Dydd Gŵyl Dewi Hapus, Happy Saint David’s Day.

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Bore da pawb. Heddiw yw Dydd Gŵyl Dewi, y Diwrnod Cenedlaethol Cymru. Dymuniadau gorau i chi i gyd!

Good morning everyone. Today is Saint David’s Day, the National Day of Wales. Best wishes to you all!

The weather here in Cornwall is miserable; swirling rain and hill mist swathe the scenery around Dookes H.Q.. . .In fact it’s just like being home in Wales!

Never mind though, outside the daffodils are in flower and with a freshly picked bunch on the table next to me, its like the sun has come out.P1050125
OK, brief history lesson then:
Dewi Sant/St David was born towards the end of the 5th Century in the region of West Wales known as Ceredigion. Whilst alive he built a reputation for his preaching, teaching and simple living amongst the Celtic people. He founded a monastery at Glyn Rhosin, which became an important early Christian centre. Dewi died on 1st March 589 and was buried in what is now known as St David’s Cathedral in Pembrokeshire where his shrine became a popular place of pilgrimage.

For centuries 1st March has been a national festival in Wales with parades, concerts, poetry readings and of course traditional food all being enjoyed. Around the country not only will you see the flag of Wales, Y Ddraig Goch (the Red Dragon) being flown, but also the flag of St David, a simple yellow cross on a black field.P1030045

Today is also the time when Welsh exiles around the world remember ‘The Land of My Fathers’ and try to ease the sense of “Hiraeth” that yearning homesickness tinged with grief, nostalgia, wistfulness and pride that we often feel.

On that note, I’m off to gather the food for supper tonight. Golwythi cig oen, cennin â chaws, tatws a bara lawr: lamb chops, leek gratin, potatoes and laverbread.

If Mrs Dookes is lucky I may even sing a few verses of Calon Lân as well!

In the words of St David:
“Gwnewch y pethau bychain mean bywyd.” “Do ye the little things in life.”

Gwlad, gwlad, pleidiol wyf i’m glad.

Hwyl fawr!
Dookes

7 thoughts on “Dydd Gŵyl Dewi Hapus, Happy Saint David’s Day.”

  1. My wife has a wee bit of Welsh in her blood line. Mostly Irish though. I’ll need to forward this to her and see if the language here stirs any ancestral blood! Thanks for the ancient history lesson. Very interesting!

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  3. G’day Dookes, back in 1992 I did a short stint with the South Wales Constabulary. I saw first hand the outcome of Government intervention in the coal mining industry. Apart from that I loved the scenery, the hospitality and the professionalism of the police. Never did get to see the railway station with the world’s longest name. The language is amazing, it must be difficult to learn if it is not your mother tongue.

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    • I think the thing about learning any language is practice and being able to immerse yourself in the culture. Certainly my own language skills depend on how much I use them. It’s true that Welsh is not very mainstream outside Wales, but it is enjoying quite a revival these days and long may that continue!
      Hwyl fawr!

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  4. Pingback: Happy Saint David’s Day 2017 | Hogrider Dookes

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