Don't twist reality to create the wild Wales of English romantic myth

Imposing 'wilding' agenda in the Cambrians is akin to ripping out the living, beating heart of the Welsh language and cultureWednesday is market day in Machynlleth, as it has been for 722 years. Walk down the town's main street on market day and among the dozens of stalls selling everything from organic courgettes to army surplus gear, you will hear a dizzy array of accents: Welsh, Brummie, Mancunian, home counties, cockney, some quite hard to place. Often too, you'll hear snatches of the Welsh language, but the predominant tongue by far is English.The diversity of accents at the local sheep market, tucked away almost symbolically behind rows of houses to the north of the town, is also broad, but with one clear difference: these are the many dialects of Cymraeg, the Welsh language. Here, it is spoken English that is in a tiny minority.In a place just a couple of hours from the heartland of the most expansionist linguistic culture in history, the continuation of an ancient language and culture may seem puzzling, but the fact that this persistence is strongest among those families who have farmed the Cambrian Mountains for thousands of years certainly isn't. Throughout the world, it is within agricultural and hunter gatherer communities that traditions and languages persist the most. And within our farming community the Welsh language and culture is not just stronger; it is, to all intents and purposes, universal.George Monbiot is apparently appalled by the insinuation that rep...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - Category: Science Tags: Blogposts Farming guardian.co.uk Mountains Rural affairs UK news Environment Wales Agriculture Wildlife Source Type: news