CENTENARY OF THE CORNISH LANGUAGE.

Kumara Times, Issue 445, 28 February 1878, Page 2

CENTENARY OF THE CORNISH LANGUAGE.

The centenary of the old Cornish language was held recently at St. Paul, near Penzance, the parish in which' the old Celtic language of Cornwall died out. The occasion was a singular one, and as there are many Cornish miners about Kumara some-details may be interesting to them. The Cornish is almost the only European language which has died out in modern times, and the date of the disuse of which as a vernacular can be approximately fixed. The only part of Europe, probably, in which a similar centenary might be held would be in the interior of Russia, where certain Finnic languages have yielded before the modern Russian in recent times. The Cornish, on ,the other hand, is J an Aryan language which the Cornish people gave up voluntarily in exchange for English. : The interest in the centenary oil the spot was very great, and j more than double the mindier of persons applied for tickets than tho promoters had anticipated. A large portion of these were Mousehole fishermen j or farmers, showing the interest generally taken by all classes in the subject, Tho proceedings commenced with a Cornish tea in the National Schoolroom at Paul Churcbtown. At the meeting which followed, Mr W. C. Borlase, the authpr< of “ Nemice Cornuhiensfs,” and a ; descendant of Dr. Borlase, the Cornish, antiquary, presided. In his introductory address he briefly explained the early history of the country, mid how the ancient Britons were driven by the Saxons to Wales proper and West Wales, or Cornwall, carrying with them their ancient language. Of the Cornish language no literary relics prior to the twelfth century had been yet found, ■ although the Welsh literature was very rich from an early date.- The date of their centenary ’was ’selected, because on December 17, 1777, the last person known to have spoken Cornish, was buried at the churchyard of Paul, The President then read • letters expressing interest in the subject from the Lord Lieutenant (the Earl of Mount-Edgcum.be), the Bishop of Truro, Sir J. St. Aubyn, M.P., and others. The Rev. W. S. La ck-Szy rin a, vicar of Newlyn St. Peter, a part of bid St, Paul Parish, then followed with an explanation of the pbsitioh of the Cornish in the Aryan family of languages. He said the European languages were like a chain of which Cornish was one link, and that link was; of great interest to philologists. The integral unity of the ' European languages was shown amples, pf; the commonest words—e,g, the number three, ‘‘father,” ‘‘mother,” «fec. The Cornish language belonged to the Celtic division, and was nearest to the Breton and Welsh, and like the Irish, the Manx, and the Gaelic* A number of local words were then given (still in use,) with their Welsh and Breton congeners and connection ~in other Aryan languages. Mr Victor, of Mousehole, followed and gave some sentences, which he recollected hearing from childhood. One was (as written in Mr Ellis’s Glossic mode) ‘f Paji kulaa tn vee no polee-un dn nioi pnaa-y.” He also gave the numerals (according to tradition) up to twenty (igans) Mr Kelynack, an aged ’ man, Newlyn, "also gave the fisherraaiji’s “jßreeul meta. x tro6ja bizwa'nShu perapef whether all isserowed all along the line, oh !’ Brealis mapkerel (Welsh biiih, Breton brir), the otter 'Obrmeh

’words merely tlie 'ordinals. Mr Pentreath, of Mousehole, also made some ’remarks on local words. The proceedings were -enlivened during the tea by the local band, and between the speeches with old Cornish carols and the song Shall Trelawny Die 't” in the chorus <of which the audience heartily joined, and concluded, after the usual votes of thanks, with “ God save the Queen.,’