Celebrating Our Language – Mudiadau Dathlu’r Gymraeg wish to thank communities across the length and breadth of Wales for their enthusiasm which ensured the success of the first ever Diwrnod Shwmae Su’mae Day on October 15th. In a truly grassroots campaign, the creativity shown by communities all over Wales was an inspiration.
It is estimated around 150 activities as part of the day.
Mentrau Iaith (Welsh Language Initiatives), schools and community groups across the country took part in promoting the day. One of those areas was Bridgend, where Menter Bro Ogwr organised a stall in the middle of town providing entertainment and various activities, while Siop yr Hen Bont Bookshop offered a prize to the 50th customer to greet the shopkeeper with ‘Shwmae!’.
Marged Elin Thomas from Menter Bro Ogwr posted on the campaign’s Facebook page, “Since Menter Bro Ogwr participated in the campaign, more non-Welsh speaking customers at Siop yr Hen Bont now greet us with Shwmae! ”
The response from schools across the country was tremendous, with pupils and staff alike getting in to the spirit of the day. Glenn Wall from Blaenau Gwent remarked on Facebook, “Everyone at school enjoyed Diwrnod Shwmae Su’mae Day today. There will be a page devoted to it in the Winter edition of the school’s magazine. Looking forward to next year already!”
One remarkable feature of the campaign was the amazing presence it generated on social media, with statistics showing 1,046 individuals having tweeted 1,598 times during the day reaching approximately 674,699 accounts.
Huw Marshall,S4C Digital Manager said, “The level of traffic, especially in the morning, was significant. It has definitely been one of the most successful Welsh medium social media campaigns and highlights the importance of similar media in terms of the language. I’m pretty sure that with further awareness of the campaign in 2014, these figures will see a further growth.”
Said Catrin Dafydd on behalf of Celebrating Our Language – Mudiadau Dathlu’r Gymraeg, “We are very proud at having been able to help support the communities of Wales celebrate the Welsh language through this campaign. As a truly grassroots project, it gave people full ownership of communicating their identity in fun and imaginative ways, proving that the Welsh language belongs to us all. The way in which it ignited people’s imagination reflects the genuine goodwill which exists within our communities towards the Welsh language. What is truly remarkable is that there was no funding or sponsorship driving the campaign, only the enthusiasm and creativity of the people of Wales. Channeling its legacy and maintaining the momentum is now crucial. This only marks the beginning of the journey. We hope that it leads to us all using more Welsh in our daily lives, until Diwrnod Shwmae Su’mae Day turns in to a Shwmae Su’mae Year, creating a situation where more people live their lives through the medium of Welsh or utilise whatever Welsh language skills they possess.”