Coming up with a team name is a bit like naming a child…. once it’s there, it’s there forever! As a crew there were so many things we wanted our team’s name to communicate, it had to be Welsh, it had to be feminine and it had to be about the ocean. That is after all what we are about, the power of women together, the beauty and wildness of our oceans and the pride that comes with a rich cultural Welsh history.

In Wales there is a legend of the girls of the sea, that tells us how the sea gulls got their cry. The legend of Merched Y Môr explains how 3 beautiful sisters were stolen from the coast by Dylan, king of the sea. Their sadness at being stolen away from their father left the king feeling repentant and so he released them as gulls to be able visit land and their father in the day, and return to him and the sea by night. The sad cry of the gulls represents the 3 sisters longing for their home.

We are of course four women not three and are not so much being stolen to the sea as feeling overwhelmingly drawn towards it! Although we are not sisters, perhaps after 3000 miles, we will feel as though we are. We certainly are a team and there will undoubtedly be times when we cry for home just like the sea gulls, but hopefully many more times when we cry with laughter, sing with joy and sit quietly together contemplating the power, wildness and beauty of the vast Atlantic Ocean.

What’s in a name?….. quite a lot we think! The Welsh language is Britain’s oldest language, over 4000 years old, so we think it’s important to be part of keeping that alive. Heledd is a first language Welsh speaker and the rest of the crew hope to learn more from her during our time together. Why not learn with us? Head over to our Facebook page and check out our first Welsh pronunciation video!!  We would love you to send us a little video of your own, saying  “Merched Y Môr!”