Firstly I hope this is the right place for this, so apologies in advance if not. I’m a Welsh guy living in Spain and want to start learning Welsh (from scratch, basically) and was looking for a fluent Welsh speaker who wanted to exchange their Welsh for my Spanish. I speak advanced level C1/C2 Spanish and a little bit of Catalan. My initial idea was to chat online for a bit, mixing English, Spanish and Welsh, whilst exchanging language tips and vocab. I’m an English language teacher so used to teaching people of all levels.
Hi, I know someone who would fit that bill beautifully. You can email me at sjfnelson@outlook.com if you like and maybe I can put you in touch. All best, Fran
Sorry to be late in replying. Kyle’s post sounds interesting -it might work. I am Welsh, live in Wales and am moderately fluent having learned it through official courses and Skype courses over 10 years. I have been learning Spanish for 5 years and am not fluent at all. So could certainly exchange fluency in Welsh for some beginner type chats in Spanish. Is it over Skype or through chats by text?
Helo! I am a bit conversational in Spanish after years of studying and then not and then studying it again. However, Dw i newydd dechrau dysgu siarad Cymraeg (am biti mis!) Tengo miedo porque, si uso mi Español, pienso que se me olvido mi newydd Cymraeg. Those of you learning two other languages, is it important to put one on the back burner while focusing on the new one?
I used to think that, but research has shown that people who speak more than one language have them active all the time anyway. Rather than trying to suppress one, I find it more useful to make comparisons between them - if I can say this in one language, how would I say it in the other? That way you’re strengthening them both.
Initially you’ll find a little “interference” when you’re stuck for a word in one language, it will pop up in the other. That’s very normal, and bilingual speakers often jump from one language to the other when they’re speaking with another person who is bilingual in the same two languages. It’s all part of using your whole linguistic repertoire.
So, I find it useful to let the learning of a new language reinforce what I’ve already learnt in others.
Thanks so much Deborah! My second language is actually American Sign Language (ASL) which is different than British Sign Language, and or other languages. However, I’ve been using some of the ASL signs to reinforce some of my newydd Cymraeg. For example the ASL sign for shy as a bit of a mnemonic device for all’ I ddim. I thought that trying to reinforce these with something other than English would help–I’ve always struggled with memory. (Your analysis that it might be related to dyslexia was very helpful!) However, reinforcing with a verbal language–oh my! I might be all over the map! Will give it a try!
Again, I might have something set up provisionally but have a constantly moving timetable due to kids/work/life so am happy to give it a go with you as well. A text chat over whatsapp could work, as could the odd Skype/Zoom call to really help fluency and pronunciation.
I’ve found that learning Spanish has also taught me how English functions as a language, and feel that my knowledge of how to structure a sentence in one or two languages will help me understand how to do so in at third language, depending on their similarities. Even on a very basic level I didn’t fully understand what, for example, an adverb or an object pronoun was, as they were never taught to me in school (in contrast with schools in Spain who teach ‘lengua’, the study of Spanish grammar and syntax etc throughout secondary education). All this changed when I learnt Spanish. It helped me understand the rules and the structure of English and I believe it will help me (at least a little) with learning Welsh. Aside from that there are, perhaps surprisingly, the odd piece of vocabulary shared between seemingly disparate languages. For example the word for thief is Lladron in Welsh and Ladron in Spanish, and bridge is Pont in Catalan.
Hi Thanks Kyle and Deborah: I took the plunge on Saturday and listened to Challenge 1-5 in Spanish while going for a walk (9 degrees Fahrenheit here in MN so it gave me a focus). I was surprised at how complex the sentences were in Spanish. It gives me a better appreciation for this Welsh, and today I still remembering my Welsh. My only problem in joining you Kyle is that I am over here in the US Central Standard Time (-6) and finding a time to converse might be tricky, though not impossible. pegthomas@gmail.com. I have just rounded out Challenge 6 so our conversations will be about how I can, or cannot manage the language!