Mon Jul 30, 2018 5:23 pm
My 9 year old step-daughter speaks nearly no Welsh, but can't wait for the Eisteddfod in the bay this year. Since it's so close and has free entry, she insists that we go for all 5 days (unlike the 1 day we did in Abergavenny and in Anglesey).
Yes, the Eisteddfod is mainly in Welsh. That's because it's a Welsh language festival. Complaining about that is like complaining there's not enough hard rock music in Brecon Jazz, or too many books in the Hay on Wye festival. But the fact that it's a Welsh language festival doesn't make it a festival just for Welsh speakers. It's a great opportunity for those who don't speak Welsh (and especially those like my step-daughter who lives in an area like Cwmbran where she doesn't hear much Welsh) to experience the language and the culture around it in a friendly environment.
There's a small minority in Wales who seem to hate the language for some reason, and even though you can find Welsh speakers and overflowing Welsh language schools in the most deprived villages of the valleys, in the middle of Splott and all over the low-income rural areas in the North and West, they're convinced that only "elites" and "middle class people" speak it. If the Eisteddfod only went to Welsh speaking rural areas, they'd complain the festival was not inclusive and was insular. When the festival comes right to the middle of Cardiff, gets rid of its entrance fee and promotes itself to the whole city, they still complain.
Thankfully 86% of Wales are proud of the language, whether they speak it or not. 67% of Wales think MORE need to be done to support the language. 62% of non-Welsh speakers wish they could speak it, and 85% of those who speak a little, wish they could speak it better. Only 6% of non-Wales speakers disagree with the idea of being proud of the Welsh language, and only 2% believe that strongly. The anti-Welsh language brigade is just a very small, but noisy minority in our country.
As for the topic itself, is it true that there's no pool at the beach this year? My fiancee read that on Facebook and she is annoyed! Says she has no interest in going when it's hot if they've gotten rid of the paddling pool.