I write in response Dai Davies’ Welsh Language letter (County Times 17/12/21).

If I go to France they speak French. If I go to Germany they speak German. If I go to Wales they speak English. I have lived here for the last three years and have yet to go into a shop and be greeted in Welsh.

WHSmiths in Newtown has a number of foreign language book and phrase books, but their Welsh section consisted of a single pocket-sized English/Welsh dictionary.

I eventually managed to find a ‘Welsh Learners Dictionary’ in Llandrindod Wells, and what Welsh I do know has come from using that book to translate S4C programme titles, and BBC Wales news presenters saying “bore da/nos da”.

I recently wrote to Jeremy Miles, the Welsh Language Minister, suggesting community-based Welsh language courses, for instance in schools so that the parents could practise what they’d learnt whilst standing at the school gate (I did a French evening course some years back, but as I only practised this in the classroom, I soon forgot it).

All I got back was a standard two paragraph response saying that Aberystwyth University ran the language courses.

I also suggested that they provide ‘Practise Your Welsh Here’ stickers, to go on the front doors of those shops where the staff spoke the language, to encourage customers, including tourists, to use Welsh. Again no response.

As for difficulty, I have heard that Welsh is ‘one of the more challenging languages of the EU’. Non-English speakers would say “so is English” but we have all managed that.

To conclude, there are no Welsh phrase-books and none of the shops I go into greet me in Welsh. There is therefore no incentive for me to learn even the rudiments of the language, other than for my own satisfaction.

Terry Davies

Caersws