Yr Hwiangerddi

Owen Morgan EdwardsProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.1

Word count: 55K words
Chapters: 6

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Yr Hwiangerddi by Sir Owen Morgan EdwardsAuthor: Edwards, Owen Morgan, Sir, 1858-1920,Language: Welsh, Class: PZ: Language and Literatures: Juvenile belles lettres, Release Date: May 1, 2005

Editor's review

This collection of Welsh nursery rhymes compiled by Sir Owen Morgan Edwards is a small window into Welsh oral folk tradition. It gathers verse made for children to chant and sing; the language is simple, the rhythm strong, and the natural cadence of Welsh as passed down in folk tradition is preserved. As a public-domain ebook, its value lies not in a particularly refined edition but in giving readers low-threshold access to primary material from late-nineteenth- to early-twentieth-century Welsh children's literature. The texts are well suited for experiencing the phonetic beauty of Welsh and can also serve as a reference for folklorists and linguists checking early nursery-rhyme texts. There is no need to read it straight through; open to any rhyme and read it aloud to better appreciate its song-like quality. For readers unfamiliar with Welsh, it can be an enjoyable supplement to language learning, best used alongside a dictionary and notes.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in the Welsh language and folk literature
Scholars and students engaged in children's literature or folklore research
Language learners who want to use nursery rhymes as an aid to beginning Welsh

Not a good fit for

Readers with no knowledge of Welsh who are unwilling to use reference tools
Parents expecting a modern illustrated picture book or a parent-child reading edition

Reading tips

Start with short nursery rhymes and read them aloud to feel the rhythm and rhyme; there is no need to check every word.
Read alongside a Welsh dictionary and make flashcards of words that recur.
Read with a Welsh-speaking friend or language partner and correct each other's pronunciation.
Use it as a reference book, excerpting rhymes by theme or rhythmic features.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Can I read this book without knowing Welsh?

You can browse it, but the gain will be limited. The main text is in Welsh with no facing translation, so readers who do not know the language will need a dictionary or translation tool to understand the content. If you only want a sense of the layout and the form of the rhymes, browsing is fine; if you want to truly understand it, basic Welsh is advisable first.

Is this book suitable for reading to children?

The texts themselves are nursery rhymes, but this is a public-domain ebook prepared for adults, with no illustrations, pronunciation guides, or introduction, so it is not convenient to use directly with young children. It is better for parents or teachers to read and select from it first, then turn it into oral recitation or explanation as source material for parent-child activities.

What is the reading experience of the electronic edition like?

As a Project Gutenberg public-domain ebook, it is mainly plain text, convenient for searching and copying, but lacking carefully proofread notes and layout design. It is suitable for consulting on a computer or e-reader, and can be copied directly for textual analysis; for a collectible or close-reading edition, a print edition should be sought elsewhere.

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About the author

Owen Morgan Edwards Author · Welsh · 1858–1920

Sir Owen Morgan Edwards (1858–1920) was a Welsh writer, historian and educationalist. He taught modern history at Lincoln College, Oxford, and in 1907 became the first Chief Inspector of Schools in Wales. Edwards was active in the Welsh literary revival, founding and editing periodicals such as Cymru and reprinting Welsh classics, doing much to preserve and spread the country's culture. His writings, aimed at general readers, are clear and plain in style and cover subjects including history, culture and language. His representative works include A Short History of Wales, Cartrefi Cymru, Yr Hwiangerddi and Geiriadur Cymraeg a Saesneg Byr, and four of his works are held in this collection. He was knighted in 1916 for his contributions to culture and education.