Post by Jonathan on Nov 24, 2004 15:08:38 GMT 1
The revival began 100 years ago. The first Handbook of the Cornish language was published in 1904. In order to overcome erratic spelling within the language a new spelling system was devised called Unified. This was the main form of the language revival until the 1980’s when Dr Ken George created a new phonemic spelling system known as Kemmyn in order to overcome the problems within the Unified system. The Cornish language Board decided to switch to this radical spelling system. Others preferred to stick to Unified, whilst others preferred to work with Modern Cornish, the spelling of 18th Century Cornish, when it had last been used as a community language. (Unified and Kemmyn were based on Cornish C. 1500).
The story does not end there for Nicholas Williams a Celtic Language Professor at Dublin University developed Unified Cornish Revised (UCR) in order to solve the problems within Unified and also as a replacement for Kemmyn that he felt was a serious mistake. However in the 16 years since Kemmyn was officially adopted it shows no sign of being abandoned and if you wish to read about the arguments of orthography I suggest reading Cornish for the 21st Century, which counters Nicholas Williams’s arguments that he made in his book Cornish Today. Rather the opposite in fact for it is thriving. Unified is still being spoken by many of those who refused to switch to Kemmyn and only a minority have adopted UCR. Unfortunately whilst appreciating the merits of UCR I do find a major drawback is that there are only two books published in UCR, the other UCR material are all learning books or CD-Roms (the CD-Roms in question also offer Kemmyn). Note that the UCR course offered on this site has a different spelling system to the UCR dictionary. This is because it is based on the traditional spelling of West Cornwall. Please note that for those people wanting to studying Cornish Language Board exams they are all in either Kemmyn or Unified. They do not recognise UCR.
So, which is the best system to use? Essentially they are all Cornish, sound virtually similar, but look radically different. In Kemmyn ‘Why’ is spelt ‘Hwi’ and ‘Whee’ in Modern. Seems confusing doesn’t it? Thankfully there are a number of books and CD-Roms to help you learn, but none of them give you all the information you need, which is which to use.
Eurotalk’s Learn Cornish has both Kemmyn and UCR as does Teach Me Cornish published by Cambridge Educational & Sain – although the later improved edition published by Cambridge Educational does only offer Kemmyn. Neither actually say why there are more than one spelling system nor do they give you the advice necessary to help you choose. A serious mistake in both CDs. (Eurotalk is only helpful for the serious beginner as it is little more than a small interactive dictionary, Teach Me Cornish is more advanced, but probably slightly harder to use, I would recommend Teach me Cornish as it gives you more to work with and is cheaper too!)
With this website, or Gwiasva in Cornish, I hope to give people the chance to learn a bit about the Cornish language (An Yeth Kernewek) and give the best advice on which form to learn (I have studied all 4 forms to some degree). The main thing to remember is it is better to learn Cornish in any form than no Cornish at all.
Kemmyn is a phonemic system in that the words are written as they are spoken, so this makes it much easier to learn.
Unified is a more traditional form but harder to learn. People still use this system because it is a good form, based on traditional spelling.
Unified Cornish Revised is a better version of Unified based on serious Celtic studies.
Modern Cornish (also known as Late) is the last genuine form of Cornish, the form of the language used last.
A secondary, yet major, consideration is the back up materials.
Websites
Warlinnen, a Kemmyn Website, is the best Cornish site on the net, however the site of Agan Tavas (Our Language) a Unified / UCR / Modern site has just been revamped.
Dictionaries
Unified, UCR and Kemmyn all have dictionaries in print. The Unified one has a smaller vocabulary with little or no up to date vocabulary relevant for the 21st century. The excellent UCR dictionary is recommended, but it is expensive and is only English to Cornish. The Cornish to English one is planned. There is a list of amendments and correction of errors on the publishers website, but it is a pity that it wasn't proof read before publication especially as the publishers spent a lot of time criticising George's dictionary for the very same reason. The Kemmyn dictionary is a more reasonable price, and has a decent size and up to date vocabulary with both English to Cornish and Cornish to English. Most importantly the Kemmyn dictionary is much easier to use. It takes a new approach to the presentation of information that as a learner I have found invaluable. For example when a plural adds to the existing word it is listed as +yow, but when a letter or letters are removed in the plural it is shown as -yow. Clear, simple and precise without any confusion or need to reach for a book on grammar. It also uses a different font for Each section clearly differentiating between the two.
Courses
There is KDL (Kernewek Dre Kyther – Cornish by letter) which is learning via e.mail. The first lesson can be done on their site free.
If you go to the Kernewek Dre Lyther site (See links) you can try the Kemmyn course. The advantage of this course is that you can do it via e.mail with a course tutor at a ridiculously cheap price. It’s not difficult to do, you just need a little self-discipline!
Bible
The New Testament is currently only available in UCR, however 2004 will see the publication of the New Testament in Kemmyn and Unified.
Films
Hwerow Hweg (Bitter Sweet), in Kemmyn, is the only full length film in Cornish. Not the greatest production standards but made with enthusiasm and by people with a love of the language. The major mistake was to make it on video and not on film.
Music
There is plenty of music available in Cornish. Warlinnen has its own music library, all in Cornish! The best Cornish bands, I feel, are Naked Feet and Rachael and Common Ground. Both bands sing in both English and Cornish.
Which system do I use?
I am extremely lucky when it comes to Cornish. I have several chapters of the Bible and the 10 commandments written in Modern Cornish by an Ancestor who spoke Cornish as a first language. This has been passed down through the generations, a copy was even typed up in the offices of MI5!
I started learning Modern, but couldn’t get on with it, bit I do hold this form in great affection. Unified, I left behind quickly, preferring to switch to the revised form UCR which I find to be the better form, but lately I have switched to Kemmyn as I have found that the more I learn of Cornish the more I prefer Kemmyn. This is just my personal judgement. I have books in all the forms and read Cornish all the time. Basically I love Cornish, I just happen to prefer to write in Kemmyn. If you want to write in Unys, UCR or Modern then fine.
If you need any more information then just E.Mail: info@cornishlanguage.co.uk
The story does not end there for Nicholas Williams a Celtic Language Professor at Dublin University developed Unified Cornish Revised (UCR) in order to solve the problems within Unified and also as a replacement for Kemmyn that he felt was a serious mistake. However in the 16 years since Kemmyn was officially adopted it shows no sign of being abandoned and if you wish to read about the arguments of orthography I suggest reading Cornish for the 21st Century, which counters Nicholas Williams’s arguments that he made in his book Cornish Today. Rather the opposite in fact for it is thriving. Unified is still being spoken by many of those who refused to switch to Kemmyn and only a minority have adopted UCR. Unfortunately whilst appreciating the merits of UCR I do find a major drawback is that there are only two books published in UCR, the other UCR material are all learning books or CD-Roms (the CD-Roms in question also offer Kemmyn). Note that the UCR course offered on this site has a different spelling system to the UCR dictionary. This is because it is based on the traditional spelling of West Cornwall. Please note that for those people wanting to studying Cornish Language Board exams they are all in either Kemmyn or Unified. They do not recognise UCR.
So, which is the best system to use? Essentially they are all Cornish, sound virtually similar, but look radically different. In Kemmyn ‘Why’ is spelt ‘Hwi’ and ‘Whee’ in Modern. Seems confusing doesn’t it? Thankfully there are a number of books and CD-Roms to help you learn, but none of them give you all the information you need, which is which to use.
Eurotalk’s Learn Cornish has both Kemmyn and UCR as does Teach Me Cornish published by Cambridge Educational & Sain – although the later improved edition published by Cambridge Educational does only offer Kemmyn. Neither actually say why there are more than one spelling system nor do they give you the advice necessary to help you choose. A serious mistake in both CDs. (Eurotalk is only helpful for the serious beginner as it is little more than a small interactive dictionary, Teach Me Cornish is more advanced, but probably slightly harder to use, I would recommend Teach me Cornish as it gives you more to work with and is cheaper too!)
With this website, or Gwiasva in Cornish, I hope to give people the chance to learn a bit about the Cornish language (An Yeth Kernewek) and give the best advice on which form to learn (I have studied all 4 forms to some degree). The main thing to remember is it is better to learn Cornish in any form than no Cornish at all.
Kemmyn is a phonemic system in that the words are written as they are spoken, so this makes it much easier to learn.
Unified is a more traditional form but harder to learn. People still use this system because it is a good form, based on traditional spelling.
Unified Cornish Revised is a better version of Unified based on serious Celtic studies.
Modern Cornish (also known as Late) is the last genuine form of Cornish, the form of the language used last.
A secondary, yet major, consideration is the back up materials.
Websites
Warlinnen, a Kemmyn Website, is the best Cornish site on the net, however the site of Agan Tavas (Our Language) a Unified / UCR / Modern site has just been revamped.
Dictionaries
Unified, UCR and Kemmyn all have dictionaries in print. The Unified one has a smaller vocabulary with little or no up to date vocabulary relevant for the 21st century. The excellent UCR dictionary is recommended, but it is expensive and is only English to Cornish. The Cornish to English one is planned. There is a list of amendments and correction of errors on the publishers website, but it is a pity that it wasn't proof read before publication especially as the publishers spent a lot of time criticising George's dictionary for the very same reason. The Kemmyn dictionary is a more reasonable price, and has a decent size and up to date vocabulary with both English to Cornish and Cornish to English. Most importantly the Kemmyn dictionary is much easier to use. It takes a new approach to the presentation of information that as a learner I have found invaluable. For example when a plural adds to the existing word it is listed as +yow, but when a letter or letters are removed in the plural it is shown as -yow. Clear, simple and precise without any confusion or need to reach for a book on grammar. It also uses a different font for Each section clearly differentiating between the two.
Courses
There is KDL (Kernewek Dre Kyther – Cornish by letter) which is learning via e.mail. The first lesson can be done on their site free.
If you go to the Kernewek Dre Lyther site (See links) you can try the Kemmyn course. The advantage of this course is that you can do it via e.mail with a course tutor at a ridiculously cheap price. It’s not difficult to do, you just need a little self-discipline!
Bible
The New Testament is currently only available in UCR, however 2004 will see the publication of the New Testament in Kemmyn and Unified.
Films
Hwerow Hweg (Bitter Sweet), in Kemmyn, is the only full length film in Cornish. Not the greatest production standards but made with enthusiasm and by people with a love of the language. The major mistake was to make it on video and not on film.
Music
There is plenty of music available in Cornish. Warlinnen has its own music library, all in Cornish! The best Cornish bands, I feel, are Naked Feet and Rachael and Common Ground. Both bands sing in both English and Cornish.
Which system do I use?
I am extremely lucky when it comes to Cornish. I have several chapters of the Bible and the 10 commandments written in Modern Cornish by an Ancestor who spoke Cornish as a first language. This has been passed down through the generations, a copy was even typed up in the offices of MI5!
I started learning Modern, but couldn’t get on with it, bit I do hold this form in great affection. Unified, I left behind quickly, preferring to switch to the revised form UCR which I find to be the better form, but lately I have switched to Kemmyn as I have found that the more I learn of Cornish the more I prefer Kemmyn. This is just my personal judgement. I have books in all the forms and read Cornish all the time. Basically I love Cornish, I just happen to prefer to write in Kemmyn. If you want to write in Unys, UCR or Modern then fine.
If you need any more information then just E.Mail: info@cornishlanguage.co.uk