Welsh language

The **Welsh language** is a Celtic language and the national language of Wales, a country that is part of the United Kingdom. In Welsh, it is known as _Cymraeg_, or _yr iaith Gymraeg_, which means "the Welsh language".

Welsh is spoken throughout the country: as per the 2021 census, about 17.8% of people living in Wales over the age of 3 can speak Welsh, which about 538,000 people. Many people in Wales say they can understand some form of Welsh and can speak, write or read Welsh even if they do not speak it all the time.

Even though almost all Welsh people can understand and use English, Welsh is still an important part of Welsh culture and so children in all schools in Wales have to study it. There are some schools that have almost all of their classes in Welsh, but most schools teach mainly in English. Welsh is taught as a second language in these schools.

## Language mutations

Welsh has mutations in which a sound (in speech) or a letter (in writing) changes at the start of a word. Example are the Welsh words _gwneud_, which in English means "to do"; _dod_, which means "to come"; and _dewch i mewn_, which means "come in". The word sometimes changes from _gwneud_ to _wneud_ and from _dod_ to _ddod_. The sounds (in speech) or letters (in writing) changes also occur within and at the end of words, but that iks not mentioned in the simplified classification that is found in ordinary books.

## Formal and informal Welsh

Welsh has formal and informal Welsh. Formal Welsh is used for writing in formal documents and tor speaking to a group (because it also includes the plural), to someone older than oneself, to someone who has just been met, or to someone to which one shows respect. Formal words and phrases use variations of _chi_, meaning "you." Sometimes, people will ask to call them _chi_.

Informal Welsh is used in sending e-mails or sending text messages to friends or family and in talking with people who have been known for a long time. Informal words and phrases use variations of _ti_, meaning "you." Sometimes, people will ask to call them _ti_.

## Sounds

There are some sounds and letters that exist in Welsh but not English such as **ch** and **ll**. The first sound is pronounced like the Scottish Lo***ch*** Ness, and one Welsh word that uses it is _bach_, which means "small." **Ll** is a voiceless l and is made by placing the tongue on the top of the top gum, and blowing. A Welsh word that uses ll is "_llan_", which means "church" and often appears in place names, including Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch. Both **ch** and **ll**  are single letters in the Welsh alphabet, along with **dd**, **ff**, **ng**, **ph**, **rh** and **th.**

Here are some things to say in Welsh with the pronunciation in brackets ().
- "**Croeso i Gymru**" (Kroy-sore ee Gum-ree) - _Welcome to Wales_
- "**Dewch i mewn**" (Dew-ch ee mewn) - _Come in_ (formal Welsh)
- "**Bore da**" (Bor-eh dah) - _Good morning_
- "Cai **ydw i**" (Ky uh-doo ee) - _I am Cai_ (i.e., _My name is Cai_)
- "**Pwy ydych chi?**" (Poi Ud-uch ee) - _Who are you?_, or _What is your name_? (formal Welsh)
- "**Sut ydych chi heddiw?**" (Sit uhd-ich ee heth-ew) - _How are you today?_ (formal Welsh)
- "**Sut wyt ti heddiw?**" (Sit ooee-tea heth-ew) - _How are you today?_ (informal Welsh)
- "**Da iawn diolch**" (Dah yoww-n dee-olch) - _Very well, thank you_.

Here are a few other words;
- "**Trwyn**" (Troo-in) - _Nose_
- "**Hapus**" (Hap-is) - _Happy_
- "**Trist**" (Tree-st) - _Sad_
- "**Rwy'n caru ti**" (Rooeen carry tea) - _I love you_ (informal Welsh)
- "**Heulog**" (Hey-log) - _Sunny_
- "**Eira**" (Ey-ra) - _Snow_
- "**Ci**" (Key) - _Dog_

## Media

Welsh books and newspapers have been printed for hundreds of years. Some books have been translated into English, and some books in other languages have been translated into Welsh. "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" was translated into Welsh, with the translation of "Harri Potter a Maen yr Athronydd," which means the same as the English title.

BBC Radio Cymru is a Welsh-language radio station that is available throughout Wales. Some local radio stations have some Welsh and English programs during the day.

The Welsh television channel, S4C, has been on air since 1982. It broadcasts shows such as the soap opera _Pobol y Cwm_, and children's programs such as _Superted_ and _Sam Tân_ (known as _Fireman Sam_ in English).

In August 2009, the mobile phone maker Samsung (with the provider Orange) unveiled a new Welsh-language mobile phone that would be available from September 2009. It includes Welsh-language predictive text and menus.

## The Welsh alphabet

The Welsh alphabet has some extra letters that are not used in English, and does not have some others. Although certain letters do not exist in Welsh, they are used sometimes to make sounds that could not possibly be made otherwise. A good example is the word "garej" (meaning _garage_). The letter "j" does not exist in the Welsh language, and the word comes from English. The traditional word for "garage" in Welsh is _modurdy_, which means "motor house". Another loanword is _toiled_, which means "toilet" in English. There are now many loanwords in spoken Welsh. Here is the Welsh alphabet;

A_<sup>1</sup>_, B, C, CH_<sup>2</sup>_, D, DD_<sup>2</sup>_, E_<sup>1</sup>_, F_<sup>2</sup>_, FF_<sup>2</sup>_, G, NG_<sup>2</sup>_, H, I_<sup>1</sup>_,  L, LL_<sup>2</sup>_, M, N, O_<sup>1</sup>_, P, PH_<sup>2</sup>_, R, RH_<sup>2</sup>_, S, T, TH_<sup>2</sup>_, U_<sup>1</sup>_, W_<sup>1</sup>_ _<sup>2</sup>_, Y<sup>1</sup>.

_<sup>1</sup>_ These letters are vowels. The letter 'W' can be used either as a vowel (when it is said 'oo' like in the Welsh word 'cwm' (coom) meaning 'valley') or as a consonant (when it is said like it is in English like in the Welsh word 'gwyn' (gwin) meaning 'white'). This It the same with letter 'I', which can also be used as a consonant (when it is said like an English Y like in 'iogwrt' (yog-oort) meaning yoghurt.

_<sup>2</sup>_ These letters that are not in the English alphabet or have different sounds. CH sounds like the 'KH' in Ayatollah Khoumeini. DD is said like the TH in 'there'. F sounds like the English 'V'. FF sounds like the English 'F'. NG sounds like in English but is tricky because it comes at the beginnings of words (for example 'fy ngardd' - my garden). One trick is to blend it in with the word before it. LL sounds like a cat hissing. PH sounds like the English 'F' but is used only in mutations. RH sounds like an 'R' said very quickly before a 'H'. TH sounds like the 'TH' in 'THin'. W has been explained in the sentences before about vowels.

## Infobox (language)

- **name**: Welsh
- **states**: Wales and Argentina.
- **region**: Spoken throughout Wales, in border-towns between England and Wales, and in the Chubut Province, Chubut province of Argentina.
- **ethnicity**: Historically white people, white Welsh people, Welsh, now Welsh people of all ethnicities
- **speakers**: 721,700 total speakers
- **date**: 2011
- **speakers2**: — Wales: 562,000 speakers, 19.0% of the population of Wales, with 14.6% of the population (431,000) considering themselves fluent in Welsh
— England: 150,000
— Chubut Province, Argentina: 5,000
— United States: 2,500
— Canada: 2,200
- **familycolor**: Indo-European
- **fam2**: Celtic languages, Celtic
- **fam3**: Insular Celtic languages, Insular Celtic
- **fam4**: Brythonic languages, Brythonic
- **ancestor**: Old Welsh
- **ancestor2**: Middle Welsh
- **script**: Latin script, Latin (Welsh orthography, Welsh alphabet)
- **map**: Welsh speakers in Wales 2011.svg
- **mapcaption**: Percentage of Welsh speakers by Local government in Wales, principal area
- **agency**: Meri Huws, the Welsh Language Commissioner (since 1 April 2012) and the  (Llywodraeth Cymru)
- **iso1**: cy
- **iso2b**: wel
- **iso2t**: cym
- **iso3**: cym
- **lingua**: 50-ABA