John Davey (Cornish speaker)

John Davey or Davy (1812–1891) was a Cornish farmer who was one of the last people with some traditional knowledge of the Cornish language.[1] According to Henry Jenner, the level of his ability in the language is unclear, but was probably restricted to a few words and phrases.[2] A song attributed to Davey's memory, the "Cranken Rhyme", is not known from any earlier source and is notable as possibly one of the last survivals of Cornish literary tradition.[3]

  1. ^ Bruxelles, Simon de (21 May 2008). "After centuries, Cornish agree how to speak their language". The Times.
  2. ^ Jenner, p. 23.
  3. ^ Murdoch, p. 142.