Cardiff Book Festival

Sgwrs Gyda Ifor ap Glyn

I enjoyed the opportunity to  talk in person with Wales’ National Poet, Ifor ap Glyn at the Cardiff Book Festival. We discussed the importance of bilingualism, how we have worked together translating his work, and we shared some of our poetry in Welsh and English.

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Ifor and I first met in Washington at the Smithsonian Smithsonian Folklife Festival in 2009. What struck me was how many Americans came to hear the Welsh language poets, and did so time after time, the language no barrier. Ifor and I discussed our hopes that this will happen in Wales. At our Welsh language session there were several non-Welsh speakers and learners. Promising.

Thanks to Louise Walsh, Samuel Stone and Literature Wales for the pictures.