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104-494: Hedd Wyn (born Ellis Humphrey Evans , 13 January 1887 – 31 July 1917) was a Welsh-language poet who was killed on the first day of the Battle of Passchendaele during World War I . He was posthumously awarded the bard's chair at the 1917 National Eisteddfod . Evans, who had been awarded several chairs for his poetry, was inspired to take the bardic name Hedd Wyn ( [heːð wɨ̞n] , "blessed peace") from

208-441: A Welsh Language Scheme, which indicates its commitment to the equality of treatment principle. This is sent out in draft form for public consultation for a three-month period, whereupon comments on it may be incorporated into a final version. It requires the final approval of the now defunct Welsh Language Board ( Bwrdd yr Iaith Gymraeg ). Thereafter, the public body is charged with implementing and fulfilling its obligations under

312-594: A Welsh-language edge inscription was used on pound coins dated 1985, 1990 and 1995, which circulated in all parts of the UK prior to their 2017 withdrawal. The wording is Pleidiol wyf i'm gwlad (Welsh for 'True am I to my country'), and derives from the national anthem of Wales, " Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau ". UK banknotes are in English only. Some shops employ bilingual signage. Welsh sometimes appears on product packaging or instructions. The UK government has ratified

416-430: A basic education from the age of six at the local primary school and Sunday school. He left school around fourteen years of age and worked as a shepherd on his father's farm. Despite his brief attendance in formal schooling (6–14) he had a talent for poetry and had already composed his first poem by the age of eleven, "Y Das Fawn" (the peat stack). Ellis's interests included both Welsh and English poetry. His main influence

520-635: A bloodstain On Germany's iron fist of pain. Evans's bardic chair is on permanent display at his family's hill farm, Yr Ysgwrn. The property was preserved just as it was in 1917 by the poet's family and his nephew Gerald Williams (d. 2021), who was the last of his relatives to live on the farm. For years, Gerald and his brother Ellis continued to farm the land surrounding the farmhouse as custodians of both Yr Ysgwrn and Hedd Wyn’s legacy, welcoming visitors and working to ensure Hedd Wyn’s story lived on. In 2012, fourteen years after Ellis's death, Gerald decided it

624-663: A census glossary of terms to support the release of results from the census, including their definition of "main language" as referring to "first or preferred language" (though that wording was not in the census questionnaire itself). The wards in England with the most people giving Welsh as their main language were the Liverpool wards of Central and Greenbank ; and Oswestry South in Shropshire . The wards of Oswestry South (1.15%), Oswestry East (0.86%) and St Oswald (0.71%) had

728-557: A chapel or meeting house and were named after it. Some of these settlements, such as Bethesda, Gwynedd , became large settlements. In the era of rapid industrialisation after the Napoleonic Wars , nonconformity became firmly established in the new industrial settlements of South Wales as migrants from the rural counties brought their religious affiliations with them. In places such as Merthyr Tydfil , Aberdare , Llanelli and Neath , Nonconformity grew alongside industry and by

832-580: A complete Welsh language anthology of his works, was published by Trawsfynydd's Merilang Press in 2012. The poem Yr Arwr ("The Hero"), for which Hedd Wyn won the National Eisteddfod, is still considered his greatest work. The ode is structured in four parts and presents two principal characters, Merch y Drycinoedd ("Daughter of the Tempests") and the Arwr . There has been much disagreement in

936-399: A domestic servant, while his contemporary David Price of Siloa, Aberdare , worked as a miner. Their style was essentially populist, and they enjoyed a spontaneous relationship with their congregations, not only in delivering fiery and often fundamentalist sermons on Sundays but also in popular lectures on figures such as Oliver Cromwell and Garibaldi . They also had a profound influence on

1040-405: A fair amount. 56 per cent of Welsh speakers speak the language daily, and 19 per cent speak the language weekly. The Welsh Government plans to increase the number of Welsh-language speakers to one million by 2050. Since 1980, the number of children attending Welsh-medium schools has increased, while the number going to Welsh bilingual and dual-medium schools has decreased. Welsh is considered

1144-469: A figure in the history of Trawsfynydd, merging his presence with that of the reactors of the Trawsfynydd nuclear power station . The 2017 opera 2117/Hedd Wyn , with music by Stephen McNeff and libretto by Gruff Rhys , was inspired by the life of Hedd Wyn; set in the year 2117, it imagines a group of schoolchildren in a post-apocalyptic Trawsfynydd learning about the life and work of the poet. It

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1248-425: A gwreng, Yn codi ei awdurdod hell. Pan deimlodd fyned ymaith Dduw Cyfododd gledd i ladd ei frawd; Mae sŵn yr ymladd ar ein clyw, A'i gysgod ar fythynnod tlawd. Mae'r hen delynau genid gynt, Ynghrog ar gangau'r helyg draw, A gwaedd y bechgyn lond y gwynt, A'u gwaed yn gymysg efo'r glaw Why must I live in this grim age, When, to a far horizon, God Has ebbed away, and man, with rage, Now wields

1352-623: A kind of unofficial established religion". The Calvinistic Methodists were the largest of the denominations in numerical terms. Their greatest strength was in rural Wales, notably Anglesey , Caernarfonshire , Merionethshire and Ceredigion . The Congregationalists, usually referred to as the Independents in the Welsh context, were especially strong in south Wales , notably in Carmarthenshire and Glamorgan . Baptist strength

1456-399: A new language altogether. The argued dates for the period of "Primitive Welsh" are widely debated, with some historians' suggestions differing by hundreds of years. The next main period is Old Welsh ( Hen Gymraeg , 9th to 11th centuries); poetry from both Wales and Scotland has been preserved in this form of the language. As Germanic and Gaelic colonisation of Britain proceeded,

1560-703: A petition was submitted to the Imperial War Graves Commission after the war, his headstone was given the additional words Y Prifardd Hedd Wyn (English: "The Chief Bard, Hedd Wyn"). On 6 September 1917, the ceremony of Chairing of the Bard took place at the National Eisteddfod in Birkenhead Park , England; in attendance was the Welsh-speaking British Prime Minister , David Lloyd George . After

1664-553: A positive impact. It was from the chapels that the great wave of popular political engagement in Wales erupted from the 1860s onwards, and nonconformist ministers played an important role in the success of the Liberal Party in Wales. The chapels also became the mainstay of various community activities, such as choral festivals and eisteddfodau , though some of these traditions predated the ascendency of Nonconformity. Nonconformity

1768-479: A single discourse (known in linguistics as code-switching ). Welsh speakers are largely concentrated in the north and west of Wales, principally Gwynedd , Conwy County Borough , Denbighshire , Anglesey , Carmarthenshire , north Pembrokeshire , Ceredigion , parts of Glamorgan , and north-west and extreme south-west Powys . However, first-language and other fluent speakers can be found throughout Wales. Welsh-speaking communities persisted well into

1872-520: Is Welsh for peace and 'Wyn' can mean white or pure; this "blessed peace" also alluded to the way rays of sunlight penetrated the mists in the Meirionydd valleys. Bryfdir was the bardic name of Evans's older friend Humphrey Jones (1867–1947), a quarryman from Blaenau Ffestiniog ; in his lifetime, Jones published two volumes of poetry, won more than 60 bardic chairs and was an eisteddfodau compère. Jones said he bestowed Hedd Wyn on Evans because he had

1976-461: Is an uncomfortable trinity, isn’t it?" Nevertheless, at Fléchin he finished his National Eisteddfod entry and signed it “ Fleur de Lis ”. It is believed it was sent via the Royal Mail around the end of June. On 31 July 15 Battalion marched towards the major offensive which would become known as the Battle of Passchendaele . Hedd Wyn was fatally wounded within the first few hours of the start of

2080-650: Is available throughout Europe on satellite and online throughout the UK. Since the digital switchover was completed in South Wales on 31 March 2010, S4C Digidol became the main broadcasting channel and fully in Welsh. The main evening television news provided by the BBC in Welsh is available for download. There is also a Welsh-language radio station, BBC Radio Cymru , which was launched in 1977. Nonconformity in Wales The 18th-century revival also influenced

2184-479: Is based on a screenplay by Alan Llwyd . It depicts Hedd Wyn as a tragic hero who has an intense dislike of the wartime ultranationalism which surrounds him and his doomed struggle to avoid conscription. In 1993, Hedd Wyn won the Royal Television Society's Television Award for Best Single Drama. It became the first British motion picture to be nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at

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2288-454: Is based on the life of Hedd Wyn. In July 2017, Y Lolfa published An Empty Chair , a novel for young people telling the story of Hedd Wyn as seen from the point of view of his teenage sister, Anni (mother of Gerald Williams). It is an adaptation by Haf Llewelyn of her prize-winning Welsh-language novel, Diffodd Y Sêr . The track "Halflife" on the 2015 album Everyone Was a Bird by avant garde electronica group Grasscut references Hedd Wyn as

2392-420: Is evidenced by the dropping of final syllables from Brittonic: * bardos 'poet' became bardd , and * abona 'river' became afon . Though both Davies and Jackson cite minor changes in syllable structure and sounds as evidence for the creation of Old Welsh, Davies suggests it may be more appropriate to refer to this derivative language as Lingua Britannica rather than characterising it as

2496-586: Is spoken by smaller numbers of people in Canada and the United States descended from Welsh immigrants, within their households (especially in Nova Scotia ). Historically, it has also been known in English as "British", "Cambrian", "Cambric" and "Cymric". The Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011 gave the Welsh language official status in Wales. Welsh and English are de jure official languages of

2600-500: The 2016 Australian census , 1,688 people noted that they spoke Welsh. In the 2011 Canadian census , 3,885 people reported Welsh as their first language . According to the 2021 Canadian census , 1,130 people noted that Welsh was their mother tongue. The 2018 New Zealand census noted that 1,083 people in New Zealand spoke Welsh. The American Community Survey 2009–2013 noted that 2,235 people aged five years and over in

2704-466: The 2021 census , 7,349 people in England recorded Welsh to be their "main language". In the 2011 census, 1,189 people aged three and over in Scotland noted that Welsh was a language (other than English) that they used at home. It is believed that there are as many as 5,000 speakers of Patagonian Welsh . In response to the question 'Does the person speak a language other than English at home?' in

2808-485: The 66th Academy Awards in 1993. In 1994, at the newly inaugurated BAFTA Cymru Awards , it won in six categories: Best Director ( Paul Turner ), Best Design (by Jane Roberts and Martin Morley), Best Drama – Welsh (Shan Davies and Paul Turner), Best Editor (Chris Lawrence), Best Original Music ( John E.R. Hardy ) and Best Screenwriter – Welsh (Alan Llwyd). The Black Chair , a 2009 novel for young people by Phil Carradice ,

2912-631: The Battle of Dyrham , a military battle between the West Saxons and the Britons in 577 AD, which split the South Western British from direct overland contact with the Welsh. Four periods are identified in the history of Welsh, with rather indistinct boundaries: Primitive Welsh, Old Welsh, Middle Welsh, and Modern Welsh. The period immediately following the language's emergence is sometimes referred to as Primitive Welsh, followed by

3016-538: The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages in respect of Welsh. The language has greatly increased its prominence since the creation of the television channel S4C in November 1982, which until digital switchover in 2010 broadcast 70 per cent of Channel 4's programming along with a majority of Welsh language shows during peak viewing hours. The all-Welsh-language digital station S4C Digidol

3120-571: The Good Templars , and "taking the pledge" to abstain from alcohol became a formative part of chapel culture. To some, such as the writer Caradoc Evans , Welsh Nonconformity was imbued with hypocrisy and double standards, especially as the increasingly respectable ethos of a middle class composed of professionals, shopkeepers and "respectable" working men dominated the leadership of the chapels. Women were very largely sidelined and denied any positions of responsibility, even though they comprised

3224-705: The National Eisteddfod of Wales which was held in Bangor, Gwynedd . The following year he took second place at the National Eisteddfod in Aberystwyth with Ystrad Fflur , an awdl written in honour of Strata Florida , the medieval Cistercian abbey ruins in Ceredigion . Hedd Wyn was a Christian pacifist and did not enlist for the war initially, feeling he could never kill anyone. The war left Welsh non-conformists deeply divided. Traditionally,

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3328-519: The Old Welsh period – which is generally considered to stretch from the beginning of the 9th century to sometime during the 12th century. The Middle Welsh period is considered to have lasted from then until the 14th century, when the Modern Welsh period began, which in turn is divided into Early and Late Modern Welsh. The word Welsh is a descendant, via Old English wealh, wielisc , of

3432-686: The Proto-Germanic word * Walhaz , which was derived from the name of the Celtic people known to the Romans as Volcae and which came to refer to speakers of Celtic languages, and then indiscriminately to the people of the Western Roman Empire . In Old English the term went through semantic narrowing , coming to refer to either Britons in particular or, in some contexts, slaves. The plural form Wēalas evolved into

3536-527: The Third Battle of Ypres on 31 July, 1917. He fell during the Battle of Pilckem Ridge which had begun at 3:50 a.m. with a heavy bombardment of the German lines (this was the opening attack in what became known as Battle of Passchendaele ). However, the troops' advance was hampered by incoming artillery and machine gun fire, and by heavy rain turning the battlefield to swamp. Private Evans, as part of

3640-640: The United States spoke Welsh at home. The highest number of those (255) lived in Florida . Sources: Calls for the Welsh language to be granted official status grew with the establishment of the nationalist political party Plaid Cymru in 1925, the establishment of the Welsh Language Society in 1962 and the rise of Welsh nationalism in the later 20th century. Of the six living Celtic languages (including two revived), Welsh has

3744-400: The awdl Yr Arwr ("The Hero"), his submission for the National Eisteddfod. According to his nephew, Gerald Williams, "It was a wet year in 1917. He came back for fourteen days leave and wrote the poem, Yr Arwr , on the table by the fire. As it was such a wet year, he stayed for another seven days. This extra seven days made him a deserter . So the military police came to fetch him from

3848-542: The "hugely important role", adding, "I look forward to working with the Welsh Government and organisations in Wales in developing the new system of standards. I will look to build on the good work that has been done by the Welsh Language Board and others to strengthen the Welsh language and ensure that it continues to thrive." First Minister Carwyn Jones said that Huws would act as a champion for

3952-477: The 100th anniversary of his death, a Bardic chair was made to celebrate the life of Hedd Wyn. It was presented to the Welsh Government at a special service of remembrance at Birkenhead Park in September 2017. A memorial to the poet was also unveiled in the park, the site of the 1917 National Eisteddfod. In November 2017, as part of the annual British Armistice commemorations , a video installation commemorating

4056-473: The 12th to 14th centuries, of which much more remains than for any earlier period. This is the language of nearly all surviving early manuscripts of the Mabinogion , although the tales themselves are certainly much older. It is also the language of the existing Welsh law manuscripts. Middle Welsh is reasonably intelligible to a modern-day Welsh speaker. The Bible translations into Welsh helped maintain

4160-609: The 15th (Service) Battalion (1st London Welsh), was advancing towards a German strongpoint –created within the ruins of the Belgian hamlet of Hagebos ("Iron Cross")– when he was hit. In an interview conducted in 1975 by St Fagans National History Museum , Simon Jones, a veteran of the Royal Welsh Fusiliers , recalled, "We started over Canal Bank at Ypres , and he was killed half way across Pilckem. I've heard many say that they were with Hedd Wyn and this and that, well I

4264-596: The 1880s identified a small part of Shropshire as still then speaking Welsh, with the "Celtic Border" passing from Llanymynech through Oswestry to Chirk . The number of Welsh-speaking people in the rest of Britain has not yet been counted for statistical purposes. In 1993, the Welsh-language television channel S4C published the results of a survey into the numbers of people who spoke or understood Welsh, which estimated that there were around 133,000 Welsh-speaking people living in England, about 50,000 of them in

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4368-455: The 1880s these towns were regarded as "citadels of dissent", with their ministers and deacons having a powerful role among a new middle class elite which dominated public life. The ministers also had considerable influence within working class networks which, in part, reflected their own social origins. The Religious Census of 1851 showed that 80% of those who attended a place of worship on Census Sunday in Wales were Nonconformists, even though

4472-536: The 1993 Act nor secondary legislation made under it covers the private sector, although some organisations, notably banks and some railway companies, provide some of their information in Welsh. On 7 December 2010, the Welsh Assembly unanimously approved a set of measures to develop the use of the Welsh language within Wales. On 9 February 2011 this measure, the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011 ,

4576-486: The Assembly which confirms the official status of the Welsh language; which creates a strong advocate for Welsh speakers and will improve the quality and quantity of services available through the medium of Welsh. I believe that everyone who wants to access services in the Welsh language should be able to do so, and that is what this government has worked towards. This legislation is an important and historic step forward for

4680-517: The Brittonic speakers in Wales were split off from those in northern England, speaking Cumbric, and those in the southwest, speaking what would become Cornish , so the languages diverged. Both the works of Aneirin ( Canu Aneirin , c.  600 ) and the Book of Taliesin ( Canu Taliesin ) were written during this era. Middle Welsh ( Cymraeg Canol ) is the label attached to the Welsh of

4784-737: The Celtic language spoken by the ancient Celtic Britons . Classified as Insular Celtic , the British language probably arrived in Britain during the Bronze Age or Iron Age and was probably spoken throughout the island south of the Firth of Forth . During the Early Middle Ages the British language began to fragment due to increased dialect differentiation, thus evolving into Welsh and

4888-598: The Evans family were required to send one of their sons to join the British Army . The 29-year-old Ellis enlisted rather than his younger brother Robert. In February 1917, he received his training at Litherland Camp, Liverpool , but in March 1917 the government called for farm workers to help with ploughing and many soldiers were temporarily released. Hedd Wyn was given seven weeks' leave. He spent most of this leave working on

4992-550: The Greater London area. The Welsh Language Board , on the basis of an analysis of the Office for National Statistics Longitudinal Study, estimated there were 110,000 Welsh-speaking people in England, and another thousand in Scotland and Northern Ireland. In the 2011 census , 8,248 people in England gave Welsh in answer to the question "What is your main language?" The Office for National Statistics subsequently published

5096-762: The Nonconformists had not been comfortable at all with the idea of warfare. The war saw a major clash within Welsh Nonconformism between those who backed military action and those who adopted a pacifist stance on religious grounds. The war inspired Hedd Wyn's work and produced some of his most noted poetry, including Plant Trawsfynydd ("Children of Trawsfynydd"), Y Blotyn Du ("The Black Dot"), and Nid â’n Ango ("[It] Will Not Be Forgotten"). His poem, Rhyfel ("War"), remains one of his most frequently quoted works. Gwae fi fy myw mewn oes mor ddreng, A Duw ar drai ar orwel pell; O'i ôl mae dyn, yn deyrn

5200-496: The Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011, all new signs have Welsh displayed first. There have been incidents of one of the languages being vandalised, which may be considered a hate crime . Since 2000, the teaching of Welsh has been compulsory in all schools in Wales up to age 16; this has had an effect in stabilising and reversing the decline in the language. Text on UK coins tends to be in English and Latin. However,

5304-704: The Welsh Language Scheme. The list of other public bodies which have to prepare Schemes could be added to by initially the Secretary of State for Wales, from 1993 to 1997, by way of statutory instrument . Subsequent to the forming of the National Assembly for Wales in 1997, the Government Minister responsible for the Welsh language can and has passed statutory instruments naming public bodies who have to prepare Schemes. Neither

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5408-843: The Welsh Parliament, the Senedd , with Welsh being the only de jure official language in any part of the United Kingdom, with English being merely de facto official. According to the 2021 census , the Welsh-speaking population of Wales aged three or older was 538,300 (17.8%) and nearly three quarters of the population in Wales said they had no Welsh language skills. Other estimates suggest that 862,700 people (28.0%) aged three or older in Wales could speak Welsh in March 2024. Almost half of all Welsh speakers consider themselves fluent, while 20 per cent are able to speak

5512-526: The Welsh language, though some had concerns over her appointment: Plaid Cymru spokeswoman Bethan Jenkins said, "I have concerns about the transition from Meri Huws's role from the Welsh Language Board to the language commissioner, and I will be asking the Welsh government how this will be successfully managed. We must be sure that there is no conflict of interest, and that the Welsh Language Commissioner can demonstrate how she will offer

5616-487: The Welsh of the 16th century, but they are similar enough for a fluent Welsh speaker to have little trouble understanding it. During the Modern Welsh period, there has been a decline in the popularity of the Welsh language: the number of Welsh speakers declined to the point at which there was concern that the language would become extinct. During industrialisation in the late 19th century, immigrants from England led to

5720-572: The Welsh-speaking heartlands, with the number dropping to under 50 per cent in Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire for the first time. However, according to the Welsh Language Use Survey in 2019–20, 22 per cent of people aged three and over were able to speak Welsh. The Annual Population Survey (APS) by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimated that as of March 2024, approximately 862,700, or 28.0 per cent of

5824-431: The adjudicators announced that the entry submitted under the pseudonym Fleur de Lys was the winner, the trumpets were sounded for the author to identify themselves. After three such summons, Archdruid Dyfed solemnly announced that the winner had been killed in action six weeks earlier. The empty chair was then draped in a black sheet. It was delivered to Evans's parents in the same condition, "the festival in tears and

5928-579: The ancestor of Cumbric as well as Welsh. Jackson, however, believed that the two varieties were already distinct by that time. The earliest Welsh poetry – that attributed to the Cynfeirdd or "Early Poets" – is generally considered to date to the Primitive Welsh period. However, much of this poetry was supposedly composed in the Hen Ogledd , raising further questions about the dating of

6032-408: The census. In terms of usage, ONS also reported that 14.4 per cent (443,800) of people aged three or older in Wales reported that they spoke Welsh daily in March 2024, with 5.4 per cent (165,500) speaking it weekly and 6.5 per cent (201,200) less often. Approximately 1.7 per cent (51,700) reported that they never spoke Welsh despite being able to speak the language, with the remaining 72.0 per cent of

6136-422: The chapels spoke largely as one in their opposition to the social and political dominance of the clergy and landed gentry, particularly in rural areas. The relative absence of these influences in the industrial valleys made Nonconformity even more powerful, especially given that many of the leading coal owners of the late 19th century were Welsh-speaking Nonconformists. It has been said that the chapels "formed almost

6240-414: The course of the 20th century this monolingual population all but disappeared, but a small percentage remained at the time of the 1981 census. Most Welsh-speaking people in Wales also speak English. However, many Welsh-speaking people are more comfortable expressing themselves in Welsh than in English. A speaker's choice of language can vary according to the subject domain and the social context, even within

6344-479: The decline in Welsh speakers particularly in the South Wales Valleys. Welsh government processes and legislation have worked to increase the proliferation of the Welsh language, for example through education. Welsh has been spoken continuously in Wales throughout history; however, by 1911, it had become a minority language, spoken by 43.5 per cent of the population. While this decline continued over

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6448-574: The denominations, such as the Baptists' insistence on total immersion, these were less significant by the later 19th century than previously. In political terms, especially after the more conservative Calvinistic Methodists became more involved in political activity in the wake of the 1847 Reports of the Commissioners of Inquiry into the State of Education in Wales and the 1868 General Election ,

6552-491: The developing townships of the industrial valleys. In the nineteenth century, Welsh nonconformity, within which the Calvinistic Methodists were the largest denomination, was strongly connected to the Welsh language, though not exclusively so. Anglicanism, in turn, was often associated with the English language and landed gentry. The growth in Welsh political radicalism in the 19th century was closely tied to

6656-460: The end of the ode, a better age will come. A bronze statue of Hedd Wyn, dressed as a shepherd, was unveiled by his mother in the centre of the village in 1923. It bears an englyn which Hedd Wyn had written in memory of a slain friend, Tommy Morris. Ei aberth nid â heibio – ei wyneb Annwyl nid â'n ango Er i'r Almaen ystaenio Ei dwrn dur yn ei waed o. His sacrifice was not in vain, his face In our minds will remain, Although he left

6760-431: The following decades, the language did not die out. The smallest number of speakers was recorded in 1981 with 503,000 although the lowest percentage was recorded in the most recent census in 2021 at 17.8 per cent. By the start of the 21st century, numbers began to increase once more, at least partly as a result of the increase in Welsh-medium education . The 2004 Welsh Language Use Survey showed that 21.7 per cent of

6864-511: The hayfield and took him to the jail at Blaenau . From there he travelled to... the war in Belgium . Because he left in such a hurry he forgot the poem on the table, so he wrote it again on the journey. So there are two copies: one in Aberystwyth and one in Bangor ." In June 1917, Hedd Wyn joined the 15th Battalion Royal Welsh Fusiliers (part of the 38th (Welsh) Division ) at Fléchin , France . His arrival depressed him, as exemplified in his quote, "Heavy weather, heavy soul, heavy heart. That

6968-411: The highest number of native speakers who use the language on a daily basis, and it is the Celtic language which is considered the least endangered by UNESCO . The Welsh Language Act 1993 and the Government of Wales Act 1998 provide that the Welsh and English languages be treated equally in the public sector, as far as is reasonable and practicable. Each public body is required to prepare for approval

7072-413: The highest percentage of residents giving Welsh as their main language. The census also revealed that 3,528 wards in England, or 46% of the total number, contained at least one resident whose main language is Welsh. In terms of the regions of England , North West England (1,945), London (1,310) and the West Midlands (1,265) had the highest number of people noting Welsh as their main language. According to

7176-431: The language, its speakers and for the nation." The measure was not welcomed warmly by all supporters: Bethan Williams, chairman of the Welsh Language Society, gave a mixed response to the move, saying, "Through this measure we have won official status for the language and that has been warmly welcomed. But there was a core principle missing in the law passed by the Assembly before Christmas. It doesn't give language rights to

7280-408: The large proportion of the population, even in Wales, who were not recorded in the census, suggested that the influence of religion within society was far more tenuous than first appearances suggested. In 1859 there was another popular revival, which began in north Cardiganshire and eventually affected most of Wales. It was primarily, however, a Welsh language phenomenon, and its influence was, in

7384-402: The least endangered Celtic language by UNESCO . The language of the Welsh developed from the language of Britons . The emergence of Welsh was not instantaneous and clearly identifiable. Instead, the shift occurred over a long period, with some historians claiming that it had happened by as late as the 9th century , with a watershed moment being that proposed by linguist Kenneth H. Jackson ,

7488-470: The life of Hedd Wyn was beamed onto the exterior walls of the National Library of Wales , Aberystwyth . The work was the culmination of a project involving more than 800 schoolchildren and adults at primary and secondary schools across Wales which looked at the life and legacy of the poet. The anti-war biopic Hedd Wyn was released in 1992. The film, which starred Huw Garmon as the poet,

7592-409: The main, a transient one. Nevertheless, by the 1880s, Nonconformity was approaching its golden age. Chapel buildings were increasingly grandiose, in contrast to the austerity of the earlier meeting houses of the revivalist period. Professional architects were engaged to design elaborate structures, especially in larger towns such as Aberystwyth , Caernarfon , Carmarthen and Swansea , as well as in

7696-506: The majority of the congregations. Denominationalism, based on rivalries between neighbouring chapels, was often rampant and could be seen at its worst in local elections to bodies such as School Boards . There were even divisions within denominations, and many of the numerous chapels built in the generation before the First World War resulted from a schism in the mother church. But in other ways Nonconformity could be seen as having

7800-522: The manner of a dreamer who moved slowly and calmly. Another close friend of Hedd Wyn was the clergyman and writer R. Silyn Roberts , who was known as 'Rhosyr'. In 1913, 26-year-old Hedd Wyn began to find fame for his poetry when he won chairs at the local eisteddfodau at Pwllheli and Llanuwchllyn . In 1915 he was successful at local eisteddfodau in Pontardawe and Llanuwchllyn. That same year he entered his first poem Eryri (an ode to Snowdonia ) in

7904-673: The material and language in which it was originally composed. This discretion stems from the fact that Cumbric was widely believed to have been the language used in Hen Ogledd. An 8th-century inscription in Tywyn shows the language already dropping inflections in the declension of nouns. Janet Davies proposed that the origins of the Welsh language were much less definite; in The Welsh Language: A History , she proposes that Welsh may have been around even earlier than 600 AD. This

8008-622: The modern period across the border in England. Archenfield was still Welsh enough in the time of Elizabeth I for the Bishop of Hereford to be made responsible, together with the four Welsh bishops, for the translation of the Bible and the Book of Common Prayer into Welsh. Welsh was still commonly spoken there in the first half of the 19th century, and churchwardens' notices were put up in both Welsh and English until about 1860. Alexander John Ellis in

8112-609: The name for their territory, Wales. The modern names for various Romance-speaking people in Continental Europe (e.g. Walloons , Valaisans , Vlachs / Wallachians , and Włosi , the Polish name for Italians) have a similar etymology. The Welsh term for the language, Cymraeg , descends from the Brythonic word combrogi , meaning 'compatriots' or 'fellow countrymen'. Welsh evolved from Common Brittonic ,

8216-551: The older nonconformist churches, or dissenters – the Baptists and the Congregationalists – who in turn also experienced growth and renewal. As a result, by the middle of the 19th century, Wales was predominantly a nonconformist country. Starting in rural areas and small market towns, the 19th century was the golden age of Welsh nonconformity. Some small settlements, such as Carmel , Nebo and Sardis, grew around

8320-627: The other Brittonic languages. It is not clear when Welsh became distinct. Linguist Kenneth H. Jackson has suggested that the evolution in syllabic structure and sound pattern was complete by around AD 550, and labelled the period between then and about AD 800 "Primitive Welsh". This Primitive Welsh may have been spoken in both Wales and the Hen Ogledd ('Old North') – the Brittonic-speaking areas of what are now northern England and southern Scotland – and therefore may have been

8424-451: The past regarding the meaning of the ode. It can be said with certainty that Hedd Wyn, like his favourite poet Shelley, longed for a perfect humanity and a perfect world during the chaos of war. Merch y Drycinoedd has been perceived as a symbol of love, the beauty of nature, and creativity; and Yr Arwr as a symbol of goodness, fairness, freedom, and justice. It is wished that through his sacrifice, and his union with Merch y Drycinoedd at

8528-473: The people of Wales in every aspect of their lives. Despite that, an amendment to that effect was supported by 18 Assembly Members from three different parties, and that was a significant step forward." On 5 October 2011, Meri Huws , Chair of the Welsh Language Board , was appointed the new Welsh Language Commissioner. She released a statement that she was "delighted" to have been appointed to

8632-637: The poet in his grave", as Archdruid Dyfed said. The festival is now referred to as " Eisteddfod y Gadair Ddu " ("The Eisteddfod of the Black Chair"). The chair was hand-crafted by Flemish craftsman, Eugeen Vanfleteren (1880–1950), a carpenter born in Mechelen , Belgium , who had fled to England on the outbreak of war and had settled in Birkenhead. Immediately after the Eisteddfod, a committee

8736-471: The population not being able to speak it. The National Survey for Wales, conducted by Welsh Government, has also tended to report a higher percentage of Welsh speakers than the census, with the most recent results for 2022–2023 suggesting that 18 per cent of the population aged 3 and over were able to speak Welsh, with an additional 16 per cent noting that they had some Welsh-speaking ability. Historically, large numbers of Welsh people spoke only Welsh. Over

8840-502: The population of Wales aged 3 and over, were able to speak the language. Children and young people aged three to 15 years old were more likely to report that they could speak Welsh than any other age group (48.4 per cent, 241,300). Around 1,001,500 people, or 32.5 per cent, reported that they could understand spoken Welsh. 24.7 per cent (759,200) could read and 22.2 per cent (684,500) could write in Welsh. The APS estimates of Welsh language ability are historically higher than those produced by

8944-407: The population of Wales spoke Welsh, compared with 20.8 per cent in the 2001 census , and 18.5 per cent in the 1991 census . Since 2001, however, the number of Welsh speakers has declined in both the 2011 and 2021 censuses to about 538,300 or 17.8 per cent in 2021, lower than 1991, although it is still higher in absolute terms. The 2011 census also showed a "big drop" in the number of speakers in

9048-409: The required fresh approach to this new role." Huws started her role as the Welsh Language Commissioner on 1 April 2012. Local councils and the Senedd use Welsh, issuing Welsh versions of their literature, to varying degrees. Road signs in Wales are in Welsh and English. Prior to 2016, the choice of which language to display first was the responsibility of the local council. Since then, as part of

9152-482: The sceptre and the rod? Man raised his sword, once God had gone, To slay his brother, and the roar Of battlefields now casts upon Our homes the shadow of the war. The harps to which we sang are hung, On willow boughs, and their refrain Drowned by the anguish of the young Whose blood is mingled with the rain. Although farm work was classed as a reserved occupation due its national importance, in 1916,

9256-694: The surge of Nonconformism. The wealthier and more established farm owners and the middle class spoke English. But the rapid industrializing and growth of coal and iron brought many poor farmers out of agriculture into much better paying industrial jobs, thus providing a better financial base for the Nonconformists. By the 1880s, over 350,000 men and women were officially members of one of the four main Nonconformist denominations, and there were also larger numbers of "adherents" who attended services and other chapel-based activities but were not officially recorded as members. While there were some differences between

9360-526: The use of Welsh in daily life, and standardised spelling. The New Testament was translated by William Salesbury in 1567, and the complete Bible by William Morgan in 1588. Modern Welsh is subdivided into Early Modern Welsh and Late Modern Welsh. Early Modern Welsh ran from the 15th century through to the end of the 16th century, and the Late Modern Welsh period roughly dates from the 16th century onwards. Contemporary Welsh differs greatly from

9464-558: The visitor experience in order to share the story of Hedd Wyn. In the same year, Gerald Williams was awarded an MBE for his "exceptional contribution" to conserving the heritage of his bardic uncle. In August 2014, the Welsh Memorial Park, Ypres was unveiled at Pilckem Ridge near Ypres. The war memorial stands close to the spot where Hedd Wyn was mortally wounded in July 1917 during the Battle of Passchendaele . To mark

9568-545: The way sunlight penetrated the mist in the Meirionnydd valleys. Born in the village of Trawsfynydd , Wales , Evans wrote much of his poetry while working as a shepherd on his family's hill farm. His style, which was influenced by romantic poetry , was dominated by themes of nature and religion. He also wrote several war poems following the outbreak of war on the Western Front in 1914. Ellis Humphrey Evans

9672-488: Was also central to various developments in education, from the post-1870 Board Schools , which in Wales were largely influenced by the chapels, to the first Welsh university established at Aberystwyth in 1872. The influence of nonconformist ministers on Welsh society was significant. There were many hundreds of ministers in Wales by the late 19th century, and many of them came from an unprivileged background. For example, Thomas Price of Calfaria, Aberdare , began life as

9776-496: Was an inherently conservative aspect to Welsh Nonconformity in particular. Sabbatarianism was taken to extremes, with the Sunday Closing (Wales) Act 1881 as its high water mark. The influence of this Act persisted in some parts of Wales until the very late 20th century, with public houses in some counties staying closed on Sundays. This reflected a close interaction between Nonconformity and temperance movements such as

9880-458: Was born on 13 January 1887 at Penlan, a house in the centre of Trawsfynydd , Meirionydd , Wales . He was the eldest of eleven children born to Evan and Mary Evans. In the spring of 1887, the family moved to his father's family 168-acre hill-farm of Yr Ysgwrn, in Cwm Prysor, a few miles from Trawsfynydd . He spent his life there, apart from a short stint in South Wales. Ellis Evans received

9984-545: Was carried to a first-aid post. Still conscious, he asked the doctor "Do you think I will live?" though it was clear that he had little chance of surviving; he died at about 11:00 a.m. Among the fatalities that day was the Irish war poet , Francis Ledwidge , who was "blown to bits" while drinking tea in a shell hole. Ellis H. Evans was buried in Section II, Row F, Grave 11 at Artillery Wood Cemetery, near Boezinge . After

10088-520: Was formed in Trawsfynydd to look after the poet's legacy. Under the leadership of J. R. Jones, the head teacher of the village school, all manuscripts in the poet's hand were collected and carefully preserved. Due to the committee's efforts, the first anthology of the bard's work, titled Cerddi'r Bugail ("The Shepherd's Poems"), was published in 1918. The manuscripts were donated to the National Library of Wales in 1934. Hedd Wyn, Ei Farddoniaeth ,

10192-730: Was more concentrated, primarily in Glamorgan and Carmarthenshire, but also in Pembrokeshire on both sides of the linguistic divide. The Wesleyans were not particularly strong in Wales and were more anglicised. Unitarians flourished in the Teifi Valley in West Wales and also in small pockets in Glamorgan, such as Aberdare . There were small Quaker congregations in Cardiff and Swansea . The 1904–1905 Welsh Revival

10296-518: Was passed and received Royal Assent, thus making the Welsh language an officially recognised language within Wales. The measure: The measure required public bodies and some private companies to provide services in Welsh. The Welsh government's Minister for Heritage at the time, Alun Ffred Jones , said, "The Welsh language is a source of great pride for the people of Wales, whether they speak it or not, and I am delighted that this measure has now become law. I am very proud to have steered legislation through

10400-686: Was recorded by Ty Cerdd Records and released in 2022. Welsh language Welsh ( Cymraeg [kəmˈraːiɡ] or y Gymraeg [ə ɡəmˈraːiɡ] ) is a Celtic language of the Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people . Welsh is spoken natively in Wales , by some in England , and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut Province , Argentina ). It

10504-563: Was the Romantic poetry of Percy Bysshe Shelley , and themes of nature and religion dominated his work. His talent for poetry was well known in the village of Trawsfynydd , and he took part in numerous competitions and local eisteddfodau , winning his first chair ( Cadair y Bardd ) at Bala in 1907, aged 20. In 1910, he was given the bardic name Hedd Wyn by the bard Bryfdir at a poets' meeting in Blaenau Ffestiniog . 'Hedd'

10608-528: Was the last revival in Wales and was again essentially a Nonconformist and Welsh-language phenomenon. It is believed that at least 100,000 were involved in the 1904–1905 revival, but historians generally regard it as the last great outpouring of a nonconformist movement that then went into gradual decline, a process exacerbated by the First World War . Historians have debated the influence of Nonconformity upon Welsh society. From one perspective there

10712-619: Was time to pass on the custodianship of Yr Ysgwrn to the Snowdonia National Park Authority . The Park Authority, with support from the Welsh Government and the National Lottery , announced on St David's Day 2012 that it had acquired the Grade II-listed farmstead and its surrounding lands for the Welsh nation. The Authority's objectives are to protect and preserve the site while enhancing

10816-470: Was with him... I saw him fall and I can say that it was a nosecap shell in his stomach that killed him. You could tell that... He was going in front of me, and I saw him fall on his knees and grab two fistfuls of dirt... He was dying, of course... There were stretcher bearers coming up behind us, you see. There was nothing – well, you'd be breaking the rules if you went to help someone who was injured when you were in an attack." Soon after being wounded, Hedd Wyn

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