What Language Do They Speak in Wales?

Both English and Welsh are spoken in Wales, although English is the dominant language. Welsh is the official language according to the Welsh government (de jure), although this is not the case in reality as English is more common (de facto).

At the last census in 2011, 99% of Welsh people could speak English compared to just 19% that could speak Welsh (source: Welsh Government).

Initiatives by the Welsh government to increase the number of Welsh speakers appear to be working as the latest figures suggest that 29.5% of people aged 3 or over can speak Welsh, although just 15.7% of the population speak Welsh daily (source: Welsh Government).

What is Welsh?

Welsh is a Celtic language. It is similar to Breton (a language once spoken in Britanny, France) and Cornish (from Cornwall) (source: BBC). All three evolved from Brythonic which was the main language spoken in England, Scotland, and Wales long before the English language evolved.

Welsh is the traditional language of Wales and was the most spoken language in the country for over 2,000 years. That was until 1911 when the English language first overtook Welsh as the dominant language in Wales. It has remained that way ever since (source: BBC).

Is Welsh the Same as Gaelic?

No, although Welsh and Gaelic are both Celtic languages, they are not the same. There are two branches of Celtic languages, these are Brythonic and Goidelic.

Brythonic Celtic (also known as British Celtic) includes Welsh, Breton, and Cornish which are all very similar, whereas Goidelic Celtic includes Irish Gaelic, Scottish Gaelic, and Manx (from the Isle of Man) which are also similar to one another.

How is Welsh Different From English?

Welsh and English have very different roots so the languages are completely different. Welsh is a Celtic language whereas English is a Germanic language that was bought to Britain by the Anglo-Saxons.

Here are some of the key things you need to know about Welsh:

There are 29 letters in the Welsh alphabet including 23 consonants and 7 vowels. This is compared to the English alphabet which has 25 letters made up of 21 consonants and 5 vowels.
ㅤ
All nouns in Welsh are masculine or feminine, this is similar to many other European languages, whereas in English, all nouns are ungendered.
ㅤ
There are two ways to count in Welsh. The old way is a vigesimal system which uses 20 as it's base, whereas the new way is a decimal system which uses 10 as its base, like in English. Schools now teach decimal but older generations may still use vigesimal. Learn more about counting in Welsh here.

What Are Some Common Phrases in Welsh?

Here are a few things to say in Welsh:

“Bore da / P’nawn da” – Good morning / Good afternoon
“Diolch yn fawr” – Thank you very much
“Fy enw i yw ” – My name is
“Os gwelwch yn dda” – Please
“Sut wyt ti?” – How are you?

If you want to learn more, see my full guide for 30 useful things to say in Welsh where I also explain how to pronounce them and any differences between the north and south dialect.

Do They Speak Gaelic in Wales?

No, Gaelic is a type of Celtic language spoken in Ireland (Irish Gaelic) and Scotland (Scottish Gaelic). Gaelic is not the same as Welsh.

Is the Welsh Language Still Spoken?

Yes, Welsh is still spoken by some people in Wales. Latest figures suggest that over 15% of the population in Wales speak Welsh There are proportionally more Welsh speakers in North Wales with the highest numbers in Gwynedd where 76% of people are able to speak the language (source: Welsh Government).

So, if you're hoping to try out some of my flirty things to say in Welsh, you'll have much more success in a bar in North Wales than anywhere else in the country.

Do All Welsh Speak Welsh?

No, not all Welsh people can speak Welsh. Less than one-third of the population can speak any Welsh and around 15% speak Welsh daily.

Are There Any Welsh Words That Are the Same in English?

It is often the case that Welsh people will adopt English words when speaking Welsh. This is especially the case with new words like 'selfie'. But, there are also Welsh words that made it into English, for example, the word 'Dad' comes from 'Tad' in Welsh. See my list of animals in Welsh and see if you can spot more that are similar between the two languages.

Are the names of countries the same in Welsh as English?

Yes and No. Although there are Welsh translations of most continents and countries in Welsh, most Welsh speakers are likely to use the English names of a country in a Welsh accent.

The Welsh name for Wales is Cymru and there is a big push toward using Welsh names for places in Wales. For example, Snowdonia is now referred to by its Welsh name, Eryri.

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