It was recently reported that Eryri National Park officials voted to use Welsh language names for lakes and waterfalls in the area in a bid to “promote cultural heritage”.
Some people have raised eyebrows at the renaming of several hundred water-based bookmarks, but these small uses of the Welsh language are extremely important.
This is the latest in a series of developments across the country where venues are switching to the Welsh version, as opposed to the current English version. Earlier this year the Brecon Beacons National Park announced it would call itself Bannau Brycheiniog in a bid to “reclaim its Welsh name”. Snowdonia passed to Eryri and Snowdon to Yr Wyddfa in November 2022. With this final move, Bearded Lake became Llyn Barfog. Australian Lake Llyn becomes Bochlwyd.
This is important because although Gaelic is the least endangered Celtic language according to Unesco, it is still a large minority language as it exists today. In 1536, Henry VIII decided to introduce the Acts of Union banning the use of Welsh in public administration and the legal system, despite the fact that his father had probably studied Welsh at a young age.
It was not until 1967, 431 years later, that Welsh was allowed to be used in court and the language was once again given official recognition. At school, I saw learning Welsh as a waste of time because of the general attitude towards the language. These days I often think I’ve missed the opportunity to connect to my roots and I’m currently (albeit slowly) learning Welsh.
Whatever the independence debate, it is remarkable that Gaelic (Cymraeg) continues to be spoken so extensively. Since its compulsory reintroduction into the early stages of the education system (Key Stages 1, 2 and 3) in 1990, the acceptance of Welsh has been greater than it has been for generations. The survival of an illegal language for four centuries is, of course, evidence of people continuing to speak it despite the law.
At the end of the chorus of the (unofficial) Welsh national anthem, Mae Hen Wlad fy Nhadau (it is the last line of the anthem in sports and other occasions) is the line “O bydded i’r heniaith barhau” and means “May the tongue last forever”. However, the official national anthem God Save the King. The preservation of the language is an integral part of the identity of Welsh people all over the world, whether they speak it or even want to speak it. And if you don’t care about Welsh, maybe you care about history?
Welsh is the oldest language in Britain; It is approximately 4,000 years old, according to the Welsh Government. That’s twice as old as the Colosseum and more than four times as old as Notre Dame Cathedral. It is important not to overlook the importance of this language, which has managed to survive despite four thousand years of oppression.
The name Wales is interesting in itself. According to Wales.com, an online education center run by the Welsh Government, the word Wales “derives from the Anglo-Saxon word meaning ‘foreigners’.” If the idea of a country being named after them as an outsider isn’t enough of an indication, the oppression of the Welsh by the English is a long-ingrained idea in society.
These are among the main reasons why advocates of Welsh independence tend to refer to the country simply as Cymru, meaning “fellow countryman”, hence the name YesCymru, the non-party political campaign for an independent Wales. Language preservation in general is an integral part of the identity of Welsh people all over the world, whether they speak the language or even want to speak it.
In mostly English-speaking countries around the world, there are place names that use the native language. Closer to home, for example, Scotland uses lakes instead of lakes and no one bats an eyelid; Many place names in Ireland are also easily pronounced. Why can’t the same treatment be given to the Welsh? Because it is less familiar and not normalized? This feels unfair. The fact that a Welsh place uses a Welsh language name should not be newsworthy in any way, it should be the norm.
Just as most people in Wales still call the Prince of Wales Bridge the Severn Bridge and the Principality Stadium the Millennium Stadium, most people will continue to use English language place names for places in Welsh. You’re probably still saying Snowdonia and not Eryri National Park, and that’s okay: habits take time to break.
But to people raising their eyebrows at the Welsh-language announcement of Eryri National Park, I say this: it’s just a few changed names. You’d think people would have better things to do than squabble over a formality meant to officially preserve a language. But apparently not, so much so that “news” is a word that has become a new word in the name of preserving heritage, as if what is going on in the world wasn’t enough.