An Comunn Gàidhealach Publications > Gaidheal > Volumes 44--45, January 1949--December 1950

Leabliraicliciin lira
The Cornish Language
Bewnans Meryasek , edited by
Morton Nance and A. S. D. Smith.
One of the most encouraging
things that a Celt can find to-day—
and there are many such things—
is the way the Cornish people
continue to work for the revival
of their own form of Celtic speech,
a highly interesting form, of much
interest to all who study Celtic
philology.
The Cornish language seems to
have died out as a spoken tongue
about 1800 a.d. In 1776 William
Bodener, who lived in Mousehole,
wrote a letter in Cornish to the Hon.
Daines Barrington. In it he uses
these words:—"Nag es moy vel
pager pe pemp en dre ny ell clappya
Cornoak lebben—poble coath, pager
egance Blouth. Cornoack ew oil
nekeavys gen pobble. younk;”
that is, "There are not more than
four or five in our town who can
speak Cornish now, old people,
four-score years of age. Comish
is all forgotten by the young
people. ’ ’
William died in 1789, and he is
the last of whom we can be certain
that he spoke Cornish.
Yet in the last few years we have
had several well-produced booklets
in Cornish—"Nebes Whethlow
Ber’ ’ (a few short stories), ‘ ‘Wheth¬
low an Seyth Den Fur a Rom’’
(a translation from the Welsh),
‘ ‘Chwedleu Seith Doethon Rufein, ’ ’
and now the first of the long-
promised and eagerly awaited
extracts from the Middle Cornish
texts, "Bewnans Meryasek.’’
This extract gives us from line
759 to line 1096 (inclusive) of the
‘ ‘Life of Meriasek, ’ ’ i .e. Meriadoc,
Bishop of Vannes in Brittany.
This text, "Bewnans Meryasek,”
was unknown until 1872, when the
MS in which it is preserved was
discovered in the Peniarth library
in Merioneth, Wales. Thus Corn¬
wall, Wales, and Brittany are all
concerned in this particular text,
and that fact should heighten the
interest of all interested in Brytho-
nec literature. Along with the
"Origo Mundi,” "Passio Domini
Nostri,” and "Resurrexio Domini
Nostri,” this play gives us our
knowledge of Cornish, for—except
for ‘ ‘The Creation of the World ’ ’
(a much later play than the afore¬
mentioned)—these plays are almost
all we have of Middle Cornish.
These were all very scarce and
inaccessible to the ordinary student.
This booklet is the first of a
series which will give an accurate
transcription in unified spelling.
RECENT PUBLICATIONS
with an entirely new English
translation, of these texts. They
are the result of the Co-operation of
Mordon (Mr. Morton Nance) and
Caradar (Mr. A. S. D. Smith). Mr.
Nance obtained photostats of the
original texts, and these enabled
him to clear up many doubtful
points, but the work took a long
time and much discussion before
the text was ready for the printer.
Even then we would have had to
wait longer but for the generosity
of Talek (Mr. G. Retallack Hooper),
who met the costs of printing the
booklet. These three—Mr. Nance
and Mr. Smith for their labour and
scholarship, and Mr. Hooper for
his generosity—have earned the
gratitude of all who are interested
in Celtic philology and literature,
but especially that of all Cornish-
men who desire to see their own
language restored to its rightful
place in the lives of the Cornish
people and the Celtic world.
Anyone who has struggled with
the texts as printed by Norris and
Stokes (1859-1872) knows well the
difficulties due to erratic spelling
and mistakes in copying the
original black-letter texts. Here
the way of the student is made
smooth and easy. All Cornish
people who wish to perfect their
knowledge of their own speech
must obtain this (and the extracts
to follow), if they would know how
people who spoke and thought in
Cornish expressed themselves,
and become acquainted with what
is in very truth a lively, flexible
form of speech, well wqrthy of
being again lifted up to a place of
honour in the life of the nation and
studied, by all Celts who desire a
good general knowledge of Celtic
speech. The study of Cornish well
repays any Celt, whether Gael or
Brython, by the light such study
sheds on his own speech.
There ought to be a record
demand for ‘‘Bewnans Meryasek.”
It may be obtained from Mr. G. R.
Hooper, 5 Union Street, Camborne,
Cornwall, and the price is 1/6
(post free).
Gwas Kendern.
Wild Life
Nature Reserves in'Scotland
(H .M. Stationery Office, 1 /3).
This is the final report by the
Scottish National Parks Com¬
mittee and the Scottish Wild Life
Conservation Committee.
Over two years have passed
since two reports on National
Parks were published : the Hobhouse
Committee’s report for England
and Wales, and the, Ramsay Com¬
mittee’s report for Scotland. The
English report has been followed
by the necessary legislation for the
setting up of National Parks, but
so far nothing has been done in that
direction in Scotland.
Nevertheless, certain measures
have been taken in regard to wild
life conservation in both England
and Scotland, and in this report
under review specific and detailed
proposals are made.
It may be recalled that the
Scottish Committee on National
Parks recommended that within
the next ten to twenty years the
following five areas should be
developed as National Parks under
an ad hoc Commission: (1) Loch
Lomond - Trossachs; (2) Glen
Affric-Glen Cannich-Strath Farrar;
(3) Ben Nevis-Glencoe-Blackmount;
(4) The Cairngorms; (5) Loch
Torridon-Loch Maree-Little Loch
Broom.
This latest report recom¬
mends the setting up of "Nature
Reserves, ” of which there may be
four kinds:
(1) National Park Reserves—
selected areas w thin the National
Parks, where larger beasts and
birds and rarer plants may be
protected.
(2) National Nature Reserves,
for the study of plant and animal
communities—a study which would
provide knowledge of economic
value for agriculture, forestry, and
fisheries.
(3) Nature Conservation Areas,
such an area being a tract of country
which it is desirable to preserve in
its existing character because of the
beauty of its landscape or its
scientific value or both.
(4) Local Nature Reserves
which would aim at saving from
destruction or interference small
areas near towns and villages.
It is stressed that there is no
intention of "sterilising” the areas
proposed as "Reserves.” There
must, of course, be certain restric¬
tions and safeguards, but agri¬
culture and other occupations will
continue, and in some ways these
"Reserves” may even be of con¬
siderable economic value to local
communities.
Am fear a bhios air thoiseach
th6id a stobadh anns an fheith.
{He who goes first will get stuck in
the mud.)
Am fear a bhios air dheireadh
beiridh a’ bhiast air. {Him who is
last the beast will catch.)