Welsh Language Society
Encyclopedia
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
campaigning for the future of the Welsh language
Welsh language
Welsh 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 current Chairperson of Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg is Bethan Williams of Eglwyswrw, Pembrokeshire.
History and background
The Society was established in name on 4 August 1962 at PontarddulaisPontarddulais
Pontarddulais is a community and town in the City and County of Swansea, Wales. It is situated north west of Swansea city centre. It falls within the Pontarddulais ward.-Overview:...
in South Wales
South Wales
South Wales is an area of Wales bordered by England and the Bristol Channel to the east and south, and Mid Wales and West Wales to the north and west. The most densely populated region in the south-west of the United Kingdom, it is home to around 2.1 million people and includes the capital city of...
, but did not have a constitution until 18 May 1963. The formation was at least partly inspired by the annual BBC Wales
BBC Wales
BBC Cymru Wales is a division of the British Broadcasting Corporation for Wales. Based at Broadcasting House in the Llandaff area of Cardiff, it directly employs over 1200 people, and produces a broad range of television, radio and online services in both the Welsh and English languages.Outside...
Radio Lecture given on the 13 February 1962 by Saunders Lewis
Saunders Lewis
Saunders Lewis was a Welsh poet, dramatist, historian, literary critic, and political activist. He was a prominent Welsh nationalist and a founder of the Welsh National Party...
and entitled Tynged yr iaith
Tynged yr Iaith
"Tynged yr Iaith" was a radio lecture delivered in Welsh by Saunders Lewis on February 13, 1962. Reaction to it brought about a major change in the politics of Wales...
(The fate of the language).
The Society's first public protest took place in October 1962 at Pont Trefechan in Aberystwyth
Aberystwyth
Aberystwyth is a historic market town, administrative centre and holiday resort within Ceredigion, Wales. Often colloquially known as Aber, it is located at the confluence of the rivers Ystwyth and Rheidol....
, where around seventy members and supporters held a 'sit-in' blocking road traffic for half an hour.
The first campaigns were for official status for the language, with a call for Welsh-language tax returns, schools, electoral forms, post office signs, birth certificates and so on. This was done through the formation of 'cells', the first operating in Bangor
Bangor, Gwynedd
Bangor is a city in Gwynedd, north west Wales, and one of the smallest cities in Britain. It is a university city with a population of 13,725 at the 2001 census, not including around 10,000 students at Bangor University. Including nearby Menai Bridge on Anglesey, which does not however form part of...
in April 1963 by Owain Owain
Owain Owain
Owain Owain was a Welsh novelist, short story writer and poet. He also founded Tafod y Ddraig which became the Welsh Language Society's main voice from its birth in the 1960s to the present day....
who also founded and edited the Society's only publication, Tafod y Ddraig
Tafod y Ddraig
Tafod y Ddraig , or Tafod, is a Welsh language magazine dedicated to the promotion and preservation of the Welsh language. This magazine was the only voice of Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg from its foundation in October 1963 by Owain Owain...
('The Dragon's Tongue') and designed the logo.
Direct action
Direct action is activity undertaken by individuals, groups, or governments to achieve political, economic, or social goals outside of normal social/political channels. This can include nonviolent and violent activities which target persons, groups, or property deemed offensive to the direct action...
and in the course of their campaigns over a thousand people have appeared before the courts for their part in various campaigns, many receiving prison sentences, making it one of Britain's largest protest groups since the suffragettes - in terms of fines and the numbers sent to prison. Typical actions include painting slogans on buildings owned by businesses, and other minor criminal damage.
At the beginning of the 1970s Cymdeithas began to campaign for a Welsh language radio and television service. Radio Cymru was established in 1977, but in 1979 the Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
government announced in that it would not keep its election promise of the establishment of a separate Welsh language television channel. Some protesters refused to buy television licences and others climbed up television masts and invaded television studios. S4C
S4C
S4C , currently branded as S4/C, is a Welsh television channel broadcast from the capital, Cardiff. The first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speaking audience, it is the fifth oldest British television channel .The channel - initially broadcast on...
was finally launched in 1982.
Cymdeithas is a largely voluntary movement, which also employs two full-time members of staff at its head office in Aberystwyth
Aberystwyth
Aberystwyth is a historic market town, administrative centre and holiday resort within Ceredigion, Wales. Often colloquially known as Aber, it is located at the confluence of the rivers Ystwyth and Rheidol....
, Ceredigion, one member in its Caernarfon office and one part-time member in the Llanfihangel ar Arth office.
Campaigns
Cymdeithas yr Iaith believes that Welsh is not at present the official language of Wales. The Welsh Language Act of 1993 declared that Welsh should be treated on an equal basis with English, but Cymdeithas yr Iaith argues that this falls short of what is needed, and that the lack of official status means that the Welsh language misses out on many crucial European grants. They are calling for Welsh and English to be declared official languages in Wales.The principal campaigns can be divided into six major areas:
Cymru 2020 (Wales 2020)
This campaign hopes to "secure the future of the language" by 2020 and avoid what they claim could be a crisis where the language could be in decline.Grŵp Deddf Iaith Newydd (New Welsh Language Act Group)
This campaign is involved in the demand for a new Welsh language act. The current Welsh language act does not include areas such as the private or voluntary sector, and Cymdeithas yr Iaith see these sectors as some of the principal areas of social communication in modern Wales.Studio invasion, protests and continuing controversy
On July 24, 2004 (five weeks after launching), Radio Carmarthenshire's studios in Narberth were invaded by eleven activists from the Welsh language Society Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg. They were protesting about Radio Carmarthenshire's decision to limit the amount of Welsh Language programming broadcast on Radio Carmarthenshire.The offices and studios were stormed during a live broadcasts, taking Radio Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire off air for 15 minutes. According to Keri Jones, his head of sales was injured, and needed hospital treatment for a fractured wrist during the scuffles which ensued. Police arrested eleven activists, and subsequently released them pending further enquiries. Keri Jones later branded the members of the group as "terrorists".
Cymdeithas claim that 50% of the population in Carmarthenshire speak Welsh as a first language, but less than 5% of Radio Carmarthenshire's output is in Welsh. As a result of complaints and pressure from the society and individuals, the United Kingdom's broadcasting watchdog Ofcom issued Radio Carmarthenshire with a 'yellow card' warning in late 2004 and any further claims of the station not conforming to its licence agreement will result in the station being severely reprimanded by Ofcom.
Grŵp Addysg (Education Group)
Welsh language medium education is available in most areas of Wales in the secondary and primary stage of school education. Welsh second-language GCSEsGeneral Certificate of Secondary Education
The General Certificate of Secondary Education is an academic qualification awarded in a specified subject, generally taken in a number of subjects by students aged 14–16 in secondary education in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and is equivalent to a Level 2 and Level 1 in Key Skills...
are compulsory in English medium education. This group demands improvements and also massive expansions in further (college) and higher (university) education. This mainly includes a Welsh language federal college, which is a multi-sited college that provides courses and resources in the medium of Welsh.
National Assembly
Cymdeithas are pressing for more politicians to use Welsh in the chamber of the National Assembly for WalesNational Assembly for Wales
The National Assembly for Wales is a devolved assembly with power to make legislation in Wales. The Assembly comprises 60 members, who are known as Assembly Members, or AMs...
, where both Welsh and English are spoken.