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Welsh log (Dw i’n dysgu fy hunan!) | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Language Learning Log |  | |
| celticpunk Newbie United States Joined 4495 days ago 6 posts - 7 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Welsh | Message 1 of 8 11 August 2012 at 4:56pm | IP Logged | ||
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So here is my first Welsh learning log entry, I've finally gotten around to it. My goal is nothing short of fluency. Dwi'n hoffi pethau Celtaidd, a hoffwn i dysgu Cymraeg a Gwyddeleg hefyd. But right now, I'm focusing on Welsh. I bought a copy of Teach Yourself Welsh from the local used bookstore two days ago. I know the current TY series isn't the most popular on this forum, but it was there and it's affordable. And it really isn't that bad, although I'm going to have to order the CD's along with a grammar from Amazon. I really do much better hearing the text as opposed to only reading.
As I said, the course isn't all that bad. The grammar is sort of scattershot though. I like old-timey grammar books with paradigms and lots of translation exercises. Luckily the BBC has a PDF grammar booklet that will have to suffice until I can order a supplementary grammar or three. Also, since I don't have the audio yet, I've been using the Original Catchphrase series from the BBC and watching lots of S4C. I don't know how long fluency will take,especially as I don't live in Wales. My goal is to finish this course within 4 months. I like to take my time and really absorb everything before moving on to the next unit.I also set my Gmail account and my computer to run in Welsh,and I'm keeping a journal in Welsh. I seriously doubt that a single course can take me from beginner to intermediate as TY claims, but I do believe that with the right amount of practice, and some supplementary materials, it's possible I could be at a good intermediate stage by the end of the course. So, today I kept working on Unit 2, which is more beginner stuff like beth yw'ch rhif ffôn chi? (what's your phone number), beth yw'ch enw chi? or the familiar beth yw dy enw di ? (what's your name). Also covered is describing which languages you speak: Dwi'n siarad Saesneg yn rhugl (I speak English fluently). The numbers 1-100 are also covered, which is useful for practice. I've programmed all the vocab from Unit 1 and what I've encountered so far in Unit 2 into Anki. Like I said, the grammar is scattershot, so I'm going to have a look at the BBC's guide later today. So far this morning I've gotten about an hour in, I plan to get another 2 hourse in later since I am off work today. Until then, hwyl! Edited by celticpunk on 11 August 2012 at 11:41pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| montmorency Diglot Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 4820 days ago 2371 posts - 3676 votes  Speaks: English*, German Studies: Danish, Welsh | Message 2 of 8 11 August 2012 at 5:48pm | IP Logged | ||
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You've brought back memories! I used to (try to) listen to Catchphrase many years ago
on BBC Radio Wales, but we weren't near Wales and reception was terrible. It kept fading out. I can still hear them in my head saying things like "da iawn". And we couldn't get Radio Cymru at all. This was pre-internet-radio of course. Have you tried seeing whether you can listen to BBC Radio Cymru over the internet from where you are? http://www.bbc.co.uk/radiocymru Unfortunately, it may be blocked. If so, you might try to see if a web proxy server based in the UK will get over it (if you can find one). Good luck. p.s. Oh, I've just noticed you are watching S4C. Is that via the net, or satellite, or some other way? Well, I'd still give BBC Radio Cymru a try! :-) 2 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| Josquin Heptaglot Senior Member Germany Joined 4836 days ago 2266 posts - 3992 votes Speaks: German*, English, French, Latin, Italian, Russian, Swedish Studies: Japanese, Irish, Portuguese, Persian | Message 3 of 8 11 August 2012 at 6:27pm | IP Logged | ||
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Wow, what a fascinating choice of language! I love Welsh and the Celtic languages, though I have only studied some Scots Gaelic so far. But Welsh is definitely on my hit list. I will follow this log with interest. Good luck with your studies!
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| celticpunk Newbie United States Joined 4495 days ago 6 posts - 7 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Welsh | Message 4 of 8 11 August 2012 at 11:31pm | IP Logged | ||
Oh yes, I've definitely been listening to plenty of BBC Radio Cymru! I actually tune into both Radio Cymru and S4/C on my laptop. I am using Expat Shield to watch/listen to the programming and an add-blocking extension to block the ads that Expat Shield loves to post at the top of the browser! :-) So far, so good, although I sometimes panic when I've forgotten to turn the Shield on and I get that dreaded content message! Also, I like the TuneIn Radio app for my Android phone, but the BBC doesn't allow live streaming, although you can listen to archived broadcasts on it. I like listening to C2 at the gym. It's weird because after Welsh I'm going to hit Irish next, and RTÉ allows live radio streaming. Oh well! And yes, they say da iawn alot! 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| celticpunk Newbie United States Joined 4495 days ago 6 posts - 7 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Welsh | Message 5 of 8 11 August 2012 at 11:33pm | IP Logged | ||
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Well, I got another hour in of Welsh today. That brings it to two hours for the day. I'm almost finished with Unit 2 of Teach Yourself Welsh, I just want to review a few phrases for memorization. Also, when I get the audio of course, I'll have to re-do these units because some of the exercise are audio only. I also want to see how badly I'm mispronouncing the dialogs!
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| celticpunk Newbie United States Joined 4495 days ago 6 posts - 7 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Welsh | Message 6 of 8 11 August 2012 at 11:38pm | IP Logged | ||
Thank you very much! Gaelic is a beautiful language. I initially wanted to study it, but I found the enthusiasm that the Welsh show for their language infectious. Whereas Welsh is growing, Gaelic seems to be shrinking, and it's very depressing. There are young people starting Welsh-language rock bands, Welsh soap operas, etc...Gaelic seems mostly confined to traditional music and older generations. I would think that with the prospects of nationhood upon them, the Scots would take preserving the Gaelic more seriously. Maybe they do, but it seems like if I'm going to be able to really use any Celtic language, it'll be Welsh. Also, BBC Alba's programming is dreadfully boring, IMHO. Not a huge fan of fishing or sheepdog competions! :-) But maybe someday! 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| celticpunk Newbie United States Joined 4495 days ago 6 posts - 7 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Welsh | Message 7 of 8 13 August 2012 at 2:25am | IP Logged | ||
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Well, I got in two hours today of Welsh study if you can believe it. First, I wrote down all the vocab words I have learned thus far from Teach Yourself Welsh to make my materials list. Then I practiced speaking for 10 minutes straight, just talking to myself about anything using the vocab I have. I studied Anki, and worked through some exercises from Unit 3. I probably won't be able to buy the audio until Wednesday, but I still think I'm making progess. I like the book, it's not bad for a TY title. I just wish the grammar was presented in a more systematic way, but I am going to by the TY Welsh Grammar supplement so that should help. I managed to get in 1 hr 30 minutes during breakfast and another half hour at lunch. Right now I'm learning the Welsh formula for posession:
She has a cat Mae cath 'da hi. Literally, ''There is a cat with her''. Very unusual, but then again this is a Celtic language and that's part of the appeal :-). I also learned the pronouns needed to use this formula: fi - I, me ti - you (familiar) chi - you (plural and formal) fe - he hi - she ni - we, us nhw - they, them And some of the different formulae: Mae car 'da ti You have a car. Oes car 'da ti? Do you have a car? Does dim car 'da ti. You do not have a car. And since Welsh has no single words for yes or no, we have: Oes, mae car 'da fi. Yes, I have a car. Nac oes, does dim car 'da fi. No, I don't have a car So far, so good I hope. I also managed to listen to a 30 minute podcast at work, I downloaded it from BBC Radio Cymru. There is...one little problem. A while back, on a whim, I bought Teach Yourself Irish. And now wanderlust is striking. Or maybe just implusiveness. The thing is, I was planning on studying Welsh for at least six months before adding Irish. I really want to learn both. There's no rush, I could spend years learning the two of them. But its hard for me to resist temptation, especially since I'm out of school until December and I have enough time for both. Does anyone have any suggestions? Diolch a hwyl! Edited by celticpunk on 13 August 2012 at 2:54am 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| montmorency Diglot Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 4820 days ago 2371 posts - 3676 votes Speaks: English*, German Studies: Danish, Welsh | Message 8 of 8 14 August 2012 at 1:51am | IP Logged | ||
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BBC not allowing live streaming - ok, that rings a bell. Technically in order to
receive a "broadcast" (which must include live streaming over the internet), one needs a receiving licence, which most UK residents will have in order to get their normal TV (and radio) broadcasts (big fine if you watch TV and don't have one!). But (thank goodness) that requirement must be waived for archived broadcasts. I'd kind of forgotten that, although knew there was/were some kinds of restriction. Anyway, great that you can get R. Cymru and S4C. My wife's family, although not Welsh, lived in Wales, and all learned Welsh to some degree, and her brother is back in Wales with his family, and is fluent in it I think, and his kids have passed exams in it, although I don't know if they are fluent. So there is quite a consciousness of Welsh around me, even if my own attempts to learn it weren't very fruitful. One day ... Yes, it's good that Welsh seems to be thriving. There have been discussions on HTLAL in the past about the relative health of Welsh versus the rather sorry state of Irish. And I don't think Scottish Gaelic is much healthier, if at all. :-( Edit: p.s. what year is your TYS book? We have a couple lying around the house. One look like it came out of the ark, and the other, while not quite so old, also looks rather old-fashioned in style. Prof. Arguelles might approve of them, but they look rather unappealing to me now. Edited by montmorency on 14 August 2012 at 1:53am 1 person has voted this message useful |
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