Cornish Language

Cornish Language

Cornish (Kernowek or Kernewek) is a Brythonic Celtic language historically spoken by the Cornish people. The language has undergone a revival in recent decades and is widely considered to be an important part of Cornish identity, culture and heritage. It is a recognised minority language of the United Kingdom, and has a growing number of speakers.

Along with Welsh and Breton, Cornish is directly descended from the ancient British language spoken throughout much of Britain before the English language came to dominate. The language was the main language of Cornwall for centuries until it was pushed westwards by English. Cornish continued to function as a common community language in parts of Cornwall until the late 18th century, and continued to be spoken in the home by some families into the 19th, and possibly 20th, centuries. A process to revive the language was started in the early 20th century, with a number of orthographical systems being in use until a Standard Written Form was agreed in 2008. In 2010 Unesco announced that its former classification of the language as "extinct" was "no longer accurate".

Since the revival of the language, many Cornish textbooks and works of literature have been published, and an increasing number of people are studying the language. Recent developments include Cornish music, independent films and children's books. A small number of children in Cornwall have been brought up to be bilingual native speakers, and the language is taught in many schools. The first Cornish language crèche opened in 2010.