Malu Awyr - Welsh learners' Blog

Yr Hydref

Thu, 20 Sep 2007 13:56:16 +0000

Yn Gymraeg mis Hydref yw 'October'. Ond 'Yr Hydref' yw 'Autumn'. Pam?

Wel, amser maith yn ol (a long time ago) roedd gan yr hen ffermwyr ddau dy - Hendref a Hafod. (the old farmers had two houses - Hendref a Hafod.

Hendref - the old dwelling - ty yn y cwm, lle roedd y ffermwyr yn aros yn y Gaeaf.

Hafod - summer dwelling - ty ar y bryn, lle roedd y ffermwyr yn byw yn ystod yr haf.

Yn yr Hydref roedd y ffermwyr yn symud yn ol i'r Hendref, lawr yn y cwm. Felly mae mis Hydref, a'r Hydref yn dangos bod y Gaeaf ar y ffordd (show that winter is on the way).

Ymlaciwch! - Relax!

Wi wedi bod yn brysur dros yr Haf, ond nid dim ond gyda Cadw Swn - I've been busy over the summer, but not just with Cadw Swn.

Mae safwe newydd 'da fi - www.asktorelax.com

I’ve got a new website - www.asktorelax.com

Mae'n dangos sut i ymlacio yn hawdd iawn ac i reoli teimladau negyddol.

It shows how to relax very easily and how to control negative emotions.

Mae gwers am ddim - there's a free lesson, felly ewch i www.asktorelax.com

Ymlaciwch!

Cnoc cnoc!

Sun, 22 Jul 2007 11:05:47 +0000

Cnoc cnoc!
Pwy sydd yna?
Ceri.
Ceri Pwy?
Cer i grafu!

Cer i grafu - go and scratch yourself (get lost). Originally go and scratch your stomach with your tonails.
Ah, tis a poetical language.

Staring defeat in the eye with a heavy heart

Thu, 14 Jun 2007 13:42:23 +0000

It was a rainy night in Cwm Llynfi, and the dosbarth was really doing well. Oh how pleased I was with their conversation work. My pride swelled as I lurched towards the door. 'Amser coffi!' I yelled, rushing out to be the first in the queue. I sat down at my table with my coffee, waiting for the rest of the class to arrive. Five minutes later, and still no sign of the class.

I returned to the class. 'Amser coffi', I repeated, but still no response. 'Coffee time' I sighed, admitting my hollow defeat.

Wi'n grac

Mon, 11 Jun 2007 08:50:46 +0000

Crac - angry

Mae'n fore Dydd Llun, ac wi'n grac!

Pam, pam, pam, yn yr oes hon - in this (day and) age?

Thomas Cook have told staff at their Bangor branch that they must hold work-related conversations in English. In an area where the vast majority of people speak Welsh I would guess that they have to tell potential Welsh-speaking holidaymakers to siarad Saesneg.

You can see the whole sorry story here in English, or here yn Gymraeg.

But don't read the Welsh version at work, obviously.

Taking the cake

Thu, 07 Jun 2007 16:25:23 +0000

Someone came into one of my classes once talking about a cake (teisen) they'd been asked to decorate for a friend. Their sugarcraft skills were being tested to the limit, since their friend had asked for lap-dancers on the top for their husband.

'Ah,' beamed someone from the back of the class,'teisen lap!'

30 minutes to transform your Welsh?

Fri, 25 May 2007 13:46:48 +0000

Can my short audio download really fast-forward your Welsh speaking skills in under 30 minutes?

And does it really only cost £7.50?

It's the first Welsh lesson I've recorded since Cadw Swn, and that was 7 years ago. There's no postage, you can listen to it instantly, and it covers both North and South Wales Welsh.

W i wedi cyffro. (I'm excited).

Click here to find out more.

Y Brenin Arthur - King Arthur

Mon, 14 May 2007 11:56:19 +0000

Arthur, for those of you interested, is one of the stories in my collection of tales for Welsh learners Chwedlau o'r Gadair Wyllt - Tales From the Wild Chair.

Here's some geirfa - vocabulary connected with Arthur.
Y Ford Gron - The Round Table
marchog - knight
marchogion - knights
Y Greal Sanctaidd - The Holy Grail
Myrddin - Merlin
Afallon - Avalon
Caledfwlch - Excaliber

The story in Y Gadair Wyllt concerns the legend regarding the sleeping Arthur, awaiting the call to awake and save Wales.

Those interested in the 'traditional' tales of Arthur and his marchogion might like to take a look at Legends of King Arthur Through the Ages, a collection with stories in Engligh by Lady Charlotte Guest, Sir James Knowles, and myself. It's illustrated by my American friend Howard David Johnson, and you can find out more here.

Menyn Cymreig - Welsh butter

Thu, 10 May 2007 09:42:53 +0000

Cymraeg - Welsh language
Cymreig - Welsh, pertaining to Wales

Ble mae'r menyn Cymreig?
Ro'n i yn yr archfarchnad (supermarket) ddoe, yn edrych am fenyn.
Roedd menyn Lloegr (England), menyn o Seland Newydd (New Zealand) menyn o Iwerddon (Ireland) a menyn o wlad Belg (Belgium). Ond dim menyn o Gymru.

Roedd menyn o'r enw 'Sir Gar' ond 'made to a Welsh recipe in the Cotswalds' oedd e!

Beth sy wedi digwydd i fenyn Cymreig?

Y Teulu

Wed, 09 May 2007 11:40:48 +0000

We all know mam, dad, merch a mab wrth gwrs.
Ond beth am...

rhieni - parents
nith - niece
nai - nephew
cefnder - cousin (male)
cyfnither - cousin (female)
wyr - grandson
wyres - grand-daughter

Clymblaid?

Tue, 08 May 2007 10:46:19 +0000

'Plaid' we know is Welsh for party (of the political type).
'Clymu' means to knot, tie or bind.

Put the two together and you get 'clymblaid' a coalition, which is what we may be facing in the Senedd soon.

Diddorol...

The Old Ones

Sun, 06 May 2007 12:44:31 +0000

Ah, we do have fun in the class sometimes.
Here's one of my favourites...
Me- 'What's Welsh for beans?'
Class- 'Ffa'
Me - 'Tinned beans?'
Pupil - 'Tin ffa?'
I motion them to reverse the word order.
Pupil - 'Ffa tin?'
Yes, the old ones are always the best. And when you're learning a language even the old ones are new.

More tea vicar?

Fri, 04 May 2007 14:26:14 +0000

The things I go through ‘dros yr iaith’ (for the language). This has happened to me twice now, so I maintain a policy of refusing hot drinks from learners. Here’s how it goes…
Wyt ti’n mo’yn disgled? - Do you want a cup of tea/coffee?
Hyfryd, gaf i goffi plis? - lovely, can I have a coffee please?
Laeth a siwgwr? - milk and sugar?
Llaeth ond dim siwgwr, os gweli di’n dda. - milk but no sugar, please.
Dyna ti - there you are
O hyfryd, diolch yn fawr. - lovely, thanks.
What do I get each time? Sugar but no milk. I mean have you tasted it? Uch a fi.

Yr Etholioad - The Election

Thu, 03 May 2007 11:44:00 +0000

Mae'n amser pleidleisio (to vote) yng Nghymru.

Dyma enwau'r pleidiau - here are the names of the parties:

Llafur - Labour
Plaid Cymru - the Party of Wales
Y Democratiaid Rhyddfrydol - The Liberal Democrats
Y Ceidwadwyr - The Conservatives

Wyt ti'n gwybod pwy sy'n arwain (leads) y pleidiau yng Nghymru?

Malu Awyr

Thu, 03 May 2007 10:21:25 +0000

malu - to grind
awyr - air

Think of a mill producing flour. After all the grain had been ground into flour if the mill was still turning it would be grinding air, 'malu awyr'. It would still be working, but producing nothing.

Malu awyr; to talk nonsense, to talk without any purpose.

Croeso i'r blog.