Faisal Mohamed Hashi discusses his linguistic background

Description

Video clip (in English). Faisal Mohamed Hashi discusses his Somali-speaking background and growing up in Newport.
Transcript:
"I was born in Newport, in the Pill part, the new Pilgwenlly part of Newport, which is the docks area. The reason I was there was that my father was a merchant seaman who came to the UK with the Merchant Navy, British Merchant Navy. He settled here with his family and I was his first product that he had here in this country. But it was quite strange being born in Wales - though I was Welsh in that respect, being born here, but the first language I learnt was Somali because within the home it was like being in Somalia but obviously transported to Wales. So in that respect, I was Somali first. But then obviously when I came onto the street, I realised my Welshness and my Welsh roots have grown since then.Language is very very important within my culture. And obviously the first language that you learn is the language that your parents speak to you. My mother's first tongue was Somali, so she made sure that when she spoke to us, she spoke to us in Somali. What it meant for me was that I learnt Somali first, then I learnt English. There was obviously a step back from living in this country. So in that respect, there's great pride in the knowledge of the language and there's great pride in being able to speak in one's tongue and to have an understanding of your own culture.I do have a Welsh accent - an English-Welsh accent - when I speak Somali. If I was to stand behind that wall and have a conversation with a Somali person, they could definitely tell that I wasn't born and brought up in Somalia. But I have a broad vocabulary which would make them think twice about exactly what my origins were. But in terms of accent, definitely, I've got an English-Welsh accent when I speak Somali.Essentially, yeh, I'm Welsh. Somali Welsh. In that respect, the Welsh accent comes through in both my English and in my Somali."