Any lessons from the Breataine Bige?

del_c

Poster this in the "Is Irish a Dead Language thread" but it didn't really fit there and got lost, so I was wondering...

I never really had much of a sense that Welsh was a living lanugage until fairly recently...maybe the last 10 years. Looking on the Internet, I see over 20% of people use Welsh on a daily basis...this seem so be growing too, which is fantastic.

Does anyone have any insight into the growth of Welsh in the last 20 years again?

Did Welsh fall as far as Irish in terms of native speakers, or was it always in a healthier state?

Are there any relevant lessons for re-encouraging the widespread use of Irish in daily life here?

dlofnep

The revival of the Welsh language is an interesting one. It's very strong in the west and north-west of Wales.. Much like, Irish is strongest on our western coast. The Welsh language act, and compulsory education played a strong role in reviving the language. Much like Irish, welsh was discouraged back in the day and it saw a serious decline in numbers.

I'm not sure about how telling the census is, but in certain parts of Wales - The language is very strong right now! The revival of the language has been part of a broader cultural revival. The welsh people don't have any hang-ups about speaking their own language. Although, much like in Ireland - there is a portion of the population who would rather see the back of it.

I'd say Welsh is a healthy language right now, and has a positive future.

Interesting note - Did you know that there is a strong Welsh speaking community in Argentina? Random fact

del_c

If there much hostility toward revival efforts in Wales, the same as what you tend to get here in Ireland when people talk about various initiaves?

Take a look for example at the base anti-Gaeilge content of the thread on the new Derry Gaeltacht.

dlofnep

Yes, there is hostility in Wales. Particularly towards funding of the Welsh language.