On 22 September, the Department of Germanic Philology and Translation Studies at Khmelnytskyi National University hosted a meeting with Oliver Turnbull , Professor at Bangor University (United Kingdom).
Oliver Turnbull works in the fields of neuropsychology, clinical psychology, cognitive neuroscience and academic leadership. His visit to KhNU took place as part of the international UK–UA Visiting Professors Programme, implemented by the Fund of the President of Ukraine for Education, Science, and Sports in cooperation with the UK–Ukraine Academic Diaspora Network, JSCB “Ukrgasbank” (UGB) and the “MHP-Hromadi” Charitable Foundation. The initiative aims to engage leading British scholars in cooperation with Ukrainian higher education institutions, facilitating the exchange of expertise, the development of joint research and the strengthening of academic ties between Ukraine and the United Kingdom.
The meeting with students and academic staff focused on Welsh language and culture and their comparison with Ukrainian traditions.
Professor Oliver Turnbull spoke about the history of Wales and the development of Celtic languages, including Welsh. For students, this was an opportunity to explore the linguistic diversity of the United Kingdom not only from the perspective of foreign language learning, but also through the historical and cultural context in which these languages developed.
A separate part of the meeting was devoted to getting to know the Welsh language itself. In an interactive session, students learnt basic grammatical structures and everyday phrases in Welsh and immediately put them into practice.
For students, such meetings provide an opportunity to gain international experience directly at their university: to communicate with lecturers from foreign universities, learn more about other academic and cultural environments, and use foreign languages in new contexts. At the same time, for KhNU, such initiatives provide an opportunity to develop lasting academic ties, create new formats of interaction and open up more opportunities for the student and academic community.
Khmelnytskyi National University and the Department’s staff, together with the students, thank Professor Oliver Turnbull for his openness, the engaging meeting and the opportunity to learn more about the Welsh language and culture. Diolch!
