:

Iā€™ve really enjoyed reading this thread, as Aran says, itā€™s so inspirational and really put a smile on my face! Diolch! :smile:

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Ever since I saw some road signs on a tv show when I was a kid I have been really fascinated with the language. However, I was always put off from learning cos of growing up in Dorset and assuming languages werenā€™t for me. Then I went on holiday to Abergavenny in August and bought a language book there and then subsequently the discovered SSIW. Iā€™m on level 19 of course 1 now and genuinely excited to try out what Iā€™ve learned with my friend in the pub asap (heā€™s fluent and we both live in london). Thank you all involved with SSIW, it has really proven to me that I have it in me to learn a language!

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I donā€™t have a particularly good reason to be a Welsh speaker, but I do have a number of factors. The biggest factor for me was my complete failure to learn French at secondary school which convinced me I was just not good at languages, but this was shattered meeting a travelling salesman who is fluent in several languages which I assumed was because he was naturally good at languages, but his wife explained it was sheer determination and hard work over many years. So I thought - maybe I can learn another language. And although I have never lived in Wales, I was actually born there so am technically Welsh, but with no language or culture. So with these and a few other contributing factors, I thought it would be great to learn Welsh.

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Welsh is a beautiful language and an important part of Welsh cultural identity. I am learning it because it is not a language that I would like to see fall into disuse and fade away. I hope that learning the language will help me to immerse myself in Welsh culture and feel a connection to the land, history and heritage when I visit.

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How did I fail to come and answer this sooner? Just missed the thread somehow! Well, I was raised like Aran, mainly in England and by parents who had been convinced that Welsh was useless and probably for peasants! I learned how to read for the ancient literature and, having settled on Gower, went to classes which were supposed to be colloquial. Mixed gog and de due to ā€˜auntieā€™ moving north, but never any incentive to speak Welsh. Moved to Scotland. Terrible hiraeth. Looked for anything Welsh for cwtch value and found SSiW! Good for aged brain to continue to learn.

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When I moved back to Wales, nearly everyone seemed to be speaking Welsh, so I decided to learn.

OK, I didnā€™t realise that my perception had been affected somewhat by the Eisteddfod crowd spilling into the streets, and that my work colleagues were travelling in from a Welsh-speaking area. Ah, well - too late now :slight_smile:

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Iā€™m hoping to move to the Caernarfon area just as soon as we can sell our house. Iā€™d like to assimilate better and improve my job prospects. Also my grandmother denied her Welsh roots and was not a Welsh speaker and I feel sad about that.

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I live in Wales and it is my husbandā€™s 1st language. Our children were born here and will be Welsh speakersā€¦we are raising our children to be bilingual, and I want to lead by example.

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This is difficult to answer in only one sentence. I want to be a Welsh speaker because I want a deeper understanding of Welsh culture and a closer connection to Wales other than just my family ancestry.

What do I hope will happen when I am a Welsh speaker? Short term, I hope to be proficient enough to help the local Welsh Society here in Oregon educate others in the language. Long term, I hope to make myself more attractive to the British Association of Social Workers Cymru, so that my chances of getting eventual employment in Wales and the opportunity to emigrate from the U.S. are increased.

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Originally, I wanted to be a Welsh speaker because both/all my birth languages were taken from or lost to me and I wanted to claim back at least one of them - then I kept finding more and more reasons and could write an incredibly long sentence that would bore you half to death, but I wonā€™t (or perhaps I already have :slight_smile:).

I hope Iā€™ll find a way to keep Welsh an everyday and useful part of my life, even though itā€™s not the main language of my home and isnā€™t likely to ever be. I think thatā€™s the biggest challenge for me at the moment - finding the balance and the time to live two language lives. Because Welsh isnā€™t just a language, is it?

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Just one sentence? :wink:

I want to be a Welsh speaker because ā€¦ it is a beautiful, lyrical, rich language that needs to be preserved and cherished.

One thing I would like to happen when Iā€™m a Welsh speaker ā€¦ this is quite cheeky of me, but Iā€™d like to speak in Welsh somewhere surprising, just to get the looks off of people wondering what in the world Iā€™m saying!

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I want to be a welsh speaker so I can teach my children as they grow up which will be easier for them and help them to learn other language easier when they are older. Plus it would be lovely to be able to speak welsh to my family when we visit them in Machynlleth

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ā€¦ most of the Welsh side of my family speak Welsh. I hope to be able to understand what theyā€™re talking about at family gatherings!

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When you answer in Welsh, theyā€™ll have a lovely surprise!! :sunny:

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I want to be a Welsh speaker because being Welsh through and through but sounding English when I speak and living in England makes me feel disconnected with what I call home - learning Welsh helps me feel connected to my birthplace and true home.

Ifā€¦no, when I can speak Welsh, I will just go on holiday to Wales and speak in as many places as I can and hopefully raise a friendly smile in others and make some friendships based on a shared love of Wales and the language.

@aranā€¦can you tick me off week 5 now?! :wink:

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