Welsh is a Brittonic language of the Celtic language family that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa. Historically, it has also been known in English as "British", "Cambrian", "Cambric" and "Cymric".
Saunders Lewis was a Welsh political activist, poet, dramatist, historian and literary critic. He was a prominent Welsh nationalist and one of the founders of Plaid Genedlaethol Cymru, later known as Plaid Cymru. Lewis is usually acknowledged as one of the most prominent figures of 20th century Welsh-language literature. In 1970, Lewis was nominated for a Nobel Prize in Literature. Lewis was voted the tenth greatest Welsh hero in the '100 Welsh Heroes' poll, released on St. David's Day 2004.
The Welsh Language Society is a direct action pressure group in Wales campaigning for the right of Welsh people to use the Welsh language in every aspect of their lives. The current Chair of Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg is Mabli Siriol.
Welsh nationalism emphasises and celebrates the distinctiveness of Welsh language, culture, and history, and calls for more self-determination for Wales, which might include more devolved powers for the Senedd, or full independence from the United Kingdom.
The Welsh Language Act 1993, is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which put the Welsh language on an equal footing with the English language in Wales.
Y Fro Gymraeg is a name often used to refer to the linguistic area in Wales where the Welsh language is used by the majority or a large part of the population; it is the heartland of the Welsh language and comparable in that respect to the Gàidhealtachd of Scotland and Gaeltacht of Ireland. However, unlike its equivalent in Ireland, Y Fro Gymraeg does not have official government recognition.
Meredydd Evans, known colloquially as Merêd, was a collector, editor, historian and performer of folk music of Wales written in the Welsh language. His award-winning recordings of his own unaccompanied vocal performances and his published editions in collaboration with his American-born wife Phyllis Kinney helped to preserve Welsh musical legacy and promote it worldwide.
"Tynged yr Iaith" was a radio lecture delivered in Welsh by Saunders Lewis on 13 February 1962. Reaction to it brought about a major change in the politics of Wales. Historian John Davies has said that the lecture was "the catalyst" for the formation of Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg, and the start of a period of direct-action agitation to enhance the status of the Welsh language. Its direct effect on the formation of Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg is described in a history of that society. It has been said that "of all the memorable phrases coined in the twentieth century none has greater resonance for the Welsh speaker than Tynged yr Iaith. .. which still haunts or inspires champions of the native tongue on the cusp of the new millennium". It had the unintended effect of establishing language agitation as a movement separate from the mainstream of nationalist politics. The burgeoning effects from the initial stimulus of Tynged yr Iaith were listed by Gwyn Williams:
The history of the Welsh language spans over 1400 years, encompassing the stages of the language known as Primitive Welsh, Old Welsh, Middle Welsh, and Modern Welsh.
Simon Brooks is a Welsh academic and writer.
The Public Office for the Breton Language was established on 15 October 2010 as a public institution, with state and regional cooperation and funding, to promote and develop teaching and use of the Breton language in daily life. It is an example of language revival efforts for minority languages in France.
Steve Eaves is a Welsh poet, songwriter and singer, working in the Welsh language. He has lived for most of his life in the Bangor area of North Wales. He has been a performing musician for over 45 years. During the late 1960s and early 1970s he worked as a labourer and musician, with frequent forays to Chester, Crewe and other locations to perform at folk clubs and underground venues of the period. He also performed at the now legendary Les Cousins folk club in Soho, sharing the floor spot with legendary blues singer Jo Ann Kelly. He also performed with various 'underground' luminaries of the time such as Al Stewart, Tea and Symphony, and the Sutherland Brothers.
The Cornish Language Partnership is a representative body that was set up in Cornwall, England, UK in 2005 to promote and develop the use of the Cornish language. It is a public and voluntary sector partnership and consists of representatives from various Cornish language societies, Cornish cultural and economic organisations and local government in Cornwall. The organisation is part-funded by the European Union's Objective One programme, the United Kingdom government's Department for Communities and Local Government and Cornwall Council.
Road signs in Wales follow the same design principles as those in other parts of the United Kingdom. All modern signs feature both Welsh- and English-language wording, with the Welsh first in many areas.
Meri Huws is a Welsh academic and public official and formerly the Welsh Language Commissioner. Born in Carmarthenshire, she was educated at Ysgol Bro Gwaun, University of Wales, Aberystwyth, where she studied law and politics, and the University of Oxford, where she studied to be a social worker. She was the head of the Lifelong Learning Department at Bangor University, and deputy vice-chancellor.
The Welsh Language Commissioner is a Welsh Government officer, overseeing an independent advisory body of the same name. The position was created following the passing of the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011, effective on 1 April 2012, with the aim of promoting and facilitating the use of the Welsh language. This entails raising awareness of the official status of the Welsh language in Wales and by imposing standards on organisations. This, in turn, will lead to the establishment of rights for Welsh speakers.
Eileen Beasley was a Welsh teacher who, along with her husband Trefor, conducted a campaign of civil disobedience in the 1950s against the Rural District Council of Llanelli in a demand for council rate bills in the Welsh language. Her stand has led Welsh language campaigners to describe her as the "mother of direct action" and her protest helped to lead to the creation of Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg.
Gareth Jamie Bevan is a Welsh language campaigner from Merthyr Tydfil, Wales and a prominent member of Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg. Bevan refused to pay fines and costs to Merthyr Tydfil Magistrate's Court for breaking into Conservative Party offices in north Cardiff the day before a visit from David Cameron in a demonstration against cuts to S4C.
Natural Resources Wales is a Welsh Government sponsored body, which became operational from 1 April 2013, when it took over the management of the natural resources of Wales. It was formed from a merger of the Countryside Council for Wales, Environment Agency Wales, and the Forestry Commission Wales, and also assumed some other roles formerly performed by the Welsh Government.
Dyfodol i'r Iaith is a non–party-political organisation in Wales that works to ensure that the Welsh language occupies a central role in Welsh life and remains a priority on the political agenda. It is a lobbying pressure group which works exclusively through constitutional means, seeking to influence the Welsh Government, local government, political parties, the heads of public bodies and others to place the language at the heart of their policies and actions.
