Celtic Symbols

Welsh is one of the Celtic language that is still spoken today by an estimated half a million people, or about 20% of the people of Wales. There are also people outside of Wales, including people who have emigrated to other places, notably England, who speak Welsh. There is even a Welsh settlement in Argentina! In addition to this, there are scholars from any number of backgrounds who have mastered the language. Still, there are very few people today who speak only Welsh; the vast majority of Welsh speakers also speak English.

The Welsh language goes back at least as far as the 6th Century. Like all languages, it has gone through transitions –from Old Welsh to Middle Welsh to Modern Welsh. While at times the Welsh language was discouraged, even suppressed by English rulers, since the 20th Century there has been an active campaign to keep the language alive. In public schools in Wales, it is mandated that Welsh and English be treated equally, ensuring that the language will not die out.

Another way the Welsh language is thriving is in the realm of music. Along with the Celtic music of Ireland and Scotland, Wales has produced some beautiful and haunting music in its native language. The following video, featuring the popular singer Meinir Gwilym, gives you a sample of Welsh, both spoken and sung.

In this Celtic Symbols blog we will be exploring, among many other things, Celtic languages. When you think of Celtic symbols, you may think of things like Celtic knots and spirals and we will certainly be discussing those too –and their application in art, jewelry and tattoos. However, languages are also based on symbols. In fact, language is the most common form of symbolism we use in everyday life.

There are many Celtic languages. Celtic languages are a distinct family of language (like Germanic and Latin languages), and part of the larger Indo-European classification of languages. They are not spoken by many people, but they are not dead languages either. There are people working to keep them alive. There are also Celtic musicians who keep the languages alive by singing in traditional Irish, Scottish, Welsh and other Celtic tongues.

This video is the first in a series of tutorials in Irish. I will not post all of them. If you are interested, you can find them on Youtube. There are other resources for Celtic languages as well.