Sylvie Butterbach talks about language choices within her family

Description

Video clip in English. Sylvie Butterbach discusses her linguistic background.

"French I’ve learnt – it’s my mother tongue. I was born in France and French was spoken at home. Although my grandparents spoke Plattdeutsch, because we are on the border between Germany and France, and we were invaded so many times that my parents were forbidden to speak French in school, so were my grandparents. And my great-grandparents were French-speaking, but I didn’t know them…
"Being in Wales – I have been on the receiving end of arrogance of, when I am in France, people who don’t bother to speak the language. Not even greet in the language. From Germans, and I have met some English people. So I thought, no, this is not going to happen. My children will have an awareness, will know that we are in Wales, that Welsh is spoken, and everything. So I sent them to the Welsh school and my daughter then, she just lapped it all up…
"Wales against England with the rugby, you shout for Wales of course, you know. But Wales against France? I was shouting for France! And in front of me, that ten-year-old was shouting for Wales. In front of me! I thought that was of the highest, the highest treason. I grabbed her like that and said to her, ‘Qu’est-ce-que tu fait? What do you think you are doing?’ And she said, ‘Mam, I’m Welsh. I’ve decided to be Welsh.’ And I said, ‘Mais, pourquoi? Why?’ And she said, ‘When I speak French with you, I feel disloyal to Dad, because he doesn’t understand French, and - well he understands but he doesn’t speak French. And when I speak English with my dad – he doesn’t speak Welsh – I feel disloyal to you, so, I’ve decided to be Welsh. So I don’t have to owe anybody anything.’ So she decided to be Welsh, and from then on she was Welsh. And that’s it. And her sister followed suit."