CHAPTER FORTY
LANGUAGE AND IDENTITY IN
MODERN WALES
--.•. --
Wynne Lloyd
I
had better declare my position at the outset. I cannot conceive of a Welsh identity
kit without the language. I do not imply that the Welsh language is, of itself, the
sole means of identity, but I do believe that a meaningful Welsh identity is not
credible or indeed possible without the language.
As a contributor to this volume I find myself very much a layman in the shadow
of a constellation of academics. I suspect that, in the name of academic integrity, it is
possible for them to consider their chosen topic with a high degree of objectivity.
I, however, do not have that categoric objective. I am not an academic; neither do I
pretend to be one for the purpose of this volume. My views and opinions are
subjective. They reflect the standpoint of someone who has, apart from the war
years, lived and worked in Wales. They also reflect the attitudes of someone who was
born into a Welsh-speaking community, who subsequently lost the language and
who, eventually, regained it.
I am only too conscious of the fact that I am in a minority within my own
country. I belong to that fifth part of the population which calls itself bilingual. The
non-Welsh-speaking majority are the monoglots. The only bilingual people in Wales
are the Welsh speakers.
In this chapter my main concern is the fundamental link between the Welsh
language and Welsh identity in contemporary Wales. It would appear, therefore, that
I am not concerned with what has become to be known as 'the unspoken-for majority'.
Not so. It is a matter which I cannot avoid, let alone ignore. Any consideration of
the relationship between the two linguistic communities in Wales does hinge on one
issue of critical importance.
The bilingual speaker is far better equipped to appreciate the position of the
monoglot English speaker. The converse is not true simply because the monoglot
does not have access to the other language which, in my view, is the indigenous
mother tongue. In this sense I would argue that the non-Welsh speaker is deprived
in his or her own country. There are various reasons for this, some of which are
historical, others sociological.
I live in the real world of bilingualism. My home is in Cardiff, the capital city of
Wales. The home language is Welsh, our near neighbours are English-speaking and
our Welsh-speaking friends and acquaintances are dispersed throughout the city
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