An American woman’s love of Welsh music, such as Blaenau Ffestiniog band Llwybr Llaethog, has inspired her to learn the language.

Despite living over 3,500 miles away, Geordan Burress, 28, fell in love with the Welsh language after listening to Welsh musicians such as Gruff Rhys, Llwybr Llaethog and Dau Cefn.

She began learning a few words with a free online course in October 2011, and gradually gained minor online fame as one of the few Americans to speak the language.

In May this year she made her first-ever visit to Wales, where locals praised her vocabulary – but some were confused by her accent.

Geordan, of Cleveland, Ohio, said: “The Welsh people were very shocked to hear me speaking it.

“I got very mixed reviews on my accent though, some people said I definitely have an American accent, some people said I sounded like I was from north Wales, and some said there was no trace of an accent at all!

“But everyone said I sounded fluent, so that made me happy.

Explaining her initial interest in the language, she said: “It sounds so different … not too many people speak it, but I feel like if a language exists then it is worth learning.”

Geordan, who is currently looking for work as a student affairs professional, explained how she used the internet to learn Cymraeg.

She said: “There was a great free programme where you just listen and repeat. It worked very well for me.

“I would do about one or two hours every day but I didn’t have anyone to practise with, so in 2016 I made a video of myself speaking Welsh and uploaded it to the internet.

“That helped me link up with some people in Wales who could converse with me. I’m quite a shy person but speaking Welsh helped me to make friends.

“But I have only met one other American who speaks Welsh and he lives in Wales.”

See this week’s Meirionnydd edition for the full story, in shops and online now