Wales Languages

Wales is a bilingual country. The Welsh language came from the Brythonic branch of the Celtic language. It was spoken throughout Wales and English border counties until the end of the 16th Century. It is said that the translation of the Bible into Welsh in 1588 began the standardization of the language.

Western and Northern Wales still speak predominantly Welsh. There has been a push in the last few decades to restore Welsh to is proper place in society. Welsh has equal status with English in the public sector in Wales and the teaching of both languages is compulsory in all schools up to the age of 16.

The most recent census figures for Wales (2001) indicate that 582,400 (21% of the population) were able to speak Welsh. However, in the western parts of the country the language is spoken by over 60% of the population. The number of younger people able to speak Welsh, throughout Wales, has risen significantly.

Wales has one television channel, S4C (Sianel 4 Cymru), and one radio station, BBC Radio Cymru, broadcasting in the Welsh language.

Although most Welsh records are written in English, understanding some basic elements of the Welsh language can help you with your research. Do not, however, rely on a translation of a record made by using a dictionary. Get help from someone who knows the language.

Welsh Language Courses
Many opportunities exist for learning to speak and read the Welsh language. Read more...

The Welsh Alphabet
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages.

Though the Welsh and English alphabets are very similar, each has some letters not used in the other. The letters q, v, and z are not used in the Welsh language and the letters j and k only occur in 'adopted' words. The following double letters are treated as a single letter in Welsh: ch, dd, ff, ll, ng, ph, rh, and th. These letters are part of the Welsh alphabet.

When you use a Welsh dictionary or an index written in Welsh, use Welsh, not English, alphabetical order.

Welsh Pronunciation
The sounds produced by certain letters in the Welsh alphabet are often misinterpreted and spelled incorrectly. This is particularly true of Welsh sounds not used in English. For example, the sound made by a double l (ll) is formed by placing the tongue at the roof of the mouth and blowing air sharply out the side. The sound comes when using it in conjunction with other letters.

The following table lists Welsh letters and their sounds:

Note: The letters q, v, and z are not used in Welsh. The letters j and k are used only in adopted words like jam and kilo.

Using a Welsh Dictionary
If you cannot find a word in the dictionary, it may be that:


 * Your dictionary is too small.
 * The word is mutated (see below).
 * The word is a conjugated verb. For example, dod (to come) is in the dictionary, but daeth (he came) is not.
 * The word is a conjugated preposition. am (about) is in the dictionary, but amdani (about her) is not.
 * The word is a comparative or superlative adjective. hen (old) is listed, but hen (older), and hynaf (oldest) are not.
 * The word is a contraction. o (from) and yr (the) are both listed, but their contracted form o’r (from the) is not.
 * The word contains double letters such as ch,dd, ll, ng, and rh, which are filed after single letters. For example:
 * the word rhad (free) would come after ruban (ribbon)
 * the word dichell (treachery) would come after dicter (anger)
 * the word goddef (to bear) would come after godro (to milk)
 * the word gwyllt (wild) would come after gwylan (seagull)

If a word you find in a dictionary does not make sense in the record’s context:


 * It may be part of a two-word preposition. ôl is a noun meaning "track." When it is combined with ar (on), the result is the preposition ar ôl, meaning "after".
 * It may be part of an idiomatic expression. hen by itself means "old," but hen bryd means "high time."
 * It may be an archaic word or have changed meaning.

Description
The languages spoken in Wales are
 * Welsh - an official language in Wales. 29.7% of the population speak Welsh.
 * Areas in northern and western Wales retain Welsh spoken as a first language by a majority of the population.
 * English - also an official language in Wales. Spoken by almost all and considered the main language of the country.
 * Welsh English - also as Wenglish. Includes the dialects of English spoken by Welsh people.
 * Welsh Romani - also known as Welsh Romany and also Kååle. Was spoken fluently in Wales until 1950.
 * Polish - the most spoken main language after Welsh and English.
 * Arabic - next most common main language.
 * Latin - used to a limited degree in some official mottos, legal terms, and ceremonial contexts.

Until 1733 many records were kept in Latin. Sometimes records written in English contain some Latin words. Knowing some Latin will help you read these records. Resources to help with Latin words are listed in the Word List section and in the Language Aids section.

Word List(s)

 * Useful Welsh phrases - Omniglot
 * Family words in Welsh - Omniglot
 * Useful Welsh Sayings / Phrases / Words - WelshGiftShop
 * Polish Genealogical Word List
 * Arabic Genealogical Word List
 * Latin Genealogical Word List
 * Simpson, Elizabeth. Latin word-list for family historians. Solihull, England: Federation of Family History Societies, 1985. Available at: WorldCat.

Alphabet and Pronunciation
Alphabet
 * Welsh alphabet - Omniglot
 * Welsh Cyrillic - Omniglot
 * Polish alphabet - Omniglot
 * Welsh Arabic alphabet - Omniglot

Pronunciation
 * Welsh Pronunciation - Omniglot
 * Welsh pronunciation dictionary - Forvo
 * Polish pronunciation - Omniglot
 * Polish pronunciation dictionary - Forvo
 * Arabic pronunciation dictionary - Forvo
 * Sounds of Wales - pronunciation of place-names - Welsh Family History Archive

In Welsh, the first letter of a word often changes or disappears. This is called a mutation. Mutated words are not in Welsh dictionaries. See Mutations in the Welsh language.

Language Aids and Dictionaries
Dictionaries
 * Beattie, Susie. Welsh dictionary. Glasgow: Collins, 2017. Available at: WorldCat.
 * Lewis, Edwin C. Essential Welsh dictionary : Welsh-English, English-Welsh. London: Teach Yourself, 2010. Available at: WorldCat.
 * Lewis, Edwin C. Welsh dictionary. Lincolnwood, Ill: NTC Pub. Group, 1993. Available at: WorldCat.
 * King, Gareth. Modern Welsh dictionary : a guide to the living language. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007. Available at: WorldCat.
 * Dawson, Robert. Welsh Romani dictionary. Alfreton: R. Dawson, 2011. Available at: WorldCat.
 * Dawson, Robert. Welsh Romani dictionary. n.p.: R. Dawson, 2011. Available at: WorldCat.
 * Evans, H. Meurig and W. O. Thomas. The Complete Welsh-English, English-Welsh dictionary. Aberystwyth Gomer, Llandybie, Aberystwyth: Llyfrau'r Dryw, 1963. Available at: WorldCat.
 * Bevan, Gareth A. and Patrick J. Donovan. Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru = A dictionary of the Welsh language. Caerdydd: Gwasg Prifysgol Cymru, 2003. Available at: WorldCat.

Online Dictionaries
 * Dictionary Welsh - English - Glosbe
 * Dictionary Old Welsh - English - Glosbe
 * Dictionary English - Middle Welsh - Glosbe
 * Dictionary English - Welsh Romani - Glosbe
 * Dictionary Polish - English - Glosbe
 * Dictionary English - Arabic - Glosbe
 * Welsh-English / English-Welsh On-line Dictionary - Geiriadur

Language Aids
 * Jones, Christine. Welsh grammar you really need to know. London: Teach Yourself, 2013. Available at: WorldCat.
 * Williams, Stephen Joseph. A Welsh grammar. Cardiff: University of Wales Press, 1980. Available at: WorldCat.
 * Thorne, David. A comprehensive Welsh grammar. Oxford, UK: Blackwell, 1993. Available at: WorldCat.
 * Lewis, Robert. Wenglish : the dialect of the South Wales Valleys. Talybont, Ceredigion: Y Lolfa, 2016. Available at: WorldCat.
 * Ainsworth, Robert. Thesaurus linguæ latinæ compendiarius. London: H. Woodfall and C. Rivington, 1761. Available at: WorldCat.

Additional Resources

 * Paulasto, Heli, Robert J. Penhallurick, and Benjamin A. Jones. Welsh English. Boston: De Gruyter Mouton, 2021. Available at: WorldCat.
 * Jones, T. J. Rhys. Welsh : a complete course for beginners. Sevenoaks: Teach Yourself Books, 1991. Available at: WorldCat.
 * The Welsh Language - Omniglot

Other countries with Celtic languages:
 * France Language and Languages (Breton)
 * Ireland Language and Languages
 * Isle of Man Language and Languages
 * Scotland Language and Languages

Mutations in the Welsh language In Welsh, the first letter of a word often changes or disappears. This is called mutation. For example, teulu (family) can appear as deulu, nheulu, or theulu. Mutated words are not in Welsh dictionaries, so use the following chart to change a mutated word back to its original form:

Soft mutation generally occurs:


 * On singular feminine nouns following the definite article. For example: "pont" (a bridge), "y bont" (the bridge).
 * After one of the prepositions: "am" (for), "ar" (on), "at" (towards), "gan" (with), "tros" (over), "trwy" (through), "wrth" (by), "dan" (below), "heb" (without), "hyd" (until), "o" (from), "i" (to). For example: "dim" (nothing), "am ddim" (for nothing)
 * After the personal pronouns: "dy" (your), "ei" (his). For example: "pen" (head), dy ben (your head)
 * After the numerals "un" (one, but only sing. f.), "dau" (two m.), "dwy" (two f.), "saith" (seven), "wyth" (eight). For example: "brawd" (brother), "dau frawd" (two brothers)

Nasal mutation generally occurs:


 * After "fy" (my). For example "brawd" (brother), "fy mrawd" (my brothers)
 * After "yn" (in). For example "ym Mangor" (in Bangor)

Aspirate mutation generally occurs:


 * After "tri" (three m.), "chwe" (six). For example: "ceffyl" (horse), "chwe cheffyl" (six horses)
 * After "ei" (her). For example: "pen" (head), "ei phen" (her head)
 * After "a" (and), "â" (with). For example: "caws" (cheese), "bara a chaws" (bread and cheese)

In general, if you are unable to find a word:

Using a Welsh Dictionary If you cannot find a word in the dictionary, it may be that:
 * Your dictionary is too small.
 * The word is mutated (see below).
 * he word is a conjugated verb. For example, dod (to come) is in the dictionary, but daeth (he came) is not.
 * The word is a conjugated preposition. am (about) is in the dictionary, but amdani (about her) is not.
 * The word is a comparative or superlative adjective. hen (old) is listed, but hen (older), and hynaf (oldest) are not.
 * The word is a contraction. o (from) and yr (the) are both listed, but their contracted form o’r (from the) is not.
 * The word contains double letters such as ch,dd, ll, ng, and rh, which are filed after single letters. For example:
 * the word rhad (free) would come after ruban (ribbon)
 * the word dichell (treachery) would come after dicter (anger)
 * the word goddef (to bear) would come after godro (to milk)
 * the word gwyllt (wild) would come after gwylan (seagull)

If a word you find in a dictionary does not make sense in the record’s context:
 * It may be part of a two-word preposition. ôl is a noun meaning "track." When it is combined with ar (on), the result is the preposition ar ôl, meaning "after".
 * It may be part of an idiomatic expression. hen by itself means "old," but hen bryd means "high time."
 * It may be an archaic word or have changed meaning.