Every single word makes a difference (or why learners matter)

Aran Jones Author, SaySomethingIn

We can all see that it makes a huge difference when a famous person learns Welsh.

They inspire other people, they help create a more positive attitude to the language, they give it a bit of buzz.

Scott Quinnell’s programme ‘Cais Quinnell’ on S4C (where they make him do a whole bunch of crazy things), 24 Hours That Changed Wales by Richard Parks (coming soon on S4C), Aleighcia Scott on Y Llais and Radio Cymru – there are all brilliant contributions that encourage more people to give it a go with Welsh.

When you’re dragging yourself through the rain and the dark to an evening class in Welsh, or slogging away at an online course when all you want to do is put your feet up and switch your brain off, it’s easy to feel that you don’t matter as much as the folks on the TV.

It’s also completely wrong.

In fact, it’s the other way round.

What they do only matters because of you.

Yes, I know that sounds a bit counter-intuitive, but it’s really just about numbers.

Ripple effect

Let’s say someone famous goes on TV and says something positive about learning Welsh. Let’s say they inspire a thousand people to learn Welsh.

Let’s say those thousand people all keep learning, and using their Welsh, and they themselves inspire one new person each month to give it a go. That’s starting to look pretty exciting. Bilingual Wales, here we come!

On the other hand, let’s say the famous person inspires a thousand people to learn Welsh. Now let’s say those thousand people all find out it’s a bit hard. So they give up, and they feel bad about themselves, and then they try to put it out of their mind. That’s not looking quite so promising.

Two imaginary situations. Exactly the same contribution from the famous person. Two completely different results.

What ordinary people do is what makes the real difference.

Change

Don’t worry, though. I’m not trying to make you responsible for saving the language. My whole point is that it doesn’t work like that.

You don’t have to become a fluent speaker, learn to write award-winning poetry, get spotted by a talent scout for a new programme on S4C which then becomes a global breakout and gets you invited to parties in Korea. That would just put us right back where we started.

In fact, you don’t even need to learn any Welsh.

(Bear with me, I’m not a fifth columnist, honest).

All you have to do is say something positive about the language to someone else every week. Or even every month, I suppose, but weekly habits get stronger faster.

They say that if 3.5% of a society decide they want change, that change will come. If 3.5% of the people in Wales said something positive about the language every week, change would come.

Now imagine going a step further.

Imagine that instead of saying something positive about the language, you actually use the word ‘Diolch’.

Just like Grav used to do at the end of every single interview he ever did, whether or not the other person even came from Wales.

And while we’re pushing the boat out, let’s imagine that you don’t just say ‘Diolch’ once a week – you say it every time you need to say thanks.

Imagine how quickly that would become normal. Imagine what change it would drive.

Just one word.

So now, if you’re already learning Welsh – if instead of using one word, you’re learning several new words every week, and you’re trying to use them when you get the chance – and you’re saying ‘Diolch’ instead of thanks all the time, and you’re saying something positive about the language every week…

Don’t you realise that’s what the hero looks like?

You’re already playing the main role. Enough people like you, and our children’s children will wonder why we were ever worried about the future of the language.

What matters

If you’re not already learning Welsh, it would obviously make a difference if you started – but it will also make a difference if you just start saying ‘diolch’ whenever you can.

And that doesn’t take hours hunched over a laptop or hauling yourself into a classroom.

This isn’t just a thought experiment, by the way. I’ve just witnessed it in real life.

Last week, we finished filming for Richard Parks’s ‘24 Hours That Changed Wales’. He worked his arse off, and he’s made a serious contribution, and I’m incredibly proud of him.

What I’ve been happiest to see, though, hasn’t been him doing the ‘famous person supporting the language’ thing.

It’s been seeing ordinary bloke Rich start using a few words of Welsh with his son every day, and using a few words of Welsh with everyone he meets who speaks Welsh, and with plenty of people who don’t.

That’s what really matters.

Ordinary people saying things in Welsh.

Every single word you say in Welsh makes a bilingual Wales more real. Obviously, there’s only one thing I can say to you about that:

Diolch.

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