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Well, of course you do!!
Words that derive from the Welsh: balderdash, bard, brock, coracle, corgi, druid, flannel, flummery, penguin, piebald/skewbald.
Welsh words used in English with their original spelling: awdl, cromlech, eisteddfod, hiraeth, iechyd da (pronounced, it sounds like “yachy da” and means “good health” or “cheers”).
We will be investigating some of these words in future columns and adding a few more.
In response to the question in the last column -- “What Welsh word/s do you remember from your childhood?” – your editor received the following:
“I remember words such as caws as cheese was always called by my grandmother. Also, "Come to gwely” (bed) was often heard, as was, "Get off your pen-ôl” to indicate I should quit sitting and get some work done, and this was said by my 100% German mother who adopted only that one Welsh word.
More than the words, I remember the cadences of the older generation speaking Welsh, with its almost sing-song rhythm and uplifting of the end of each sentence.
We were raised thinking that to be Welsh was to have it all and that others must feel dreadful that they were not Cymric. How lucky we were to have each other and to be aware of our gifts.” -----Mary Ellen Morgan
What Welsh word/s do you remember from your childhood? Were you taught Welsh by a parent or grandparent, or does one particular word or phrase mean something special to you? Will you share your memories with us? Send a letter to WSCO Dragon Tales, PO Box 12023, Columbus, OH, 43212, or write to the editor at dragontalesnews[at]sbcglobal[dot]net.
Jeanne Jones Jindra, Director, Madog Center for Welsh Studies
Menna Morgan, Project Officer for the Wales-Ohio Project at the National Library of Wales, was in Ohio in June to begin digitization of materials for Phase II of the project. The Wales-Ohio Project, funded by Evan and Elizabeth Davis of Maes Glas in Oak Hill, OH, digitized original materials dealing with immigration from Wales to all areas of Ohio in the 1800’s. Phase I included all material that was held at the National Library of Wales while Phase II includes materials held in private hands, community museums or archives in the U.S.
Menna visited Ohio in the spring of 2007 to identify items to be digitized. The Madog Center for Welsh Studies worked with Menna, along with WSCO and other Welsh Societies in Ohio, to put the call out for materials to be included. Anyone with original material dealing with Welsh immigration to Ohio, such as letters, photographs with identification, articles, maps, prints and paintings should contact Menna Morgan through the Madog Center for Welsh Studies at (800) 282-7201 ext 7186 or welsh[at]rio[dot]edu.
Visit the web site at http://ohio.llgc.org.uk.
(Editor’s note: If you are planning on joining WSCO for the October bus tour (details on page 11), you might want to visit the above website beforehand to learn more about the Welsh in Allen and Van Wert counties.)
Jeanne Jones Jindra, Director, Madog Center for Welsh Studies
The Madog Center for Welsh Studies at the University of Rio Grande has been assisting Ohio University student Sherry DiBari with her MA thesis project research on the history of the Eisteddfod in Jackson, Ohio for the past two years. Sherry, a student in the Visual Communications Program at OU, recently shared the rough draft of her project with us.
She has researched, photographed, recorded and designed a web site on this Welsh festival brought by early immigrants who arrived on America’s shores in the early 1800’s with their love of singing. She gives extensive background on local southern Ohio Welsh history, Eisteddfod history, and how the event came to fall under the direction of the Jackson City Schools. Another feature of the site is Sherry’s inclusion of a timeline to help keep early Eisteddfod events in order. The highlight of the site has to be hearing early Eisteddfod participants talk about their memories. Photos of each participant are included. We are very happy to share this wonderful site with you and hope you will pass it along to anyone who might be interested.
You can visit the site at http://www.jacksoneisteddfod.com. Anyone with information to share with Sherry can contact her through the web site or through the Madog Center for Welsh Studies at (800) 282-7201 ext 7186 or welsh[at]rio[dot]edu.
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