Overview
- The error occurred at Tesco's Helston branch, where aisle labels used Welsh terms such as "pysgod" and "tatws melys" instead of the Cornish "psysk" and "aval dor melys."
- A Tesco spokesperson said the company was sorry for the mistake and confirmed the incorrect signs had been removed.
- Cornwall councillor Loveday Jenkin, MP Perran Moon and academic Garry Tregidga called the confusion embarrassing yet constructive and offered help to produce correct Cornish signage.
- The episode comes as Cornish (Kernewek) gains enhanced protection under Part III of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages, with roughly 500 advanced speakers and around 2,000 with basic proficiency cited locally.
- Commentators noted similarities between Welsh and Cornish that can confuse non-speakers, and pointed out that Cornish already appears on road signs and in some shops.