Online Radio: The P-Celtic Languages

As with the studying Q-Celtic languages, actually being able to listen and understand your chosen language is not an easy skill for those of us not exposed to the language regularly. This is an inherent problem with Celtic languages since there are few places in the world where the languages are actually strong, so even if you are in Wales and studying Welsh, you probably don't get enough exposure. Fortunately the Internet does offer some options for both Welsh and Breton learners, though it does appear that Cornish learners are left out at this stage. Not surprisingly, the BBC has a good Welsh language site, but no Cornish site. In Brittany, it appears that Radio Kerne is the primary Breton language broadcaster with an online presence. Welsh is also represented by Radio Acen, which is geared specifically towards learners.

Welsh

Radio Cymru

The BBC Welsh language site provides links to Rhaglenni Radio Cymru. To listen to live radio, you can click on the link 'Yn Fyw' ('live') or the speaker graphic next to it, which is situated on the left side of the page. This will open up the audio file. Alternatively, you can click on the link 'Radio Cymru', which is amongst the links situated on the left side of the page. This takes you to the main page for Radio Cymru. If you want to listen live, you can do so from this page, too. Click on the link 'Yn Fyw', which is on the right side of the page, near the top. You can also view the schedule of programs on the radio station by clicking on the link 'Amser y rhaglenni' ('time of programs'), just under 'Yn Fyw'. You can view today's, yesterday's ('ddoe') and tomorrow's ('fory') schedule.

Radio Acen

Radio Acen is a new radio station that is particularly interesting because it specifically targets Welsh learners. To listen to the radio, click on either 'now playing' or 'listen' on the menu to the right. From the Now Playing page, clicking on 'Listen >>' near the top of the page will open Real Player and start the music. The words to the song are shown in both Welsh and English, although you have to hit the Refresh (or Reload) button on your browser to see them. Clicking on 'listen' on the main page will simply open up Real Player and start the music, without bringing up the page with the words.

As this site is geared towards learners, there are some other options. Acen is actually associated with a trust set up to support Welsh, so is non-profit. They sell products for learners and have a scheme whereby self-taught learners can pass assessments and gain "credit", which comes in the form of discounts on further products purchased. For information on this scheme (which is scheduled to begin officially on April 1), click on 'assessment centre', and then 'How the system works'.

The Radio Acen site just started up in January, and will be under continual development for at least two years. There are specific plans to add documentaries and special interest features to the music and audio lessons already on the site.

Breton

Radio Kerne

Radio Kerne operates entirely in Breton. There does not appear to be a way of listening live, but there are several archived files of broadcasts on the An Tour Tan website. From the main page, click on 'RUBRIQUE RADIO KERNE', where there is a good collection of files, although they are all pretty short. This page is bilingual (Breton and French), and clicking on 'CLIQUEZ ICI - KLIKIT AMAÑ' opens up a separate window that has the title of the program, a link to close the window ('fermer cette fenêtre') and a list of up to three dates under 'Choissez la date l'émission' ('choose the broadcast date'). Click on one of these dates, and it will load a new page which again has the program title, along with the duration, subject and writer of the program. And if you click on the 'écouter - selau' link at the top of the window, the Real Player window will open up and start the program. There are programs about the Breton language ('Rear Teñzor brezhoneg'), Breton culture ('Skeud an amzer' and 'An dioskouarn O nijal') and a few for children.

Others

The Breton Language FAQ has information about Breton broadcasts on radio and TV in Brittany. It is always worth checking there to see if any of the radio stations have added online archives. Or, if you are in Brittany, this will tell you how to listen there.

Cornish

I could not find any online radio transmissions of Cornish. BBC Radio Cornwall has a five minute segment of news in Cornish on Sundays at 7pm (GMT), but it does not appear that you can listen to this (there is no link to archives of this program, and no link on the main site to listen live). However, if you care about this, maybe you could write a letter to get them to make it accessible!