Welsh are people too?

[the last yatto]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-11490897 

[Nephew Twiddleton]

No, it's just that Welsh people are voting to say that Welsh is a people language too.

I'm starting to get more ambivalent about measures like this. I like the idea of a country trying to maintain its cultural and linguistic heritage, but I don't necessarily see any benefit to it.

They say the amendments will give the language equal status with English in Wales, requiring companies and public bodies to use more Welsh.

He told Radio Wales the "beefed up" role of the proposed commissioner aimed to head off the need for people to take legal action over their rights to use Welsh when dealing with firms and public bodies.

He said: "The commissioner is there to enforce those standards [of Welsh language provision] so that Welsh speakers who want services through the medium of Welsh, can do so

Ok, this all sounds nice, since I think the figure is that 20% of Welsh people speak Welsh. But then consider that 100% of Welsh also speak English. I'm just picturing a Welsh speaker getting into some legal trouble and then insisting on having his rights read to him in Welsh when he already understands his rights, and requesting a Welsh speaking lawyer to translate for him in court.

I also don't see why companies should be required to use more Welsh since companies would naturally be dealing with the English speaking world.

For the record, I wouldn't see any sense in this if they instituted something similar in Ireland. I would see less sense in it, actually since a fewer percentage of Irish people use Irish.

I'd see the point in all of this if there were a significant portion of Welsh people who had trouble speaking English but were fluent in Welsh.

[Doktor Howl]

WELL, I WOULDN'T GO SO FAR AS TO CALL THEM PEOPLE, BUT I WILL GRUDGINGLY ADMIT THAT MANY OF THEM ARE BIPEDS FOR AT LEAST PART OF THE WORKDAY.

[/Uncle Ruckus]

[Freeky]

[MMIX]

Actually 100% of all children learn to speak are taught Welsh in schools but the language still isn't making much headway; except among the middle-class monoglot English speakers who think that having their kiddies taught in "Welsh medium" schools where everything is in Welsh will get them a better education - like the ones who get their kids into Church schools for the same reasons.
I suspect that the push to get more businesses to use Welsh is a backdoor way to try to convince kids that it is actually worth learning the language as it could be potentially useful to them in getting a good job.

NB There are more sheep working in Wales than people but those people are super people who can take in a message in the correct language at 20 mph or more from our gloriously complicated bilingual road signs



and are all experienced weightlifters from hefting the huge wadges of bumph that crash through our letter boxes in extravagantly bilingual format.

Wales eats trees!

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

Keep in mind that Wales is a nation under British occupation, and are trying to save their language and culture from being crushed into oblivion like Ireland and Scotland's have been.

[Nephew Twiddleton]

Keep in mind that Wales is a nation under British occupation, and are trying to save their language and culture from being crushed into oblivion like Ireland and Scotland's have been.

Irish:
391,470 fluent or native speakers (1983)[2]
1.66 million with some knowledge [1]
(2006 Irish Republic only)

United Kingdom (95,000)
USA (18,000)
EU (Official EU language)

Scottish Gaelic:
speakers 58,552 in Scotland.
92,400 people aged three and over in Scotland had some Gaelic language ability in 2001[2] with an additional 2,000 in Nova Scotia.[3] 1,610 speakers in the United States in 2000.[4] 822 in Australia in 2001.[5] 669 in New Zealand in 2006.[6]

Bedridden, but not crushed into oblivion.

[MMIX]

Keep in mind that Wales is a nation under British occupation, and are trying to save their language and culture from being crushed into oblivion like Ireland and Scotland's have been.

Oh you strange foreigners with your ridiculous notions . . .

[Bebek Sincap Ratatosk]

Keep in mind that Wales is a nation under British occupation, and are trying to save their language and culture from being crushed into oblivion like Ireland and Scotland's have been.

Given the choices the Welsh made in the War of the Roses, I dunno if they can claim to be under occupation anymore.

[Nephew Twiddleton]

Keep in mind that Wales is a nation under British occupation, and are trying to save their language and culture from being crushed into oblivion like Ireland and Scotland's have been.

Given the choices the Welsh made in the War of the Roses, I dunno if they can claim to be under occupation anymore.

Don't let historical facts get in the way of your nationalism!

I hereby revoke your American citizenship for relying on facts to color your opinions of an issue!

[Bebek Sincap Ratatosk]

Keep in mind that Wales is a nation under British occupation, and are trying to save their language and culture from being crushed into oblivion like Ireland and Scotland's have been.

Given the choices the Welsh made in the War of the Roses, I dunno if they can claim to be under occupation anymore.

Don't let historical facts get in the way of your nationalism!

I hereby revoke your American citizenship for relying on facts to color your opinions of an issue!

ACK! Thats what I get for reading Welsh History for entertainment

[Nephew Twiddleton]

Keep in mind that Wales is a nation under British occupation, and are trying to save their language and culture from being crushed into oblivion like Ireland and Scotland's have been.

Given the choices the Welsh made in the War of the Roses, I dunno if they can claim to be under occupation anymore.

Don't let historical facts get in the way of your nationalism!

I hereby revoke your American citizenship for relying on facts to color your opinions of an issue!

ACK! Thats what I get for reading Welsh History for entertainment

Reading facts for entertainment? Ok, now we're going to have to put you on this boat.
It's not a very good ship but it will bring you to where we're sending you.

[Bebek Sincap Ratatosk]

Awwwww.... Does it help that it was background for my SCA persona? Surely that gets me American points...

[MMIX]

Awwwww.... Does it help that it was background for my SCA persona? Surely that gets me American points...

If you are really, really, nice to me I weon't tell you what British historical re-enactors jokingly say that SCA stands for

[Nephew Twiddleton]

Awwwww.... Does it help that it was background for my SCA persona? Surely that gets me American points...

If you are really, really, nice to me I weon't tell you what British historical re-enactors jokingly say that SCA stands for

Could send me PM? I want to know!

Oh, and Tosk, I don't know... I will have to confer with INS