hey im a butch lesbian learning welsh, and i've seen a few different ways of butch translating into Welsh (specifically bwts, bwtsh, and bwtch). i was wondering if there's any notable difference between the three words and also if there are any Welsh terms for femme? sorry for the long ask I'm just really curious and u seem like the guy to ask ! thanks in advance and i love yr blog ! <3
Hello!
It's very interesting that you say you've seen variations on 'bwtsh' since I'd only ever come across 'bwtsh'. 'Bwts' and 'Bwtch' are new to me- if you don't mind, would you mind sharing where you came across these (e.g. spoken/in slang, written down etc.)? I love to learn about new variations I haven't come across before!
I wouldn't say there's too much difference between 'bwts' and 'bwtsh', though 'bwtch' may be difficult for a native speaker to pronounce since in Welsh 'ch' is pronounced like the 'ch' in Loch (like Loch Ness).
The current official word for femme in Welsh is 'ffem'- though I feel like Welsh versions of butch and femme could be cool.
There are older terms which are analogous to women's masculinity and femininity, however, they have negative connotations. E.g. 'gwrywes' is an old term (circa 1700s) for a masculine woman. If one were to reclaim that term, you could theoretically coin a new term like 'fenywes' (which would literally translate to 'feminine girl') to compliment it. (Of course, other terms would be needed for butch/femme in the gay men's sense as well).
Hopefully that's been in any way useful. Thank you for the question, I love talking about these things!
















