TY - CHAP

T1 - Rhetoric or Reality? Is Welsh really a living language and a language for living? Language use of new Welsh speakers in Cwm Rhymni, south Wales

AU - Hodges, Rhian

PY - 2018/3/1

Y1 - 2018/3/1

N2 - Many minority languages are in a statistically healthier position due to thesuccess of minority language education; a key component of most devolvedgovernments' revitalization strategies. Much like other nations withminoritized languages, despite the continued success of Welsh-medium andbilingual education, there is a heightened concern regarding the social usageof Welsh among new speakers. The Welsh Government's Welsh Languagevision places emphasis on the inclusive nature of a truly bilingual Wales forall (Welsh Assembly Government 2003, 1). More recently, it calls for greatersocial use of Welsh within the community so that Welsh is a living language,a language for living (Welsh Government 2012a, 1). However, what happenswhen rhetoric meets reality? In real terms, can the Welsh language flourishbeyond the educational sector if there are limited opportunities for new Welshspeakers to use Welsh socially? This paper explores parents' perceptions oftheir children's language use in Cwm Rhymni, where Welsh-medium educationis flourishing yet English remains the dominant social language. This researchhighlights the difficulties facing young new speakers in using Welsh regularlyoutside the classroom due to the linguistic infrastructure of the locality. Keyresearch themes to emerge from this research highlight the complexrelationships that exist between language preferences and local/nationalidentity, language ownership and a sense of belonging, notions of communityand peer group influences. New Welsh speakers were indeed making use of the of the Welsh language but their usage was largely context-dependent. Interestingly,parents reported a greater social language use amongst females rather than males and reported that many young people shifted towards a greater use of English as they grew older. The study also highlights the often unexpected social use of the Welsh language beyond the classroom and the complexities involving taking ownership of a language not spoken at home or heard within the community at large. This chapter provides some valuable insights into the future linguistic practices and linguistic journeys of new speakers in one valley in Wales

AB - Many minority languages are in a statistically healthier position due to thesuccess of minority language education; a key component of most devolvedgovernments' revitalization strategies. Much like other nations withminoritized languages, despite the continued success of Welsh-medium andbilingual education, there is a heightened concern regarding the social usageof Welsh among new speakers. The Welsh Government's Welsh Languagevision places emphasis on the inclusive nature of a truly bilingual Wales forall (Welsh Assembly Government 2003, 1). More recently, it calls for greatersocial use of Welsh within the community so that Welsh is a living language,a language for living (Welsh Government 2012a, 1). However, what happenswhen rhetoric meets reality? In real terms, can the Welsh language flourishbeyond the educational sector if there are limited opportunities for new Welshspeakers to use Welsh socially? This paper explores parents' perceptions oftheir children's language use in Cwm Rhymni, where Welsh-medium educationis flourishing yet English remains the dominant social language. This researchhighlights the difficulties facing young new speakers in using Welsh regularlyoutside the classroom due to the linguistic infrastructure of the locality. Keyresearch themes to emerge from this research highlight the complexrelationships that exist between language preferences and local/nationalidentity, language ownership and a sense of belonging, notions of communityand peer group influences. New Welsh speakers were indeed making use of the of the Welsh language but their usage was largely context-dependent. Interestingly,parents reported a greater social language use amongst females rather than males and reported that many young people shifted towards a greater use of English as they grew older. The study also highlights the often unexpected social use of the Welsh language beyond the classroom and the complexities involving taking ownership of a language not spoken at home or heard within the community at large. This chapter provides some valuable insights into the future linguistic practices and linguistic journeys of new speakers in one valley in Wales

M3 - Chapter

SN - 1-5275-0581-2

SP - 58

EP - 88

BT - Eastern European Perspectives on Celtic Studies

A2 - Hornsby, Michael

A2 - Rosiak, Karolina

PB - Cambridge Scholars Publishing

CY - Newcastle

ER -