Cofi () is one of the

regional In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

accents Accent may refer to: Speech and language * Accent (sociolinguistics), way of pronunciation particular to a speaker or group of speakers * Accent (phonetics), prominence given to a particular syllable in a word, or a word in a phrase ** Pitch acce ...

and

dialect The term dialect (from Latin , , from the Ancient Greek word , 'discourse', from , 'through' and , 'I speak') can refer to either of two distinctly different types of linguistic phenomena: One usage refers to a variety of a language that is ...

s of the

Welsh language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language of the Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut Province, Argentina). Historically, it has ...

found in north

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in 2 ...

, and centred on

Caernarfon Caernarfon (; ) is a royal town, community and port in Gwynedd, Wales, with a population of 9,852 (with Caeathro). It lies along the A487 road, on the eastern shore of the Menai Strait, opposite the Isle of Anglesey. The city of Bangor is ...

, in

Gwynedd Gwynedd (; ) is a county and preserved county (latter with differing boundaries; includes the Isle of Anglesey) in the north-west of Wales. It shares borders with Powys, Conwy County Borough, Denbighshire, Anglesey over the Menai Strait, and ...

, and its surrounding district. A person from Caernarfon is known colloquially as a .Cofi dialect
North Wales Today web site. URL retrieved April 10, 2011/ Cofi has been called ‘one of Wales’ most famous regional dialects.’ In 2011, the Welsh television production company organised a special event at Caernarfon Football Club celebrating the Cofi dialect. The event was filmed as part of a television series known as .’Celebrating the Cofi Dialect’, Caernarfon & Denbigh Herald, February 3, 2011 According to broadcaster Mari Gwilym, ‘Cofis are straight as arrows and we are extremely proud of the Cofi dialect as it is a real asset to Wales. Caernarfon has earned a reputation throughout Wales as the town of the Cofis which I think is great because it’s an extremely important part of their heritage’ The Cofi dialect has been ‘immortalized’ in the radio monologues of Richard Hughes and in William Owen's stories (1961) ’The Welsh Academy Encyclopaedia of Wales, University of Wales Press Cardiff, 2008 The actor Dewi Rhys is a Cofi. He has written a book on Cofi humour called .Y Lolfa web site: Hiwmor Y Cofi by Dewi Rhys
URL retrieved April 10, 2011/] He comments:‘I don’t think we as Cofis try and be individual, but we just are. We like to think that we’re life’s losers, but we look forward to getting out there and doing different things. When you first meet a Cofi, you’re usually greeted with this deadpan sort of look, you can never tell what’s going through their minds. That’s probably down to shyness or a desire to be left alone. I think it’s fair to say that you don’t get much small talk with a Cofi’ The Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales, National Museum of Wales has a recording of Gareth Wyn Jones, speaking the Cofi dialect.National Museum of Wales recording of Cofi dialect
URL retrieved April 10, 2011/] is an opera in the Cofi dialect which has been produced with the help of children from the housing estate in Caernarfon. The idea behind the ‘Cofi Opera’ is to create, produce and perform an opera with children from the estate performing alongside professional opera singers; the opera forms part of the project based in Caernarfon's Centre. The opera has been produced with the help of Caernarfon

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

Meirion MacIntyre Hughes, composer Owain Llwyd and

rapper Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

Ed HoldenS4C web site: O Flaen dy Lygiad; Cofi Opera
URL retrieved April 10, 2011

References

External links

The Welsh Language today
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cofi Dialect Welsh dialects Caernarfon History of Gwynedd