Llyr Gwyn Lewis

Alan Bennett in The History Boys warned against those ‘who would talk in middle age of the lure of language and their love of words. ‘Words’ said in that reverential way that is somehow Welsh.’ At the risk of falling squarely into this category, I’d like to state why I think Taf-Od, which, thanks to a visionary new editor was only re-born last year, is worth keeping, as it is, and why it should not be translated.

It is with mild amusement and not a small amount of frustration that I have followed the recent debate in the letters page of gair rhydd over the Welsh-language section (if a page can be construed as a section), Taf-Od. Frustration, because the attitude of some of the contributors to the debate is an attitude a Welsh speaker must face almost daily, which turns the frustration into near-fatigue. Amusement, for much the same reasons, and because if one cannot be amused with such attitudes, one would almost surely have given up completely and become a monoglot Englishman many moons ago.

Having such strong feelings on the matter, it would be reasonable to ask why I am so belated in my contribution to this discussion. It is precisely because so many similar discussions exist, and although the people who wrote letters to gair rhydd had some very valid points, these kind of discussions (often found on internet forums) are usually so confoundingly ignorant that they merit no other response than to be ignored. However, this discussion has been so far a very mature one, and I am very grateful to the editors of gair rhydd also for defending the Taf-Od section so vehemently and so sensibly. Indeed, the page has been so well defended by the editor that no additional response was necessary. But I feel it would be beneficial to explain the importance of Taf-Od from a Welsh speaking reader’s point of view.

The argument, as far as I can see, over the need to translate Taf-Od, the question of its existence in a broader context, has been one based on practicalities; the defence of Taf-Od, on the other hand, has been argued in principles. Validly so, I believe, because I am aware that Welsh speakers within the student population in Cardiff, as in most other places in Wales, are in a very small minority; an argument over the Welsh language at this point in time can only be argued in principle and not in practicalities. In fact, Taf-Od stands as a very important principle, a symbol, a blazon for every Welsh speaking student in Cardiff. Yet those very students are partly to blame for the attitudes which prevail in the aforementioned letters.

It is because of the very laziness of the Welsh students of Cardiff that there is so little Welsh in the paper. The page is edited by a small number of people, two or three, who must contribute to it every week with virtually no support by any other potential Welsh reporters, myself included. It would be impractical to have the whole of Gair Rhydd in Welsh, it has been argued. Of course it would – what Welsh speaking student in the whole of Cardiff has the time, the commitment, or indeed the money, to translate all the material weekly? If gair rhydd existed in Aberystwyth, at least half the paper would have to be in Welsh, or else risk facing the wrath of the many students of Pantycelyn. Here in Cardiff, apathy is rife, and English speakers have benefited from the absolute complacency of Welsh-language students.

We stick to our own, we speak Welsh amongst ourselves in our Welsh-language flats in Senghennydd; we can socialise almost exclusively in Welsh. We are safe here; we can half-believe that the Welsh language is strong. We can almost believe that Cardiff is changing for the best – what need have we to take Welsh to the world? Let them come to us if they want to know about it – we’re not stopping anyone from joining the Welsh Society (that’s the Gym Gym that you see every year in the societies fayre – and no, it’s not a society where you go to the gym twice; it’s short for ‘Y Gymdeithas Gymraeg’, which means ‘The Welsh Society). The sad truth, however, is that although there are more Welsh speakers in Cardiff than in Gwynedd, officially the ‘Welshest’ county in the world, the language is invisible, barely audible, in the city. Things are slowly getting better, of course – Ffion James has just been elected as Welsh Language Officer for the Union, and hopefully with her hard work the language’s presence can begin to be felt there. But it will inevitably be a slow process. That’s why, when an English-speaking student has come to Cardiff on the premise that he or she can go about his or her everyday business just like in England, without the time-wasting bother of that silly dead language, and hasn’t found anything yet to prove otherwise – when he or she stumbles across a page completely in Welsh in a supposedly English-language paper, it’s uncomfortable. It’s dangerous. It’s the written form of the old myth of the Englishman walking into a pub in Wales where they all speak English, and when he walks in they all turn to Welsh and speak about him. Is this article saying something about us, you think, a joke that we’re not allowed in on because we speak English?

In most cases, you can afford not to flatter yourself. The pages are a mixture of reviews, news items, political journalism, sport – just like the rest of the paper, only in Welsh. The subject matter, however, is irrelevant – it’s the fact that, in a sea of Englishness, there is one Welsh page, a reminder that there are people who would like to conduct their everyday life through the language their mother taught them, but can’t; there must always be compromise. You say that most Welsh speakers can speak English as well; I don’t know a single Welsh person over the age of five who can’t speak English – that’s because without it, you just couldn’t get by. Is that fair? In my own country, I can’t go down to the shop and ask for something at the counter in my own language. Many of my friends can’t attend lectures in the language of their choice. Please don’t insult me by asking me to translate something that is such a part of my identity, which stands for so much of the culture and of the literature that I love, to be consumed by the monoglot masses. To translate a Welsh article would deprive it of its Welshness; as the editor has already suggested, so much is lost in translation.

Now you can see why I don’t very often reply to these kinds of discussions; they almost always turn into a self-satisfied, highly defensive rant. But they must be so by their very essence, because I’m replying to an attack on something which is very close to my heart. Now that the rant’s over, allow me to make a few suggestions based on practicality rather than high principles:

If the Welsh section is to be translated into English, it entails that the rest of the paper should be translated to Welsh. Impossible, impractical, I hear you say; then let us at least make an effort to translate some of the other English stories within gair rhydd. It’s only fair.

Rather than translate the whole articles, why not provide a glossary at the bottom of the page, containing some common vocabulary and a pronunciation guide, so that the English reader can get the gist of the article and pick up on a few Welsh words at the same time.

In a similar vein, I’m sure that you’re at least aware of a Welsh speaker or two on your course. If you’re eager to find out what’s in the article, ask them to give you a quick summary. Or even ask them if they’d like to go for a pint and have a chat about these things, hear their views – they might agree with you wholeheartedly and think I’m a nationalist pig.

We should also realise that this discussion has been a very healthy one, in a sense. It’s succeeded in doing what Welsh speakers have failed for so long – it has brought the Welsh language to the attention of a broader readership. It’s been a mature discussion, with two people putting forward some interesting points, and the responses, too, by the editor and by a sympathetic reader, have been encouraging. Not in a million years would I ask these people not to contribute for fear of being opposed; indeed, I thank them for their views and I would implore any other reader who feels strongly for either side of the argument to submit their views. I realise that I am, after all, in a minority here. Nevertheless this discussion has raised some valid questions regarding the rights of Welsh and English speakers within the University.

Perhaps the most important suggestion of all, though, is a suggestion to the Welsh-speaking students of Cardiff. Come out of your coccoons – it’s far too safe there. Take your language with you and show it to people. Make them aware that we are still here, trying to live our lives in Welsh, make it an audible, visible language; explain that it’s not a way of slagging English people off in front of them, or a quirky way to swear, that it’s a way of life. But most of all, for God’s sake, get writing, help those dedicated few who tirelessly churn out this page week after week, help the section to expand and to be more worthy of the Welsh capital’s student newspaper. Make Taf-Od worth saving.

Huw Alun Foulkes

Wedi darllen y llythyron yn ymwneud â chyfieithu Taf-Od yn ‘Gair Rhydd’ mae nifer o’r dadleuon yn disgyn rhwng dwy stôl. Fel mae’r rhan fwyaf wedi datgan yn barod – un dudalen yr wythnos yn unig sy’n uniaith Gymraeg, mae dros ddeg ar hugain yn uniaith Saesneg. Yn sicr, nid oes gennyf broblem ynglŷn â chyfieithu’r dudalen i’r Saesneg er mwyn bod y rheini nad ydynt yn medru iaith y nefoedd yn gallu darllen am wir draddodiad a phrofiadau diwylliannol, Cymreig myfyrwyr ein prifddinas.

Fodd bynnag, a fyddai golygydd ‘Gair Rhydd’ yn sicrhau fod cyfieithydd yn cael ei dalu i gyfieithu’r dudalen? Nid tasg hawdd fyddai sicrhau fod y cyfieithu’n gywir ac o safon gan fod nifer o’r erthyglau yn ymdrin yn benodol â thestunau neu ddigwyddiadau Cymreig sy’n digwydd drwy gyfrwng yr iaith Gymraeg.

Os mai dwyieithrwydd yw gofynion y rhai sy’n cwyno, yna pam na allwn ni’r Cymry Cymraeg fynnu ein bod yn cael darllen ‘Gair Rhydd’ drwy gyfrwng y Gymraeg yn ogystal â’r Saesneg? Mae niferoedd y myfyrwyr Cymraeg sy’n dod i Brifysgol Caerdydd yn esgyn yn syfrdanol bob blwyddyn ac o ganlyniad, dim ond cynyddu wnaiff y galw am ddeunyddiau Cymraeg gan yr Undeb yn y dyfodol. Soniodd un o’r llythyrwyr yn ‘Gair Rhydd’ yr wythnos ddiwethaf fod llunio ‘Taf-Od’ yn uniaith Gymraeg yn sarhau’r darllenwyr Saesneg eu hiaith. Onid yw gweddill y tudalennau yn sarhau’r darllenwyr Cymraeg? Oni ddylem yn ein gwlad ein hunain, mewn prifysgol yn ein prifddinas gael dewis iaith? Siawns y gall y Saeson yn ein plith ddioddef un dudalen nad ydynt yn eu deall?

Fel arall, mae croeso iddyn nhw fynychu’r niferus ddosbarthiadau nos sy’n cael eu cynnig i ddysgwyr yr iaith. Beth am gynnig fod ambell gymal neu air yn ymddangos ar dudalennau ‘Taf-Od’ bob wythnos i gynorthwyo’r darllenwyr? Gwn fod hyn wedi digwydd ar raddfa fechan yn y gorffennol ond efallai y gallwn sicrhau fod colofn wythnosol yn canolbwyntio ar hyn?

Yn sicr, mae llawer o sylwedd i’r erthyglau Cymraeg sy’n ymddangos yn wythnosol ond byddwn yn dadlau nad oes digon o swmp yma. Beth am geisio sicrhau fod MWY o Gymraeg o fewn y papur? Mae digonedd o fyfyrwyr â’r ddawn i lunio erthyglau bachog yn yr iaith Gymraeg ac heb os, diogrwydd myfyrwyr sydd i gyfrif yn rhannol am y diffyg Cymraeg.

Pe byddai mwy o erthyglau Cymraeg, efallai na fyddai dadl yn codi? Hynny ydi, byddai’r myfyrwyr Saesneg sy’n gwrthwynebu erthyglau uniaith Gymraeg yn sylweddoli fod gennym le a statws digonol o fewn y papur ac o bosib, yn derbyn fod rhaid neilltuo erthyglau penodol ar gyfer yr iaith Gymraeg yn unig?

Mae’n gwestiwn gen i os fyddai mwyafrif y darllenwyr Saesneg yn dangos diddordeb mewn adolygiad sy’n trafod gig rhai o fandiau amlycaf y sin roc Gymraeg neu’n ysu am glywed hanesion y Gym Gym yn y Ddawns a’r Eisteddfod Ryng-Golegol. Yn sicr, mae angen hybu’r diwylliant a’r iaith ond mewn gwirionedd, faint o’r darllenwyr fyddai’n gwerthfawrogi’r ymdrech i gyfieithu? Cwestiwn arall sy’n codi yw pa mor effeithiol fyddai’r cyfieithu?

Yn sicr, fynnwn i ddim gweld cyfieithiadau slafaidd sy’n llesteirio’r erthyglau gwreiddiol. Yn yr un modd, mae’n amhosib cyfieithu ambell erthygl Saesneg i unrhyw iaith heb golli gwreiddioldeb a chyfoeth y dweud. Byddai’r darllenwyr Saesneg yn beirniadu’r erthygl Saesneg yn unig. Dim ond wrth gyfieithu’n safonol a phroffesiynol felly y byddai sicrhau ymateb deg.

Mae’n destun gofid erbyn hyn nad oes digon o sylw yn cael ei roi i’r iaith Gymraeg ym Mhrifysgol Caerdydd o ystyried y ddarpariaeth mewn prifysgolion eraill. Peth da yw fod dadl fel hyn yn codi a hynny’n dangos fod lle i’r iaith Gymraeg o fewn sefydliad sy’n echrydus o Seisnig ei naws. Cyfieithwch yn gywir ac yn safonol a does gen innau fel amryw un arall ddim problem! Mae’r rhod yn dechrau troi . . . a’n lle ninnau fel Cymry Cymraeg yw dal ein tir.

Sion Ifan

“Everyone can speak, read and understand English…so why bother?”

The recent Taf-od debate has sparked a few heated discussions on my way to lectures over the past week or so. One point that keeps cropping up is the suggestion that everybody can understand English and therefore there is no point in having a Welsh-only page as it instantly “discriminates” against the majority of students who cannot speak or read Welsh. According to the arguments that I have read in the Letters to the Editor and on the gair rhydd Web forums, many feel that providing a translation of the Taf-od articles would let non-Welsh speakers understand and enjoy them too. I see this as a perfectly valid point, and as many Taf-od articles are on topics such as “Welshness” or the Welsh language, translations could provide a beneficial and indeed necessary insight for non-Welsh speaking students into values and opinions that they would not have come across before arriving at Cardiff University.

However, as I am writing this, I cannot help but feel slightly uneasy. It is almost as if translating the only Welsh page in gair rhydd haunts me as being a painful compromise; a defeat by the monoglot English speaker over my much loved and valued mother tongue. Is there really a need to translate everything into English when so many other articles are published every week without a single word of Welsh? Placing an English translation next to the Welsh article not only threatens the whole ethos of Taf-od as the only contribution of Welsh language journalism, but also gives the impression that the Welsh language cannot stand on its own; that it needs an English translation in order to be complete and in order for the masses to understand it. Successive British governments have always used the English language as a tool of unification and subjugation. It is and has been a contentious matter over the centuries in all parts of the world. But here is not the time or place to discuss British Imperial history. I would just like to humbly suggest that it is only when the monoglot English speaker has shown respect to other languages and countries which came under its jurisdiction that a lot of needless antagonism has been done away with. The English language is the fantastic means of communication. The benefit of having a grasp of English is of such high importance to me as I live my life from day to day in a truly bilingual manner. Of all the world’s languages, English is the language that has adapted best; it has borrowed from languages all over the globe and has enriched the lives of people everywhere. It is not threatened with extinction by any other language. It will only however receive the true respect it deserves by showing due respect to the minority languages spoken in all bilingual countries where English is the lingua franca.

I’m sure, as an English-speaking student coming to Wales to study, it is very easy to think that the Welsh language only exists in a little bubble of tight-knit groups of students, as it is English that is heard most often on the streets and campuses. However, the Welsh Society (Y Gym Gym) is one of the Student Union’s largest societies this year with over 200 members on its books. There are also thousands of students leaving Welsh-medium and bilingual secondary schools, coming to study at Cardiff, their capital city, using their Welsh from day to day.

One thing certainly remains open to debate; don’t the Taf-od articles need to be translated into English as much as there is need for more Welsh throughout the paper? Without a doubt, if Welsh articles were not confined to only one page in gair rhydd, then I wouldn’t find a translation of Taf-od such an issue and a threat. Why not dare join a welsh class and get learning some basics. There is nothing better than seeing people trying their best to get to grips with some Welsh. It simply shows appreciation and respect to what is a beautiful and ever-flourishing, precious gem.