Lesson 4.3

Descanz padzhar – radn trei
(SWF; deskans pajar – radn trei)
lesson 4 – part 3

Dho trailia: (SWF: dhe traylya)
- you can try either orthography – but don’t mix them!

1. It is 4 o’clock.
2. It is half past midnight.
3. It’s a quarter past nine.
4. It is a quarter to eleven.
5. It’s five past two.
6. It is just after 3 o’clock.
7. It’s just before lunch time.


Answer these questions in Cornish, putting in an appropriate time,
using Thera vi a longia dho……..

8. Panna prêz era hwei a longia dho dhevina?
9. Panna prêz era hwei a longia dho saval aman?
10. Panna prêz era hwei a longia dho lifia?
11. Panna prêz era hwei a longia dho gawaz kidniaw?
12. Panna prêz era hwei a longia dho gawaz côn?
13. Panna prêz era hwei a longia dho voaz dhyn gwili?
14. Panna prêz era hwei a longia dho guskah?

If you would like some feedback, e-mail your answers to me on janicelobb@tiscali.co.uk

Lesson 4.2

Vocabulary: (GERLEVRAN)
(SWF: gerlyver = dictionary)

Breakfast (light/early) = haunsel (SWF: hansel)
Breakfast (full) = lî
Day = dêdh (SWF: dedh)
Day = jurna (sounds like start of English journal) (SWF: jorna)
Day’s work = jurni (sounds like English journey)
Dinner = kidniaw (main meal of the day)
Half = hantar (SWF: hanter)
Hour = ar glôh (by the clock, by the bell) (SWF: eur)
Just after = hont dho
Just before = po nebbaz
Lunch = kidniaw
O’clock = ar glôh (sounds like English glow)
may also be written as “ar gloh” or “argloh” (SWF: eur)
Past = udzha (SWF: woja)
Supper = côn (SWF: con)
Quarter = quarter
Time = prêz (SWF: pres)
To = dho (SWF: dhe)
What = panna (SWF: pana)

Verbs:
To wake up = devina (mutates to dhevina)
To get up = saval aman
To go to bed = moaz (mutates to voaz) dhyn gwili
To (go to) sleep = cuskah (mutates to guskah)
To have breakfast (or lunch)= cawaz (or kymeraz) lî (But note that if you use cawaz (or kymeraz) after dho it mutates to gawaz (or gymeraz))
= lifia

Also useful

en prêz nau ar glôh = at nine o’clock
dadn nau ar glôh = coming up to nine o’clock,
getting on for nine o’clock

You will find “do you usually” and “I usually” useful regarding time.

………era hwei a longia dho…..? = …….do you usually….?
………thera vi a longia dho….. = ……..I usually………...

What time do you usually have breakfast?
= Panna prêz era hwei a longia dho gawaz lî?
= Panna prêz era hwei a longia dho lifia?
I usually have breakfast at eight o’clock.
= Thera vi a longia dho gawaz lî eath ar glôh.
= Thera vi a longia dho lifia eath ar glôh.
What time do you usually get up?
= Panna prêz era hwei a longia dho saval aman?
I usually get up at seven o’clock.
= Thera vi a longia dho saval aman seith ar glôh.
What time do you usually go to bed?
= Panna prêz era hwei a longia dho voaz dhyn gwili?
I usually go to bed at ten o’clock.
= Thera vi a longia dho voaz dhyn gwili dêg ar glôh.
What time do you usually go to sleep?
= Panna prêz era hwei a longia dho guskah?
I usually go to sleep at midnight.
= Thera vi a longia dho guskah hanternôz.
What time do you usually wake up?
= Panna prêz era hwei a longia dho dhevina?
I usually wake up at six o’clock.
= Thera vi a longia dho dhevina hwî ar glôh.

Lesson 4.1

Descanz padzhar – kenza radn
(SWF: deskans pajar – kensa radn)

Lesson four – first part

USEFUL QUOTES:

Mâ edrak dhebm. I’m sorry. (literally There is sorrow to me)
Na ellama convedhas hebma. I can’t understand this.

Notes on pronunciation:
dh is like th in English that, than or they
dzh is like j or dg in English judge

TELLING THE TIME

Panna prêz eu? (like 1st syllable of Presley) = What time is it? What’s the time? (SWF: Pana pres ew?)
Prêz can also mean . There is a similar word (SWF: pris) that means price.

A good game for children is “What’s the time, Mr. Wolf?”

Panna prêz eu, Mester Blaidh? (pronounced blayth) (SWF: bleydh)
They all creep up behind the wolf and wait for the wolf to shout “Prêz kidniaw eu,” before running away screaming!

Wynen ar glôh eu. = It’s one o’clock. (also ar gloh / argloh) (SWF: onan eur)
Deau ar glôh eu. = It’s two o’clock. (SWF: dow eur ew)
Trei ar glôh eu. = It’s three o’clock. (SWF: trei eur ew)
Hantar-dêdh eu. = It’s midday. (SWF: hanter dedh ew)
Hanternôz eu. = It’s midnight. (SWF: hanter nos ew)
An prêz eu hanternôz. = The time is midnight. (SWF: an pres ew hanter nos)
Hantar udzha padzhar eu. = It’s half past four. (SWF: hanter woja pajar ew) Different spelling but same pronunciation (approx ooja)!
Hantar udzha pemp eu. = It’s half past five. (SWF: hanter woja pymp ew)
Hantar udzha hwî eu. = It’s half past six. (SWF: hanter woja hwegh ew)
Quarter udzha seith eu. = It’s a quarter past seven.
Quarter udzha eath eu. = It’s a quarter past eight.
Quarter dho nau eu. = It’s a quarter to nine.
Quarter dho dêg eu. = It’s a quarter to ten.
Dêg udzha idnak (or ednak) eu. = It’s ten past eleven. (SWF: deg woja udnek ew)
Pemp dho wynen eu. = It’s five to one. (SWF: pymp dhe onan ew)
Iganz dho naw eu. = It’s twenty to nine. (SWF: ugens dhe naw ew)
Hont dho eath ar glôh eu. = It’s just after eight o’clock.
Hont dho hanternôz eu. = It’s just after midnight.
Trei ar glôh po nebbaz eu. = It’s just before three o’clock.
Hantar-dêdh po nebbaz eu. = It’s just before midday. (SWF: hanter dedh po nebes)
Prêz côn eu. = It’s supper time. (SWF: pres con ew = it’s dinner time)
Prêz lî eu. = It’s breakfast time (late, full “English” breakfast, or can be lunch)
Prêz haunsel eu. = It’s breakfast time (early, light “Continental” breakfast) (SWF: pres hansel ew)
Prêz dizhunih eu. = It’s breakfast time.

PRÊZ KIDNIAW EU. = It’s dinner time (or lunch time), i.e. the main meal of the day.

To summarise:

1 = wynen
2 = deau
3= trei
4 = padzhar
5 = pemp
6 = hwî
7 = seith
8 = eath
9 = nau
10 = dêg
11 = idnak
12 = daudhak
o’clock = ar glôh
to = dho
past = udzha
quarter to/past = quarter dho/udzha
half past = hantar udzha
just before, all but = po nebbaz
just after, more than = hont dho

Richard Gendall's Dictionary for Modern Cornish 5

THE NAME OF MODERN CORNISH

Modern Cornish as a name was first applied to the language in the first decade of the 18th century by Lhuyd and the late writers. In the academic world it has been wrongly assumed to apply simply to Lhuyd’s phonetic orthography as used in his Archæoligia Britannica, and when giving examples of Modern Cornish it is always Lhuyd’s orthography that is used, but Lhuyd’s sources were clearly the native writers and speakers, so that Modern Cornish was already in existence before 1700, or it could never have been named, and furthermore, Cornish writers applied it both to the written and the spoken word, and that it was not regarded simply as a spelling system may be judged from Gwavas’ observation written in 1736:

…and several Ancient persons in Paul, St Just, St Keverne etc., both men and women that could speak ye Moderne Cornish, altho’ they knew not how to write it…

It was called Modern Cornish simply because that was what it was, and it is certainly incorrect when any form of Cornish devised since is given the name simply for the purpose of acquiring credibility. There is only one Modern Cornish.

CORNISH IN THE 21ST CENTURY

The treating of the Cornish language as a fully modern vernacular for the 21st century presents enormous and often insuperable difficulties. A language that effectively died out three centuries ago simply does not possesss either the vocabulary or the idiom for many of the simplest situations of modern life, and efforts to provide convincing background jargon even for such a commonplace occasion as a football match can be ludicrous and unconvincing. What can be done?

First, one should use such genuine material as may be available and appropriate. There are words and phrases in the neglected field of traditional Cornish, including a certain amount of the small talk with which any occasion is normally punctuated, and which is not recorded in our Cornish literature. For the rest, there is simply no answer. We have no authentic words for such basic concepts as football, rugby, tennis, snooker, marathon, canoe, café, coffee, restaurant, lorry, motor-bike, bicycle, gas, electricity, motorway, policeman, traffic, strike, post office, cheque, stamp, immigrant, Indian, Asian, African, Chinese, not even for the Isle of Mann, Italy, Australia, Canada, America, New Zealand, nor even for newspaper, nor for a painting, not even for toast, marmelade or jam, let alone switch, plug, lead, fuse, micro wave, telephone, television, computer, knickers, pullover, lipstick, and all those words that are on everybody’s lips everyday, forming the very fabric of to-day’s social intercourse. For all these, words would have to be invented, and by whom? Cornish people? The so-called language revival has boxed itself into a corner where in order to survive as what it pretends to be it has to ruin what it purports to promote.

The first thing is to learn thoroughly the actual language that our forefathers spoke

Richard Gendall's Dictionary for Modern Cornish 4

THE EMERGENCE OF CORNISH AND MODERN CORNISH

The periods of the Cornish language may be summarised as follows:

Old Cornish (c.1000-1250)
Middle Cornish (c.1250-1500)
Late Cornish (c. 1500-early 17th century)
Modern Cornish (late 17th and into 18th century)

By 1000 CE the British language in Cornwall was developing to the extent that it is now usual to refer to it as Cornish, but Cornish is no more nor less than a local form of British, and the Cornish and Welsh possess the only languages that are native to Britain. Even Gaelic was introduced from Ireland.

The emerging form of Cornish is known as Old Cornish, but there was no real division between it and British for changes were gradual, in the same way that midday marks the division of morning from afternoon, but without there being any obvious difference unless we compare the early part of the day with the late. We know Old Cornish, or Late British, only from personal names inscribed on stone monuments (such as that of Doniert), from the old forms of place-names, and from written records and ancient vocabularies, particularly what is usually called the Old Cornish Vocabulary from a manuscript of the 12th century which might have been a copy of an earlier document. This gives some thousand words of Cornish glossed in Latin, and most of these are little different from the forms they retained in later periods.

Not surprisingly, Old Cornish was very much like Welsh of the same period, and this similarity was still obvious in 1580 when John Norden wrote: …the South Wales man understandeth not perfectlye the North Wales man, and the North Wales man little of the Cornishe, the South much… One feature of Old Cornish that is identical in Welsh is to be seen in the elements of eastern place-names such as nant, valley, pant, dell, sant, holy, which were washed up on the beach of time and left high and dry when the language retreated westwards, retaining their ancient form while ultimately in the west in Modern Cornish they became nanz, panz and sanz, while Old Cornish cuit, most often found in Anglicised form as -quite as in Penquite, Welsh coed, eventually became cûz, or cooz. The old prefixed, unstressed form of this word was cut-, as in Cutlinwith [k‹t˙linwið], Wood of Timber Trees, which would be spelled in Modern Cornish as Cutlinwidh, and Cotehele, traditionally and corrrecty pronounced as [k‹t˙he:l], and which might be spelt more correctly as Cuthêl, meaning Wood by the Estuary. In the west this prefix is found as cus-

In about 1250, but with same proviso as above, Old Cornish was turning into Middle or Mediaeval Cornish in which the ancient Cornish drama was written during the 15th century. By 1500 this was becoming Late Cornish, which during the 17th century rapidly developed into Modern Cornish. Similar changes occurred in other European languages, Cornish running parallel to English, and were due to such factors as the loosening of the hold of the Church on society, the consequent advance of free thinking, literacy, science, technology, exploration, and so on. Cornish seamen were at the forefront of exploration and trade, while mining ushered in the age of steam and technology, and in the 18th century Cornwall became an industrial landscape. It is worth pointing out that Cornish was still being spoken when the first steam engines were working, and one of the leading figures in the language movement then was Thomas Tonkin who was involved in mining.

However, the main developments in the language were due to its secularisation, and to the advance of literacy. All Cornish literature prior to 1600 had been concerned with religion, most of it being found in the rhymed and scanned verse of the ancient drama, with one long work in prose under the general authorship of John Tregear, 1560, but which was in fact a translation from English. The late 17th and early 18th centuries saw a great increase in the number Cornish authors where in the Middle Ages all literature had been under the authorship of one or two of the clergy. The first works of secular prose in the history of the Cornish Language were the Daralla Jûan Chei a Horr, the Tale of John Ramshouse, and Nebbaz Gerriaw drô dho Kernûak, A few words about Cornish, both produced c. 1660 by Nicholas Boson, given here in standard modern spelling, and these show us how Cornish was used by ordinary Cornish people.

Towards the end of the 17th century a group of associates, mostly related to each other, set about trying to save the language that was clearly losing ground. Nicholas Boson had pointed the way when he stated his desire to see Cornish as pure as was possible, and not beholden to other languages. His actual words were …thera ma wheelaz en skreefma (mar mere drel a ma) tho gorah an geerna a treneuhan ra dismiggia gun Tavaz ny senges tho rerol…, I seek in this essay (as much as I can) to set aside that word which shall show our language to be beholden to others. After Nicholas Boson, the main figures in this movement were his son John, William Gwavas, and Thomas and John Tonkin, and it was decided to invite the well known linguist Dr Edward Lhuyd to visit Cornwall, find out all he could about the language, and make recommendations.

Lhuyd came down in 1700, and spent four months touring Cornwall and collecting information, especially in the parish of St Just, and from those knowledgeable in the language, in particular John Keigwin in (to quote Lhuyd) Por Enez (Mousehole), Mr Estwick in Plêu Îst (St Just), James Jenkyns of Golvan (Gulval), Nicolas Boson of Neulyn. A manuscript vocabulary was compiled at the time which was headed in Welsh GEIRLYFR Kyrnŵeig. This is kept at the Library of the University College of Aberystwyth. It has now been properly examined for the first time, and is full of new words all the legible examples of which have been incorporated into this present Dictionary.

The invitation made to Lhuyd in 1700 was quite a different matter to the advice recently solicited from multiple extraneous sources by a revivalist movement that has lost its way, for at the time Cornish was still a living language, spoken and written, and the major part of what Lhuyd used in his Cornish Grammar he collected directly from Cornish people in West Penwith. In the Preface to his Cornish Grammar he states:

An fòr a’rykemeraz vi dho deska an nebaz skîanz-ma a’n Tavazeth Kernûak, ô enrâdn dre skrefyanz dhort genaụo an bôbl en Gorleuen Kernou en enụedzhek en pleụ Yst; ha enràdn dre an hevelep Gụerraz dhort neb Pednzhivikio a ’riganz skrefa ragov lîaz gerrio Kernûak.

Lesson 3.4

Descanz trei – radn padzhar

Govenadaw (ha gorthebaw) an flehaz.
(SWF: gorthebow = answers, flehes = children)
Children’s enquiry (and answers).

Pandreu hedna? (Dreu hedna?)
(SWF: pandra ew hedna?)
What is that?

Pandreu hebma? (Dreu hebma?)
(SWF: pandra ew hebma?)
What is this?

Pandreu rhina? (Dreu rhina?)
(SWF: pandra ew rena?)
What are those?

Pandreu rhima? (Dreu rhima?)
(SWF: pandra ew rema?)
What are these?

Hedna (Hebma) eu …
(SWF: hedna (hebma) ew ………
That (This) is a ……..

Rhina (rhima) eu ........
(SWF: rena/rema ew ......)
Those (These) are ................

Piu ô hwei?
(SWF: piw o’hwei?)
Who are you?

Thô vi …………….
(SWF: th o’vy …………..)
I am ……………….

Piu hedna?
(SWF: piw hedna?)
Who’s that (m)? Who’s that man?

Piu hebma?
(SWF: piw hebma?)
Who’s this (m)? Who’s this man?

Hedna (Hebma) eu …
(SWF: hedna (hebma) eu …
That (This) is …………
That man (This man) is …………

Rhina (Rhima) eu..............
(SWF: rena/rema ew ............)
Those (these) are .........

Piu hodna?
(SWF: piw hodna?)
Who’s that (f)?
Who’s that woman?

Piu holma?
(SWF: piw holma?)
Who’s this (f)?
Who’s this woman?

Hodna (Holma) eu …
(SWF: hodna (holma) ew ….)
That (This) is …………
That woman (This woman) is ………

Lesson 3.3

Tridzha descanz – radn trei
(SWF: deskans 3 - radn trei)

[ If you are wondering about lesson 3.2, I missed it out - you will find it in the June postings)

more words with long vowels

agîl = [back, in return (hard g)]
crîb an dodn = [crest of a wave]
crîban mêl = [a honeycomb] (SWF: mel = honey)
crîbaz an glizzon = [to rake the lawn]
destrîa = [to destroy]
dzhîan = [a giant]
gîl/gwîl = [to do, to make (hard g)] (SWF: gul/gwul)
gwîtha = [to help]
(gwîtha nei dort drôg = [deliver us from evil (Lord’s Prayer))]
gwrîanz = [making, doing, etc]
gwrîanz an bêz = [creation of the world] (SWF: bes = world)
hwîb = [a whistle]
lîan (2) = [learning] (SWF: lien = learning/literature)
mablîan / mâb lîan = [clergyman / parson]
menhîr = [standing stone] (SWF: men = stone)
mîra/mîraz = [to look (at)] (SWF: mires)
pedntîr = [headland] - Pentire in place name
pêz myldîr? = [how many miles?] (SWF: pes = how many)
pîb = [a pipe]
pîba = [to pipe]
pîbel = [a water pipe]
scrîb = [a scribe]
sîans = [science] (SWF: skians = science/knowledge/sense)
sîanz = [an idea] (SWF: tybyans)
sîr lour = [sure enough] (SWF: sur lowr)
skîani = [sharp, cutting]
skîr = [a scratch, a gust]
stîran = [a blow, a punch]
tîra = [to land]
a vîa = [would/should be]
e vîa dâ = [it would be good]
bûza = [to feed] (SWF: maga = feed, nourish, rear)
Golûan = [Midsummer]
jûal = [jewel] (SWF: tegen = jewel, trinket, pretty thing)

Lesson 3.1

Trija (Lhuyd = tridzha) Descanz – Radn Wonen
SWF: Tryja Descans - Radn Onan
Third Lesson – Part One
Revised 20 November 2009

Nevraw (SWF: Nivrow)
Numbers used when counting)

0 tra, diu SWF: mann = zero, but also SWF: tra and SWF: du
1 un (rhyme with “bun”), when counting; SWF: on’
before a noun use: idn or edn SWF: udn (SWF pronunciation is idn)
pronoun: wonen SWF: onan
2 deaw (approx. rhymes with “cow”) SWF: dew
3 trei (or try) SWF: trei
4 pajar (Lhuyd = padzhar, rhyme with “badger”) SWF: pajar
The numbers 1 – 4 above are used with masculine nouns (later we will look at the numbers 1
– 4 for female nouns).
5 pemp SWF: pemp
6 whî SWF: whe’
7 seith (sounds approx. like “scythe”) SWF: seyth
8 êth (rhyme with “wraith”) SWF: eth
9 naw (sounds like English “gnaw”) SWF: naw
10 dêg (pronounce “dayg”) SWF: deg

The Cornish are very sensible and say that if you use a number, then there is no need to make the following noun plural, - as you already know there is more than one!
e.g.
five dogs … would be 5 dog … pemp kei SWF: pemp kei
ten houses … would be 10 house … dêg chei SWF: deg chei
six children … would be 6 child … whî floh SWF: whe’ flogh
four rooms … would be 4 room … padzhar rom SWF: pajar rom

Here are some more ADJECTIVES you can use.
côth = old SWF: coth
yunk = young SWF: younk
dâ = good, well SWF: da
drôg = bad SWF: drog
broaz = big SWF: broas
bîan = small SWF: bian
lûan = happy SWF: lowen
trawedhak = sad SWF: truedhek
tubm = hot, warm SWF: tobm
yên or yein = cold SWF: yeyn
fîr = wise SWF: fur
guki = silly SWF: gocky
skientak = clever, intelligent SWF: skiensek
zawk = stupid SWF: sogh
hagar = ugly SWF: hager
têg = beautiful SWF: teg
fettu = pretty (of girl) SWF: fettow
whêg = nice, kind, sweet, dear, etc. SWF: wheg

Here are some NOUNS you can use (you might find some of these useful for your kids – see the rhymes I have posted).
Note that in Cornish there is no separate indefinite article.
(Where you see “a” or “an” it means “the”.)

aval = an apple SWF: aval
(this is also a general word for a fruit, though SWF has frooth and frut for fruit)
benen = a woman SWF: benyn
bêz = a finger, digit SWF: bes
bord = a table, table-top SWF: bord
carr = a car SWF: carr
chei = a house SWF: chei
clowd = a cloud SWF: cloud
cota = a coat SWF: cota
davaz = a sheep SWF: davas
dên = a man SWF: den
descanz = a lesson SWF: descans
fôz = a wall SWF: fos
frigaw (pl.) = a nose, nostrils SWF: frigow
ganaw = a mouth SWF: ganow
gar = a leg SWF: garr
gydhiuhar = an evening SWF: gorthuher
glaun = wool SWF: gwloan
gwrêg = a wife SWF: gwreg
heccamol = a dickybird SWF: heckamola
jûal = a jewel SWF: jowel
kei = a dog SWF: kei
lagaz = an eye SWF: lagas
mâb = a son SWF: mab
maw = a boy SWF: maw
meppig = a little boy SWF: meppik
mester = a master SWF: mester
metten = a morning SWF: mettin
môr = sea SWF: mor
pedn = a head SWF: pedn
rôm = a room SWF: rom
scavarn = an ear SWF: scovarn
(pronounced with stress on last syllable)
scûdh = a shoulder SWF: scoodh
stearan = a star SWF: steren
tîr = land SWF: tir
trûz = a foot SWF: troos
zah = a bag SWF: sagh


Dho drailia (SWF: dhe dreylya)

Exercise One:
Ten apples
Nine sheep
Eight women
Seven sons
Six rooms
Five men
Four dogs
Three boys
Two tables
One lesson


Exercise Two:
1 I am hot.
2 I am happy. (start with adjective)
3 I am not young.
4 Am I nice?
5 He is old.
6 It is cold. (start with adjective)
7 He is not wise.
8 Is he silly?
9 She is pretty.
10 She is good. (start with adjective)
11 She is not stupid.
12 Is she intelligent?
13 We are sad.
14 We are old. (start with adjective)
15 We are not happy.
16 Are we beautiful?
17 You are old.
18 You are stupid. (start with adjective)
19 You are not bad.
20 Are you small?
21 They are happy.
22 They are ugly. (start with adjective)
23 They are not sweet.
24 Are they big?

Exercise Three:
Try answering these questions (mostly about yourself) in Cornish:
1) Piu o whei? SWF: Piw o’whei?
2) Pe hanaw o whei? SWF: Pe hanow o’whei?
3) O whei Kernûak? SWF: O’whei Kernowek?
4) O whei skientak po zawk? SWF: O’whei sogh?
5) O whei yunk po côth? SWF: O’whei younk po coth?
6) O whei têg po hagar? SWF: O’whei teg po hager?
7) Peleh era whei trigaz? SWF: Ple ero’whei trigys?
8) Ewa broaz? SWF: Ew a broas?
9) Ewa ogoz dh’an môr? SWF: Ew a ogas dh’an mor?
10) Era whei trigaz en chei? SWF: Ero’whei trigys en chei?
11) Ewa bîan po broaz? SWF: Ewa bian po broas?
12) Peleh ma an stearan? SWF: Ple ma an steren?
13) Peleh ma Brê Annik? SWF: Ple ma Breanek?

If you would like some feedback, e-mail your answers to me on janicelobb@tiscali.co.uk
If you want advise on how to type the diacritics (accents) or need the timesNRC font, ask me.

Lesson 3.2 follows in June (I missed it out by mistake)

Rhymes for Children 2

Baa Baa Black Sheep
(nouns in red)

Briv Briv davaz dhiu.
sheep black

Ez dhez glaun?
Is there to thee wool

Îa sarah, îa sarah, trei zah lean.
Yes sir, yes sir, 3 bag full

Wynen rag an mester, wynen dh’i wreag
One for the master, one to his wife

Ha wynen dho voaz degez honz
And one to be carried further

Dhyn meppig hwêg.
To the little boy sweet.


Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

Splann chi stearan vîan, splann,
Shine thou star little, shine

War an môr ha’n tîr en dadn.
On the sea and the land underneath

Treth an clowdez, yta chi,
Through the clouds, there you are

Pykara jûal terlentri.
Like a jewel sparkling

Splann chi stearan vîan, splann,
Shine thou star little, shine

War an môr ha’n tîr en dadn.
On the sea and the land underneath

Rhymes for Children 1

Rîmez rag Flehaz

Tommy Thumb, Where are you?

Bêz broaz, bêz broaz, [Big finger (i.e. thumb)]
Peleh era hwei? [ Where are you?]
Ytavi, ytavi. [Here I am.]
Fatlaganahwei? [How do you do?]

Bêz râg, bêz râg, [Fore finger]
Peleh era hwei?
Ytavi, ytavi.
Fatlaganahwei?

Bêz crêz, bêz crêz, [Middle finger]
Peleh era hwei?
Ytavi, ytavi.
Fatlaganahwei?

Bêz bezaw, bêz bezaw, [Ring finger]
Peleh era hwei?
Ytavi, ytavi.
Fatlaganahwei?

Bêz bîan, bêz bîan, [Little finger]
Peleh era hwei?
Ytavi, ytavi.
Fatlaganahwei?



Two Little Dickybirds

Sêdhez war an vôz [Seated on the wall ]
Deau heccamol. [Two dickybirds ]
Wynen henwez Peder [One named Peter]
Wynen henwez Pol. [One named Paul ]
Ko alêz Peder. [Go away Peter]
Ko alêz Pol. [Go away Paul ]
Diaw drê Peder. [Come home Peter]
Diaw drê Pol. [Come home Paul ]


Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes
(an exact translation is not possible because it doesn’t scan)

Pedn, scûdh [Head, shoulder]
[Gar, bêz an trûz] x2 [Leg, toe (finger of the foot)]
Pedn, scûdh
[Gar, bêz an trûz] x2
Lygadzhaw, scovorno [Eyes, ears]
Ganaw ha frîdzh. [Mouth and nose]
Pedn, scûdh
[Gar, bêz an trûz] x2

Lesson 2.3

Nessa (Secund) Descanz – Radn Trei
SWF: Nessa (Second) Descans – Radn Trei
Next (Second ) Lesson – Part Three
Revised 20 November 2009

Recap:

Tho ve yein. (SWF: Th o’vy yeyn.) I am cold.
Tho ve (SWF: th o’vy) is the full version of I am,
used when the word order is verb, subject, adjective.

It is the descriptive form of boaz (SWF: bos) be/being (what SWF calls the "short form").

Skîth o ve. (SWF: Skith o’vy).
Lûan o ve hidhu. (SWF: Lowen o’vy hedhyw).
Iach/Jack o ve. (SWF: Yagh o’vy.)

In these sentences the word order is adjective, verb, subject.
In Modern Cornish we put the most important element at the beginning (skîth, lûan, etc.).

Tho ve/o ve is part of the verb boaz (SWF: bos) be/being (descriptive).

Here is Richard Gendall’s complete version of boaz (based on Lhuyd) (SWF: bos)
The form used with in-built pronoun subject, always starts with th- and is followed by the complement.
It is not used in negative or interrogative:

thôm, thô vi = I am (It is not always essential to put the diacritic mark over ô.)
SWF: th o’ma, th o’vy
thôz, thô chi = thou art, you are (sg. familiar)
SWF: th os, th os’ta, th o’che
theu, theua = it is (neuter) (RG makes wide use of u in place of w)
SWF: th ew, th ewa
theu ê = he is or it is (m)
SWF: th ew e’
theu hei = she is or it is (f)
SWF: th ew hei
thôn, thô nei = we are
SWF: th on, th o’nei
thô, thô hwei = you are (sg. polite or pl.)
SWF: th o’whei
thenz, thenzi = they are
SWF: th ens, th en’jei

If you start a sentence with an adjective drop the th from the start of tho etc..

Tubm o ve. (lit. hot am I)
SWF: Tobm o’vy.

Iach/Jack ew ê. (lit. well is he)
SWF: Yagh ew ev.

Fettu ew hei. (lit. pretty is she)
SWF: Fettow ew hei.

Lûan o nei. (lit. happy are we)
SWF: Lowen o’nei.

Hagar o whei. (lit. ugly are you)
SWF: Hager o’whei.

Trawedhak enz. (lit. sad are they)
SWF: Truedhek ens.

Turn this form round to form a question.

O ve tubm?
SWF: O’vy tobm?

Ew ê (or ewa) jack?
SWF: Ew ev (or ewa) yagh?

Ew hei fettu?
SWF: Ew hei fettow?

O nei lûan?
SWF: O’nei lowan?

O whei hagar?
SWF: O’whei hager?

Enz trawedhak?
SWF: Ens truedhek?


The negative version of the verb is formed by putting NAG in front of the question form.

nag o ve I am not
SWF: nag o’vy

nagew ê, nag ewa, or just nagew he is not/it is not
SWF: nag ew e’, nag ewa, nag ew

nag ew hei she is not
SWF: nag ew hei

nag o nei we are not
SWF: nag o’nei

nag o whei you are not
SWF: nag o’whei

nag enz they are not
SWF: nag ens

Nag is only used with the verb be/being, for other verbs you use na.
Thus:

Nag o ve tubm.
SWF: Nag o’vy tobm.

Nagew ê jack.
SWF: Nag ew e’ yagh.
(3rd person, nag and ew can be combined)

Nagew hei fettu.
SWF: Nag yw hei fettow.

Nag o nei lûan.
SWF: Nag o’nei lowen.

Nag o hwei hagar.
SWF: Nag o’whei hager.

Nagenz trawedhak.
SWF: Nag ens truedhek.

For a negative question, start the negative statement with "Der",
e.g. Aren’t they sad? Der nagenz trawedhak?

If you want to say "Aren’t they? Isn’t it? etc. after a positive or negative statement use "anan"? (Equivalent of French n’est ce pas?)
e.g. She is nice, isn’t she? Thew hei whêg, anan?

However if you use a noun or name with is or are always use EW (even for plural),
e.g.:
Skîth ew Jûan. John is tired.
SWF: Skith ew Jowan.
An flehaz ew skîth. The children are tired.
SWF: An flehes yw skith.

A few sentences to try, using the descriptive form of the verb "to be" – which is the odd one out?:
(You should find all the vocabulary and grammar rules you need in this on previous postings.)

1 The children are hot.
2 Are they tired as well? (awêdh/ SWF: y’wedh), as well, also, too
3 I am a mother. (dâma/ SWF: dama), a mother
4 Are you a father? (sîra/ SWF: sira), a father
5 The children are sad. (flehaz/ SWF: flehes)
6 They are not happy.
7 Is John sad?
8 We are kind. (whêg/ SWF: wheg), kind, nice, sweet, dear
9 He is ugly.
10 He is a man. (dên/ SWF: den), a man
11 Is he old? (côth/ SWF: coth), old
12 Where do you live? (peleh/ SWF: ple), where;(trigaz/ SWF: trigys), lived/living
13 She is pretty and kind.
14 John is not tired.
15 Are we cold?
16 Is it nice?
17 It is not small. (bîan/ SWF: bian), small, little
18 She is hot and tired.
19 Am I not a man?
20 You are old and ugly!
21 Isn’t she pretty?
22 Aren’t we clever? (cudnik/kydnik)
23 Isn’t the child small?
24 Isn’t John an ugly man?
25 Mary is a nice mother, isn’t she?

Lesson 2.2

revised Thursday 22nd October 2009

Nessa Descanz, Secund Descanz – radn deaw
SWF: Nessa Descans, Second Descans – radn dew
Second (next) Lesson – part two

Our conversations so far have been rather limited!
You might want to discuss where you live in more detail.

So, you live in Truro.
Soo, thera whei trigaz en Truru.
SWF: So, th ero’whei trigys en Triverow.

Exactly!
Poran!
SWF: Poran!

Where is Truro?
Peleh ma Truru?
SWF: Pe le ma Triverow?

Truro is between Falmouth and St. Agnes.
Ma Truru treeth Falmeth ha Brê Annik.
SWF: Ma Triverow tredh Falmeth ha Breanek.
(the ee in treeth is pronounced the same as ea in mear, it does not rhyme with teeth - between is also recorded as trez, with the same vowel sound )

Truro is near St Agnes.
Ma Truru ogoz dho Brê Annik.
SWF: Ma Triverow ogas dhe Breanek.
(the goz in ogoz and the gas on ogas sound the same because they are schwa/obscure)

No, but Falmouth and St Agnes are by the sea.
Na, byz ma Falmeth ha Brê Annik reb an mor.
SWF: Na, bes ma Falmeth ha Breanek reb an mor.

Is Truro big?
Ew Truru broaz?
SWF: Ew Triverow broas?
(pronounce as broz)

Yes, quite big (literally big enough).
Ia, broaz lowr.
SWF: Ea, broas lowr.

Falmouth is quite big as well.
Falmeth ew broaz lowr awêdh.
SWF: Falmeth ew broas lowr y’wedh.
(dh in awêdh is voiced, and unusually it is the final syllable that is stressed)

And St. Agnes. Is it big as well?
Ha Brê Annik. Ew broaz awêdh?
SWF: Ha Breanek? Ew broas y’wedh?

No. It’s quite small.
Na. Bian lowr ew.
SWF: Na. Bian lowr ew.

Do you live in a house?
Era whei trigaz en chei?
SWF: Ero’whei trigys en chei?

No, I live in an apartment.
Na, thera vi trigaz en flat (can also use radnji).
SWF: Na, th ero’vy trigys en flat (radnji).


You may have noticed that we have been using two forms of the verb “to be”.
One is used when dealing with identity and descriptions,
the other is used when dealing with locations and actions.

e.g. descriptive forms (this is what the SWF calls the “short” form):

Jammes o vi. I am James.
SWF: Jamys o’vy.(pronounced as “vee”)

Tho vi yein (or yên). I am cold.
SWF: Th o’vy yeyn.

O whei jack? Are you well?
SWF: O’whei yagh?

Piw o whei? Who are you?
SWF: Piw o’whei?
(pronounce pee-oo)

Ew Truru broaz? Is Truro big?
SWF: Ew Triverow broas?

Falmouth eu broaz lowr awêdh. Falmouth is quite big as well.
SWF: Falmeth ew broas lowr y’wedh.

e.g. locative forms (this is what the SWF calls the “long” form):

Thera vi trigaz en flat. I live in an apartment.
SWF: Th ero’vy trigys en flat.

Thera whei trigaz en Truru. You live in Truro.
SWF: Th ero’whei trigys en Triverow.

Peleh era whei trigaz? Where do you live?
SWF: Ple ero’whei trigys?

Peleh ma Truru? Where is Truro?
SWF: Ple ma Triverow?

First let us have a closer look at the Present Descriptive of BOAZ (SWF: BOS) be/being.
Then, with the aid of more adjectives, we can describe ourselves more fully.
And, since no conversation is complete without gossip, we can start to talk about other people!

Present Descriptive of BOAZ (SWF: BOS) be/being.

(RLC alternative spellings for personal pronouns Lhuydian/traditional)
I = vi or ve
he = ê or ev
she = hei or hy
we = nei or ny
you = whei or why
they = andzhei or anjei or anjy

tho vi, thom = I am
SWF: th o’vy, th o’ma

thew, thewa = it is (neuter)
SWF: th ew, th ewa

thew ê = he is (or it/m)
SWF: th ew e’

thew hei = she is (or it/f)
SWF: th ew hei

tho nei, thon = we are
SWF: th o’nei

tho whei = you are (polite sg. or pl.)
SWF: th o’whei

thenz, thenzi = they are
SWF: th ens, th en’jei

You will notice that for some persons there is a choice between two ways of saying the same thing.
One is the analytic (split) form, e.g. tho nei; the other is the synthetic (joined) form, e.g. thon.
The synthetic form is earlier in date, and is mainly used for the 3rd person, e.g. thenz.

The following form is used if the verb starts the sentence:
e.g.
Tho vi tubm. = I am hot.
SWF: Th o’vy tobm.

Thew ê jack. = He is well.
SWF: Th ew e’ yagh.

Thew hei fettu. = She is pretty.
SWF: Th ew hei fettow.

Tho nei lûan. = We are happy.
SWF: Th o’nei lowen.

Tho whei hagar! = You are ugly!
SWF: Th o’whei hager.
(pronounce to rhyme with dagger)

Thenz trawedhak. = They are sad.
SWF: Th ens truedhek.

If you start the sentence with an adjective drop the “th”.
Usually in Cornish the sentence starts with the most important idea, e.g. whether you are hot.

Tubm o vi. SWF: Tobm o’vy.

Jack ew ê. SWF: Yagh ew e’.

Fettu ew hei. SWF: Fettow ew hei.

Lûan o nei. SWF: Lowen o’nei.

Hagar o whei. SWF: Hager o’whei.

Trawedhak enz. SWF: Truedhek ens.

Lesson 2.1

Nessa Descanz, Secund Descanz – Radn Wonen
SWF: Nessa Descans, Second Descans – Radn Onan
Second (Next) Lesson – Part One

Useful Sentence!

I can’t remember!
Na ellama perri co. SWF: Na ella’ma perthy co’.

I can’t remember exactly!
Na ellama remembra poran! SWF: Na ella’ma remembra poran!

Another note on pronunciation:

Pure, long vowels, using Lhuyd’s spelling:

a (a) = long forward a, rather like a in hare
(Native writers often used aa, as in Praa Sands, or had mute e at end of word, e.g. cathe for cat)
(As you can see, the SWF just misses off the circumflex for this vowel.)

Words with this vowel include:

brân = crow SWF: bran
câr = friend, relative SWF: car
câth = cat SWF: cath
dâ = good SWF: da
dâma = mother SWF: dama
dyrâg (alternative spelling derâg) = in front of SWF: dherag
glâz = blue/green/grey SWF: glas
mâb = son SWF: mab
pykâr (alternative spelling pecâr) = like SWF: pecar
râg = forwards, fore- SWF: rag
tân = fire SWF: tan
tâz = father SWF: tas

e (e) = long closed e, rather like end of cafe in French.

There has been much discussion about the long e sound over the years.
Native writers often put mute e at end of a word, e.g. preze for time,
or used ea, e.g dean for man.
It may have been a "breaking vowel", where the pure sound is followed by a schwa.

Words with eu in SWF may be written with ea in RLC. Then the pronunciation is a long open e, rather like that in French fête.

Words with this vowel include:

alêz = abroad SWF: a-les
awêdh = also, too, as well SWF: y’wedh
bêz = finger SWF: bes
brê = hill SWF: bre
crêz = peace SWF: cres
dên = man SWF: den
gwêl = better SWF: gwell
gwrêg = wife SWF: gwreg
hêl = estuary SWF: heyl
(historically this has many spellings, this corresponds to Lhuyd’s hele)
whêg = sweet, nice, kind SWF: wheg
whêr = trouble SWF:’wher
yên = (alternative spelling yein) = cold SWF: yeyn
kêr = dear SWF: ker
mêr (alternative spelling mear) = great SWF: meur
mi a wêl = I will see SWF: my a wel
nêz = near, closer SWF: nes
nêz ha nêz = closer and closer SWF: nes ha nes
pêl = ball SWF: pel
prêz = time SWF: pres
rêz = need SWF: res
têg = beautiful, pretty SWF: teg

Lesson 1.3

Gero Nei Deski Kernuak! SWF: Gero’nei Desky Kernowek!
Revised Thursday 22nd October 2009

Lesson 1.3
Kenza Descanz – Radn Trei
SWF: Kensa Descans –Radn Trei
First Lesson – Part Three

Who you are, where you live and what you are.

Who are you?
Piw o whei? SWF: Piw o’whei?
(sounds like Eng. “pew”)

What is your name?
Pe hanaw o whei? SWF: Pe hanow o’whei?
(pe sounds like the letter p when you stutter)
(aw sounds like the first syllable of “orange”)

I am Petroc.
Petroc o vi. SWF: Petroc o’vy.

I am called Mary.
Maria henwez o vi. SWF: Maria henwys o’vy.

Where do you live?
Peleh era whei trigaz? SWF: Ple (or pe le) ero’whei trigys?
(do not pronounce era to rhyme with Vera but more like error)
(ple sounds a bit like p – lay, but don’t dwell on the y at the end)
(trigaz is a bit like English triggers)

Do you live in Cornwall?
Era whei trigaz en Kernow? SWF: Ero’whei trigys en Kernow?
(strictly speaking should be spelt Kernaw to avoid mispronunciation
– last syllable as in “o” for “orange”)

I live in England.
Thera vi trigaz en Pow an Zowzon. SWF: Th ero’vy trigys en Pow an Sowson.

And you?
Ha whei? SWF: Ha whei?

I live in Cornwall.
Thera vi trigaz en Kernow. SWF: Th ero’vy trigys en Kernow.

I live in Perranporth.
Thera vi trigaz en Perran Porth. SWF: Th ero’vy trigys en Ty war’n Heyl.

Are you a Cornishman (Cornishwoman)?
O whei Kernow (Kernowez)? SWF: O’whei Kernow (Kernowes)?

Yes.
Ia. SWF: Ea.
(pronounce ee-ah)

Certainly.
Enti. SWF: En tei.
(may rhyme with English tea or tie)

I was born in Penzance.
Mi a ve gennez en Penzans. SWF: My a veu genys en Pensans.

No.
Na. SWF: Na.

Certainly not.
Nanti. SWF: Na’n tei.
(may rhyme with English tea or tie)

I was born in Scotland.
Mi a ve gennez en Pow Alban. SWF: My a veu genys e’n Alban.
or: SWF: My a veu genys en Scotland.

Do you like living in Cornwall?
Ew da gena whei triga en Kernow? SWF: Ew da gena whei triga en Kernow?

I like living in Cornwall.
Da ew genam triga en Kernow. SWF: Da ew genam triga en Kernow.

Have a go! Translate the following bizarre conversations!Rag trailia. SWF: Rag treylya.(for translating)

Conversation 1.
To make it easy, the SWF is done for you!

Hello. How are you?
SWF: Yow! Fatla gena whei?

Hi, mate! I’m well. And you?
SWF: Ha, sos! Da lowr o’ma. Ha whei?

I’m fine, thank you. But I was poorly yesterday.
SWF: Th o’vy en ehes da, gromercy. Bes de
th o’ma cloav.

I’m sorry.
SWF: Ma dhebm edrek.

Where do you live now?
SWF: Ple ero’whei trigys lebmyn?

I live in Penzance.
SWF: Th ero’ma trigys en Pensans.

I live in Penzance too.
SWF: Th ero’vy trigys en Pensans, y’wedh!

Cheerio! I’m off now.
SWF: A’n our! Voyda’ma lebmyn.

Till next time.
SWF: Terebo nessa.

Conversation 2.

Good morning. I am John. Who are you?
SWF: Mettin da. Jowan o’ma. Piw o’whei?

Good day to you. I am called Mary.
SWF: Durda dhe whei. Maria henwys o’vy.

Where do you live?
SWF: Ple ero’whei trigys?

I live in Scotland. And you?
SWF: Th ero’vy trigys e’n Alban. Ha whei?

I live in Cornwall.
SWF: Th ero’vy trigys en Kernow.

Are you a Cornishman?
SWF: O’whei Kernow?

No. Are you a Cornishwoman?
SWF: Na, nag o’ma. O’whei Kernowes?

Certainly.
SWF: En tei!

How are you today?
SWF: Fatel ero’whei o’ cul hedhyw?

I’m tired. And you?
SWF: Skith o’ma. Ha whei?

I’m cold and I have a headache.
SWF: Yeyn o’vy ha ma dhebm drog-pedn.

Goodbye.
SWF: A’n our!

God be with you.
SWF: Duw geno’whei!


If you would like some feedback, e-mail your answers to me on janicelobb@tiscali.co.uk

Lesson 1.2

Gero Nei Deski Kernuak!
SWF: Gero’nei Desky Kernowek!
Revised Thursday, 15th October 2009

Lesson 1.2
Kenza Descanz – Radn Deaw
SWF: Kensa Descans – Radn Dew
First Lesson – Part Two

Now, you will want to know how to greet other people and pass the time of day.

Greetings

Good day (literally Good morning) to you.
Metten dâ dho whei (or more traditional why)! SWF: Mettin da dhe whei!
(dâ and da rhyme with French née; whei and why sound like English why with exaggerated h)

Good evening.
Godhiuhar dâ. SWF: Gorthuher da.
(rhyme with fewer)

Good night.
Noz dâ. SWF: Nos da.
(sounds rather like gnaws)

Hello!
Yow! SWF: Yow!
(rhyme with flow rather than cow)

Hi, John!
Ha, Jûan! SWF: Ha, Jowan!
(ha is never used on its own)
(name pronounced Jooan)

Hello mate! (and similar)
Ha, soas! SWF: Ha, sos!
(pronounce as zoss)

Hello! Greetings! (and similar)
Anbiic gwell!
(This was found in Late Cornish only, possibly from Welsh)


Farewells

I’m off now.
Voidama lebmen! SWF: Voyda’ma lebmyn!

Till next time
Anowr! SWF: A’n our!
(rhyme with rower rather than cower)

Cheerio! See you again! (equivalent of au revoir, bis bald, etc.)
Trybo nessa! SWF: Terebo nessa!
(Comes from ter bo meaning until be. Do not rhyme first syllable with English fry: y is schwa)

God be with you!
Diu (or more traditional Diw) gena whei! SWF: Duw genow’whei!
(hard g sound in gena)
(as in Welsh, the letter u in the SWF is pronounced as i)

How you feel

How are you? How do you do?
Fatlaganawhei? SWF: Fatla genow’whei?
(fatla gana whei) 3 stresses

Fine (literally well enough), thank you.
Dâ lowr, gramassi/merastawhei. SWF: Da lowr, gromercy/meur ras dhe whei.
(rhyme lowr with English rower)

And you? (A very useful question to turn the conversation!)
Ha whei? SWF: Ha whei?

(I’m) fine too.
Dâ lowr awêdh. SWF: Da lowr y’wedh.
(drop your chin on the last syllable to get the right sound)

I’m tired.
Skîth o ve. SWF: Skith o’vy.
(rhymes with English heath)

I’m happy today.
Lûan o ve hidhu. SWF: Lowen o’vy hedhyw.

I’m cold.
Tho ve yên (may also be yein). SWF: Th o’vy yeyn.
(sounds like yain, but may also be yine)

I’m well.
Yach/Jack o ve. SWF: Yagh o’vy.
(There is a more idiomatic way of saying this – but we’ll do that later.)

I’ve been ill. (I was ill.)
Me a ve clau. SWF: My a veu cloav.
(rhyme with paw)

I have a headache. (literally - There is a bad head to me.)
Ma drog pedn dhem. SWF: Ma drog-pedn dhebm.
(pedn drog means wrong in the head, cruel, etc.)

I was poorly yesterday.
Me a ve clau deh. SWF: My a veu cloav de.
(sounds like start of "death")

Sorry. I’m sorry.
Edrak. Ma edrak dhem. SWF: Edrek. Ma edrek dhebm.

but
buz (or byz) SWF: bes
(unstressed, schwa vowel)

and
ha (sometimes hag before a vowel) SWF: ha (hag before a vowel)

Lesson 1.1

Gero Nei Deski Kernûak!
SWF: Gero'nei Desky Kernowek!
Revised Friday, 2 October 2009

Lesson 1.1

Kenza Descanz - radn wonen
SWF: Kensa Descans – radn onan
First Lesson – part 1

A note on Cornish spelling: The varieties of Revived Cornish known as Unified (UC), Unified Revised (UCR) and Common Cornish or Kemmyn (KK) are based on miracle plays and lives of saints produced in the scribal tradition of Glasney College and/or on Tudor writings. In Modern Cornish we have a choice of two systems. The first is based on the work of Edward Lhuyd who, in 1700, spent several months in West Penwith recording the Cornish spoken by local people. He devised a largely phonetic spelling system (the fore-runner of the IPA) which gives us a good idea of how words should be pronounced. The second system is that of the native writers in the century before Lhuyd, who often struggled to spell a word how they would say it – and came up with a variety of ways. Native writers after Lhuyd, when Cornish was last being spoken, used some of Lhuyd’s spelling and some of their own. Richard Gendall has produced a dictionary for users of Modern Cornish based on Lhuyd’s system. This is very useful as it gives a very clear indication of how to pronounce the words. For learners, the Cornish Language Council is producing a simplified dictionary which incorporates much of this Lhuydian system, but hopefully allows the traditional texts to be read and understood.

Now that the Standard Written Form has been ratified for official/educational use we also have that. Unfortunately, because it is common to mediaeval and modern (which have different pronunciations) it does not tell us how to say words. So I shall use both systems in parallel. Not every word is different. SWF words have been provided by Daniel Prohaska.

There are now Modern Cornish websites. If you want to read some of the work left by the native writers, have a look at www.cornishlanguage.org.uk or www.moderncornish.net

Some of the links on the Home Page give more lessons, etc. What you may notice is the variety of spellings!

If you want to hear Modern Cornish spoken with the proper pronunciation go to the following youtube clips and listen to Richard Gendall:

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=EQHSADF4FP8
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=-boCJhBxyYE


A note on pronunciation: Where words contain more than one syllable, the stress is usually on the penultimate syllable. (This means that spelling differences in the last syllable make very little difference to the pronunciation.)

e.g. If a word has two syllables stress the first syllable, if it has three syllables stress the middle one.
Unless otherwise stated read a word as if it were English. There are some vowel sounds which have no exact English equivalent, but we can sort out the finer points when you become fluent!


Unstressed vowels (often in the last syllable) are usually vague – like the last syllable of London, Falmouth, cabbage, etc. (In linguistic terms “schwa”.)

The spelling (based on Lhuyd) used should help us to pronounce correctly, e.g.:

“th” (e.g. in therama = I am) is pronounced like the breathy th in thin or thank
“dh” (e.g. in dho = to) is pronounced like the soft th in then and than
“ei” (in whei = you) is approximately pronounced as in eye or my (though strictly speaking you should say the "e"and the "i" separately)
the “wh” in whei is pronounced as we should say Eng. “why” with breathy start
“â” (in tâz = father) is pronounced as in maze or maize
“ê” (in dên = man) is pronounced as in French née
“î” (in tîr = land) is pronounced as in fee
“ô” (in nôz = night) is pronounced as in nose or gnaws
“û” (in bûz = food) is pronounced as in truth
Some words start with “j”, but in the middle of a word the same sound is produced by “dzh”. (A more "traditional" spelling uses "j" in the middle of words as well.)
Although some of the SWF spellings look different, use the non-SWF pronunciation, e.g.ugens (twenty) is pronounced iganz not oogens.

(Your first alphabet)
SWF in bold
aval = an apple
aval
bara = bread
bara
cadar = a chair
cador
descanz = a lesson, teaching
descans
eglez = a church
eglos
fardel = a packet, a package, etc.
fardel
gorrib = an answer, a reply, etc.
gorthyp
hantar = a half
hanter
iganz = twenty
ugens
jedna = a doll
jedna
kenza = first
kensa
luzu = vegetables
losow
metten = a morning
mettin
nadar = an adder
nader
ôan = a lamb
on
padar = a prayer
pader
quilhan = a pen, a feather, etc.
pluven
redan = fern, bracken
reden
stevel = a dining room
stevel
tezan = a cake
tesen
ûla = an owl
oula
volan = a page, a sheet
folen
warbar(th) = together
warbar’, warbarth
yâr = hen, chicken
yar
zah = a bag
sagh

Richard Gendall's Dictionary for Modern Cornish 3

And finally for today:

A BRIEF CONSIDERATION OF THE ORIGINS AND HISTORY OF CORNISH

Britain, Britons and British

The name of the island we inhabit is known in English as Britain, but this is a word derived from the British language itself, and which in Cornish is Bretten, in Welsh Prydain. This name was first applied to the island during the Iron Age, that is to say the last few centuries of the pre-Christian era. The inhabitants of this island are referred to in English as Britons (now misapplied for political reasons to all and sundry of whatever origin) and is also derived from the British language, and which in Cornish is Brethon or Brittez, in Welsh Brythoniaid. The language of the Britons we call British which again is a word taken from the British, the Cornish word being Brethonek, in Welsh Brythoneg.

What about Celtic?

During the Iron Age there were languages related to British across Europe, and one of these was Celtic, first mentioned by the Greeks. Because Celtic was well documented, and little was known at first about British, it was assumed that British was derived from Celtic. In fact, the Celtic tribe that we know from the Greek reference to its people as keltoi occupied the land to the north of Marseilles and westwards into Spain, and had nothing directly to do with the British. While the British and the Celts and their languages were undoubtedly related, the one did not come from the other.

Until the Roman invasion of 43 CE, the social unit among the British was the tribe or small kingdom, and the tribes occupied their own areas the names of which have often survived to this day as counties. This state of organisation was a threat to the Roman plan, and the tribal system was suppressed in all of what is referred to as Lowland Britain, the land to the east of Exeter and Wales, and to the south of York, those parts shown largely as green on a physical map. Among the largest of these tribal areas was the kingdom of Dumnonia, as referred to by the Romans, which covered what is to-day Cornwall, Devon and Somerset. The Cornish word for this is Deunanz, in Welsh Dyfnaint, which has survived as modern Devon. The Romans afforded to the Dumnonii, Devonians, a special status in which they were allowed within certain limits to get on with their own lives. The capital of this kingdom was Exeter, in Latin Isca Dumonium, Isca of the Dumnonians to differentiate it from Isca Silurum, Isca of the Silures in South Wales, the Dumnonians and the Silurians being closely related. The Cornish for Exeter is Carêsk, City of the Esk (known in English as the Exe).

To the west of the River Tamer, itself a British word if not older, there was in effect a state within a state, the capital of which was recorded by the Romans in the second century CE as Durno Cornovio, City of the Cornovii, which is to say City of the Cornish People. It has been identified as Tintagel. The only Cornish word recorded for Cornish people is Curnowean used by Nicholas Boson c. 1660, startlingly similar to the Latin version after some fifteen hundred years. It can be rewritten as Kernouian in Modern Cornish. We do not know whether the Cornovii were an indigenous people or the result of migration from Armorica, but they were a vigorous, commercial, seafaring people whose defended citadels were commonly on promontories, perhaps the explanation of their name. They were our earliest known direct ancestors who gave us the name of our country, Kernaw (in Modern Cornish, but archaicly Kernow), our people, an Kernouian, and our language, Kernûak.

Between 410 and 425, the Romans experienced so many domestic problems that they withdrew from Britain, leaving the lowland areas in a poorly organised condition, for these had been deliberately reduced to dependence on Rome, and the result was that German tribes known as Angles, Saxons and Jutes, generally referred to as the Anglo-Saxons, or eventually the English (the Cornish word Zouzon means Saxons or Englishmen) had comparatively little difficulty in occupying them, and by 600 CE had cut off the Cornish-British from the Welsh-British at the mouth of the Severn, and the Welsh-British from the Northern British at the mouth of the Dee.

A hundred years later, c.700 CE, the Cornish and the English clashed head-on, and there followed two centuries of warfare the end result of which was that in 926, or it may have been 936, the Cornish were eventually forced to abandon lands as far east as the River Parret in Somerset, and their capital of Exeter, and fall back west of the Tamer which has been our eastern frontier ever since.

The last recorded King of Cornwall, Doniert (actually to be read as Donierth) died in 876. His monument is to be seen by the side of the road just above Redgate, near St Cleer. The Cornish allied with the Danes against the English on more than one occasion, which is perhaps why the English King Athelstan eventually overran Cornwall, and committed atrocities on our people for which he later repented. In Bodmin, once the capital of Cornwall, there has been erected insensitively a statue to the glory of Athelstan. This is in fact an insult to Cornish people, and is parallel to what would have been the case if a statue of Adolf Hitler had been erected in Westminster. Perhaps one day it will be removed, and replaced more appropriately by a statue of King Donierth.

It is not generally appreciated that Cornwall was never officially made a part of England, but has gradually slipped into that condition. Early in the Middle Ages, the English referred to us as Walense, Welsh, and Cornwall was West Wales. A document of Reginald Earl of Cornwall c.1154, confirming the rights of the town and church of Launceston, begins: Reginald, son of Henry I, Earl of Cornwall, to all his people, Franks, Angles and Walense, Greetings…In official documents up to as late as Tudor times Cornwall and England were referred to separately as Cornubia et Anglia. The Cornish were well known for their unrest, in English eyes rebelliousness, and were the first and last since the Norman invasion to lay siege to London. We had never forgotten our past, and had a reputation for not liking the English. Richard Carew noted in 1602 that an English-Speaking person on approaching a Cornishmen for information would be answered by Me na vidna couza Sowsnack! I do no wish to speak English!

In Britain the only people who can legitimately call themselves British are the Cornish and the Welsh, and perhaps the Lowland Scots, who occupy the land they have always occupied, and whose languages are indigenous to that land. The Bretons are also Britons, having migrated from Britain in the 5th and 6th centuries, and are the only people to have retained the appropriate name, for Breton means Briton. It was James IV who purloined the name Britain and British to be applied to all his subjects as a ploy to forestall any internal disagreement.

It was indeed the memory of our past that was instrumental in making Cornish people so tenacious of their language, as well as being so ″rebellious″, and you may find old people even to-day who fiercely assert that they are Cornish, not English. They might equally well say that along with the Welsh and Bretons they are the only True Britons. The next generation has taken this up, and the public display of so many black and white St Perran Banners is witness to this. In the 1950’s when the use of this flag was first promoted it was regarded by the authorities with suspicion and was banned. To-day it is in general use, even as an ensign on fishing boats and lifeboats, sometimes as a courtesy flag on merchant vessels, an even, one might say even, at County Hall and outside Council Offices. Correctly, however, this flag should only relate to St Perran, patron saint of tinners, the proper historical patron saint of Cornwall being Mîhal, Michael, whose flag by coincidence resembles that of St George, an embarrassment to amateur nationalists.

Cornish and English

The whole patriotic movement in Cornwall has been driven by the existence of the Cornish Language, for there is no surer way to advertise your national identity than by the possession of a national language. At this point we must remember that Cornish is our language, the Language of the Cornish People, the language that our forefathers made. Not a few English people, and even some from further afield, have become interested in Cornish. We may take this as a compliment, but tolerance is withheld when attempts are made to meddle with what for us is our birthright. The integrity of Cornish must be maintained.

In the course of its development Cornish has become naturally modified and modernised, as has been the case with all European languages, but the modification and modernisation must be taken as they are found, and as already accepted and implemented by Cornish writers of the 16th and 17th centuries, and no invented would-be ″improvements″ can legitimately be made. Cornish that has been manipulated to suit the 20th century fads and fancies of individuals is not genuine Cornish. How native Cornish writers themselves effected the first attempt to save the language when it was still a spoken though ailing vernacular, and modernise it, will be explained next.

Richard Gendall's Dictionary for Modern Cornish 2

Here is the Introduction to this authoritative dictionary.

INTRODUCTION

Cornish is not in the same category as French or German which are foreign languages, nor English which was a foreign language to our Cornish-speaking forefathers. Our language emerged some thousand years ago from Dumnonian British, itself a descendant of the language our ancestors spoke during the Iron Age, perhaps even earlier, and then passed through centuries of natural development, formed on the tongues of Cornish people, until it culminated as Modern Cornish in the 18th century. It is our own native language that has come down to us in a direct line of descent with no arguments, controversy or invention. Cornish character and history are built into it.

Cornish fell out of general use during the 18th century, though individuals possessed considerable practical knowledge of it till the end of the 19th century. Whether we have had a chance to learn it or not, we are surrounded everyday by Cornish, for virtually all the names of our farms, villages, towns, hills and other features, and even some of our surnames are actually Cornish, and indeed what is referred to as ″Cornish dialect″ contains many words from the language itself, and represents the echo of it.

Cornish people have been so tenacious of their language that it took some eight hundred years to die out, and that is quite remarkable considering that the largest number of people who spoke Cornish at one time was no more than 40,000, and it has had to compete with the advance of English, used by millions. Furthermore, all our historical Cornish literature proceeded from a small area no more than thirty miles long by twenty miles wide, about the same as the Isle of man or Anglesey, yet half of which is sea. This comprises the hundreds of Penwith and Kerrrier, and coincides with the area where Modern Cornish developed, and where the language held out longest. It was this same area that gave birth to the Cornish religious Drama and verse, so that it is rightly to be regarded as the heartland of our language.

Richard Gendall's Dictionary for Modern Cornish 1

The acknowledged "guru" of Modern Cornish is Richard Gendall. After many years of scholarship in the Cornish Language he has produced a new version of his dictionary. In the first few sections he explains, to my satisfaction at least, why Modern Cornish is the form we should be using in the Twenty-First Century.

Firstly, here is the Preface.

PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION

After the Second Edition of this Dictionary was published in 1997 a great deal more information on the language became available through the study of several neglected manuscripts, notably Edward Lhuyd’s unpublished Geirlyfr Kyrnŵeig, rich in hitherto unnoticed vocabulary and instructive orthography, and of lesser account but still very useful the Aberystwyth NLW Bodewryd MS 5E, revealing much about late native word versions, while at the same time there has been a steady accumulation of new material from traditional sources. By the turn of the century it had become clear that the Dictionary needed not revising but rather re-writing.

The foundations of what after 1700 was to be known as Modern Cornish had already been laid during the 17th century, but the authors who were particularly active in preserving the language were dissatisfied with the current traditional spelling, and invited Dr Lhuyd to Cornwall to make recommendations which indeed they accepted and implemented. Lhuyd designed them an orthography that was particularly suited to Cornish, but was radically different from the old, inefficient and wayward English based system in which all Cornish literature had been written, in both the Middle and Late Phases, which was quite inadequate for the accurate representation of a British language.

There is currently much talk about the ″right″ sort of Cornish to teach to schoolchildren, and what sort of Cornish should be regarded as ″official″, a word that is meaningless in the context of the Cornish language which in the whole of its history and use by the native Cornish people on whose tongues it was formed never had any official form, so why three hundred years after it fell out of use should it now need one? There is only one Cornish, and no Cornishman ever referred to it as anything but simply Cornish. Though in the 18th century the term Modern Cornish was introduced, this is not a label, and is simply used in the same way we refer to Modern English, both being the end product of centuries of natural development. Even Jenner in his Handbook of the Cornish Language quite correctly only referred to our language as Cornish, though this was in fact Modern Cornish and the start of the language revival. No plain Cousin Jack to-day has any name for it but Cornish.

There are no other sorts of authentic, genuine, traditional, native Cornish, and where in the recent past labels have been attached, such as Unified, Phonemic, Common, Compromise etc., it is an admission that these are neither authentic, genuine, traditional or native, but irrelevancies produced since 1929 mostly by individuals who are not even Cornish.

Modern Cornish is clearly different from earlier Cornish but only for reasons of natural development, and it comes down to us as an inseparable entity embracing vocabulary, grammar, orthography and pronunciation, that is the subject of this Practical Dictionary of Modern Cornish.

Finally, the Editor would like to gratefully acknowledge the invaluable help afforded by many persons through the generous gift of books and photostats of material otherwise difficult to come by, or by facilitating access to these, in particular Betty Cooney for the four volumes of the Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru, Janet Gendall for the Geriadur ar Brezhoneg a-Vremañ, Colin Hancock for Y Geiriadur Mawr, Merfyn Phillips for The Academic Welsh Dictionary and Farher’s English-Manx Dictionary, Adrian Pilgrim for putting me in the way of Lhuyd’s Archæologia Britannica, Andrew Hawk and Oliver Padel for sundry useful photostats and discussions, and not forgetting all those too many to mention who have regularly supplied me with newly discovered dialect words, but especially Joy Stevenson, and the invaluable help supplied by Barry Mundy respecting the traditional pronunciation of words connected with fishing and the coastline.

Richard Gendall, Editor,
April 2007, tercentenary of Dr Lhuyd’s Archæologia Britannica and Cornish Grammar

Modern Cornish and the Standard Written Form

Modern Cornish and the Standard Written Form

From the Modern Cornish perspective we are obviously disappointed that the Language Commission established during the SWF process did not take this opportunity to adopt Modern Cornish – the Cornish of the last generations of Cornish speakers – as its standard. This logical and simple solution to the interminable arguments that surround the spelling of late medieval Cornish was unfortunately not grasped. In the final analysis the dead hand of medievalism maintains the cloying grip it has had on the imagination of anyone coming into contact with Cornish since the 1920s.
Nonetheless, on the 9th of May the Cornish Language Partnership finally agreed (almost unanimously, with just one abstention) a Standard Written Form (SWF) of Cornish to be used in formal schooling and for official purposes. The process involved two years of discussion and argument and the result is somewhat messy, to say the least. One thing that everyone can agree on is that no-one really loves the SWF. Nevertheless, the fact that it’s come under fire from all quarters of the revivalist movement may mean it’s along the right lines.
One thing the SWF is not intended to be is the last word on the spelling of the Cornish language. During the debates that accompanied its genesis it’s become palpably clear that there remain many outstanding questions about Cornish pronunciation and vocabulary. Hopefully, one effect of this agreement will be to encourage those who disagree to begin to debate their differences in a more open and civilised fashion across the sectarian divides of the institutions of the Cornish Revival. For the SWF marks another important and understated change. It takes Cornish beyond the narrow confines of a tiny and parochial language movement obsessed by its past and immersed in its own petty squabbles. Now we have the opportunity to build some properly representative institutions for a post-revivalist language, taking Cornish out from a revivalist ghetto that has not served it particularly well and into the towns and villages of Cornwall.
For the first time, the SWF recognises that there are two equal variants, or dialects, of revived Cornish. First, there is Revived Middle Cornish (RMC), the Cornish that was put together by Robert Morton Nance in the 1920s and continued by those who have dominated the small Cornish Revival. This is based on the language as it was presumed to have been spoken around 1500 or around 1550, depending on your perspective. ‘Presumed’ as no-one can actually be certain. Reconstructions are based on a medieval literature composed almost entirely in verses of eight seven-syllable rhymes, hardly the best evidence for the way an everyday language was spoken.
Second, there is Revived Late Cornish (RLC), the Cornish the Cussel uses. This is the Cornish of the first revivalists and of Henry Jenner, who wrote the first grammar, before the Revival took its medieval turn. RLC is based roughly on the Cornish spoken around 1700, for which we have the evidence of Edward Lhuyd’s researches, the only contemporary account of the language written by someone with a knowledge of comparative linguistics.
However, this picture of two dialects over-simplifies things. In reality those who use RMC have to look to RLC for examples of Cornish prose and for some of their vocabulary. It has also become clear that speakers of RMC do not use the purported sounds of late medieval Cornish but are closer in pronunciation to the Cornish of 1700. In similar fashion users of RLC have to turn to MC texts for vocabulary and for
examples of more complex and literary verbal paradigms. In short both actually sign up to a policy of tota cornicitas, using resources from the whole period of Cornish. It is only the emphasis and the philosophical assumptions that differ.
The SWF has tried to recognise this by including a standard form with two equal variants, one reflecting RMC pronunciation, or at least what users of RMC aspire to in theory, and the other RLC pronunciation. However, the two variants share the same spelling system and combinations of letters to try to bring them closer together and support a convergence among Cornish users. Neither of the variants is to be regarded as better or superior to the other although clearly we prefer RLC and groups such as Agan Tavas or the Cornish Language Board will support RMC. Textbooks for anyone learning Cornish other than young children will have to note the existence of the other variant and give examples of it where it diverges from the preferred form. No longer can anyone insist that their Cornish is the only right ‘Cornish’ and everyone else is either ‘wrong’, ‘deluded’ or somehow ‘corrupt’.
So in order to maintain the connection between the two variants it will be necessary to use a number of common spellings. These are unfortunately in the main based on medieval spellings as the argument of the linguists is that the medieval pronunciation involved more sounds. These have to be indicated for those who are trying to speak RMC, even though they have fallen together in RLC. This is not so strange as it sounds as the spelling of English also reflects a much more conservative pronunciation than modern English. For example, the words and are spelt differently reflecting different pronunciations in Middle English, but pronounced identically (at least in BBC English!) If both words were spelt then someone wanting to pronounce in its Middle English form would get no guidance from the spelling.
Although logical for the linguists this will involve some effort from users of Modern Cornish, as different letters may have the same sound. For example the final unstressed syllable in SWF , and is the same – the colourless sound of the second vowel in English . But it’s spelt differently because it may have been pronounced differently in MC, although the jury is actually out on that one. Similarly, we will have to get used to letter combinations unknown in Modern Cornish, such as for . We still pronounce as and every time we see we give it an /e/ sound. This is probably not too difficult but makes the SWF somewhat more complicated than it might have been.
However, in the RLC variant we are still able to spell RMC as in a familiar way. This goes for virtually all words with RMC or . In RLC these are spelt as they are sounded – with or . Furthermore, because the unnecessary doubled consonants after unstressed vowels that were typical of the Kernewek Kemmyn version of RMC are now single consonants (for example becomes ). When we see a RMC or we can be fairly confident it’s actually or in RLC.
Although we will be faced by a lot of unfamiliar letter combinations in the bulk of even the RLC variant, the oddest being for a /y/ sound, the RLC variant will maintain more familiar verbal forms, for example and not the medieval spelling . Learning to read the SWF is not an overnight task for those unfamiliar with RMC but should not be too taxing once anyone has a working knowledge of Cornish.
And there is a further aspect of the SWF that can make it more familiar. In its main form the sound /k/ as in English , or is spelt consistently ,
while /wh/ as in is spelt . However, it will be acceptable to use more traditional forms for these sounds, i.e. spelling /k/ as depending on context and spelling as . Writing the RLC variant using these traditional forms brings it closer to the spellings Modern Cornish users have learnt.
These are just a few aspects of the SWF. (For more information see the Outline available at http://www.magakernow.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=41352). Moreover, it does not mean we have to give up our own spelling of Cornish. In fact we should continue to research, develop and refine this as in five years time there will be a review of the SWF. Hopefully, that review and the research and discussion that informs it can take place free from the egoistic and arrogant posturing and verbal violence that has so sadly accompanied the ‘debates’ on the spelling of Cornish hitherto. If the SWF can encourage a new spirit of trust and openness then the time spent on it will have been well worth the trouble.

Let's learn Modern Cornish

I have been studying Modern Cornish fairly intensively for a few years. I have not made the progress I would have liked because of frequent changes in orthography (to the non-linguists amongst my readers, that's spelling!). I have decided to start writing this Blog in the hope of assisting a few people along the path with me, as I sort the language and its ramifications out in my own head. The Cornish Language revival has arrived at a very interesting time in its history. As well as the older established systems of spelling and pronunciation (Unified, UCR or Unified Cornish Revised, Kernewek Kemmyn or Common Cornish, Kernûak or Modern Cornish) we now have a new SWF (Single or Standard Written Form) designed to be used across the board for official documents and in schools. The problem for each group is going to be how to reconcile the old and the new. The idea of the SWF (I think) is so that it is readable by all groups, whatever their particular "accent". It remains to be seen how well it will work.

The next post will summarise the reponse of the Cussel an Tavaz Kernûak (Cornish Language Council) which represents users of Modern Cornish.