Waldo Lecture 2024
Gŵyl y Gelli
First published in a fortnightly column in the Western Mail, 6 June 2024. Mae’n anodd meddwl am fis Mai bellach heb feddwl am daith i ŵyl y Gelli. Fel un a wahoddwyd i ddallen yno, yn yr ail flwyddyn o’i chread gan Peter Florence ac i griw bychan bryd hynny mae’r...
Yuval Noah Harari
First published in a fortnightly column in the Western Mail, 23 May 2024. Un o’r meddylwyr mawr yr ydw i’n hoff o wrando arno yw Yuval Noah Harari. Iddew yw a brodor o Israel a rhai o’i lyfrau mwyaf llwyddiannus yw Sapiens, hanes y ddynoliaeth neu 21 gwers yn yr unfed...
Llangrannog
First published in a fortnightly column in the Western Mail, 9 May 2024. Er teithio i fannau pell yn ystod y blynyddoedd a fu, does unlle yn rhoi mwy o bleser i mi na theithio i fan ym mae Ceredigion. I fod yn fwy penodol i Langrannog. Rwy wedi colli cownt o’r gwyliau...
Dihwnto
First published in a fortnightly column in the Western Mail, 25 April 2024. Rwy wastad wedi teimlo balchder o gael Senedd yng Nghaerdydd hyd yn oed os yw’r hyn a ddigwydd yno weithiau yn gwneud i rywun godi’n don o siomedigaeth. Ond mae’n dlawd o fyd pan yw yr...
Shirgarwr anobeithiol
First published in a fortnightly column in the Western Mail, 12 April 2024. Mae rhywun yn teimlo’n euog weithiau o fod wedi ymweld â rhannau o’r byd ac eto heb wneud yn fawr o’r mannau sydd o fewn ein milltir sgwâr. Fel D.J. Williams a alwodd ei hun yn Shirgarwr...
Under Milk Wood anniversary plays to air on BBC Radio 3
To mark the 70th anniversary of the first radio broadcast of Dylan Thomas’s Under Milk Wood, and to take up Dylan Thomas’s idea of getting writers to write about their particular locality, Menna Elfyn was commissioned along with four other writers to create a short...
Peaceful solidarity with Palestine
Menna Elfyn speaking at a demonstration at Aberystwyth (25 January 2024) calling on Aberystwyth University to divest from supporting companies involved in the arms trade, supplying weapons and drones to Israel. (Picture by Marian Delyth) ...
2023 Shortlist: Wales Book of the Year
Cellängel in Swedish
Menna Elfyn’s latest volume of poetry in Swedish translation is Cellängel translated by the distinguished poet Marie Tonkin. This is the first full length book to appear in Swedish and she will be launching the book in Sweden in July. In October 2022, a Spanish...
Winner of the coveted Cholmondeley Award
Professor Emerita of Poetry, and former Poet Laureate for Children in Wales, Menna Elfyn has been honoured with one of the main prizes by The Society of Authors at a special ceremony in Southwark Cathedral London on the 1 June, 2022. The prestigious Cholmondeley Award...
UWTSD Emerita Professor launches ‘Tosturi’
Last night (7th April, 2022) Menna Elfyn, Emerita Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David launched her new volume of poetry entitled 'Tosturi’ [Compassion]. During the launch held at Canolfan S4C Yr Egin, there were readings from...
Respect
Published in Welsh in the Welsh national paper - Western Mail. Roeddwn am ysgrifennu colofn yr wythnos hon am y ddeddf a basiwyd gan Senedd Cymru i wahardd taro plant. Mae hon yn ddeddf hynod bwysig , un a ddylai ddiogelu hawl y plentyn i gael ei drin heb drais....
No one owns a language
No one owns a language. Language is our own or our way of treating it. That is why the Welsh language belongs to everyone in Wales from those who read and know place names to calling friends with their Welsh names. I remember a student telling me that she once shared...
Ukraine
It's uncertain days for Ukraine for Russia and for the world. If there was a war game, this was it. When writing the column on February 1st, no one is really sure, except maybe one man of the way the wind will blow. If wisdom has been called for, now is the time to...