Mae versus yw/ydy

[spragga]

Hi,

Could someone please explain the difference between starting a sentence with ‘mae’ (is) and ending it with ‘yw/ydy’.
E.g

Mae’r hynaf yn ddeg (the oldest is ten)
Yr bachgen yw’r ifancaf (the boy is the oldest)

Many thanks

[siaronjames]

In the examples you’ve given, the difference is emphasis.
The first sentence starts with mae because it is a straightforward positive statement.
The second sentence uses yw in the middle because it is putting emphasis on the fact that it’s the boy that’s the oldest.
i.e. in the first sentence, if you wanted to emphasise the age, you could rephrase it as “Deg yw’r un hynaf”.
Hope that helps

[helen-gwyn-jones]

Thanks Spragga and Siaron - I’ve been struggling with this too!!