Why do we wear leeks and daffodils on St. David’s Day?

This Friday is Saint David’s Day, the patron saint of Wales.

Whether you’ve lived in Wales all your life or are new to Cardiff, you’ll no doubt catch some of the celebrations in the capital this week.

Even Prince Charles is coming!

But why do we wear leeks and daffodils? The question’s been popping up quite a lot this week.

I decided to put it to rest.

Pencampwriaeth y Chwe Gwlad 2013 / The Six Nations Championships 2013

Esgusodwch fi am fod yn hwyr gyda’r blog yn diweddar. Un gair – rygbi.

Excuse me for being late with the blog recently. One word – rugby.

Like most of us here in the capital, I’ve been doing my fair share of cheering Wales on in this year’s Six Nations Championship.

So whilst rugby fever takes its toll on us for the next couple of weeks, I thought I’d hi-jack the #welshwordoftheweek for a while.

Now, I’ll share with you all the lingo you might ever need to enjoy a day of rugby yn Gymraeg.

Promoting the Welsh language; one Welsh lady takes a different approach.

Less people are speaking Welsh now according to the latest figures from the 2011 census.

The number has dropped by 2%, meaning that just 19% of the population in Wales can speak Welsh.

Just this week, more statistics have been announced too, suggesting there’s also been a drop in the number of places where more than half the population can speak the language.

But one lady from Brecon [Aberhonddu], is trying to buck the trend.

Lowri Angharad Roche. Picture from Facebook

#welshwordoftheweek Ionawr 25 – Chwefror 1af

Bosherston Beach in Pembrokeshire.

As we move slowly away from the dark depths of Ionawr [January] and into Chwefror [February], we can all breathe a sigh of relief.

Un cam agosach at yr haf. [One step closer to summer.]

Felly, [so], this week’s word of the week aims to bring a bit of sunshine to you and hope that the summer (albeit the Great British one) is on its way.

‘Traeth [try-thhh] – Beach

Welsh in 2012; A look back over the past year. Part Two.

Okay, so we’ve already gone through the first six months of 2012, and covered a fair bit of ground.

Here’s Part One if you’ve forgotten anything.

Let’s start where we left off.

Awst / August

Yr Eisteddfod Genedlaethol – courtesy of the Eisteddfod website.

The National Eisteddfod. It takes place every year and alternates between sites in South and North Wales. Last year it was held at the old Llandow airfield near Cowbridge in the Vale of Glamorgan, not far from Cardiff!

#welshwordoftheweek Ionawr 17 – Ionawr 24.

Shwmae everybody. I hope the snow hasn’t disrupted your plans too much today.

This Cardiff Cymraeg post is coming to you during the day for, quite possibly the first time ever thanks to the fact it’s a SNOW DAY / DDYDD EIRA.

So, quite fittingly, this week’s #welshwordoftheweek is

‘Oer- ‘Cold’

Enjoy the snow!

Jess

#welshwordoftheweek Ionawr 10 – Ionawr 17

Grey. Llwyd.

That’s how I would describe January.

If like me you’re experiencing a real case of the revision blues, perhaps you’ll find this week’s Welsh word handy.

 

‘Adolygu’ it’s the verb to revise’

 

For example, ‘Dechreuais adolygu heddi’ would mean ‘ I started to revise today.’

You can find all the different formations of the verb for example for first, second, or third person or the past present and future tenses in the book ‘Y Llyfr Berfau’, which came first in my top five books for Welsh learners.

Now, get back to the revision!

 

Jess.

Welsh in 2012; a look back over the past year. Part one.

Picture taken from http://www.ccpixel.net/2012/01/2012/

Roedd 2012 flwyddyn cymysg [cum-isg] am yr iaith Cymraeg.

2012 was a mixed year for the Welsh language.

With good news and bad news, developments and set-backs it was an interesting year for the Welsh language.

So if you’re interested in learning a bit more about the current status and affairs of Cymraeg you’re in the right place.

Here’s part one – January to July.

Mwynhewch / Enjoy.

Really interesting post from a blog http://www.cardiffyouthfootball.wordpress.com

Cardiff Youth Football

On the day Welsh-language activists were compared to members of the Taliban in an unprovoked article undermining our language, I thought I’d highlight the good work being done on behalf of young football enthusiasts in Cardiff – by a Welsh-language movement.

The Urdd was established in 1922 in order to promote the use of Welsh among young people in an active environment. It currently boasts approximately 50,000 members, 30 per cent of which are learners. There are 4,500 Urdd members within 30 square miles of Cardiff, with a thousand or so directly involved in competitions across the capital city.

There are roughly 190 children being coached on Monday and Tuesday nights by young coaches (including myself!), some who are professional. Nine teams between the ages of six and 16 play under the Urdd’s umbrella every Saturday.

It’s a great initiative – inclusive rather than exclusive – and one which I’ve always been involved with…

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#welshwordoftheweek Ionawr 2 – Ionawr 9

So, its 2013. HURRAH.

New Year’s Resolutions going well I hope?

If you’re anything like me you will have consumed gormod o [too much] food, and wine this festive season, and will be looking forward to a healthier diet without all the mins peis a gwin.

Felly, [so] this week’s gair yr wythnos [word of the week] is

‘Ffrwythau a llysiau’ – fruit and vegetables’

Er enghraifft, ‘Mae rhaid i mi fwyta llawer mwy ffrwythau a llysiau o hyn ymlaen. Dwi’n teimlo’n eitha dew ar ol y cyfnod Nadolig’

For example, ‘ I must eat a lot more fruit and vegetables from now on. I’m feeling quite fat after the Christmas period.’