Way of Life

People

WALES

WALES is one of the four major political divisions that make up the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. England, Northern Ireland, and Scotland are the other divisions of the United Kingdom, which is often called simply Great Britain or Britain. Cardiff is the capital and largest city of Wales.

Wales lies on the west coast of the island of Great Britain. It takes up about a tenth of the island. Wales has a wealth of scenic beauty. Its landscape includes low, broad mountains and deep, green valleys. Wales is bordered by extensions of the Atlantic Ocean on the north, west, and south, and by England on the east. Most of the Welsh people live in towns, cities, and industrial areas of southern Wales. The rest of Wales is mainly rural.

The Welsh take great pride in their heritage. Although Wales has been united with England for more than 400 years, the Welsh have kept alive their own language, literature, and traditions. The Welsh name for Wales is Cymru (pronounced KUM ree).

Population. Wales has a population of nearly 3 million people. Most live in the industrialized and formerly industrialized areas of southern Wales. The growth of population in these areas took place in the 1600's and during the Industrial Revolution, a period of rapid industrialization that began in the 1700's. At that time, people came to the region from rural Wales and from England. Cardiff, Newport, and Swansea grew as ports to serve the coal and iron industries.

Ancestry. Some Welsh are descended from prehistoric peoples from continental Europe who colonized Wales thousands of years ago. Many others trace their ancestry to such later settlers as the Celts, Romans, Anglo-Saxons, Vikings, Normans, and English.

Language. Wales has two official languages, Welsh and English. Either language may be used in the courts or for government business. Some newspapers are published partly or only in Welsh, and many radio and television programs are broadcast in both languages.

Welsh is still the daily language in many sections of western and northern Wales. In some parts of these areas, more than three-fourths of the people speak Welsh. Overall, however, the number of Welsh-speaking people has declined since 1901, when half the population spoke Welsh, to less than one-fifth today.

Welsh is one of the oldest languages in Europe. It is derived from ancient Celtic and has been influenced by each group of settlers. The letters j, k, q, v, x, and z are not used in modern Welsh. The letter y is always a vowel, and the letter w is usually used as one.

Certain letter combinations are considered part of the Welsh alphabet. They include the double letters dd, ff, and ll. The combination dd is pronounced like the th in they. The letter f sounds like the English v, and ff sounds like f. The ll sound is made by placing the tongue in the position for l and then trying to pronounce an h.

In general, the way of life in Wales is similar to that in the rest of the Western world. For example, many people relax in the evenings by watching television. In Wales, as in the United Kingdom as a whole, the pub (public house) is an important part of social life. A number of older customs also survive. On March 1, the feast of Saint David, the patron saint of Wales, people throughout the land wear the traditional Welsh symbols of the leek and daffodil.

City Life. About four-fifths of the Welsh people live in urban areas. Many urban dwellers live in large public housing developments on the outskirts of cities. These complexes were built in the 1950's and 1960's, and some of them have fallen into disrepair. Welsh metal-processing industries have declined since the 1950's, leading to increased unemployment in Welsh cities. Urban areas have also experienced a rise in crime, overcrowding, and other social problems.

In the steep-sided coal-mining valleys of southern Wales, many townspeople live in row houses. These houses have the same design and are attached in a row.

Rural Life. Approximately a fifth of the Welsh people live in rural areas. Welsh farms are small, and most are owned by the people who live on them. Many rural people live in stone cottages.

An older Welsh way of life has lasted in rural areas, especially where the Welsh language is the primary one. Ties to religion and to families tend to be stronger in these areas. However, many people fear that age-old customs may soon be lost. Rural housing has become scarce, and farming has become less profitable over the years. As a result, more and more young people have migrated to the cities to look for employment and housing. As the young people leave the countryside, they tend to abandon the old values and traditions.

Food and Drink. Most Welsh cooking is simple and uses local ingredients. Many Welsh people enjoy roast Welsh lamb served with mint sauce. Other favorite dishes include cawl, a clear broth with vegetables, and Welsh rarebit, which consists of melted cheese and butter served on toast. Laver bread is made from seaweed and oatmeal. Tasty Welsh cakes and cheeses are also popular. Beer is the traditional drink of Wales, and many pubs sell locally brewed beer. Ale is especially popular.

Recreation. Rugby football is the most popular sport in Wales. The Welsh rugby team competes internationally. Almost every town and village has its own team. Another popular sport is football, the game Americans call soccer. Cricket is also played widely in Wales.

In rural areas, many people fish, and some hunt foxes and wild duck. Snowdonia National Park and Brecon Beacons National Park have rugged terrain that is excellent for climbing and other mountain sports. Many people visit Pembrokeshire Coast National Park to hike along its coastal cliffs and admire its scenery.

The Arts. Wales is a land of poets and singers. The traditions of Welsh literature and music are among the oldest in Europe and date back more than 1,000 years to the bards (poet-singers) of the Middle Ages.

The most notable of early Welsh poets were Taliesin and Aneirin. Aneirin composed a poem called the Gododdin about the year 600. In it, he described the adventures of a band of noble warriors. Eleven Welsh stories written in the 1000's and known today as The Mabinogion rank among the most important works of medieval European literature. During the 1100's, Geoffrey of Monmouth composed poetry about the legendary King Arthur. Dafydd ap Gwilym, the greatest Welsh poet of the Middle Ages, wrote about love and nature during the 1300's.

The publication in 1588 of the complete translation of the Bible into Welsh ranks as one of the most important events in the history of Welsh literature. This Bible helped preserve the Welsh language and establish standards for written Welsh.

Many poets and other writers continued to use the Welsh language in the 1600's, 1700's, and 1800's, but other Welsh authors turned to English. Dylan Thomas, who wrote in English, became the most celebrated Welsh poet of the 1900's.

The eisteddfod (pronounced eye STEHTH vahd), a popular Welsh tradition, is a festival of poetry and music in which performers compete. Its origins date back to the Middle Ages, but the modern form began at the end of the 1700's. Annual eisteddfods, or eisteddfodau, are held throughout the land. The largest is the Royal National Eisteddfod. It is held in various cities and towns, alternately between northern and southern Wales.

Wales has a rich tradition of choral music that developed in the 1700's at a time of religious revival. The Welsh National Opera has also become world famous.