Happy St. David's Day! Dydd Gŵyl Dewi Hapus!

My mother was born in Wales and I remember her mother singing Welsh songs as she went about her housework. Welsh is said to be one of the toughest Western European languages to master. St David’s Day presents the perfect opportunity to  try out a few Welsh phrases. Here are a couple to get you started:

Gwdihŵ:

The Welsh have some spectacularly good names for members of the animal kingdom. A ladybird is a ‘buwch goch gota’, which literally translates to ‘little red cow’! But perhaps the most evocative of all is the name given to everyone’s favourite nocturnal bird, the owl. In welsh, an owl is known as a gwdihŵ, pronounced ‘good-ee-hoo’ – perfectly mimicking the owl’s signature hoot.

Wnco mwnco:

Need to direct someone to a chap you know on the opposite side of the room? Point at them and announce, ‘wnco mwnco!’ Pronounced ‘oonkaw moonkaw’, it simply means ‘him over there’. (Nothing to do with monkeys, sadly.) Need to say, ‘her over there’? That one is ‘onco fonco’ (pronounced ‘onkaw vonkaw’).

More Welsh words: BBC Radio

And, while you're in the mood, why not bake up a batch of Welsh Cakes: