Heather is passionate about everything language-related. Born and raised in Toronto, Canada, she holds a TEFL certification from Aberystwyth University and a Bachelor's degree in Linguistics from the University of Western Ontario. Along with her native English, she speaks Italian, Welsh, and a smattering of Japanese and French.
Are you tired of using the phrase tipyn bach ad nauseam? Then it’s time to add some flair to your Welsh with this adorable word for the smallest amount of something: mymryn. mymryn a little bit In English, mymryn can be translated in various ways – a little bit, a smidgen, an iota, a speck, …
Being from Canada, I’m often asked here in Wales if I’ve ever encountered a bear. Thankfully, the only ones I’ve seen have been at the zoo, but I have friends who’ve come across them while hiking in the Canadian wilderness. In Welsh, this iconic and feared animal is known as arth. arth bear Arth is …
Some emotions, like hapusrwydd (happiness) or cariad (love), we gladly welcome into our lives, while others, such as tristwch (sadness) or rhwystredigaeth (frustration), we tend to avoid or suppress, even though they, too, have important roles in helping us grow as individuals. One such unpleasant emotion is fear, known as ofn in Welsh. ofn fear …
If there’s one piece of clothing most of us seem to have in abundance, it’s probably the simple shirt – or crys as it’s called in Welsh. In fact, I recently gave away nearly twenty to our local charity shop! crys shirt According to Geiriadur Pryfysgol Cymru, it is possible that belt (gwregys) was the …
This year, for the very first time, my son took part in our two local Eisteddfods, singing the beautiful song O Lili Wen Fach—one of the Welsh names for the snowdrop. In fact, every child in Wales aged six and under is learning this song in class, though not all of them go on to …
As adults, and especially as parents, we find ourselves spending much of our time washing something—whether it’s laundry, dishes, or our children’s dirty hands. That’s why the Welsh word golchi (to wash) is one of the first we tend to learn and frequently use. In fact, the very first phrase I ever learned in Welsh …
Rabbits are ubiquitous in popular culture, entertaining us for decades through the zany antics of Bugs Bunny, the endearing charm of Peter Rabbit, and the tardy, pompous nature of the White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland. But what do the Welsh call this adorably fluffy creature, which ranks fourth as the most popular pet after …
Few books are as useful as a dictionary, whether you are learning a brand new language or trying to improve your knowledge of your mother tongue. In Welsh, this useful tool is known as a geiriadur. geiriadur dictionary Geiriadur is the combination of the plural form of gair, meaning word in Welsh, and the suffix …
In North Wales, the word for a cup, as in the kind of cup used for the nation’s favourite hot drink, is cwpan. Its plural form is cwpanau. You may also encounter the variation cwpa without the word-final n in South Wales. cwpan cup The word was borrowed from the Old English cuppan, which was …
Whenever I used to visit the hairdresser as a teenager, I was inevitably greeted with the comment Mae gen ti wallt mor drwchus! (You have such thick hair!) as soon as the stylist touched my hair. Recently, however, I’m receiving more comments about the encroaching grey strands than anything else! gwallt hair Soft mutationwallt Nasal …
