Nearly 200 children celebrated the Cornish language at a special event, filling Lys Kernow (County Hall) in Truro with songs, rhymes and stories in Kernewek. Among them was seven-year-old Albie, a pupil at Trewirgie infants’ school in Redruth, who said he enjoyed learning the language because “we used to talk this way in the old days”. “I like speaking now,” he added. “I enjoy the songs we sing, the Cornish books we read, all the words. It’s fun.”
The Go Cornish Celebration brought together pupils from across Cornwall to showcase their explorations of the Celtic language through artwork, performances and interactive activities. Kirsten Maun, who leads the Cornish programme at Trewirgie, said the children relished learning Kernewek. “Our school had already embraced our Cornish history – for example, our classes are named after local tin mines – but I think learning the language helps the children understand their identity more deeply,” she said. “They know they’re Cornish and they think that’s a special thing to them. Plus, they just like learning different words.” She noted that the word for butterfly – tykki duw – was particularly popular.
Will Coleman, of Golden Tree Productions, which leads the Go Cornish learning programme in schools, watched as children studied each other’s language-inspired artwork. “I knew that if we could get a gang together they would all bounce off each other and inspire each other,” he said. “I go to these schools and they just cannot get enough of it. They realise there’s this treasure chest being opened up and they’re being invited to rummage around in it and play with a bunch of stuff.” The programme, commissioned by Cornwall Council, provides free resources to all primary schools in Cornwall – no teacher fluency required – and aims to bring the language to life through interactive lessons, games and songs.
A ten-year vision for Kernewek
The children’s takeover of Lys Kernow came as Cornwall Council completes a striking 10-year strategy that envisions Kernewek as a “thriving, forever language – widely spoken, seen and heard in everyday life in Cornwall”. The council’s plan sets out ambitious goals: ensuring every child in Cornwall leaves primary school with a basic understanding of Cornish, establishing the first bilingual school in the Duchy, and making sure the language is routinely seen and heard in civic spaces. Progress would include marriages and births being registered in Cornish, bilingual road signs, and the development of a public service media in the language.
Council leader Leigh Frost, watching the children flit around the building, said: “You’ve got to have a bit of ambition, haven’t you? We’re looking at what Wales has achieved in the last few decades. The Cornish language deserves that same opportunity.” The strategy is being built on a new official footing. In January 2026, Kernewek was recognised under part three of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages, putting it on a par with Welsh, Scottish Gaelic and Irish Gaelic. That status requires UK authorities to implement promotional measures including teaching in schools, use in official documents and increased media presence.
Yet the strategy is being delivered on a shoestring – £170,000 a year. Frost linked the promotion of Kernewek directly to the growing campaign for Cornwall to be named the fifth nation of the United Kingdom, which he hopes would unlock more funding. “Make us a devolved nation of the United Kingdom, give us funding that is worked out in the same way as the other nations and we’ll crack on,” he said.
Challenges and support
Not everyone is convinced the investment is justified. At a meeting of the council’s community wellbeing, overview and scrutiny committee, Reform UK councillor Sean Smith questioned whether the level of public demand merited the spend at a time when Cornwall faces significant pressures in housing, adult social care, children’s services and economic inequality. The council’s own estimates put the number of advanced speakers at around 500, with 2,000 having basic knowledge – though other estimates, including the 2021 Census, suggest a broader pool of speakers.
Supporters argue the language’s value goes far beyond numbers. Jenefer Lowe, the Grand Bard of Cornwall, insisted its revival was crucial. “It’s about a sense of place and identity. It connects you to the place you live in. The language underpins everything,” she said. Lowe noted that 15 years ago she probably knew everyone who spoke Kernewek in Cornwall. “Now I don’t – and that is a good sign.” Loveday Jenkin, a member of the party Mebyon Kernow, which has long campaigned for greater autonomy, said she now sees far more Cornish being spoken in the community than she did 50 years ago.
The language is indeed seeing a resurgence on multiple fronts. A podcast called Learn Cornish, Dyski Kernewek, hosted by Radio 1 DJ Danni Diston, has launched on BBC Sounds, teaching basic phrases and exploring cultural roots with guests including the Grand Bard and film-maker Mark Jenkin. Jenkin, whose films often feature Kernewek, has won international acclaim. Earlier this month, a new Mass entirely in Kernewek – the “Mass of the Resurrection”, composed by Mike O’Connor – was premiered at Truro Cathedral, which called it a “significant moment” for the language. Meanwhile, the REVIVE project, a £2.5 million initiative led by Anglia Ruskin University, is using extended reality (XR) technology to preserve and promote Cornish alongside the endangered Greek language Griko.
Legend has it that Kernewek vanished as a living community language in the late 18th century with the death of fish seller Dolly Pentreath in Mousehole – a claim that is debated. The modern revival began in earnest with Henry Jenner’s 1904 handbook and continued through the standardisation work of Robert Morton Nance. In 2010, UNESCO reclassified the language from “extinct” to “critically endangered”, acknowledging the success of volunteer-driven efforts long before official bodies took the lead. Now, as Will Coleman put it, watching the children at Lys Kernow, “this kind of event demonstrates clearly that language enriches lives. It brings people together, it’s inclusive, it’s celebratory, it’s forward-looking. What’s not to love?”
