Introduction
Welsh is, unlike many stories to the contrary, not a difficult language for an English speaker. It lacks many things that make languages difficult. There are no noun declensions which cause students of Latin or German difficulties. The spelling is almost entirely regular, and if you are really stuck you can do what a lot of Welsh speakers often do and that is stick in an English word.(Learners should try to avoid this though.) The more complex vocabulary is also more accessible to a learner, whereas English borrows lots of its more complicated words from Latin, French or Greek, Welsh tends to build simple compounds from native words. A complex word seen in a newspaper article may seem a little difficult at first but its meaning is easily deduced from its structure. Fortunately too unlike some languages Welsh doesn't produce long compound words either.
Granted there are the mutations that seem to frighten people, but they do follow regular patterns and if you do get them wrong you will still be understood. After a while learners can get to see the mutations as a help as they provide an easy way to know the genders of many nouns.
The course on this site concentrates on the southern dialect of the language from the area around Wales' second largest city, Swansea (or Abertawe in Welsh.) Swansea still has its historic distinctive local dialect and accent. Indeed, it has been estimated that around one in six of all Welsh speakers lives within 15 miles of the city centre.
The approach taken is to give the formal written forms but to include significant local pronunciation differences in the "how to sound more natural" sections at the bottom of the lessons. The formal written forms should not be ignored as these provide a key to understanding speakers of other dialects.
Each lesson is provided with its own sound file. These files are not CD- quality but have been compressed so that it is possible for users in more rural areas without a broadband connection to use the site. Large sound clip files can be difficult to download. You will require a program that is capable of playing MP3 files.
Throughout the course you will find practice screens. There are only a few at present but as the various programmes and databases are constructed and tested more will be added.
The idea behind the practice screens is that they display different versions of a sentence illustrating a grammatical construction. These are displayed in yellow. Above them are translations of the key word(s). By repeating these different versions of the sentence aloud you learn the grammar naturally in the natural form. This should mean that the correct grammar will come to you without needing to think too much. You will also be learning key vocabulary during this process.
When accessing the practice screens you should press enter on your keyboard and a new version of the sentence will appear on your screen. Occasionally with some computer systems pressing enter may not work. You will then need to click on the reload page feature on your browser to get the same effect.
Should you be reading the site from a place where silence is necessary, such as a library. You should attempt to mouth the words silently in the same way as if you were to say them aloud. The idea is to use as much of your brain as possible, including the parts that control your lips.
Finally, this site is not supported by any official body or organisation. It is the work of a single volunteer. Please keep coming back as the intention is to produce regular updates and improvements.
Learn Welsh on-line
with SiaradCymraeg.com
© Copyright N.W JONES All rights
reserved.
