tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388623297510187244.post3194403796534633232..comments2024-02-23T03:26:11.779+00:00Comments on Growing Things and Making Things: Dysgu CymraegRachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16619866897155085499noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388623297510187244.post-84562757643830750412016-01-21T22:04:58.628+00:002016-01-21T22:04:58.628+00:00Will do, Rachel! I visit a few Dutch websites and ...Will do, Rachel! I visit a few Dutch websites and look at daily newspapers on line from time to time, but (so far) not "seriously". Planning to do a course next winter plus there's a Dutch woman in the nearest town who is a qualified Dutch/English teacher and offers one-to-one conversation sessions. I'll check out Quora. Thanks!Rebecca Oldshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05979821146538393459noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388623297510187244.post-62600424211196982382016-01-20T23:08:03.246+00:002016-01-20T23:08:03.246+00:00I've only read bits and pieces of Roald Dahl--...I've only read bits and pieces of Roald Dahl--my husband thinks they are funny so he's done most of the reading with the kids for that author. It would be fun to see how he translates words that aren't really words at all in English.<br /><br />I am certainly not a world traveler! My best friend and I spent 2 weeks in the UK about 20 years ago. 10 days were with a tour, where we skimmed the very edge of Wales (enough to say "We've been to Wales!"). We took a few extra days to do whatever we wanted, and on one of those days we took a train from London to Cardiff. We saw the castle there and went to see Castell Coch--it's been so long, I don't even remember how we got to that castle--train? Taxi? We really enjoyed our time there and found all the locals to be friendly and enthusiastic about their country. Someday I'd love to go back and explore it further. I've always been fascinated by words and language and I think it's great that you get the opportunity to learn Welsh. <br /><br />I love HP--the first 3 books are more "kid" in their content, but by the fourth book, the storyline takes on more depth. It isn't for everyone, though. Krisnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388623297510187244.post-10705436303640605882016-01-20T20:57:39.298+00:002016-01-20T20:57:39.298+00:00Hi Kris :-) So you are not a stranger to these sho...Hi Kris :-) So you are not a stranger to these shores, then! Welsh is a fascinating language, isn't it? So different from English. <br /><br />I'm glad to hear that "skint" is only UK-local slang, not Midlands-local, which I feared it might be, just then. For some reason I've never got into Harry Potter - I'm not sure why. Maybe I'll read them when someone's translated them into Welsh! At the moment I'm reading the BFG - CMM - in Welsh, which is extra challenging, as the BFG uses some creative language, so I'm not sure whether I'm reading genuine Welsh or the equivalent of "scrumtilicious" or somesuch. Possibly not the best choice, but I'll persevere.Rachelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16619866897155085499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388623297510187244.post-53870174712653760422016-01-20T20:50:15.540+00:002016-01-20T20:50:15.540+00:00I once read a book of advice on doing a PhD, and i...I once read a book of advice on doing a PhD, and it started with, "Do you really want to <em>do</em> a PhD? Not do you want to be a doctor, but do you want to go through the process of getting to that point?" I think this is an excellent question for anything that involves a lot of work: Do you actually want to do the work, or do you just want the end result? Do you want to <em>learn</em> a language, or do you just want to be able to speak it? If you don't want to do the learning, then don't! Luckily, I'm enjoying the learning, at least at the moment, so I shall carry on.Rachelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16619866897155085499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388623297510187244.post-52515706582204267212016-01-20T17:44:15.032+00:002016-01-20T17:44:15.032+00:00I was in Wales once and was fascinated by the lang...I was in Wales once and was fascinated by the language. The only foreign language exposure I have had was German in high school. I found it easier to read it than it was to speak it or interpret what was spoken. <br /><br />"Churlish" is used in older books in the US--it is a fun word, isn't it? Reading Harry Potter taught me the word "skint"--I guess that tells you something about my reading preferences. :) I am completely amused that you are reading Roald Dahl in Welsh. What a great way to familiarize yourself with the language! Krisnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388623297510187244.post-67793541475815285562016-01-19T11:34:56.819+00:002016-01-19T11:34:56.819+00:00I love the idea of being able to speak (or at leas...I love the idea of being able to speak (or at least get by in) another language..this has never translated into me actually doing anything about learning- so I admire you for actually getting to grips with Welsh!<br />I had a friend at uni who spoke Welsh (I think she had been taught it at school rather than learning from her family) and she taught me a few words...none of which I can remember now!NicolaBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01542310810409358114noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388623297510187244.post-70097040976150921782016-01-17T17:12:33.922+00:002016-01-17T17:12:33.922+00:00Thanks. I'm finding the language fascinating, ...Thanks. I'm finding the language fascinating, too, now I've got over my initial terror. It's very different from English. It seems to me that the unit of meaning is larger than one word in many cases. That is to say, you need a phrase or sentence to be sure what each word means. The dictionary tends to give several translations for a word (not all of them, but many), e.g. brig - top, summit; outcrop; twig. You then need the context to know which meaning is appropriate. I think this makes Welsh a more poetic language than English.Rachelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16619866897155085499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388623297510187244.post-84440265908913845502016-01-17T00:07:00.587+00:002016-01-17T00:07:00.587+00:00Great post. I've been a bit fascinated by Wels...Great post. I've been a bit fascinated by Welsh and Gaelic and it is interesting to hear about your learning. Tanya Murrayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04867118885094628168noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388623297510187244.post-59444321351098863142016-01-16T00:26:21.398+00:002016-01-16T00:26:21.398+00:00Oh, that story about the Swedish Chef is too funny...Oh, that story about the Swedish Chef is too funny! Yes, we do get the Muppet Show here, or at least we did when I was a child. How unfortunate to get the giggles in the middle of such a serious lecture!<br /><br />As for my English vocab, ah, hmm. 'Churlish' is a somewhat archaic word that I rather like. It means, roughly, ungenerous in a slightly sulky way (at least, in the manner of Humpty Dumpty, that's what it means when I use it). 'Skint' is slang, and quite possibly local to the area where I grew up. It means lacking money, though you probably figured that out from the context.Rachelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16619866897155085499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388623297510187244.post-39774219714569411692016-01-16T00:09:16.254+00:002016-01-16T00:09:16.254+00:00Give yourself a head start and start getting some ...Give yourself a head start and start getting some familiarity with Dutch now! As you say, it really is a matter of time spent on it. Some of the stuff that I found almost impossible at the first attempt seemed quite easy only a few weeks later (I didn't attempt too much at a time). If I can do it, so can you! Also, do look at that article on Quora that I linked to - it's really good.Rachelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16619866897155085499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388623297510187244.post-70389606899507576802016-01-15T22:13:37.383+00:002016-01-15T22:13:37.383+00:00Wow! Welsh sounds like a fascinating language, and...Wow! Welsh sounds like a fascinating language, and those mutations sound... well, they sound challenging! At one point I tried to learn German, but I just couldn't get past all those case endings. Oy! <br /><br />Anyhow, I totally know what you mean about engaging the language processing part of the brain. When I was first living in Norway and learning Norwegian, I found that my ability to hear the sounds as language would come and go. It was especially difficult when I was tired, or when I was speaking with someone who had a difficult accent.<br /><br />One of the teachers in school was from the town of Bergen - which has a very different accent than the folks from Trondheim (where I was living.) I found him nearly impossible to understand. <br /><br />I don't know if you had the Muppet Show on TV there in Britain, but I was a big fan of it as a child, and there was one character called the Swedish Chef, who spoke silly nonsense that was supposed to sound like Swedish.<br /><br />Well, one day in class with the teacher from Bergen, I was tired and my brain just sorta went on revolt. Suddenly, everything the man said just started to sound like gobbledygook. He was kind of a wild-eyed fellow to begin with, and as I sat there not understanding a word of what was being said, he started to look and sound to me exactly like the Swedish Chef. <br /><br />I honestly did not mean to be disrespectful, but I couldn't help it, and I started to chuckle. Unfortunately, the lecture (which I hadn't understood a word of) was about the Nazi occupation of Norway during WWII, so it wasn't, ummm... the most appropriate time to get the giggles.<br /><br />I'm sure that didn't do much to improve their image of Americans, and I found it nearly impossible to explain what it was that I found to be so funny! <br /><br />Oh well... I hope they all forgave me! :-)<br /><br />BTW - churlish? skint? are these English words? I've never heard either one before! Apparently vocabulary is a life long pursuit even in one's native tongue!EcoCatLadyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15704811319510740473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388623297510187244.post-1629190168809189022016-01-15T19:42:30.220+00:002016-01-15T19:42:30.220+00:00This is fantastic! I suspect I'll be attemptin...This is fantastic! I suspect I'll be attempting Dutch in a few years' time -- terrifying but yes, I'm telling myself, all I need is time. And a diligent routine. Slowly but surely, little and often. Sounds like it's working for you. Bravo!Rebecca Oldshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05979821146538393459noreply@blogger.com