Welsh Language/Archive 1

Welsh Language/Archive 1

Welsh (Cymraeg or y Gymraeg, pronounced ) is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut Province, Argentina). Historically, it has also been known in English as "the British tongue", "Cambrian", "Cambric" and "Cymric".

In the 2011 UK Census 19% (562,000) of Welsh residents aged three and over reported being able to speak Welsh, of whom 77% (431,000) were able to speak, read and write the language; 73% of Welsh residents (2.2 million), reported having no skills. This can be compared with the 2001 Census, in which 20.8% of the population (582,000) reported being able to speak Welsh. In surveys carried out between 2004 and 2006, 57% (315,000) described themselves as fluent.

A greeting in Welsh is one of 55 languages included on the Voyager Golden Record chosen to be representative of Earth in NASA's Voyager program launched in 1977. The greetings are unique to each language, with the Welsh greeting being Iechyd da i chwi yn awr ac yn oesoedd which translates into English as "Good health to you now and forever".

The Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011 gave the Welsh language official status in Wales, making it the only language that is de jure official in any part of the United Kingdom.