A HOTEL cum language school in Ceredigion has been crowned as the “Welshest place in the World”.
Nia Llewelyn has been running courses and Welsh language “boot camps” at Garth Newydd in Lampeter for the past three years.
Welsh learners travel from as far afield as America, Australia and Scandinavia to gain more confidence speaking the language.
Garth Newydd was honoured at the inaugural Gwobrau Mwyaf Cymraeg y Byd (Most Welsh in the World Awards) where it won the prize as the Most Welsh Space in the World.
The ceremony at Tan y Graig near Aberystwyth was organised by the Anglesey-based consultancy firm, Lafan, as part of the Bwrlwm ARFOR project to promote the economic benefit of Welsh in business in the four counties that are strongholds of the language, Ynys Môn, Gwynedd, Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire.
The aim of the awards is to celebrate businesses in the four counties that are benefiting financially from using the Welsh language and boosting their bottom line.
Garth is owned by Marcus Whitfield, who lives in Kent, but is originally from Buckley, in Flintshire, and who has learned the language himself and accompanied Nia to the awards ceremony.
According to the pair the occasion had been a great opportunity to network with other business people in the ARFOR area who benefit from using Welsh and explore the possibilities of collaborating in future.
Afterwards Nia said, “Our stays can be from a night to a week and it’s an opportunity for people to immerse themselves in the Welsh language.
“There are seven bedrooms with room for a total of 10 people and during their stay they prepare food and eat together, go out together and visit shops with Welsh speaking staff.
“I could spend money on organising events but what our guests prefer is the opportunity to meet, speak to and get to know native Welsh speakers.
“What we are doing is helping people on the journey to becoming confident Welsh speakers.
“These days there is a lot of learning that goes on from in front of a screen but it’s much nicer for people to socialise together and to encourage them to speak I ask them to bring items with them.
“Last week we had a lady from Texas, people from Canada and Australia and last month someone from Sweden who had never spoken to anyone in Welsh face-to-face and he coped brilliantly.
“We get all kinds of people. We’ve had a lady from Malta who spoke nine languages and wanted to learn Welsh.”
Marcus is a keen football fan who now lives in Kent after leaving Buckley without any Welsh but Nia explained: “He follows the Welsh football team and supports Wrexham as well so he learned Welsh.
“He bought the house because of his love for the language and I rent it from him to run these courses.”
The glowing online reviews testify to the popularity of the courses at Garth Newydd with one customer saying: “Nia, our host, is a Welsh force of human nature who should definitely have a hurricane named after her.”
The award for Garth Newydd was one of seven presented at the event and also winning from Ceredigion was Llanon fish and chip shop Sglods – Welsh slang for chips – who took the award for the best Welsh Brand
Nia Roberts, who runs Sglods with her husband, Aled, said, “We started the business 18 months ago and wanted to name the business in Welsh and it’s an easy name that anyone can understand and say.
Pictured from left to right, Dyfrig Siencyn (Leader of Gwynedd County Council) Nia Roberts and Sian Thomas (Sglods)
Picture by Phil Blagg Photography.
“Our success has been that we get people coming in and they may be learning Welsh and they look at the board which is bilingual and so they can order in Welsh because they want to try.”
Geraint Hughes, from Lafan, said they had been inspired to launch the awards to recognise businesses that go the extra mile to promote and make use of the Welsh language.
He said, “We have had Welsh learners here who five years ago could not speak a word of Welsh and we’ve had people from all sorts of backgrounds and businesses.
“Everyone has a different story but what brings them together is not only their passion for Cymraeg but going beyond the emotion is that it’s a useful and often essential tool to have in their business.
“With our commercial hats on we see that we get more customers and more attention because there’s an emphasis on Cymraeg.
“We had hundreds of nominations on line – our only role was to draw up a shortlist and then leave it to the public to decide.
“The awards only represented a tiny part of the campaign and what was really significant was the huge commitment of so many businesses in the way they embrace the language.
“Hopefully as an event it will evolve over time but what is really important is for people to recognise the value of Cymraeg in business.”
Pictured from left to right, Nia Roberts and Sian Thomas (Sglods)
Picture by Phil Blagg Photography.
Bwrlwm ARFOR manager Zoe Pritchard said, “The awards ceremony was a joyous occasion to celebrate everything Welsh and that the fact that it is a living and vibrant language.
“We want to create a buzz around the use of Welsh in a business or commercial environment and how it can help businesses thrive and provide careers for our young people so they don’t feel they have to move away.
“Its aim is to celebrate the Welsh language and show that it is not a museum piece but can have real benefits and relevance to businesses here across the four counties.”
For more information about Bwrlwm ARFOR and the support that’s available for the use of Welsh in business contact Lafan by emailing [email protected]
