A significant translation initiative by the Welsh Government, which mobilised dozens of civil servants and academics, has concluded with unanimous agreement on the Welsh equivalents for just four out of eight simple English words. The project has drawn sharp criticism from campaigners and politicians who have branded the extensive process a needless waste of time and public resources.
The Four-Part Translation Process
The undertaking, known as the Soundscape Attributes Translations Project, was led by University College London and backed by Research England. Its goal was to find precise Welsh translations for eight English descriptors—'pleasant', 'calm', 'uneventful', 'monotonous', 'annoying', 'chaotic', 'eventful', and 'vibrant'—which are used to assess noise in planning applications. These 'soundscapes' have been a key part of Welsh planning policy since 2015 legislation.
The process was extensive. It began with 10 Welsh Government translators drafting initial versions. This was followed by a two-hour workshop involving 13 officials. The proposals were then reviewed by five UCL researchers. The final stage was a 'Translation Service away day' at the government's Cathays Park offices in Cardiff, attended by 30 translators and three Welsh language scholars from Cardiff University and the standard Welsh dictionary.
Limited Consensus and 'Wenglish' Concerns
Despite this considerable effort, which ultimately involved 43 officials and eight academics, the group only reached full consensus on single-word translations for four terms. The agreed translations were: 'llonydd' for 'calm', 'undonog' for 'monotonous', 'caotig' for 'chaotic', and 'bywiog' for 'vibrant'.
Even these outcomes were not without controversy. Participants noted that 'caotig' is essentially an English loan word, an example of so-called 'Wenglish'. For the remaining four words, the project could only settle on dual options. For instance, 'annoying' could be either 'niwsans' (another loan word) or 'amhleserus'.
A Storm of Criticism and Defence
The project has faced immediate backlash. John O’Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, stated, 'If you sat down to write a sketch on government waste, this real life episode might be deemed too unrealistic.' Andrew RT Davies MS, the Welsh Conservative Senedd member, called it 'ludicrous' to direct such effort 'towards translating eight words'.
In defence, a Welsh Government spokesperson emphasised that it did not fund the research and that staff contributed voluntarily as part of their usual work, often through 'informal, brief discussions'. They confirmed staff did not travel to UCL in London. The government's own report noted that all Welsh speakers are now naturally bilingual, a point highlighted amidst a context where the 2021 census recorded Welsh speakers at 17.8% of the population, the lowest proportion on record.
Contrasting the criticism, the project team hailed their work in the journal Applied Acoustics as a 'groundbreaking achievement for sound studies in Wales', marking the first collaboration between acoustics and Welsh language experts to translate an international standard annex.
