Cymraeg

Merched Parchus – Blin, blêr a gwarthus

Published

6 years ago

April 1, 2019

SENGL am y tro cyntaf ers iddi gael boobs, a nôl ble oedd hi ddeng mlynedd yn ôl yn nhŷ ei rhieni – mae’r “ffeminydd wael” a’r awdures ddiog Carys yn methu, wir yn methu. Yr unig beth sydd wedi newid yw bod ganddi 2:1 a dim hymen.

Tra bod pawb o’i hamgylch yn llwyddo i gyflawni insta-perffeithrwydd, yr unig beth sy’n lleddfu tor-calon Carys yw podlediadau Americanaidd am lofruddiaethau graffig, sy’n ddihangfa lwyr o’i realiti llwm.

Mae’n benderfynol o ail-greu ei hun yn oedolyn go iawn, ond gyda llais mewnol Carys yn mynegi ei gwir deimladau, mae ei hobsesiwn tywyll yn creu ffantasiâu gwaedlyd tra’i bod hi’n brwydro ei hofnau, #lifegoals a’i hanallu i gymryd cyfrifoldeb am ei hapusrwydd ei hun.

Er ei bod yn dibynnu ar ei ffrindiau – Lowri, Dan a Siriol – a’i theulu i ddatrys ei holl broblemau, mae niwl y straeon trosedd a’i hobsesiwn â hi ei hun yn ei dallu hi i wir broblemau ei ffrindiau.

Byddwch yn barod i binjio Merched Parchus ar-lein ar ffurf Bocs Set am y tro cyntaf ar S4C ar wasanaeth S4C Clic ar yr 12 Ebrill ac yn wythnosol ar deledu traddodiadol o 19 Ebrill.

Cyfres ffraeth, onest a thywyll, crëwyd Merched Parchus a’i wireddu gan rai o dalentau newydd mwyaf cyffrous Cymru sef Hanna Jarman (o Gaerdydd) a Mari Beard (o Aberystwyth). Mae’r ddwy, sydd wedi ysgrifennu’r gyfres ac sydd yn chwarae’r ddwy brif gymeriad Carys (Hanna) a Lowri (Mari), yn hapus iawn bod y ddrama yn mynd i arwain y chwildro digidol ar S4C.

“Sgenai’m teledu, felly wi’n gwylio popeth ar laptop,” meddai Hanna. “A fi’n gwylio pethau ar fy ffôn mwy a mwy – pethau fel YouTube a Netflix. Ac mae’r genhedlaeth sydd yn dod ar ein hôl ni’n meddwl ‘live telly? Whaaat?’ dyn nhw ddim yn ei wylio fe o gwbl. I ni mae e’n gwneud gymaint o synnwyr. Fi’n rili falch mai ni yw’r cyntaf ar S4C i gael rhywbeth wedi darlledu ar-lein yn gyntaf.”

Mae pob pennod o Merched Parchus yn cynnwys ffantasi wedi’i ysbrydoli gan y podlediad y mae Carys yn gwrando arno. Mae’r troseddi erchyll yma yn treiddio mewn i realiti Carys ag yn adlewyrchu ei meddylfryd tywyll gyda chanlyniadau gwaedlyd ac weithiau brawychus.

Felly pam yr obsesiwn gyda’r podlediau trosedd?

“Mae Hanna a fi yn eitha’ obsessed gyda straeon am lofruddiaethau a “serial killers”. Mae hi’n naturiol i ni ysgrifennu am beth ydyn ni’n gwybod felly benderfynon ni ddefnyddio elfen o “true crime” yn y gyfres,” esboniodd Mari.

Mae Hanna’n cytuno. “Ro’n ni eisiau trafod y ffaith bod llofruddiaeth nawr yn cael ei hystyried yn adloniant a bod hyn ddim yn beth iachus. Hefyd o’n ni eisiau ceisio dod o hyd i ffordd i Carys osgoi ei realiti hi ac adlewyrchu ei hiselder hi.”

Mae dramâu sydd wedi cael ei ysgrifennu gan fenywod ar gyfer menywod yn mynd o nerth i nerth ar hyn o bryd ac mae Merched Parchus yn rhan o’r symudiad hwn.

Comisiynwyd Merched Parchus gan Gwawr Lloyd – comisiynydd drama S4C a’i chynhyrchu gan Gynyrchiadau ie ie, sy’n hybu gwaith gan fenywod ifanc yng Nghymru. Cyfansoddwyd y sgôr gan y cerddor rhyngwladol o Gaerfyrddin Cate Le Bon – y tro cyntaf i Cate gyfansoddi cerddoriaeth ar gyfer ffilm neu deledu.

Felly, oedd gweithio gyda thîm o fenywod yn brofiad da i Hanna a Mari?

“Un o’r rhesymau aethon at ie ie yn y lle cyntaf oedd ei hethos nhw. Ma Alice Lusher (Cynhyrchydd) a Catryn Ramasut (Uwch Gynhyrchydd) eisiau gweithio gyda’r talent benywaidd mwyaf blaenllaw yng Nghymru – roedd hynna’n bwysig iawn i ni,” meddai Mari.

Cymraeg

Welsh Language and Education Bill becomes law

Published

5 days ago

July 7, 2025

Tom Sinclair

New Act aims to ensure all pupils become confident Welsh speakers

LANDMARK legislation designed to give every child in Wales the opportunity to become a confident Welsh speaker has officially become law today (Monday, July 7).

The Welsh Language and Education (Wales) Act received Royal Assent this afternoon, marking a major step forward in the Welsh Government’s ambition to reach one million Welsh speakers by 2050.

The Act places a renewed emphasis on the role of the Welsh language in education, with the long-term goal of ensuring that all pupils attending maintained schools in Wales leave as independent Welsh language users.

Speaking at the Bill’s sealing ceremony, First Minister Eluned Morgan said: “The Welsh language belongs to us all. This Act builds on the excellent work already happening across Wales. It gives children and young people a better chance to become Welsh speakers, bringing us closer to our aim of one million Welsh speakers in Wales.”

The legislation sets out a clear framework to strengthen Welsh-medium education and embed the language more deeply across all school settings.

Cymraeg

New research finds strong trends towards Welsh language place names

Published

3 weeks ago

June 18, 2025

Tom Sinclair

RESEARCH on how property, street, and business names are changing across Wales shows a clear shift towards using Welsh language place names.

The report commissioned by the Welsh Government collected a wide range of valuable evidence, including:

Local authorities received three times more applications for Welsh language street names than English language names between 2018-2023.
Most changes to property names do not involve a change in the language of the property name.
When they do change language, properties are at least three more likely to be renamed from English to Welsh than from Welsh to English.
In all regions of Wales, more house names are changed from English to Welsh than Welsh to English.
People report that Welsh house names give them “a sense of pride, place or nostalgia”.
Welsh Language Secretary Mark Drakeford said: “Place names help tell the story of who we are as a nation, and this new research helps us understand our linguistic landscape. I’m encouraged to see more people embracing Welsh property names, regardless of their background.”

The research focused primarily on property names, business names, and street names, with the need for further investigation into names for topographical features in the natural environment also highlighted.

As part of the Welsh Government’s wider work to promote and celebrate Cymraeg and our culture, it has established a network of Cultural Ambassadors to support the language in their communities. The Cultural Ambassadors will be able to draw upon the List of Historic Place Names of Wales, which includes over 700,000 names and is funded by the Welsh Government.

Mark Drakeford said: “I’m proud to launch the gold level of our cultural ambassadors course, where people can learn more about the language and our culture online. The course includes modules on a range of topics including place names. If you want to support the Welsh language in your area, or know somebody who would be an ideal ambassador, then go for it.”

Cymraeg

Welsh Language Commissioner publishes bold manifesto ahead of 2026 election

Published

3 weeks ago

June 18, 2025

Tom Sinclair

Parties urged to adopt key Welsh language priorities

THE WELSH LANGUAGE COMMISSIONER, Efa Gruffudd Jones, has published an ambitious manifesto setting out five key priorities for the future of the Welsh language—calling on all political parties to adopt the proposals ahead of the Senedd Cymru elections in 2026.

While acknowledging the financial pressures faced by public bodies, the Commissioner has identified areas where meaningful progress can still be made in strengthening the use of the Welsh language during the next Senedd term.

The proposals include extending statutory Welsh language duties to more public services, creating a new specialist unit to promote the use of Welsh in the workplace, and ensuring mandatory language training for all education professionals.

“My ambition as Commissioner goes beyond a narrow interpretation of my statutory role,” said Ms Gruffudd Jones. “This manifesto calls for action and leadership from the Welsh Government—regardless of its political makeup—and for wider support to enable key partners, including my own office, to help make a lasting difference.”

She emphasised the critical timing of the manifesto, with the forthcoming implementation of the Welsh Language and Education Bill and the recommendations of the Commission for Welsh-speaking Communities set to shape the language landscape in Wales.

“I am fully aware of the pressures on our public bodies. That is why we are focusing on five clear, practical priorities which follow the path outlined in our strategic plan. I am confident these areas can deliver measurable improvements in the use of the Welsh language.”

The Commissioner’s office now intends to meet with political parties to present the proposals in more detail and press for their inclusion in party manifestos ahead of the election.

The five priorities are:

Language duties – Extend Welsh language standards to more public services to increase the availability of Welsh-medium provision.
Community language planning – Strengthen the promotion standards to support coordinated, place-based language planning in Welsh-speaking communities.
Workplaces – Create a dedicated unit within the Commissioner’s office to support and increase the use of Welsh in the workplace.
Health and clinical care – Improve access to Welsh-language clinical care through targeted investment and policy intervention.
Education workforce – Introduce a five-year compulsory Welsh language training framework for all teachers and education staff in Wales.

The full manifesto is available to view via the attached document. Please note the embargo details contained within.