With a view to contributing to Future:Cymraeg, I’ve been think about why my language learning has plateaued, and why friends of mine have also seen similar plateau at various levels.
Often it seems like we experience a plateau because the language does not become integrated into our daily lives, and the time and effort required to
sustain learning becomes too arduous or of lower priority in life in general.
This got me thinking about opportunities to use Welsh, and how they vary across Wales.
I think Wales is a very varied country when it comes to opportunities but also attitudes.
Regarding attitude to the language I was reminded of Dan Evans’ Three Wales Model;
• Y Fro Gymraeg (NW Wales / West). The rural north and west of Wales, where the Welsh language is widely spoken as a community language and people strongly identify as Welsh.
• Welsh Wales (The South Wales Valleys). The historically industrial, working-class areas of South Wales, where residents are predominantly English-speaking (Anglophone) yet hold a strong, distinct Welsh national identity.
• British Wales (The East & South Pembrokeshire). The remainder of the country—spanning the eastern borderlands (the Marches), parts of the south coast, and southern Pembrokeshire—which is primarily English-speaking and where national identity leans more British or ambivalent.
These are obviously generalisations, and within each area, there are pockets of population which would not agree with these classifications.
But we can use these to graph attitude vs opportunity in actually quite small areas, and get the analysis down to the town level.
At which point, we can design actions to encourage learning or increase opportunities to speak Welsh.
We can overlay this with a stage of change model, such as the Transtheoretical Model.
i.e. people fall into one of the following;
Precontemplative, Contemplative, Preparing, Acting, Maintaining (or not).
Here’s some examples…
-
Precontemplation (Unaware / Uninterested) “Welsh isn’t for people like me, or it doesn’t fit my daily life.” Detached British Wales. Language promotion feels like top-down policy or a middle-class preserve.
(e.g., Rhyl, Flintshire, East Wrexham, Newport)
Example action: nudges Distribute learner badges or Open/Closed signs to in Welsh to shops. Share fun facts about local Welsh place names in community newsletters.
What to avoid: Appeals to save the language or culture, or paid for formal adult classes. -
Contemplation (Warm / Hesitant) “I’m proud to be Welsh—or I see the value—but I’m not sure it’s practical for me.” Proudly Anglophone Welsh Wales & hesitant Briitsh Wales parents. Linguistic Insecurity & Fear of Failure. Worry about “not being Welsh enough,” making mistakes, or lacking time.
(e.g., Valleys towns, Llangollen, Gresford)
Example action: peer storytelling. Have non-Welsh-speaking parents and adult learners share honest stories at toddler groups, choirs, and sports clubs about how easy it is to start small. Frame Welsh around local working-class pride, family bonding, or career advantages.
What to Avoid: Using fluent “expert” speakers as the primary messengers, which can unintentionally trigger linguistic insecurity.
And you can go on for each group.
These results may just be instinctive for anyone who lives in these areas. But thinking about these things can be useful as often we live within only a small social circle - and it’s easy to assume everyone else feels the same. I know I’m guilty of that.
For any particular town/village/population centre there is likely to be an approach that works best.
We just need to figure it out! And figure out what Future:Cymraeg people can do to contribute.
So perhaps we need an arsenal of ideas, that we wheedle down to a small number which can be delivered in any area depending on classification.
Having said all of that…
I’m worried this is all too much for volunteers, and perhaps focussing on something simple and universal is more achievable. e.g. Short videos, conversation groups, Good Welsh Guide.