Tonight was Gwerin Y Coed We talked about St Davids Day. and painted some leeks, and Welsh Dragons. We also Found out about the anglisizing (sp?) of the daff, for the symbolism of Wales.
The emblem of Wales is the leek, arising from an occasion when a troop of Welsh were unable to distinguish each other from a troop of the English enemy dressed in similar fashion. They pulled up handfuls of coarse grass, with its white roots and green leaves, and stuffed them in their caps (in much the same way as the Plantagenets adopted the broom - plante a genet - as their badge and emblem.) The grass became stylised into a leek - the same shape and colour but bigger - and adopted as the badge of the Welsh.
An alternative emblem developed in recent years is the daffodil, which looks similar to a leek until it flowers, and was preferred by the English government as it did not have the same military and nationalistic associations as the leek.
We are working towards a couple of badges at the moment, and one of the things is trying to learn some new songs, so first things first.. we are learning the Welsh words for :
Link your hands together
Link your hands together, A circle we’ll make,
This bond of our friendship, No power can break,
Lets all sing together, In one mighty throng,
If any be weary, We’ll help them along,
If any be weary, We’ll help them along.
Daliwn ddwylo’n gilydd, Yn gylch ar y cyd,
I uno cyfeillion, Mewn hyfryd o fyd,
Gadewch i ni ganu, Yn llawen a chryf,
A sawl sydd yn blino, Rhown gymorth i chi,
A sawl sydd yn blino, Rhown gymorth i chi,
Popularity: 33% [?]
