Y Wladfa, also occasionally Y Wladychfa Gymreig, refers to the establishment of settlements by Welsh immigrants in Patagonia, beginning in 1865, mainly along the coast of the lower Chubut Valley. In 1881, the area became part of the Chubut National Territory of Argentina which, in 1955, became Chubut Province.
In Welsh culture, an eisteddfod is an institution and festival with several ranked competitions, including in poetry and music. The term eisteddfod, which is formed from the Welsh morphemes: eistedd, meaning 'sit', and fod, meaning 'be', means, according to Hywel Teifi Edwards, "sitting-together." Edwards further defines the earliest form of the eisteddfod as a competitive meeting between bards and minstrels, in which the winner was chosen by a noble or royal patron.
Dolgellau is a town and community in Gwynedd, north-west Wales, lying on the River Wnion, a tributary of the River Mawddach. It was the traditional county town of the historic county of Merionethshire until the county of Gwynedd was created in 1974. Dolgellau is the main base for climbers of Cadair Idris and Mynydd Moel which are visible from the town. Dolgellau is the second largest settlement in southern Gwynedd after Tywyn and includes the community of Penmaenpool.
Calan is a five-piece revivalist traditional Welsh band formed by their manager Huw Williams in early 2006 when its members were only 13 to 22 years old. In 2008, they created great excitement at the Inter Celtic Festival where they would eventually be the first Welsh band to win the coveted international band competition.
Patagonian Welsh is a variety of the Welsh language spoken in Y Wladfa, the Welsh settlement in Patagonia, Chubut Province, Argentina. The decimal numeral system used in Modern Welsh originated in Patagonia in the 1870s, and was subsequently adopted in Wales in the 1940s as a simpler counterpart to the traditional vigesimal system, which still survives in Wales.
Eluned Morgan, was a Welsh-language author from Patagonia. She was raised in Y Wladfa, a Welsh colony in Patagonia, and was taught to speak both Welsh and Spanish. Her father eventually enrolled her in Dr Williams' School in Wales, where she had to learn the English language. She led student protests against the school's English-only policy, which prohibited the use of Welsh by its students.
Endaf Emlyn is a Welsh musician, film, and television director.
Meinir Elin Gwilym is a Welsh-language pop and folk singer. Raised in Llangristiolus, Anglesey, she released her first EP, "Smôcs, Coffi a Fodca Rhad" in 2002. Her website claims that she is amongst the best-selling Welsh language musicians in history.
Lisa Gwilym is a Welsh broadcaster. She is best known as a presenter for BBC Radio Cymru and the Welsh language television channel, S4C.
Derwyddon Dr Gonzo were a Welsh-language funk and ska band from Llanrug, North Wales. Having reached number one in Siart C2, their music has received airplay on BBC Radio Cymru, BBC Radio 1 and Serbian radio. The band performed regularly on the Welsh language scene circuit, in addition to larger festivals such as Latitude Festival, Wakestock, Sŵn, Sesiwn Fawr Dolgellau and Maes B at the National Eisteddfod. Their second EP, Chaviach/Bwthyn was released on the Copa Label in 2008. On 27 July 2009 the band released their second album, Stonk!, on the Copa label, and recorded at the Wings for Jesus Studio in Cardiff by Sir Doufus Styles.
Genod Droog were a Welsh hip hop, indie pop band from Wales, which was formed in 2005 by Carwyn Jones, Gethin Evans, Dylan Roberts, Aneirin Karadog and Ed Holden, and split up on 16 November 2008.
Aled Wyn Davies is a classical tenor from Llanbrynmair, in Powys, Mid Wales. He is a member of the Three Welsh Tenors with Rhys Meirion and Aled Hall.
Sesiwn Fawr Dolgellau is a world music event held in the town of Dolgellau in Wales. The event was established in 1992 by Ywain Myfyr, Huw Dylan Owen, Esyllt Jones, Elfed ap Gomer and Alun Owen, and was held in the town's streets. From 2002 until 2008, Sesiwn Fawr Dolgellau was held on the Marian Mawr, a large grassy area next to Afon Wnion. It was during this period that Sesiwn Fawr reached its peak audience figures with sell out crowds of approximately 5,000 attending each year. In 2007 and 2008, the festival was blighted by bad weather resulting in poor ticket sales, and as with a number of Welsh festivals, there was no Sesiwn Fawr in 2009.
Iwan "Iwcs" Roberts is a Welsh actor, lyricist, singer, novelist, script writer and film producer of Dal y Mellt. He has worked on various films, including the BAFTA-winning productions Eldra and Y Lleill, and is well known for his portrayal of character Kevin Powell in the Welsh soap opera Pobl y Cwm. He has also had a successful career as a singer-songwriter, both as part of the duo Iwcs a Doyle and as a solo artist.
Kizzy Meriel Crawford, known as Kizzy, is a Welsh singer songwriter from Merthyr Tydfil with Bajan heritage who sings in both English and Welsh, using traditional and modern sources. She began writing songs at the age of thirteen.
Huw Evans, also known as H. Hawkline, is a Welsh singer-songwriter and radio and television presenter based in Cardiff. He also lived and worked in Los Angeles for several years. He performs in both English and Welsh. His stage name is taken from Richard Brautigan's book The Hawkline Monster: A Gothic Western.
The Gentle Good is the stage name of Gareth Bonello, a singer-songwriter and folk musician from Cardiff who performs in English and Welsh. The stage name is inspired by Bonello's, with "Gareth" traditionally meaning "Gentle" in Welsh. In addition to his own material, Bonello has had a longstanding partnership with musician Richard James and has also collaborated with other artists as a session musician.
Alun Huws, known professionally as Sbardun, was a Welsh musician and songwriter, known mainly for founding 1970s folk band Y Tebot Piws. He worked exclusively in Welsh and only gave one English language interview to the music press.
Sŵnami are a Welsh indie rock group from Dolgellau, north-west Wales, who sing predominantly in Welsh. They won the Welsh Language Album of the Year prize at the 2016 National Eisteddfod of Wales. Their name is a play on the word 'tsunami' and the Welsh word for sound, "Sŵn", to convey the idea of a wave of sound.
