2026 Day 67

 2026 Dedh Trei Ügens ha Seyth

De Sül, ethves mis Meurh
Sunday, 8th March

Ow whei parrys rag descans story moy?

Are you ready for another history lesson?

Otta nebes geryow moy (radnow nebes gwersow) scrifys gen John Boson en mil seyth cans ha pemp.
Here are some more words (parts of several verses) written by John Boson in 1705,

"Kawall ha Try Cans Hern" = a basket and 300 pilchards
"gweel Barcadoes en Kenifer Choy" = to make 'bulks' in each building (barcada is Portuguese for as much as a ship can carry, i.e. a boat-load)
"Holan moy" = more salt
"Salles da, idden Mees worbar" = well salted, one month together
"Squatcha man" =  break up
"Goula glaneth en dour sal" =  wash clean in salty water (sea water)
"en Ballier, Pedden ha Teen" = in a barrel, head to tail
"Minow pemp canz pooz" = 5 hundredweight rocks
"hanter mees" = half a month, a fortnight
"saim vedn cotha" = grease/oil wil fall out
"Gorollion toas" = ships come
"ort Dour Gwavas" = at Gwavas Lake (a sheltered anchorage in Mounts Bay)
"Gwenz Noor East" = a NE wind (wind from the north-east, blowing south-west towards Portugal)
"an Poble pow tooben" = people in a hot country (Portugal and Italy were obviously hot compared to Cornwall!)

Tabm ha tabm, my a wra dysmygya! 

Bit by bit, I will explain!

Tüs an puskes en cokow a gemeras hern gen roos ha 'ga drei dhe'n treth. Lies benyn, gen cawel war geyn, a guntellas an hern, trei cans pesk a'n venyn, ha'n gemeras dhe'n palysys e'n porth - 'barcada' pesk en keniver chei, war an leur gen holan. Terweythyow thera othom a "holan moy". An pesk o sallys da rag üdn mis warbarth (gen badna oyl cuntellys rag lugern). Nenna an bernow a veu sqwachys emann rag gòlhy an puskes glânyth en dowr sal (dhort an mor). An hern a veu gòrrys en balyers, pedn ha tin. Anjei o gweskys hanter mis gen menow pur vrâs. Saim a godhas mes a'n balyers - comodita a-bris dhe vos gwerthys. Pernoryon rag an pesk sallys a dheuth a-dhia bell, en gorholyon-gòlyow dhort powyow Catholik tòbm, Italy ha Portugal! Anjei a wòrtas en Dowr Gwavas rag gwens vas dh'aga whetha tre arta.

An benenes a wrüg gwertha an pesk ewedh. Ha degedhow casys o kemerys.

Fishermen in fishing boats caught pilchards with a net and brought them to the beach. Many women, with big basket on back, collected the pilchards, three hundred fish a woman, and took them to the fish 'palaces' in the port - a boat-load of fish in each building, on the floor with salt. Sometimes they needed "more salt". The fish was well cured for a month altogether (with some oil collected for lamps). Then the heaps were broken up to wash the fishes clean in salty water (from the sea). The pilchards were put into barrels, head to tail. They were compressed for a fortnight by very heavy stones. Grease fell out of the barrels - a valuable commodity to be sold. Buyers for the cured fish came from afar, in sailing ships from "hot" Catholic countries Italy and Portugal! They waited in Gwavas Lake for a good wind to blow them home again.

The women sold the fish as well. And hated tithes were taken.

2026 Day 66

 2026 Dedh Trei Ügens ha Whegh

De Sadorn, seythves mis Meurh

Saturday, 7th March

John Boson, Kernow genys en Pluw Powl e'n vledhen mil whegh cans dogens ha pemdhek, o mab Nicholas Boson. Ev a dhescas an tavas Kernôwek dhort y sira - hag ev a dhescas William Gwavas y hònan. E'n vledhen y genesegeth nag era metêrn. Metêrn Charles a veu dibednys ha thera Oliver Cromwell ha Puritans ow routya. Termyn calish o rag an Eglos Catholik ha'n Eglos Anglican. Degedhow o nekevys. Wòja nebes bledhydnyow meternow ha meternesow a veu dewhelys. Rag fra o hedna dhe les dhe'n düs Kernow? Otta Metêrnes Anne en seytek cans ha dew! Deg bledhen yonca o hei avel John Boson. Thera whans dhedhy a scodhya Eglos Pow an Sowson - gen mòna dhort degedhow - henwys "Dadder Metêrnes Anne". Nag o hedna meurgerys gen tiogow ha tüs an puskes. 

En "Reem an Parra Hern" ma John Boson ow scrifa: "Tees Por Dega dega Creea" (ma tüs an porth ow creia 'dega dega').

Lebmyn tüs a res rei anvodh aga degedhow.

John Boson, a Cornishman born in Paul Parish in the year 1655, was a son of Nicholas Boson. He learnt the Cornish language from his father - and he taught William Gwavas himself. In the year of his birth there was no king. King Charles I had been beheaded and Oliver Cromwell and the Puritans were in charge. It was a hard time for Catholic and Anglican churches. Tithes were forgotten. After a few years kings and queens were returned. Why was that of interest to the people of Cornwall? Behold Queen Anne in 1702! She was ten years younger than John Boson. She wanted to support the Church of England - with income (money received) from tithes - called "Queen Anne's Bounty". That was not popular with farmers or fisher folk. 

In "A Rhyme of Preparing Pilchards" John Boson writes: "People of the port cry 'tithe tithe'".

Now people must unwillingly give their tithes.

Gerva rag hedhyw Vocabulary for today

anvodh unwilling

dadder (m) bounty

degedhow tithes < dega (m)

dibedna to behead > (va) dibednys

genesegeth ~ genejegeth (m) birth (SWFM genesigeth)

genys born

meurgerys popular

mòna degemerys (m) income

nakevys forgotten < nakevy ~ ankevy 

routya to be in charge, be in control

scodhya to support

tiogow farmers < tiek (m)

tüs an puskes fisher folk

2026 Day 65

2026 Dedh Trei Ügens ha Pemp
 

De Gwener, wheffes mis Meurh
Friday, 6th March

Pur wenjek o an nos, ha lebmyn ma lies lôst on war an glesin. A vedh lies knofen goll e'n kidnyadh? Da ew genam know coll saw, dres lycklod, anjei a vedh debrys gen gwyweres. Na ellam gweles an flourys benow rüdh war an wedhen, re vian ens. Gwell ew genam mires orth ow brially war an mena. Nag ew pup tra teg. Shyndys  'veu ow crow gen oll an hager awel ha nebes taclow ew gossenys. Lies tra ew gleb ha pyndy.   

The night was very windy, and now there are many catkins (lambs tails) on the lawn. Will there be lots of hazelnuts in the autumn? I like hazelnuts but, probably, they will be eaten by squirrels. I can't see the red female flowers on the tree, they're too small. I prefer to look at my primroses on the hillside. Not everything is beautiful. My shed was damaged by all the bad weather and some things have gone rusty. A lot of things are wet and mouldy.

Gerva rag hedhyw Vocabulary for today

benow feminine < benyn (f) woman

brially primroses < briallen (f)

crow (m) shed

glesin (m) lawn

gosseny to rust, go rusty > va. gossenys

gwenjek windy > pur wenjek

gwyweres squirrels < gwywer (m)

kidnyadh (m) autumn

know coll hazelnuts < knofen goll (f)

lôst on (m) hazel catkin (lamb's tail)

mena (m) hillside

pyndy mouldy

shyndys damaged

2026 Day 64

2026 Dedh Trei Ügens ha Pajar

De Yow, pempes mis Meurh
Thursday, 5th March

Degol Peran lôwen dhe whei oll. Nag ew an gewer pur dha hedhyw - nag ew da rag procecyons. Glaw a wra. Na aljama mos en Truru hedhyw, saw da via genam gweles an rolyer eth gwir henwys Cita Truru! Patron ew hebma.

Happy St Piran's Day to you all. The weather is not very good today - it's not good for processions. It rains. I couldn't go into Truro today, though I'd like to see the real steamroller called the City of Truro! This is a model.

2026 Day 63

2026 Dedh Trei Ügens ha Trei

De Merher, pajwora mis Meurh
Wednesday, 4th March

Ero whei ow qweles pictours en cloudys? Lies gweyth en gwav thew an eborn gorherys en tien ha nag ewa bes loos. Hedhyw, radn an eborn o cler ha blou, bes tûa'n west thera cloudys bian, pecar'a para deves. Mons ow trei co dhebm a neppeth. Ewa cawlvleujen?

Do you see pictures in clouds? Often in winter the sky is completely overcast and it is just grey. Today, part of the sky was clear and blue, but towards the west there were little clouds, like a flock of sheep. They remind me of something. Is it cauliflower?

2026 Day 62

 2026 Dedh Trei Ügens ha Dew

De Meurth, tryja mis Meurth

Tuesday, 3rd March

Pur leb o an gwav, re a law. Pur wenjek o, re lies enawel. Bes lôwen ew an losow. An gwens a whethas has a-derdro. Lebmyn ma glasbrednyer ha brially nowydh war an glesin. Ma flourys ha buddys war vagasow cottha. Ma camellia rüdh tredh avalen ha perbren. Ma'n lily Corawes ow mires war tûa'n howldrevel, e'n est.

The winter was very wet, too much rain. It was very windy, too many storms. But the plants are happy. The wind blew seeds all around. Now there are tree seedlings and new primroses on the lawn. There are flowers and buds on older bushes. There's a red camellia between an apple tree and a pear tree. The daffodils are looking towards the sunrise, in the east.

2026 Day 61

 2026 Dedh Trei Ügens hag Onan

De Lün, nessa mis Meurth
Monday,  2nd March

Terweythyow nag eus dhebm tibyans veth, ha na wöra vy pandra dhe scrifa. Ha terweythyow ma dhebm re a dibyansow ha na ellama dewis! Ma lavar coth: Re a üdn dra na dal traveth. Hedhyw, na wrüga vy scrifa traveth dhe les. A veu vy heb tibyans po heb ervirans?

Sometimes I don't have a single idea, and I don't know what to write. And sometimes I have too many ideas and I cannot choose! There is a proverb: Too much of one thing is worth nothing. Today, I didn't write anything interesting. Was I without an idea or without a decision?