Darlith Flynyddol y Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol 2015: Y Wladfa 1865-2015 - Dathlu Beth? gan Elvey MacDonald. Traddodwyd y ddarlith yn Eisteddfod Genedlaethol Maldwyn a'r Gororau ar ddydd Mawrth 5 Awst 2015.

Darlith Flynyddol y Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol 2017: 'Tros bedair gwaith o gwmpas y byd': Teithiau a Gweithiau William Williams, Pantycelyn, gan Eryn White, Prifysgol Aberystwyth. Traddodwyd y ddarlith yn Eisteddfod Genedlaethol Môn ar ddydd Mawrth 8 Awst 2017.

Darlith Flynyddol y Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol 2018: Cymru, Ymfudo a'r Cymry Tramor Rhwng y Rhyfeloedd Byd, gan Bill Jones, Prifysgol Caerdydd.

Darlith Flynyddol y Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol 2019: Teulu Wynniaid Gwedir, gan John Gwynfor Jones.

The rules determining the forms of nouns and adjectives after numerals and the associated initial-consonant mutations in Middle Welsh are often puzzling to Modern Welsh readers of the language. This article sketches the rules and provides a synchronic account of them. It is shown that they are based on a coherent system where number (singular, dual, numerative, plural) is central. The linguistic changes that have occurred since then are documented in detail and dated using textual evidence. It is argued that these changes can best be understood as steps along a pathway towards a new, equally coherent system where all numeral phrases are treated as singular, and gender rather than number determines both form and mutations.

This paper offers a brief examination of the approach taken by the Welsh Language Board, as the principal language policy and planning body in Wales, to aspects of prestige planning and the Welsh language. It describes how devolution, and the recent, first ever, national review by the Welsh Assembly Government of Welsh language policy, provide the immediate context for the work of the Welsh Language Board. The key policy document resulting from that review, Iaith Pawb, is critically analysed and the relationship to it of prestige planning is identified. The Welsh Language Board’s practice of prestige planning is discussed in relation to the discourses of neo-liberalism and post-colonialism in a way that highlights the Board’s focus on consumers rather than citizens.

In order to examine new potential markets for printed electronics, a research study was undertaken to understand the performance of opaque substrate electroluminescent (EL) lamps. Opaque EL lamps are made possible by a PEDOT:PSS top electrode which replaces the ITO used in the conventional lamps. Screen-printed lamps were manufactured on four substrates (one plastic and three paper) and their performance was measured through brightness measurement. Generally, opaque substrate lamps were 50% less bright than a comparable ITO lamp. Further reductions in brightness were observed with the lighter and rougher papers. Additional layers of PEDOT:PSS increased sheet conductivity but reduced lamp brightness due to a reduction in layer transparency. As lamp size increased, the resistive nature of the PEDOT:PSS caused a significant reduction in lamp output, with a brightness of 25% of a comparable ITO lamp with an illuminated area of 5000 mm2. The relatively poor performance of the opaque lamps is derived not only from the reduced conductivity and transparency of the PEDOT:PSS compared to ITO, but is also caused by the topological nature of the phosphor particles which result in some phosphor material lying outside the electric field created between the two electrodes.

Strengthening and revitalising democracy was a common rationale for establishing regional goverment in Spain and the United Kingdom. In this context, this article aims to assess the impact of regional government on the relationship between civil society and devolved government in Wales and in Catalonia. Based on case studies, the extent to which regional government structures promote civil society participation is assessed and regional government’s impact on the identity of civil society is analysed. Despite the differences, in both cases regional goverments undertook ‘top-down’ efforts to build civil society and the latter has contributed to the Catalan and Welsh nation-building projects. The findings draw attention to the potentially negative democratic implications arising from regional government and civil society relations and the effects of broader political culture.

Research on the acquisition of grammatical gender has shown that in many languages children gain an early command of gender. Often in these languages gender marking is quite overt and provides a clear one-to-one correspondence between a marker and the gender encoded. In Welsh, however, gender marking is more complex. It is marked by mutations, a set of morpho-phonological changes that affect the initial consonants of words, and the mapping between mutation and gender is quite opaque.  Two mutation types are used to mark feminine gender: both feminine nouns modified by the definite article and adjectives following feminine nouns undergo soft mutation, and the feminine gender of the possessive adjective ‘ei’ is marked by aspirate mutation of the modified noun. This paper presents two studies that examine children’s and adults’ productive command of gender as expressed in the mutation of nouns modified by the definite article, and adjectives modifying nouns. Children, between the ages of 4½ and 9 years old, and adults were invited to take part in the studies. First, a semi-naturalistic study was conducted to obtain knowledge about speakers’ usage of gender marking. A Cloze procedure was then used to elicit speakers’ production of masculine and feminine forms, with both real words and nonsense forms, in a variety of linguistic contexts. Some of these contexts provided cues to gender status, some did not. The data obtained indicated that the acquisition of the Welsh gender system is a long drawn-out process, and children have not mastered the system even by 9 years of age. Welsh speakers, even in adulthood, pay little or no attention to the possible cues present in the input. Results suggest that when a language has a complex gender system that is marked by opaque morpho-phonological processes the course of development is protracted and variable.  

Cofnodion yn ymwneud â cherddoriaeth Gymraeg a Chymreig. Mae'r cofnodion yn deillio o'r Cydymaith i Gerddoriaeth Cymru (gol. Pwyll ap Siôn a Wyn Thomas), cyfeirlyfr awdurdodol sydd yn cwmpasu holl gyfoeth cerddoriaeth yng Nghymru o’r 6ed Ganrif hyd at y presennol. Ffrwyth prosiect cydweithredol rhwng Ysgol Cerddoriaeth a’r Cyfryngau ym Mhrifysgol Bangor a’r Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol yw’r Cydymaith i Gerddoriaeth Cymru. Cyhoeddir Cydymaith i Gerddoriaeth Cymru ar ffurf llyfr clawr caled gan wasg Y Lolfa, Talybont gyda chefnogaeth a chymorth ariannol Y Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol.

Gwybodaeth drylwyr am dair drama allweddol: Siwan gan Saunders Lewis Tair gan Meic Povey Tŷ ar y Tywod gan Gwenlyn Parry

The rapidly ageing population has been identified as a major global challenge; within Wales there is a growing imbalance in the age-profiles of rural communities in particular. The demands of providing appropriate healthcare for a changing population are exacerbated by lifestyle changes associated with ageing, specifically low levels of physical activity, reduced exposure to the sun and compromised ability to synthesise vitamin D. This report focuses on two important health outcomes affected by these changes that are of increasing concern within Wales: diabetes (DM2: diabetes mellitus type 2) and falls incidence. The article critically reviews the evidence base pertaining to the relationships between physical activity, vitamin D, and both the pathogenesis of DM2 and falls incidence. Current interventions are discussed and a series of recommendations for service delivery within Wales’ rural communities are presented. We argue that there is a clear role for targeting these modifiable lifestyle factors in reducing the prevalence and severity of falls and diabetes, two growing areas of social and economic concern within Wales.