Cornwall Council is calling on the government to give the Cornish language the same recognition and protection as Irish, Scottish and Welsh.

It follows the 10th anniversary of Cornish's recognition as a national minority under the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities.

Despite this, Cornish, or Kernewek, is the only Celtic language in the British Isles not protected under Part III of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages.

The five Group Leaders of Cornwall Council, representing all 87 members, have penned a letter to the government asking for an extension of Part III of the Charter to Kernewek.

The letter states: "We believe it would be an appropriate and timely decision for the UK Government to give notification to the Secretary General of the Council of Europe that sufficient progress has been to apply Part III of the Charter to the Cornish language."

Cornish language was recognised by the UK government under Part II of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages 22 years ago.

Falmouth Packet:

More recently, there has been a revival of Kernewek.

Over 8,000 schoolchildren are taking part in the Go Cornish for Primary Schools programme and hundreds of adults are also studying the language.

Councillor Linda Taylor, leader at Cornwall Council, said: "Our language is such an important part of our cultural identity, and we must preserve it for future generations.

"A huge amount of work has been done to promote Kernewek and it’s fantastic to see that more and more people, both children and adults, are embracing it.

"On the same day as we celebrate the 10th anniversary of the designation of national minority status for the Cornish, we are calling on the Government to apply the same designation to the Cornish language that is afforded to the other Celtic languages."