On 21/06/2011 18:22, Josephine Jeremiah wrote: > > Hi Graham, > > I can't understand why 83.69% of people in Cardiff are said to have no > knowledge of Welsh. > > Last year I visited the Heath Hospital in Cardiff, a number of times, and > in the lifts there were recorded messages, both in Welsh and in English, > about the doors closing and opening. Even if you had no knowledge of > Welsh, after a few visits you'd know a bit! > > I noted, too, that, being a city, there were lots of bilingual road signs > on the way to and from the Heath. Most of the 83.69% of Cardiffians > mentioned must see road signs, at least, on a daily basis, so should have > a smattering of the language. > > And what about the supermarkets? They have bilingual signs, too. The > language must rub off on the inhabitants. > > Children and young people, too, would have knowledge of the language, as > Welsh, as a first or second language, is one of the core subjects in the > National Curriculum for schools in Wales. > > Josephine > Hi Josephine, Please don't let the bilingual signs you see fool you. There exist only because of the Welsh language Act (I think). Welsh isn't a language that "rubs off on you" and many people question the worth of such signs, but we have them and I'm sure they're appreciated by some. An English speaker in Cardiff may well be able to pronounce various place names as a result of seeing bi-lingual road signs, but will gain no understanding of grammar etc, so therefore no speech. As to the place of Welsh in the national curriculum, well it's there, but in many places it is effectively ignored. My son was registered for a half GCSE in Welsh, but with the agreement of his head, he never, to the best of my knowledge, attended a lesson and was not entered for the examination. I feel, rightly or wrongly, that compulsory Welsh is purely a sop to various politicians in Cardiff. I wouldn't like to see Welsh die out - my grandfather was almost monoglot, while my father thought of Welsh as a waste of time. What those that promote the language need to remember is the saying that one volunteer is worth ten pressed men! -- Cheers Peter Neath