Welsh-speaking population

Welsh is a Celtic, Brythonic language originating from Wales.

Timeline of speaker population in Wales

Prior to the Census

1801: about 80%[1]

1851: about 67%[1]

Census

Welsh speakers in Wales as recorded in decennial censuses
Year Number of speakers % of population % change since
previous census
1891 (first recording) 910,289[2] 51.2[2] N/A
1901 930,000[3] 50[3] −1.2
1911 977,366[4] 43.5[4] −6.5
1921 929,183[5] 37.4[5] −5.9
1931 909,261[6] 36.8[6] −0.6
1941 (no census held) N/A N/A N/A
1951 714,686[6] 28.9[6] −7.9
(in 20 yrs)
1961 659,022[6] 26.0[6] −2.9
1971 542,425[7] 20.7[7] −5.3
1981 503,532[8] 19.0[8] −1.7
1991 508,000[9] 18.7[9] −0.3
2001 582,400[10] 20.5[11] +1.8
2011 562,000[9] 19.0[9] -1.5
2021 awaiting results awaiting results awaiting results

N/A: not applicable

Census figures denote those able to speak Welsh above the age of 3 years old.[12] 2021 census results are expected in the late spring of 2022.[13]

Annual Population Surveys[14]

Welsh speakers in Wales as per annual population surveys
Year ending December
unless otherwise stated
Number of speakers % of population % change since
previous year
2001 836,070 30.0 N/A
2002 811,043 29.0 −1.0
2003 786,072 28.0 −1.0
2004 767,960 27.1 −0.9
2005 753,236 26.5 −0.6
2006 757,423 26.5 0.0
2007 725,407 25.2 −1.3
2008 763,858 26.4 −1.2
2009 739,679 25.5 −0.9
2010 742,331 25.5 0.0
2011 769,038 26.3 +0.8
2012 768,734 26.2 −0.1
2013 794,799 27.0 +0.8
2014 812,515 27.5 +0.5
2015 809,008 27.3 −0.2
2016 842,717 28.3 +1.0
2017 873,634 29.2 +0.9
2018 898,375 29.9 +0.7
2019 858,901 28.4 −1.5
2020 883,069 29.1 +0.7
September 2021[12] 892,493 29.5[12] +0.4

N/A: not applicable

Annual population survey figures indicate the number of people over the age of three years able to speak Welsh.[15] The number of speakers has been estimated based on the percentage of the population that speak Welsh and the general population size provided by the APS.

References

  1. Davies, J (1993). The Welsh Language. University of Wales Press.
  2. "IX.—LANGUAGES IN WALES AND MONMOUTHSHIRE".
  3. Deuchar, Margaret. "Minority Language Survival in Northwest Wales: An Introduction" (PDF). {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  4. "Welsh language – Fast Facts". Learn Welsh. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
  5. "Welsh Speakers in 1921 | Peoples Collection Wale". www.peoplescollection.wales. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
  6. "A Linguistic Map of Wales" (PDF). {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  7. "Welsh-Speaking in Wales According to the 1971 Census". Area.
  8. "No dataset selected – Nomis – Official Labour Market Statistics". www.nomisweb.co.uk. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
  9. "2011 Census: First Results on the Welsh Language" (PDF). {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  10. "Welsh language data from the Annual Population Survey: 2001 to 2018". GOV.WALES. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
  11. "Census shows Welsh language rise". 14 February 2003. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
  12. "Welsh language data from the Annual Population Survey: October 2020 to September 2021". GOV.WALES. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
  13. "Welsh language data from the Annual Population Survey: October 2020 to September 2021". GOV.WALES. Retrieved 15 February 2022.
  14. "Annual Population Survey – Ability to speak Welsh by local authority and year". statswales.gov.wales. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
  15. Statistician, Chief (27 March 2019). "Chief Statistician's update: a discussion about the Welsh language data from the Annual Population Survey". Digital and Data Blog. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
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