Starting Out - Welsh Beginner Award Winner

“Immerse yourself in the richness of the Welsh language – the experience will change your life.”  

Daniel Minty has experienced a cultural transformation since starting to learn Welsh in 2022. Daniel, who lives in Cardiff, has gone from knowing only a few words of Welsh to speaking the language eight hours a day, five days a week as Menter Iaith Casnewydd’s Community Development Officer.  

He describes securing the job this year as one of the “biggest successes of my life”.  

“After learning Welsh for 18 months, I now work through the medium of Welsh, helping communities in the area to use the language outside the classroom,” he said. “This is one of the biggest cultural changes in my life. I am so grateful for this and want to help others to do the same thing as me.”  

Brought up in the Rhymney Valley, Daniel was proud to be Welsh but rarely heard the language being spoken in the community or in the schools he attended.  

Volunteering at Sŵn Festival in Cardiff in 2014 and listening to Welsh language music rekindled his interest. He created a website called Minty’s Gig Guide to promote Welsh-language gigs across South Wales and ran a series of successful campaigns.  

He has presented with Bethan Elfyn on BBC Radio Wales, having previously worked for the corporation as a broadcast assistant.  

Daniel enrolled on a Welsh language Entry course in September 2022 and hasn’t looked back. He achieved the Foundation qualification, is working towards Intermediate level and plans to progress to Advanced level.  

He says he’s “greatly indebted” to his tutors Elin Prys Davies and Meilyr ap Ifan at Learn Welsh Cardiff and Nigel Rees at Coleg Sir Gâr for their encouragement and passion for the language.  

Keen to share his own passion for Welsh, he has helped other learners by organising informal chat and reading groups and even inspired his sister and brother-in-law to learn the language.  

It was Elin who encouraged Daniel to apply for a job with Menter Iaith Casnewydd and nominated him for the award.  

“Undoubtedly, learning Welsh has transformed Daniel’s life,” she said. “He’s an energetic individual who inspires everyone around him to learn Welsh. His enthusiasm is infectious. His aim is to promote, encourage and inspire the residents of Newport to learn Welsh, use the language skills they have and, more than anything, to delight in the language and enjoy speaking it.” 

Nominated by:
Learn Welsh Cardiff

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