View source for Wales

{{Short description|Country within the United Kingdom}}
{{About|the country|the animal|Whales|other uses}}
{{Pp-vandalism|small=yes}}
{{Good article}}
{{Use British English|date=November 2010}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2022}}
{{Infobox UK country
 | native_name = {{native name|cy|[[Cymru]]}}
 | image_flag = Flag of Wales 2.svg
 | flag_caption = 
 | image_coat = Royal Badge of Wales.svg
 | symbol_width = 
 | symbol_type = [[Royal Badge of Wales|Royal Badge]]
 | national_motto = 
 | englishmotto = 
 | national_anthem = de facto;<ref>{{cite web |title=BBC Wales – Music – National Anthem – The background to Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/music/sites/anthem/pages/anthem-background.shtml |website=www.bbc.co.uk |access-date=27 April 2024}}</ref> <Br/> "{{lang|cy|[[Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau]]}}"<br /> ("Land of My Fathers")<br /> <div style="display:inline-block;margin-top:0.4em;">{{center|[[File:Hen Wlad fy Nhadau piano.ogg]]}}</div>
 | image_map2 = <!-- Another map -->
 | status = [[Countries of the United Kingdom|Country]]
 | capital = [[Cardiff]]
 | coordinates = {{coord|51|29|N|3|11|W|type:city|display=inline}}
 | largest_city = Cardiff
 | languages_type = Official languages
 | languages = {{hlist|[[Welsh English|English]]|[[Welsh language|Welsh]]}}
 | ethnic_groups = 
  {{Collapsible list
   | 93.8% [[White people in the United Kingdom|White]]
   | 2.9% [[Asian Welsh people|Asian]]
   | 1.6% [[Mixed (United Kingdom ethnicity category)|Mixed]]
   | 0.9% [[Black Welsh people|Black]]
   | 0.9% [[Ethnic groups in the United Kingdom|other]]
  }}
 | ethnic_groups_year = [[2021 United Kingdom census|2021]]
 | ethnic_groups_ref =<ref name="2021 Nomis">{{NOMIS2021|id=W92000004|title=Wales Country|access-date=14 August 2023}}</ref>
 | religion = 
  {{Collapsible list
   | 46.5% [[Irreligion in Wales|no religion]]
   | 43.6% [[Christianity in Wales|Christianity]]
   | 2.2% [[Islam in Wales|Islam]]
   | 0.4% [[Hinduism in Wales|Hinduism]]
   | 0.3% [[Buddhism in Wales|Buddhism]]
   | 0.1% [[Sikhism in Wales|Sikhism]]
   | 0.1% [[History of the Jews in Wales|Judaism]]
   | 0.5% [[Religion in Wales|other]]
   | 6.3% not stated
  }}
 | religion_year = 2021
 | religion_ref =<ref name="2021 Nomis"/>
 | demonym = [[Welsh people|Welsh (Cymraeg)]]
 | type = 
 | legal_jurisdiction = [[England and Wales]]
 | government_type = [[Welsh devolution|Devolved parliamentary legislature]] within a [[Constitutional monarchy#England, Scotland and the United Kingdom|parliamentary constitutional monarchy]]
 | monarch = [[Charles III]]
 | first_minister = [[Eluned Morgan]]
 | secretary_of_state = [[Jo Stevens]]
 | number_of_mps = 32
 | legislature = [[Senedd]]
 | sovereignty_type = [[Wales in the High Middle Ages|Formation]]
 | established_event1 = Unified by [[Gruffydd ap Llywelyn]]
 | established_date1 = 1057<ref name="Wales Hist 100"/>
 | established_event2 = [[Statute of Rhuddlan]]
 | established_date2 = 3 March 1284<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803100419253|title=Statute of Rhuddlan| publisher=Oxford Reference|access-date=26 July 2014}}</ref>
 | established_event3 = [[Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542]]
 | established_date3 = 1543<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/aep/Hen8/27/26/contents|title=Laws in Wales Act 1535 (repealed 21.12.1993)|publisher=legislation.gov.uk|access-date=26 July 2014}}</ref>
 | established_event4 = [[Welsh Language Act 1967]]
 | established_date4 = 27 July 1967<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1967/66/contents/enacted|title=Welsh Language Act| publisher=legislation.gov.uk|access-date=11 September 2022 }}</ref>
 | established_event5 = [[Government of Wales Act 1998|Devolution]]
 | established_date5 = 1 July 1999{{efn|Date powers transferred to National Assembly}}<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1998/38/contents|title=Government of Wales Act 1998| publisher=legislation.gov.uk|access-date=26 July 2014 }}</ref>
 | area_rank = 
 | area_label = Total{{efn|[[Office for National Statistics|ONS]] Standard Area Measurement, 'total extent of the realm' (area to mean low water)}}
 | area_km2 = 21218
 | area_sq_mi = auto
 | area_footnote =<ref name="ONS Standard Area Measurement">{{cite web |url=https://geoportal.statistics.gov.uk/datasets/ons::standard-area-measurements-for-administrative-areas-december-2023-in-the-uk/about |title=Standard Area Measurements for Administrative Areas (December 2023) in the UK |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=31 May 2024 |website=[[ONS Open Geography Portal|Open Geography Portal]] |publisher=Office for National Statistics |access-date=7 June 2024 }}</ref>
 | area_label2 = Land{{efn|ONS Standard Area Measurement, 'area to mean high water excluding inland water'}}
 | area_data2 = {{convert|{{UK subdivision area|GSS=W92000004}}|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}}<ref name="ONS mid-year pop est"/>
 | percent_water = 
 | population_estimate = {{UK subdivision population|GSS=W92000004}}<ref name="ONS mid-year pop est">{{UK subdivision statistics citation}}</ref>
 | population_estimate_rank = 
 | population_estimate_year = {{UK subdivision statistics year}}
 | population_census = 3,107,494<ref name="2021 Nomis"/>
 | population_census_year = 2021
 | population_density_km2 = {{UK subdivision density|GSS=W92000004}}
 | population_density_sq_mi = auto
 | population_density_rank =
 | pop_den_footnote =<ref name="ONS mid-year pop est"/>
 | GVA = £74.5&nbsp;billion
 | GVA_rank =
 | GVA_year = 2022
 | GVA_per_capita = £23,804<ref name="ONS GVA">{{Cite web |title=Regional gross value added (balanced) per head and income components |date=24 April 2024 |url=https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/grossvalueaddedgva/datasets/nominalregionalgrossvalueaddedbalancedperheadandincomecomponents |access-date=15 May 2024 |website=Office for National Statistics}}</ref>
 | GVA_per_capita_rank =
 | GDP_PPP = 
 | GDP_PPP_rank =
 | GDP_PPP_year = 
 | GDP_PPP_per_capita =
 | GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank = 
 | GDP_nominal = £85.4&nbsp;billion
 | GDP_nominal_rank = 
 | GDP_nominal_year = 2022
 | GDP_nominal_per_capita = £27,274<ref name="ONS GDP">{{Cite web |title=Regional gross domestic product: all ITL regions |date=24 April 2024 |url=https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/grossdomesticproductgdp/datasets/regionalgrossdomesticproductallnutslevelregions |access-date=15 May 2024 |website=Office for National Statistics}}</ref>
 | GDP_nominal_per_capita_rank =
 | Gini_year = 
 | Gini_change = 
 | Gini = 
 | Gini_ref = 
 | Gini_rank = 
 | HDI_year = 2022
 | HDI_change = increase <!--increase/decrease/steady-->
 | HDI = 0.910 <!--number only-->
 | HDI_ref =<ref name ="HDI">{{cite web |url=https://globaldatalab.org/shdi/table/shdi/GBR/?years=2022 |title=Subnational HDI |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=Global Data Lab |publisher= |access-date=30 September 2024}}</ref>
 | HDI_rank = 
 | utc_offset = +0
 | cctld = [[.wales]] [[.cymru]]{{efn|Both .wales and .cymru are not [[Country code top-level domain|ccTLDs]], but [[Geographic top-level domain|GeoTLDs]], open to use by all people in Wales and related to Wales. [[.uk]] as part of the United Kingdom is also used. [[ISO 3166-1]] is [[Great Britain|GB]], but [[.gb]] is unused.}}
|deputy_first_minister=[[Huw Irranca-Davies]]}}
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 The status of Wales as a country and as a part of the UK has been subject to extensive debate and mediation and the current form of words in the lead came out of that process. Please raise any issues on the talk page first as direct edits on this subject may prompt an edit war. PLEASE DO NOT EDIT-WAR.

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'''Wales''' ({{langx|cy|[[Cymru]]<!--NOTE: Standard Wiki style is that non-English alternative names for articles are in italics rather than bold. This doesn't change for country names — see the articles on Germany or Italy for example.-->}} {{IPA|cy|ˈkəmrɨ||Cymru.ogg}}) is a [[Countries of the United Kingdom|country]] that is part of the [[United Kingdom]]. It is bordered by the [[Irish Sea]] to the north and west, [[England]] to the [[England–Wales border|east]], the [[Bristol Channel]] to the south, and the [[Celtic Sea]] to the south-west. {{As of|2021}}, it had a population of 3.2 million.<ref name="2021 Nomis"/> It has a total area of {{convert|21218|km2|sqmi}} and over {{convert|1680|mi|order=flip}} of [[coastline]].<ref name="ONS Standard Area Measurement"/> It is largely mountainous with its higher peaks in the north and central areas, including [[Snowdon]] ({{lang|cy|Yr Wyddfa}}), its highest summit.<ref name="ONS Geography Guide">{{cite web |url=https://geoportal.statistics.gov.uk/datasets/a-beginners-guide-to-uk-geography-2023/about |title=A Beginners Guide to UK Geography (2023) |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=24 August 2023 |website=Open Geography Portal |publisher=Office for National Statistics |access-date=9 December 2023}}</ref> The country lies within the [[Temperate climate|north temperate zone]] and has a changeable, [[Oceanic climate|maritime climate]]. Its capital and largest city is [[Cardiff]].

A distinct [[Culture of Wales|Welsh culture]] emerged among the [[Celtic Britons]] after the [[End of Roman rule in Britain|Roman withdrawal from Britain]] in the 5th century, and Wales was briefly united under [[Gruffydd ap Llywelyn]] in 1055. After over 200 years of war, the [[Conquest of Wales by Edward I|conquest of Wales]] by King [[Edward I of England]] was completed by 1283, though [[Owain Glyndŵr]] led the [[Welsh Revolt]] against [[Wales in the Late Middle Ages|English rule]] in the early 15th century, and briefly re-established an independent Welsh state with its own national parliament ({{Langx|cy|senedd}}). In the 16th century the whole of Wales was [[Annexation|annexed]] by England and incorporated within the [[English law|English legal system]] under the [[Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542]]. Distinctive [[Politics of Wales|Welsh politics]] developed in the 19th century. [[Welsh Liberal Party|Welsh Liberalism]], exemplified in the early 20th century by [[David Lloyd George]], was displaced by the growth of [[socialism]] and the [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]]. Welsh national feeling grew over the century: a [[Nationalism|nationalist]] party, {{lang|cy|[[Plaid Cymru]]|italic=no}}, was formed in 1925, and the [[Welsh Language Society]] in 1962. A governing system of [[Welsh devolution]] is employed in Wales, of which the most major step was the formation of the {{lang|cy|[[Senedd]]|italic=no}} (Welsh Parliament, formerly the National Assembly for Wales) in 1998, responsible for a range of [[Welsh law|devolved policy matters]].

At the dawn of the [[Industrial Revolution in Wales|Industrial Revolution]], development of the [[Mining in Wales|mining]] and [[Metallurgy|metallurgical]] industries transformed the country from an [[Agrarian society|agricultural society]] into an [[Industrial society|industrial]] one; the [[South Wales Coalfield]]'s exploitation caused a rapid expansion of Wales's population. Two-thirds of the population live in [[South Wales]], including Cardiff, [[Swansea]], [[Newport, Wales|Newport]], and the [[South Wales Valleys|nearby valleys]]. The [[North East Wales|eastern region]] of [[North Wales]] has about a sixth of the overall population, with [[Wrexham]] being the largest northern city. The remaining parts of Wales are [[Population density|sparsely populated]]. Since decline of the country's traditional extractive and heavy industries, the [[public sector]], light and service industries, and [[Tourism in Wales|tourism]] play major roles in its [[Economy of Wales|economy]]. [[Agriculture in Wales]] is largely livestock-based, making Wales a net exporter of animal produce, contributing towards national [[Autarky|agricultural self-sufficiency]].

Both [[Welsh language|Welsh]] and English are [[official language]]s. A majority of the population of Wales speaks English. Welsh is the dominant language in parts of the [[North Wales|north]] and [[West Wales|west]], with a total of 538,300 [[Welsh language#Status|Welsh speakers]] across the entire country. Wales has [[List of World Heritage Sites in Wales|four UNESCO world heritage sites]], of which three are in the north.

==Etymology==
{{main|Etymology of Wales|Cymru}}
The English words "Wales" and "Welsh" derive from the same [[Old English]] root (singular {{lang|ang|[[*Walhaz|Wealh]]}}, plural {{lang|ang|Wēalas}}), a descendant of [[Proto-Germanic language|Proto-Germanic]] {{lang|gem-x-proto|[[*Walhaz|Walhaz]]}}, which was itself derived from the name of the [[Gauls]] known to the Romans as [[Volcae]]. This term was later used to refer indiscriminately to inhabitants of the [[Western Roman Empire]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Miller |first=Katherine L. |date=2014 |title=The Semantic Field of Slavery in Old English: Wealh, Esne, Þræl |url=http://etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/8031/1/Katherine%20Miller%20Semantic%20Field%20of%20Slavery%20in%20Old%20English%20v%203.pdf |access-date=8 August 2019 |publisher=University of Leeds |type=Doctoral dissertation}}</ref> [[Anglo-Saxons]] came to use the term to refer to the [[Celtic Britons|Britons]] in particular; the plural form {{lang|ang|Wēalas}} evolved into the name for their territory, Wales.<ref name="Wales Hist 71">Davies (1994) p. 71</ref><ref name="Tolkien 1">{{Cite book |last=Tolkien |first=J. R. R. |title=Angles and Britons: O'Donnell Lectures |publisher=University of Wales Press |year=1963 |location=Cardiff |pages=English and Welsh, an O'Donnell Lecture delivered at Oxford on 21 October 1955 |author-link=J. R. R. Tolkien |no-pp=true}}</ref> Historically in [[Great Britain|Britain]], the words were not restricted to modern Wales or to the Welsh but were used to refer to anything that Anglo-Saxons associated with Britons, including other non-Germanic territories in Britain (e.g. [[Cornwall]]) and places in Anglo-Saxon territory associated with Britons (e.g. [[Walworth, County Durham|Walworth]] in County Durham and [[Walton, Leeds|Walton]] in West Yorkshire).<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rollason |first=David |title=Northumbria, 500–1100 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-521-04102-7 |location=Cambridge |publication-date=2003 |page=60 |chapter=Origins of a People |author-link=David Rollason}}</ref>

The modern Welsh name for themselves is {{lang|cy|Cymry}}, and {{lang|cy|[[Cymru]]}} is the Welsh name for Wales. These words (both of which are pronounced {{IPA|cy|ˈkəm.rɨ|}}) are descended from the [[Common Brittonic|Brythonic]] word ''combrogi'', meaning "fellow-countrymen",<ref name="Hist Wales 69">Davies (1994) p. 69</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Lloyd |first=John Edward |author-link=John Edward Lloyd |date=1911 |title=A History of Wales from the Earliest Times to the Edwardian Conquest (Note to Chapter VI, the Name "Cymry") |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NYwNAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA191 |edition=2nd|location=London |publisher=Longmans, Green, and Co. |publication-date=1912 |volume=I |pages=191–192}}</ref> and probably came into use before the 7th century.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Phillimore |first=Egerton |title=Y Cymmrodor |publisher=[[Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion]] |year=1891 |editor-last=Phillimore |editor-first=Egerton |volume=XI |location=London |publication-date=1892 |pages=97–101 |chapter=Note (a) to The Settlement of Brittany |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M35QO0vor-EC&pg=PA97}}; Davies (1994) p. 71, containing the line: ''Ar wynep Kymry Cadwallawn was''.</ref> In literature, they could be spelt {{lang|wlm|Kymry}} or {{lang|wlm|Cymry}}, regardless of whether it referred to the people or their homeland.<ref name="Hist Wales 69" /> The [[Romanization (cultural)|Latinised]] forms of these names, ''Cambrian'', ''Cambric'' and ''[[Cambria]]'', survive as names such as the [[Cambrian Mountains]] and the [[Cambrian]] geological period.<ref>{{Cite book |title=[[Chambers Dictionary|Chambers 21st Century Dictionary]] |publisher=Allied Publishers |year=2008 |isbn=978-81-8424-329-1 |edition=Revised |location=New Delhi |page=203}}; {{cite EB1911|wstitle=Cambria}}</ref>

==History==
{{Main|History of Wales|Timeline of Welsh history}}{{See also|Archaeology of Wales}}

===Prehistoric origins===
{{See also|Prehistoric Wales}}
[[File:BrynCelliDdu3.jpg|thumb|left|[[Bryn Celli Ddu]], a late Neolithic chambered tomb on [[Anglesey]]|alt=A low grassy mound with an entrance at its centre framed by cyclopean stones]]
[[File:Caradog (5227657).jpg|thumb|upright=0.75|left|[[Caratacus|Caradog]] by Thomas Prydderch. Caradog was leader of the north Walian Celtic tribe, the [[Ordovices]].]]
Wales has been inhabited by [[Early modern human|modern humans]] for at least 29,000 years.<ref name="CA 2007">{{Cite web |date=6 November 2007 |title=Welsh skeleton re-dated: even older! |url=http://www.archaeology.co.uk/articles/welsh-skeleton-re-dated-even-older.htm |access-date=28 September 2010 |website=archaeology.co.uk website |publisher=Current Archaeology}}: ''see'' [[Red Lady of Paviland]]</ref> Continuous human habitation dates from the end of the [[Last Glacial Period|last ice age]], between 12,000 and 10,000&nbsp;[[Before Present|years before present (BP)]], when [[Mesolithic]] [[hunter-gatherer]]s from Central Europe began to migrate to Great Britain. At that time, sea levels were much lower than today. Wales was free of [[glacier]]s by about 10,250&nbsp;BP, the warmer climate allowing the area to become heavily wooded. The post-glacial rise in sea level separated Wales and Ireland, forming the [[Irish Sea]]. By 8,000 BP the British Peninsula had become an island.<ref name="Tempus 13">{{Cite book |last=Pollard |first=Joshua |title=History of Wales, 25,000&nbsp;BC AD&nbsp;2000 |publisher=[[The History Press|Tempus Publishing]] |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-7524-1983-1 |editor-last=Morgan |editor-first=Prys |editor-link=Prys Morgan |location=Stroud, Gloucestershire |pages=13–25 |chapter=Wales' Hidden History, Hunter-Gatherer Communities in Wales: The Neolithic |author-link=Joshua Pollard |editor-last2=Aldhouse-Green |editor-first2=Stephen}}; Davies (2008) pp. 647–648</ref> By the beginning of the [[Neolithic]] ({{Circa|6,000 BP}}) sea levels in the [[Bristol Channel]] were still about {{convert|33|ft|m|abbr=off}} lower than today.<ref name="GGAT 72 4">{{Cite journal |last1=Evans |first1=Edith |last2=Lewis |first2=Richard |year=2003 |title=The Prehistoric Funerary and Ritual Monument Survey of Glamorgan and Gwent: Overviews. A Report for Cadw by Edith Evans BA PhD MIFA and Richard Lewis BA |url=http://www.ggat.org.uk/cadw/cadw_reports/pdfs/GGAT%2072%20Overviews.pdf |journal=Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society |volume=64 |page=4 |access-date=30 September 2009}} <!-- Not a dead link, though the ggat web site is sometimes down -->; Davies (1994) p. 17; {{Cite web |date=5 September 2006 |title=Overview: From Neolithic to Bronze Age, 8000–800 BC (Page 1 of 6) |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/british_prehistory/overview_british_prehistory_01.shtml |access-date=5 August 2008 |website=BBC History website |publisher=BBC}}</ref> The historian [[John Davies (historian)|John Davies]] theorised that the story of [[Cantre'r Gwaelod]]'s drowning and tales in the ''[[Mabinogion]]'', of the waters between Wales and Ireland being narrower and shallower, may be distant folk memories of this time.<ref name="Wales Hist 4–6">Davies (1994) pp. 4–6</ref>

Neolithic colonists integrated with the indigenous people, gradually changing their lifestyles from a nomadic life of hunting and gathering, to become settled farmers about 6,000&nbsp;BP – the [[Neolithic Revolution]].<ref name="Wales Hist 4–6" /><ref name="GGAT 72">{{Cite web |year=2003 |title=GGAT 72 Overviews |url=http://www.ggat.org.uk/cadw/cadw_reports/pdfs/GGAT%2072%20Overviews.pdf |access-date=30 December 2008 |website=A Report for Cadw by Edith Evans BA PhD MIFA and Richard Lewis BA |publisher=Glamorgan-Gwent Archaeological Trust |page=47}} <!-- Not a dead link, though the ggat web site is sometimes down --></ref> They cleared the forests to establish pasture and to cultivate the land, developed new technologies such as ceramics and textile production, and built [[cromlech]]s such as [[Pentre Ifan]], [[Bryn Celli Ddu]], and [[Parc Cwm long cairn]] between about 5,800&nbsp;BP and 5,500&nbsp;BP.<ref name="Coflein1">{{Cite web |year=2006 |title=Parc le Breos Burial Chamber; Parc CWM Long Cairn |url=http://www.coflein.gov.uk/en/site/93072/details/PARC+LE+BREOS+BURIAL+CHAMBER%3BPARC+CWM+LONG+CAIRN/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160406052935/http://coflein.gov.uk/en/site/93072/details/PARC+LE+BREOS+BURIAL+CHAMBER%3BPARC+CWM+LONG+CAIRN/ |archive-date=6 April 2016 |access-date=24 October 2008 |website=The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales website |publisher=Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales}}; {{Cite web |year=2008 |title=Themes Prehistoric Wales: The Stone Age |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/history/sites/themes/periods/prehistoric02.shtml |access-date=24 October 2008 |website=[[BBC Cymru Wales]] website |publisher=[[BBC Cymru Wales]]}}</ref> Over the following centuries they assimilated immigrants and adopted ideas from [[Bronze Age]] and [[Iron Age]] [[Celts|Celtic]] cultures. Some historians, such as [[John T. Koch]], consider Wales in the Late Bronze Age as part of [[Atlantic Bronze Age|a maritime trading-networked culture]] that included other [[Celtic nations]].<ref name="Koch2009">{{Cite journal |last=Koch |first=John |author-link=John T. Koch |year=2009 |title=Tartessian: Celtic from the Southwest at the Dawn of History in Acta Palaeohispanica X Palaeohispanica 9 (2009) |url=http://ifc.dpz.es/recursos/publicaciones/29/54/26koch.pdf |journal=Palaeohispánica: Revista Sobre Lenguas y Culturas de la Hispania Antigua |publisher=Palaeohispanica |pages=339–351 |issn=1578-5386 |access-date=17 May 2010}}; {{Cite book |last=Cunliffe, Karl, Guerra, McEvoy, Bradley; Oppenheimer, Røyrvik, Isaac, Parsons, Koch, Freeman and Wodtko |title=Celtic from the West: Alternative Perspectives from Archaeology, Genetics, Language and Literature |publisher=Oxbow Books and Celtic Studies Publications |year=2010 |isbn=978-1-84217-410-4 |page=384}}; {{Cite book |last=Cunliffe |first=Barry |title=A Race Apart: Insularity and Connectivity in Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society 75, 2009, pp. 55–64 |publisher=[[The Prehistoric Society]] |year=2008 |page=61 |author-link=Barry Cunliffe}}</ref> This "Atlantic-Celtic" view is opposed by others who hold that the Celtic languages derive their origins from the more easterly [[Hallstatt culture]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Koch |first=John T. |year=2009 |title=A CASE FOR TARTESSIAN AS A CELTIC LANGUAGE |url=http://ifc.dpz.es/recursos/publicaciones/29/54/26koch.pdf |journal=Acta Palaeohispanica X Palaeohispanica |volume=9}}</ref> By the time of the [[Roman conquest of Britain|Roman invasion of Britain]] the area of modern Wales had been divided among the tribes of the [[Deceangli]] (north-east), [[Ordovices]] (north-west), [[Demetae]] (south-west), [[Silures]] (south-east), and [[Cornovii (Midlands)|Cornovii]] (east).<ref name="Wales Hist 4–6"/><ref name=":4">{{Cite web |title=Who were the Celts? |url=https://museum.wales/articles/1341/Who-were-the-Celts/ |access-date=2022-09-26 |website=Museum Wales |language=en}}</ref>

===Roman era===
{{Main|Wales in the Roman era}}
[[File:Wales.Roman.Conquest.jpg|Map of the Roman invasion of Wales|thumb]]
The Roman conquest of Wales began in AD 48 and took 30 years to complete; the occupation lasted over 300 years. The campaigns of conquest were opposed by two native tribes: the [[Silures]] and the [[Ordovices]]. Caractacus or [[Caratacus|''Caradog'']], leader of the Ordovices, had initial success in resisting Roman invasions of north Wales but was eventually defeated.<ref>{{Cite book |last=[[Tacitus]] |title=[[Annals (Tacitus)|Annals]] |publisher=Random House |editor-last=Church |editor-first=Alfred John |publication-date=1942 |page=[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Tac.+Ann.+12.33 12:33–38] |editor-last2=Brodribb |editor-first2=William Jackson}}</ref><ref>Tacitus, ''The Annals'', translated by A. J. Woodman, 2004; see also [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Tac.+Ann.+12.37 Church & Brodribb's translation]</ref> Roman rule in Wales was a military occupation, save for the southern coastal region of [[south Wales]], where there is a legacy of Romanisation.<ref name="Jones1">{{Cite book |last1=Jones |first1=Barri |title=An Atlas of Roman Britain |last2=Mattingly |first2=David |publisher=Blackwell Publishers |year=1990 |isbn=978-1-84217-067-0 |location=Cambridge |publication-date=2007 |page=151 |chapter=The Development of the Provinces}}</ref> The only town in Wales founded by the Romans, [[Caerwent]], is in south east Wales.<ref>{{Cite web |title=RCAHMW Coflein: Caerwent Roman City; Venta Silurum |url=https://coflein.gov.uk/en/site/93753/details/caerwent-roman-city-venta-silurum |access-date=23 February 2019}}</ref> Both Caerwent and [[Carmarthen]], also in southern Wales, became Roman ''[[Civitas|civitates]]''.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Jones |first1=Barri |title=An Atlas of Roman Britain |last2=Mattingly |first2=David |publisher=Blackwell Publishers |year=1990 |isbn=978-1-84217-067-0 |location=Cambridge |publication-date=2007 |page=154 |chapter=The Development of the Provinces}}</ref> Wales had a rich mineral wealth. The Romans used their engineering [[Ancient Roman technology|technology]] to extract large amounts of gold, copper, and lead, as well as lesser amounts of [[zinc]] and silver.<ref name="Jones3">{{Cite book |last1=Jones |first1=Barri |title=An Atlas of Roman Britain |last2=Mattingly |first2=David |publisher=Blackwell Publishers |year=1990 |isbn=978-1-84217-067-0 |location=Cambridge |publication-date=2007 |pages=179–196 |chapter=The Economy}}</ref> No significant industries were located in Wales in this time;<ref name=Jones3/> this was largely a matter of circumstance as Wales had none of the necessary materials in suitable combination, and the forested, mountainous countryside was not amenable to industrialisation. Latin became the official language of Wales, though the people continued to speak in Brythonic. While Romanisation was far from complete, the upper classes came to consider themselves Roman, particularly after the [[Constitutio Antoniniana|ruling of 212]] that granted [[Roman citizenship]] to all free men throughout the Empire.<ref name="Davies915">Davies (2008) p. 915</ref> Further Roman influence came through the spread of Christianity, which gained many followers when Christians were allowed to worship freely; state persecution ceased in the 4th&nbsp;century, as a result of [[Constantine the Great]] issuing an [[Edict of Milan|edict of toleration]] in 313.<ref name="Davies915"/>

Early historians, including the 6th-century cleric [[Gildas]], have noted 383 as a significant point in Welsh history.<ref name="Davies531">Davies (2008) p. 531</ref> In that year, the Roman general [[Magnus Maximus]], or Macsen Wledig, stripped Britain of troops to launch a successful bid for imperial power, continuing to rule Britain from [[Gaul]] as emperor, and transferring power to local leaders.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Frere |first=Sheppard Sunderland |title=Britannia: A History of Roman Britain |publisher=Routledge & Kegan Paul |year=1987 |isbn=978-0-7102-1215-3 |edition=3rd, revised |location=London |publication-date=1987 |page=354 |chapter=The End of Roman Britain |author-link=Sheppard Frere}}; {{Cite book |year=1841 |editor-last=Giles |editor-first=John Allen |editor-link=John Allen Giles |contribution=The Works of Gildas, The History, Ch. 14 |contribution-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3R1mCE7p44MC&pg=PA1 |title=The Works of Gildas and Nennius |publisher=James Bohn |publication-date=1841 |location=London |page=13 }}</ref> The earliest Welsh genealogies cite Maximus as the founder of several royal dynasties,<ref>{{Cite book |title=Y Cymmrodor |date=1887 |publisher=[[Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion]] |editor-last=Phillimore |editor-first=Egerton |volume=VIII |publication-date=1887 |pages=83–92 |chapter=Pedigrees from Jesus College MS. 20 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HlUrAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA83}}; {{Cite book|last=Phillimore |first=Egerton|year=1888 |editor-last=Phillimore |editor-first=Egerton |contribution=The Annales Cambriae and Old Welsh Genealogies, from Harleian MS. 3859 |contribution-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aFMrAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA141 |title=Y Cymmrodor |volume=IX |publisher=[[Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion]] |publication-date=1888 |pages=141–183}}</ref> and as the father of the Welsh Nation.<ref name="Davies531" /> He is given as the ancestor of a Welsh king on the [[Pillar of Eliseg]], erected nearly 500 years after he left Britain, and he figures in lists of the [[Fifteen Tribes of Wales]].<ref name="Rachel Bromwich 2006">Rachel Bromwich, editor and translator. Trioedd Ynys Prydein: The Welsh Triads. Cardiff: [[University of Wales Press]], 3rd Edition, (2006) p. 441–444</ref>

===Post-Roman era===
{{See also|Wales in the early Middle Ages}}
[[File:Britain in AD500 - Project Gutenberg eText 16790.jpg|thumb|upright=0.75|Britain in [[Anno Domini|AD]] 500: The areas shaded pink on the map were inhabited by the [[Celtic Britons|Britons]], here labelled ''Welsh''. The pale blue areas in the east were controlled by [[Germanic peoples|Germanic tribes]], while the pale green areas to the north were inhabited by the [[Gaels]] and [[Picts]].]]
The 400-year period following the collapse of Roman rule is the most difficult to interpret in the history of Wales.<ref name="Davies915"/> After the [[End of Roman rule in Britain|Roman departure]] in AD 410, much of the lowlands of Britain to the east and south-east was overrun by various [[Germanic peoples]], commonly known as Anglo-Saxons. Some have theorized that the cultural dominance of the Anglo-Saxons was due to apartheid-like social conditions in which the Britons were at a disadvantage.<ref>{{cite web |last=Ravilious |first=Kate |date=21 July 2006 |title=Ancient Britain Had Apartheid-Like Society, Study Suggests |url=http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/07/060721-england.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604070220/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/07/060721-england.html |archive-date=4 June 2011 |access-date=9 September 2010 |publisher=National Geographic News}}</ref>
By AD 500 the land that would become Wales had divided into a number of kingdoms free from Anglo-Saxon rule.<ref name="Davies915"/> The kingdoms of [[Kingdom of Gwynedd|Gwynedd]], [[Kingdom of Powys|Powys]], [[Kingdom of Dyfed|Dyfed]], [[Kingdom of Ceredigion|Caredigion]], [[Glywysing|Morgannwg]], the [[Ystrad Tywi]], and [[Kingdom of Gwent|Gwent]] emerged as independent Welsh [[Succession of states|successor states]].<ref name="Davies915"/> Archaeological evidence, in the Low Countries and what was to become England, shows early Anglo-Saxon migration to Great Britain reversed between 500 and 550, which concurs with Frankish chronicles.<ref name="Davies56">Davies (1994) pp. 56</ref> John Davies notes this as consistent with a victory for the [[Celtic Britons]] at [[Battle of Badon|Badon Hill]] against the Saxons, which was attributed to [[King Arthur|Arthur]] by [[Nennius]].<ref name="Davies56"/>

Having lost much of what is now the [[West Midlands (region)|West Midlands]] to [[Mercia]] in the 6th and early 7th centuries, a resurgent late-7th-century Powys checked Mercian advances. [[Æthelbald of Mercia]], looking to defend recently acquired lands, had built [[Wat's Dyke]]. According to Davies, this had been with the agreement of king [[Elisedd ap Gwylog]] of Powys, as this boundary, extending north from the valley of the [[River Severn]] to the Dee estuary, gave him [[Oswestry]].<ref name="Hist Wales 65-66">Davies (1994) pp. 65–66</ref> Another theory, after carbon dating placed the dyke's existence 300 years earlier, is that it was built by the post-Roman rulers of [[Wroxeter]].<ref>Davies (2008) p. 926</ref> King [[Offa of Mercia]] seems to have continued this initiative when he created a larger earthwork, now known as [[Offa's Dyke]] ({{lang|cy|Clawdd Offa}}). Davies wrote of [[Cyril Fox]]'s study of Offa's Dyke: "In the planning of it, there was a degree of consultation with the kings of Powys and Gwent. On the Long Mountain near [[Trelystan]], the dyke veers to the east, leaving the fertile slopes in the hands of the Welsh; near [[Ruabon|Rhiwabon]], it was designed to ensure that Cadell ap Brochwel retained possession of the Fortress of Penygadden." And, for Gwent, Offa had the dyke built "on the eastern crest of the gorge, clearly with the intention of recognizing<!--'recognizing' is the spelling used in John Davies' original text, and should be preserved uncorrected {{sic}}, per [[WP:MOSQUOTE]]. --> that the [[River Wye]] and its traffic belonged to the kingdom of Gwent."<ref name="Hist Wales 65-66"/> However, Fox's interpretations of both the length and purpose of the Dyke have been questioned by more recent research.<ref>David Hill and Margaret Worthington, ''Offa's Dyke: history and guide'', Tempus, 2003, {{ISBN|978-0-7524-1958-9}}</ref>

In 853, the [[Vikings]] raided [[Anglesey]], but in 856, [[Rhodri Mawr]] defeated and killed their leader, Gorm.<ref>Davies (2008) p. 911</ref> The [[Celtic Britons]] of Wales made peace with the Vikings and [[Anarawd ap Rhodri]] allied with the Norsemen occupying [[Northumbria]] to conquer the north.<ref>{{cite book |last=Charles-Edwards |first=T M |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H8Ke9acHFm4C&pg=PA176 |title=Mercia: an Anglo-Saxon kingdom in Europe |publisher=[[University of Leicester|Leicester University Press]] |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-7185-0231-7 |editor1-last=Brown |editor1-first=Michelle P |editor1-link=Michelle P. Brown |page=104 |contribution=Wales and Mercia, 613–918 |author-link=Thomas Charles-Edwards |access-date=27 November 2010 |editor2-last=Farr |editor2-first=Carol Ann}}</ref> This alliance later broke down and Anarawd came to an agreement with [[Alfred the Great|Alfred]], king of [[Wessex]], with whom he fought against the west Welsh. According to {{Lang|la|[[Annales Cambriae]]}}, in 894, "Anarawd came with the Angles and laid waste to [[Ceredigion]] and [[Ystrad Tywi]]."<ref>{{cite book |last=Hill |first=David |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H8Ke9acHFm4C&pg=PA176 |title=Mercia: an Anglo-Saxon kingdom in Europe |publisher=[[University of Leicester|Leicester University Press]] |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-7185-0231-7 |editor1-last=Brown |editor1-first=Michelle P |editor1-link=Michelle P. Brown |page=176 |contribution=Wales and Mercia, 613–918 |access-date=27 November 2010 |editor2-last=Farr |editor2-first=Carol Ann}}</ref>[[File:CymruMap.PNG|thumb|upright=0.75|Medieval map of Welsh realms]]
[[File:Laws of Hywel Dda (f.1.v) King Hywel cropped.jpg|thumb|upright=0.75|[[Hywel Dda]] enthroned]]

The southern and eastern parts of Great Britain lost to English settlement became known in Welsh as {{lang|wlm|[[Lloegyr]]}} (Modern Welsh {{lang|cy|Lloegr}}), which may have referred to the kingdom of Mercia originally and which came to refer to England as a whole.{{Efn|The earliest instance of {{lang|wlm|Lloegyr}} occurs in the early 10th-century prophetic poem {{lang|cy|[[Armes Prydein]]}}. It seems comparatively late as a place name, the nominative plural {{lang|cy|[[Lloegyr|Lloegrwys]]}}, "men of {{lang|cy|Lloegr}}", being earlier and more common. The English were sometimes referred to as an entity in early poetry ({{lang|cy|Saeson}}, as today) but just as often as {{lang|cy|Eingl}} (Angles), {{lang|cy|Iwys}} (Wessex-men), etc. {{lang|cy|Lloegr}} and {{lang|cy|Sacson}} became the norm later when England emerged as a kingdom. As for its origins, some scholars have suggested that it originally referred only to [[Mercia]] – at that time a powerful kingdom and for centuries the main foe of the Welsh. It was then applied to the new kingdom of England as a whole (see for instance [[Rachel Bromwich]] (ed.), {{lang|cy|[[Welsh Triads|Trioedd Ynys Prydein]]}}, University of Wales Press, 1987). "The lost land" and other fanciful meanings, such as [[Geoffrey of Monmouth]]'s monarch Locrinus, have no etymological basis. (See also Discussion in Reference 40)}} The Germanic tribes who now dominated these lands were invariably called {{lang|cy|Saeson}}, meaning "[[Saxons]]". The Anglo-Saxons called the Romano-British {{lang|gem-x-proto|[[*Walhaz|Walha]]}}, meaning 'Romanised foreigner' or 'stranger'.<ref name="Wales Hist 2">Davies (1994) p. 2</ref> The Welsh continued to call themselves {{lang|cy|Brythoniaid}} (Brythons or Britons) well into the [[Middle Ages]], though the first written evidence of the use of {{lang|cy|Cymru}} and {{lang|cy|y Cymry}} is found in a praise poem to {{lang|cy|[[Cadwallon ap Cadfan]]|italic=no}} ({{lang|cy|Moliant Cadwallon}}, by {{lang|cy|Afan Ferddig|italic=no}}) {{circa|633}}.<ref name="Wales Hist 71"/> In {{lang|cy|[[Armes Prydein]]}}, believed to be written around 930–942, the words {{lang|cy|Cymry}} and {{lang|cy|Cymro}} are used as often as 15 times.<ref>Davies (2008) p. 714</ref> However, from the Anglo-Saxon settlement onwards, the people gradually begin to adopt the name {{lang|cy|Cymry}} over {{lang|cy|Brythoniad}}.<ref name="Davies186">Davies (2008) p. 186</ref>

From 800 onwards, a series of dynastic marriages led to {{lang|cy|[[Rhodri Mawr]]|italic=no}}'s ({{abbr|r.|ruled}} 844–77) inheritance of {{lang|cy|[[Gwynedd]]|italic=no}} and {{lang|cy|[[Powys]]|italic=no}}. His sons founded the three dynasties of {{lang|cy|[[Aberffraw]]|italic=no}} for {{lang|cy|Gwynedd|italic=no}}, {{lang|cy|[[House of Dinefwr|Dinefwr]]|italic=no}} for {{lang|cy|[[Deheubarth]]|italic=no}} and {{lang|cy|[[Mathrafal]]|italic=no}} for {{lang|cy|Powys|italic=no}}. {{lang|cy|Rhodri|italic=no}}'s grandson {{lang|cy|[[Hywel Dda]]|italic=no}} (r. 900–50) founded {{lang|cy|Deheubarth|italic=no}} out of his maternal and paternal inheritances of {{lang|cy|[[Dyfed]]|italic=no}} and {{lang|cy|[[Seisyllwg]]|italic=no}} in 930, ousted the {{lang|cy|[[Aberffraw]]|italic=no}} dynasty from {{lang|cy|Gwynedd|italic=no}} and {{lang|cy|Powys|italic=no}} and then codified [[Cyfraith Hywel|Welsh law]] in the 940s.<ref>Davies (2008) p. 388</ref>

=== High to late middle ages ===
{{Main|Wales in the High Middle Ages|Wales in the late Middle Ages}}
{{See also|List of rulers in Wales|Welsh rebellions against English rule}}

[[Gruffydd ap Llywelyn]] was the only ruler to unite all of Wales under his rule, described by one chronicler after his death as [[king of Wales]]. In 1055 Gruffydd ap Llywelyn killed his rival [[Gruffydd ap Rhydderch]] in battle and recaptured {{Lang|cy|[[Deheubarth]]|italic=no}}.<ref>{{cite web|title=GRUFFUDD ap LLYWELYN (died 1063), king of Gwynedd and Powys, and after 1055 king of all Wales {{!}} Dictionary of Welsh Biography|url=https://biography.wales/article/arc_s-GRUF-APL-1063|access-date=31 January 2022|website=biography.wales}}</ref> Originally king of Gwynedd, by 1057 he was ruler of Wales and had annexed parts of England around the border. He ruled Wales with no internal battles.<ref>{{cite book|author=K. L. Maund|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nja0RSLWq-AC&pg=PA216|title=Ireland, Wales, and England in the Eleventh Century|publisher=Boydell & Brewer Ltd|year=1991|isbn=978-0-85115-533-3|pages=216–}}</ref> His territories were again divided into the traditional kingdoms.<ref>Maund, Kari ''The Welsh kings'' p.87-97</ref> [[John Davies (historian)|John Davies]] states that {{lang|cy|Gruffydd|italic=no}} was "the only Welsh king ever to rule over the entire territory of Wales... Thus, from about 1057 until his death in 1063, the whole of Wales recognised the kingship of {{lang|cy|Gruffydd ap Llywelyn|italic=no}}. For about seven brief years, Wales was one, under one ruler, a feat with neither precedent nor successor."<ref name="Wales Hist 100">Davies (1994) p. 100</ref> [[Owain Gwynedd]] (1100–1170) of the Aberffraw line was the first Welsh ruler to use the title {{lang|la|princeps Wallensium}} (prince of the Welsh), a title of substance given his victory on the [[Berwyn range]], according to Davies.<ref name="Wales Hist 128">Davies (1994) p. 128</ref> During this time, between 1053 and 1063, Wales lacked any internal strife and was at peace.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Maund|first=KL|title=Ireland, Wales, and England in the eleventh century}}</ref>

Within four years of the [[Battle of Hastings]] (1066), England had been [[Norman Conquest|completely subjugated]] by the [[Normans]].<ref name="Wales Hist 100" /> [[William the Conqueror|William I of England]] established a series of lordships, allocated to his most powerful warriors, along the Welsh border, their boundaries fixed only to the east (where they met other feudal properties inside England).<ref>Davies (1994) p. 101</ref> Starting in the 1070s, these lords began conquering land in southern and eastern Wales, west of the [[River Wye]]. The frontier region, and any English-held lordships in Wales, became known as {{lang|la|Marchia Wallie}}, the [[Welsh Marches]], in which the [[Marcher lord]]s were subject to neither [[English law|English]] nor [[Welsh law]].<ref name="Lieberman 1">{{Cite book|title=The Medieval March of Wales: The Creation and Perception of a Frontier, 1066–1283 |first= Max |last=Lieberman |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2nda0A3pVYAC&pg=PA19|page= 6 |access-date=4 October 2010 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |year=2010 |location=Cambridge|isbn=978-0-521-76978-5}}</ref> The extent of the March varied as the fortunes of the Marcher lords and the Welsh princes ebbed and flowed.<ref name="BBC History March">{{cite web|title=Chapter 6: The Coming of the Normans |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/history/sites/themes/guide/ch6_coming_of_the_normans.shtml|access-date=4 October 2010 |publisher=[[BBC Cymru Wales]] |year=2008|website=[[BBC Cymru Wales]] website}}</ref>

{{lang|cy|Owain Gwynedd|italic=no}}'s grandson {{lang|cy|[[Llywelyn ab Iorwerth|Llywelyn Fawr]]|italic=no}} (the Great, 1173–1240), received the [[fealty]] of other Welsh lords in 1216 at the council at {{lang|cy|[[Aberdyfi]]|italic=no}}, becoming in effect the first [[prince of Wales]].<ref>Davies (1994) pp. 133–134</ref> His grandson {{lang|cy|[[Llywelyn ap Gruffudd]] |italic=no}} secured the recognition of the title ''Prince of Wales'' from [[Henry III of England|Henry III]] with the [[Treaty of Montgomery]] in 1267.<ref>Davies (1994) pp. 143–144</ref> Subsequent disputes, including the imprisonment of {{lang|cy|Llywelyn|italic=no}}'s wife [[Eleanor de Montfort|Eleanor]], culminated in the first invasion by King [[Edward I of England]].<ref name="Davies151">Davies (1994) pp. 151–152</ref> As a result of military defeat, the [[Treaty of Aberconwy]] exacted {{lang|cy|Llywelyn|italic=no}}'s fealty to England in 1277.<ref name="Davies151" /> Peace was short-lived, and, with the 1282 [[Conquest of Wales by Edward I|Edwardian conquest]], the rule of the Welsh princes permanently ended. With {{lang|cy|Llywelyn|italic=no}}'s death and his brother prince {{lang|cy|[[Dafydd ap Gruffydd|Dafydd]]|italic=no}}'s execution, the few remaining [[Welsh peers and baronets|Welsh lords]] did [[Homage (feudal)|homage]] to [[Edward I of England]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/wales/786625.stm |title=Tribute to lost Welsh princess |work=BBC News |date=12 June 2000|access-date=5 March 2007}}</ref> The [[Statute of Rhuddlan]] in 1284 provided the constitutional basis for a post-conquest government of the [[Kingdom of Gwynedd|Principality of North Wales]] from 1284 until 1535/36.<ref name="RDEOGB1999" /> It defined Wales as "annexed and united" to the English Crown, separate from England but under the same monarch. The king ruled directly in two areas: the Statute divided the north and delegated administrative duties to the [[Justice of Chester]] and [[Justiciar of North Wales]], and further south in western Wales the King's authority was delegated to the [[Justiciar of South Wales]]. The existing royal lordships of [[Montgomery, Powys|Montgomery]] and {{lang|cy|[[Builth Wells]]|italic=no}} remained unchanged.<ref>Davies, ''Age of Conquest'', pp. 357, 364.</ref> To maintain his dominance, Edward constructed a series of castles: [[Beaumaris Castle|Beaumaris]], {{lang|cy|[[Caernarfon Castle|Caernarfon]]|italic=no}}, [[Harlech Castle|Harlech]] and {{lang|cy|[[Conwy Castle|Conwy]]|italic=no}}. His son, the future [[Edward II of England|Edward II]], was born at {{lang|cy|[[Caernarfon]]|italic=no}} in 1284.<ref>Davies (1994) p. 162</ref> He became the first English prince of Wales in 1301, which at the time provided an income from northwest Wales known as the [[Principality of Wales]].<ref>Davies (2008) p. 711</ref> [[File:Owain Glyndŵr at Cardiff City Hall.jpg|upright=0.75|thumb|Statue of {{lang|cy|[[Owain Glyndŵr]]|italic=no}} ({{circa|1354}} or 1359 – {{circa|1416}}) at [[City Hall, Cardiff|Cardiff City Hall]]|alt=The statue of a man in a tunic and short cape clasped at his right shoulder, sculpted in white stone. The figure, set indoors with its back to an arched window, holds a down-pointed sword in his right hand and a scroll in his left.]]After [[Welsh rebellions against English rule#Madog ap Llywelyn|the failed revolt in 1294–1295]] of {{lang|cy|[[Madog ap Llywelyn]]|italic=no}} – who styled himself Prince of Wales in the [[Penmachno Document]] – and the rising of {{lang|cy|[[Llywelyn Bren]]|italic=no}} (1316), the last uprising was led by {{lang|cy|[[Owain Glyndŵr]]|italic=no}}, against [[Henry IV of England]]. In 1404, {{lang|cy|Owain|italic=no}} was crowned prince of Wales in the presence of emissaries from France, Spain (Castille) and Scotland.<ref name="Wales Hist 194">Davies (1994) p. 194</ref> {{lang|cy|Glyndŵr|italic=no}} went on to hold parliamentary assemblies at several Welsh towns, including a Welsh parliament ({{Langx|cy|senedd}}) at {{lang|cy|[[Machynlleth]]|italic=no}}. The rebellion was eventually defeated by 1412. Having failed {{lang|cy|Owain|italic=no}} went into hiding and nothing was known of him after 1413.<ref>Davies (1994) p. 203</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=RCAHMW: In the steps of Owain Glyndwr |url=https://rcahmw.gov.uk/in-the-steps-of-owain-glyndwr}}</ref> The [[penal laws against the Welsh]] of 1401–02 passed by the [[Parliament of England|English parliament]] made the Welsh second-class citizens. With hopes of independence ended, there were no further wars or rebellions against English colonial rule and the laws remained on the statute books until 1624.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jenkins |first=Geraint |title=A Concise History of Wales |year=2007 |pages=107–119}}</ref>

[[Henry VII of England|Henry Tudor]] (born in Wales in 1457) seized the throne of England from [[Richard III of England]] in 1485, uniting England and Wales under one royal house. The last remnants of Celtic-tradition [[Cyfraith Hywel|Welsh law]] were abolished and replaced by English law by the [[Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542]] during the reign of Henry VII's son, [[Henry VIII]].<ref name="BBC Tudors">{{cite web |title=Wales under the Tudors |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/tudors/wales_tudors_01.shtml |access-date=21 September 2010 |publisher=BBC |date=5 November 2009 }}</ref> In the legal jurisdiction of [[England and Wales]], Wales became unified with the kingdom of England; the "[[Principality of Wales]]" began to refer to the whole country, though it remained a "principality" only in a ceremonial sense.<ref name="RDEOGB1999">{{cite book|title=Illustrated Encyclopedia of Britain |page=459 |publisher=Reader's Digest|year=1999 |location=London |isbn=978-0-276-42412-0 |quote=A country and principality within the mainland of Britain&nbsp;... about half a million}}</ref><ref name="autogenerated2">{{Cite book|title=The Medieval March of Wales: The Creation and Perception of a Frontier, 1066–1283 |first= Max |last=Lieberman |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2nda0A3pVYAC&pg=PA19|page= 4 |access-date=4 October 2010 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |year=2010 |location=Cambridge|isbn=978-0-521-76978-5}}</ref> The Marcher lordships were abolished, and Wales began electing members of the Westminster parliament.<ref>Davies (1994) p. 232</ref>

===Early modern period===
{{Main|Early modern period in Wales}}
[[File:George Childs Dowlais Ironworks 1840.jpg|right|thumbnail|''Dowlais Ironworks'' (1840) by George Childs (1798–1875)]]In 1536 Wales had around 278,000 inhabitants, which increased to around 360,000 by 1620. This was primarily due to rural settlement, where animal farming was central to the Welsh economy. Increase in trade and increased economic stability occurred due to the increased diversity of the Welsh economy. Population growth however outpaced economic growth and the standard of living dropped.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=BBC Wales – History – Themes – Chapter 13: Society and politics in early modern Wales |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/history/sites/themes/guide/ch13_early_modern_wales.shtml |access-date=2022-09-13 |website=www.bbc.co.uk}}</ref>

Prior to the [[Industrial Revolution in Wales]], there were small-scale industries scattered throughout Wales.<ref name="Davies392">Davies (2008) p. 392</ref> These ranged from those connected to agriculture, such as milling and the [[Woollen industry in Wales|manufacture of woollen textiles]], through to mining and quarrying.<ref name="Davies392" /> Agriculture remained the dominant source of wealth.<ref name="Davies392" /> The emerging industrial period saw the development of copper smelting in the [[Swansea]] area. With access to local coal deposits and a harbour that connected it with Cornwall's copper mines in the south and the large copper deposits at [[Parys Mountain]] on Anglesey, Swansea developed into the world's major centre for non-ferrous metal smelting in the 19th century.<ref name="Davies392" /> The second metal industry to expand in Wales was iron smelting, and iron manufacturing became prevalent in both the north and the south of the country.<ref name="Davies393">Davies (2008) p. 393</ref> In the north, [[John Wilkinson (industrialist)|John Wilkinson]]'s Ironworks at [[Bersham]] was a major centre, while in the south, at [[Merthyr Tydfil]], the ironworks of [[Dowlais Ironworks|Dowlais]], [[Cyfarthfa Ironworks|Cyfarthfa]], Plymouth and [[Penydarren Ironworks|Penydarren]] became the most significant hub of iron manufacture in Wales.<ref name="Davies393" /> By the 1820s, south Wales produced 40 per cent of all Britain's [[pig iron]].<ref name="Davies393" />

By the 18th century, lawyers, doctors, estate agents and government officials formed a [[bourgeoisie]] with sizeable houses.<ref name=":2" /> In the late 18th century, [[Slate industry in Wales|slate quarrying]] began to expand rapidly, most notably in North Wales. The [[Penrhyn quarry]], opened in 1770 by [[Richard Pennant, 1st Baron Penrhyn]], was employing 15,000 men by the late 19th century,<ref name="Davies818">Davies (2008) p. 818</ref> and along with [[Dinorwic quarry]], it dominated the Welsh slate trade. Although slate quarrying has been described as "the most Welsh of Welsh industries",<ref name="Davies819">Attributed to historian [[A. H. Dodd]]: Davies (2008) p. 819</ref> it is coal mining which became the industry synonymous with Wales and its people. Initially, coal seams were exploited to provide energy for local metal industries but, with the opening of canal systems and later the railways, Welsh coal mining saw an explosion in demand. As the [[South Wales Coalfield]] was exploited, Cardiff, Swansea, [[Penarth]] and [[Barry, Vale of Glamorgan|Barry]] grew as world exporters of coal. By its height in 1913, Wales was producing almost 61 million tons of coal.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/rhagor/article/1912/|title=Wales – the first industrial nation of the World|publisher=[[Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales]]|date=5 October 2008|access-date=9 September 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111003192341/http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/rhagor/article/1912/|archive-date=3 October 2011}}</ref>

===Modern period===
{{Main|Modern history of Wales}}
{{See also|Wales in the World Wars}}
[[File:MametzWood Christopher Williams.jpg|thumb|right|''Battle at [[Mametz Wood Memorial|Mametz Wood]]'' by [[Christopher Williams (Welsh artist)|Christopher Williams]] (1918)]]
Historian [[Kenneth O. Morgan|Kenneth Morgan]] described Wales on the eve of the [[First World War]] as a "relatively placid, self-confident and successful nation". The output from the coalfields continued to increase, with the Rhondda Valley recording a peak of 9.6&nbsp;million tons of coal extracted in 1913.<ref>{{Cite book |last=John |first=Arthur H. |title=Glamorgan County History, Volume V, Industrial Glamorgan from 1700 to 1970 |publisher=University of Wales Press |year=1980 |location=Cardiff |page=183}}</ref> The First World War (1914–1918) saw a total of 272,924 Welshmen under arms, representing 21.5 per cent of the male population. Of these, roughly 35,000 were killed,<ref name="Davies284">Davies (2008) p. 284</ref> with particularly heavy losses of [[38th (Welsh) Infantry Division|Welsh forces]] at [[Mametz Wood Memorial|Mametz Wood]] on the Somme and the [[Battle of Passchendaele]].<ref>Davies (2008) p. 285</ref>

The first quarter of the 20th century also saw a shift in the political landscape of Wales. Since 1865, the [[Liberal Party (UK)|Liberal Party]] had held a parliamentary majority in Wales and, following the [[1906 United Kingdom general election|general election of 1906]], only one non-Liberal Member of Parliament, [[Keir Hardie]] of [[Merthyr Tydfil (UK Parliament constituency)|Merthyr Tydfil]], represented a Welsh constituency at Westminster. Yet by 1906, industrial dissension and political militancy had begun to undermine Liberal consensus in the southern coalfields.<ref name="Davies461">Davies (2008) p. 461</ref> In 1916, [[David Lloyd George]] became the first Welshman to become Prime Minister of Britain.<ref>{{Cite web |title=David Lloyd George (1863–1945) |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/history/sites/themes/figures/lloyd_george.shtml |access-date=26 September 2010 |website=[[BBC Cymru Wales]] website |publisher=[[BBC Cymru Wales]]}}</ref> In December 1918, Lloyd George was re-elected as the head of a Conservative-dominated coalition government, and his poor handling of the 1919 coal miners' strike was a key factor in destroying support for the Liberal party in south Wales.<ref name="Davies515">Davies (2008) p. 515</ref> The industrial workers of Wales began shifting towards the [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]]. When in 1908 the [[National Union of Mineworkers (Great Britain)|Miners' Federation of Great Britain]] became affiliated to the Labour Party, the four Labour candidates sponsored by miners were all elected as MPs. By 1922, half the Welsh seats at Westminster were held by Labour politicians—the start of a Labour dominance of Welsh politics that continued into the 21st century.<ref name="Davies439">Davies (2008) p. 439</ref>

After economic growth in the first two decades of the 20th century, Wales's staple industries endured a prolonged slump from the early 1920s to the late 1930s, leading to widespread unemployment and poverty.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Morgan |first=Kenneth O. |url=https://archive.org/details/wales18801980reb0000morg/page/208 |title=Rebirth of a Nation: Wales 1880–1980 |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1982 |isbn=978-0-19-821760-2 |location=Oxford |pages=[https://archive.org/details/wales18801980reb0000morg/page/208 208–210]}}</ref> For the first time in centuries, the population of Wales went into decline; unemployment reduced only with the production demands of the [[Second World War]].<ref>Davies (2008) p. 918</ref> The war saw Welsh servicemen and women fight in all major theatres, with some 15,000 of them killed. Bombing raids brought high loss of life as the [[Luftwaffe|German Air Force]] targeted the docks at [[Swansea Blitz|Swansea]], [[Cardiff Blitz|Cardiff]] and [[Pembroke Dock|Pembroke]]. After 1943, 10 per cent of Welsh conscripts aged 18 were sent to work in the coal mines, where there were labour shortages; they became known as [[Bevin Boys]]. [[Pacifism|Pacifist]] numbers during both World Wars were fairly low, especially in the Second World War, which was seen as a fight against [[fascism]].<ref name="Davies807">Davies (2008) p. 807</ref>

[[File:A Plaid Cymru rally in Machynlleth in 1949 where the "Parliament for Wales in 5 years" campaign was started (14050400654).jpg|thumb|A [[Plaid Cymru]] rally in [[Machynlleth]] in 1949, where the [[Parliament for Wales Campaign]] began]]
[[Plaid Cymru]] was formed in 1925, seeking greater autonomy or independence from the rest of the UK.<ref name="LLGC Plaid">{{Cite web |title=Disestablishment, Cymru Fydd and Plaid Cymru |url=http://www.llgc.org.uk/ymgyrchu/Datganoli/PlaidCymru/index-e.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101206031034/http://www.llgc.org.uk/ymgyrchu/Datganoli/PlaidCymru/index-e.htm |archive-date=6 December 2010 |access-date=25 November 2010 |website=National Library of Wales |publisher=llgc.org.uk}}</ref> The term "[[England and Wales]]" became common for describing the area to which English law applied, and in 1955 Cardiff was proclaimed as Wales's capital. ''[[Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg]]'' (The Welsh Language Society) was formed in 1962, in response to fears that the language might soon die out.<ref name="GTJ Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg">{{Cite web |title=Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg's first protest, 1963 |url=http://www.gtj.org.uk/index.php?id=5192 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120118054912/http://www.gtj.org.uk/index.php?id=5192 |archive-date=18 January 2012 |access-date=25 November 2010 |website=Gathering the Jewels |publisher=gtj.org.uk}}</ref> Nationalist sentiment grew following the [[Tryweryn flooding|flooding of the Tryweryn valley]] in 1965 to create a reservoir to supply water to the English city of [[Liverpool]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Wales on Air: The drowning of Tryweryn and Capel Celyn |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/walesonair/database/trywerin.shtml |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091206011841/http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/walesonair/database/trywerin.shtml |archive-date=6 December 2009 |access-date=25 November 2010 |website=BBc.co.uk |publisher=BBC}}</ref> Although 35 of the 36 Welsh MPs voted against the bill (one abstained), Parliament passed the bill and the village of [[Capel Celyn]] was submerged, highlighting Wales's powerlessness in her own affairs in the face of the numerical superiority of English MPs in Parliament.<ref name="BBC Tryweryn">{{Cite web |date=19 October 2005 |title=Flooding Apology |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/liverpool/content/articles/2005/10/17/feature_welsh_reservoir_feature.shtml |access-date=18 October 2008 |website=[[BBC]] website |publisher=BBC}}</ref> Separatist groupings, such as the [[Free Wales Army]] and ''[[Mudiad Amddiffyn Cymru]]'' were formed, conducting campaigns from 1963.<ref name="MAC & FWA">{{Cite book |last=Clews |first=Roy |title=To Dream of Freedom – The story of MAC and the Free Wales Army |publisher=Y Lolfa Cyf., Talybont |year=1980 |isbn=978-0-86243-586-8 |pages=15, 21 & 26–31}}</ref> Prior to the [[Investiture of the Prince of Wales|investiture]] of [[Charles, Prince of Wales|Charles]] in 1969, these groups were responsible for a number of bomb attacks on infrastructure.<ref>{{Cite web |year=2011 |title=Our history – Clywedog Dam, Wales −1967 |url=http://www.halcrow.com/Who-we-are/History/Clywedog-dam-Wales-1967/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111230051005/http://www.halcrow.com/Who-we-are/History/Clywedog-dam-Wales-1967/ |archive-date=30 December 2011 |access-date=8 January 2012 |website=Halcrow website |publisher=[[Halcrow Group|Halcrow Group Ltd]]}}; {{cite book |last=Clews|first=Roy|title=To Dream of Freedom – The story of MAC and the Free Wales Army|publisher=Y Lolfa Cyf., Talybont |year=1980 |isbn=978-0-86243-586-8|pages=22, 59, 60 & 216}}</ref> At a by-election in 1966, [[Gwynfor Evans]] won the parliamentary seat of [[Carmarthen (UK Parliament constituency)|Carmarthen]], Plaid Cymru's first Parliamentary seat.<ref name="Gwynfor">{{Cite book |last=Gwynfor |first=Evans |title=The Fight for Welsh Freedom |publisher=Y Lolfa Cyf., Talybont |year=2000 |isbn=978-0-86243-515-8 |page=152 |author-link=Gwynfor Evans}}</ref>

By the end of the 1960s, the policy of bringing businesses into disadvantaged areas of Wales through financial incentives had proven very successful in diversifying the industrial economy.<ref name="Davies236">Davies (2008) p. 236</ref> This policy, begun in 1934, was enhanced by the construction of [[industrial estates]] and improvements in transport communications,<ref name="Davies236" /> most notably the [[M4 motorway]] linking south Wales directly to London. It was believed that the foundations for stable economic growth had been firmly established in Wales during this period, but this was shown to be optimistic after the [[Early 1980s recession|recession of the early 1980s]] saw the collapse of much of the manufacturing base that had been built over the preceding forty years.<ref name="Davies237">Davies (2008) p. 237</ref>

=== Devolution ===
{{Main|Welsh devolution}}
[[File:Queen Elizabeth II addresses the Senedd inside the Siambr (Chamber) during the ceremonial opening of the Sixth Senedd in Cardiff. (52355107245).jpg|thumb|Opening of the Sixth Senedd in Cardiff in 2021]]
The [[Welsh Language Act 1967]] repealed a section of the [[Wales and Berwick Act 1746|Wales and Berwick Act]] and thus "Wales" was no longer part of the legal definition of England. This essentially defined Wales as a separate entity legally (but within the UK), for the first time since before the [[Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542]] which defined Wales as a part of the Kingdom of England. The [[Welsh Language Act 1967]] also expanded areas where use of Welsh was permitted, including in some legal situations.<ref>{{cite web|date=July 2011|title=The Constitution Series: 1 – Wales in the United Kingdom|url=http://www.assembly.wales/Research%20Documents/The%20Constitution%20Wales%20in%20the%20United%20Kingdom%20-%20Quick%20guide-22072011-217207/qg07-0001-English.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160420062743/http://www.assembly.wales/Research%20Documents/The%20Constitution%20Wales%20in%20the%20United%20Kingdom%20-%20Quick%20guide-22072011-217207/qg07-0001-English.pdf|archive-date=20 April 2016|access-date=6 April 2016|publisher=National Assembly for Wales}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=History of devolution|url=https://senedd.wales/how-we-work/history-of-devolution/|access-date=31 January 2022|website=senedd.wales}}; {{cite web|date=26 July 2012|title=The Welsh language Act of 1967|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/wales/entries/fe99df6b-bf61-3cb0-a695-fa76c013fc98|access-date=31 January 2022|website=BBC}}</ref>

In a [[1979 Welsh devolution referendum|referendum in 1979]], Wales voted against the creation of a Welsh assembly with an 80 per cent majority. In 1997, a [[1997 Welsh devolution referendum|second referendum]] on the same issue secured a very narrow majority (50.3 per cent).<ref name="Long Walk" /> The [[National Assembly for Wales]] (''Cynulliad Cenedlaethol Cymru'') was set up in 1999 (under the [[Government of Wales Act 1998]]) with the power to determine how Wales's central government budget is spent and administered, although the UK Parliament reserved the right to set limits on its powers.<ref name="Long Walk">{{cite news |first= Betsan |last= Powys |title= The long Welsh walk to devolution |url= http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/wales_politics/7813837.stm |access-date= 26 September 2010 |publisher= BBC |date= 12 January 2010 |work= [[BBC News]] website}}</ref>

The Government of Wales Act 2006 (c 32) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed the [[National Assembly for Wales]] and allows further powers to be granted to it more easily. The Act creates a system of government with a separate executive drawn from and accountable to the legislature.<ref name="StackPath">{{cite web|title=StackPath|url=https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/blog/wales-act-new-dawn-welsh-devolution|access-date=31 January 2022|website=www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk|date=11 April 2018 }}</ref> Following a successful referendum in 2011 on extending the law making powers of the National Assembly it is now able to make laws, known as Acts of the Assembly, on all matters in devolved subject areas, without needing the UK Parliament's agreement.<ref name="StackPath" />

In the [[2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum|2016 referendum]], Wales voted in support of leaving the European Union, although demographic differences became evident. According to [[Danny Dorling]], professor of geography at Oxford University, votes for Leave may have been boosted by the large number English people living in Wales.<ref>{{cite web|date=22 September 2019|title=English people living in Wales tilted it towards Brexit, research finds|url=http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/sep/22/english-people-wales-brexit-research|access-date=31 January 2022|website=The Guardian}}</ref>

After the [[Senedd and Elections (Wales) Act 2020]], the National Assembly was renamed "{{lang|cy|Senedd Cymru}}" in Welsh and the "Welsh Parliament" in English, which was seen as a better reflection of the body's expanded legislative powers.<ref name="Senedd Cymru name">{{Cite web |title=Senedd Cymru and Welsh Parliament names become law |url=https://senedd.wales/senedd-now/news/senedd-cymru-and-welsh-parliament-names-become-law/ |date=11 May 2020 |access-date=22 June 2024 |website=Welsh Parliament }}</ref>

=== Welsh language ===
[[File:Protest Cymdeithas yr Iaith, 1972.jpg|thumb|"[[Welsh Language Society|Cymdeithas yr Iaith]]" (Society for the Language) bilingual road sign protest, 1972.]]{{Main|History of the Welsh language}}The [[Welsh language]] ({{langx|cy|Cymraeg}}) is an [[Indo-European language family|Indo-European language]] of the [[Celtic languages|Celtic family]];<ref>{{cite book |last1=Davies |first1=Janet |title=The Welsh Language: A History |date=2014 |publisher=[[University of Wales Press]] |isbn=978-1-78316-019-8 |edition=2 |location=Cardiff |pages=1, 4}}</ref> the most closely related languages are [[Cornish language|Cornish]] and [[Breton language|Breton]]. Most linguists believe that the Celtic languages arrived in Britain around 600 BCE.{{sfn|Davies|2014|p=6}} The [[Brythonic languages]] ceased to be spoken in England and were replaced by the English language, a [[Germanic language]] which arrived in Wales around the end of the eighth century due to the defeat of the [[Kingdom of Powys]].{{sfn|Davies|2014|p=19}}

The [[Bible translations into Welsh]] and the [[Protestant Reformation]], which encouraged use of the [[vernacular]] in religious services, helped the language survive after Welsh elites abandoned it in favour of English in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.{{sfn|Davies|2014|pp=37, 39}}

Successive Welsh Language Acts, in 1942, [[Welsh Language Act 1967|1967]] and [[Welsh Language Act 1993|1993]], improved the legal status of Welsh.{{sfn|Davies|2014|p=117, 120, 122–123}} The [[Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011]] modernised the 1993 Welsh Language Act and gave Welsh an official status in Wales for the first time, a major landmark for the language. The Measure also created the post of [[Welsh Language Commissioner]], replacing the Welsh Language Board.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011 {{!}} Law Wales |url=https://law.gov.wales/culture/welsh-language/welsh-language-wales-measure-2011 |access-date=2022-02-03 |website=law.gov.wales}}</ref> Following the referendum in 2011, the Official Languages Act became the first Welsh law to be created in 600 years, according to the First Minister at the time, [[Carwyn Jones]]. This law was passed by Welsh Assembly members (AMs) only and made Welsh an official language of the National Assembly.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2012-11-12 |title=First Welsh law 'for 600 years' |url=https://www.itv.com/news/wales/2012-11-12/first-welsh-law-for-600-years |access-date=2022-02-03 |website=ITV News |language=en}}</ref>

Starting in the 1960s, many [[Road signs in Wales|road signs]] have been replaced by bilingual versions.{{sfn|Davies|2014|pp=117, 121}} Various public and private sector bodies have adopted bilingualism to a varying degree and (since 2011) Welsh is the only official (''de jure'') language in any part of Great Britain.{{sfn|Davies|2014|p=122–123}}

==Government and politics==
{{Main|Politics of Wales}}
{{See also|Politics of the United Kingdom|Welsh devolution}}
[[File:Senedd.JPG|thumb|The [[Senedd building]], designed by [[Richard Rogers]], opened on [[Saint David's Day|St David's Day]] 2006.]]
Wales is a country that is part of the sovereign state of the United Kingdom.<ref name="ONS Geography Guide" /> [[ISO 3166-2:GB]] formerly defined Wales as a principality, with England and Scotland defined as countries and Northern Ireland as a province.<ref name="ISO 3166-2 2011 newsletter">{{cite web |url=https://www.iso.org/files/live/sites/isoorg/files/archive/pdf/en/iso_3166-2_newsletter_ii-3_2011-12-13.pdf |title=ISO 3166-2 NEWSLETTER |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=15 December 2011 |website=[[International Organization for Standardization]] |access-date=22 June 2024}}</ref> However, this definition was raised in the Welsh Assembly in 2010 and the then [[Counsel General for Wales]], [[John Griffiths (Welsh politician)|John Griffiths]], stated, 'Principality is a misnomer and that Wales should properly be referred to as a country.'<ref>{{cite news |date=3 July 2010 |title=UN report causes stir with Wales dubbed'Principality' |url=https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/un-report-causes-stir-wales-1906214 |work=[[Media Wales#WalesOnline|WalesOnline]] |access-date=22 June 2024}}</ref> In 2011, ISO 3166-2:GB was updated and the term 'principality' was replaced with 'country'.<ref name="ISO 3166-2 2011 newsletter" /> UK Government toponymic guidelines state that, 'though there is a Prince of Wales, this role is deemed to be titular rather than exerting executive authority, and therefore Wales is described as a country rather than a principality.'<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/toponymic-guidelines/toponymic-guidelines-for-map-and-other-editors-united-kingdom-of-great-britain-and-northern-ireland--2#fnref:23 |title=Toponymic guidelines for map and other editors, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=May 2024 |website=[[gov.uk]] |publisher=[[UK Government|HM Government]] |access-date=22 June 2024}}</ref>

In the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]] – the 650-member [[lower house]] of the UK Parliament – there are 32 [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|members of Parliament]] (MPs) who [[List of MPs for constituencies in Wales (2024–present)|represent Welsh constituencies]]. At the [[2024 United Kingdom general election in Wales|2024 general election]], 27 [[Welsh Labour|Labour]] and [[Labour Co-op]] MPs were elected, along with 4 [[Plaid Cymru]] MPs and 1 [[Welsh Liberal Democrats|Liberal Democrat]] MP from Wales.<ref name=":1">{{cite web|last1=Jones|first1=Ciaran|title=These are the 40 MPs who have been elected across Wales|url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/politics/general-election-2017-40-mps-13157234|website=[[Wales Online]]|date=9 June 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Masters |first=Adrian |url=https://www.itv.com/news/wales/2024-07-04/general-election-overnight-results-and-analysis-from-wales |title=General Election overnight results and analysis from Wales |work=[[ITV News]] |date=5 July 2024 |access-date=16 July 2024}}</ref> The [[Wales Office]] is a department of the UK government responsible for Wales, whose minister, the [[Secretary of State for Wales]] (Welsh secretary), sits in the [[Cabinet of the United Kingdom|UK cabinet]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/office-of-the-secretary-of-state-for-wales/about|title=About us|website=GOV.UK|date=7 October 2024 }}</ref>

Wales has a [[Devolution in the United Kingdom|devolved]], [[unicameral]] legislature known as the [[Senedd]] (Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament) which holds devolved powers from the UK Parliament via a reserved powers model.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Powers |url=https://senedd.wales/how-we-work/our-role/powers |access-date=27 May 2022 |website=senedd.wales }}</ref>

For the purposes of [[Local government in Wales|local government]], Wales has been divided into 22 council areas since 1996. These "principal areas"<ref>Part 1, Local Government (Wales) Act 1994</ref> are responsible for the provision of all local government services.<ref>{{cite web |title=Local Authorities |url=http://new.wales.gov.uk/topics/localgovernment/localauthorities/?lang=en |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140530004428/http://new.wales.gov.uk/topics/localgovernment/localauthorities/?lang=en |archive-date=30 May 2014 |access-date=9 September 2010 |publisher=[[Welsh Government]]}}</ref>

=== Devolved Government ===
{{Main|2 = Welsh Government|3 = Senedd}}
[[File:First Minister meeting with First Minister of Wales - 52943408033.jpg|thumb|right|First Minister Mark Drakeford meets with First Minister of Scotland [[Humza Yousaf]] in Edinburgh, 2023]]
Following [[Devolution in the United Kingdom|devolution]] in 1997, the [[Government of Wales Act 1998]] created a Welsh devolved assembly, the [[National Assembly for Wales]], with the power to determine how Wales's central government budget is spent and administered.<ref name="Wyn Jones">{{cite book |last1=Wyn Jones |first1=Richard |title=Wales says yes : devolution and the 2011 Welsh referendum |date=2012 |publisher=University of Wales Press |location=Cardiff |isbn=978-0-7083-2485-1}}</ref> Eight years later, the [[Government of Wales Act 2006]] reformed the [[National Assembly for Wales]] and allowed further powers to be granted to it more easily. The Act also created a system of government with a separate executive, the Welsh Government, drawn from and accountable to the legislature, the National Assembly. Following a successful referendum in 2011, the National Assembly was empowered to make laws, known as Acts of the Assembly, on all matters in devolved subject areas, without requiring the UK Parliament's approval of legislative competence. It also gained powers to raise taxes.<ref name="Expert Panel">{{cite book |last1=McAllister |first1=Laura |last2=Campbell |first2=Rosie |last3=Childs |first3=Sarah |last4=Clements |first4=Rob |last5=Farrell |first5=David |last6=Renwick |first6=Alan |last7=Silk |first7=Paul |title=A parliament that works for Wales |date=2017 |publisher=National Assembly for Wales |location=Cardiff |url=https://senedd.wales/media/eqbesxl2/a-parliament-that-works-for-wales.pdf |ref={{harvid|Expert Panel on Assembly Electoral Reform 2017}}|access-date=2 April 2023}}</ref>{{rp|33–34}} In May 2020, the National Assembly was renamed "Senedd Cymru" or "the Welsh Parliament", commonly known as the Senedd in both English and Welsh.<ref name="Senedd Cymru name" />

Devolved areas of responsibility include agriculture, economic development, education, health, housing, local government, social services, tourism, transport and the Welsh language.<ref>{{cite web |title=Making laws for Wales |url=http://www.assemblywales.org/abthome/making-laws-for-wales.htm |access-date=6 October 2010 |publisher=National Assembly for Wales |year=2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100922170818/http://assemblywales.org/abthome/making-laws-for-wales.htm |archive-date=22 September 2010 }}; {{cite web |title=Schedule 5 to the Government of Wales Act 2006 (as amended) |url=http://www.assemblywales.org/bus-home/bus-legislation/bus-legislation-guidance/bus-legislation-guidance-documents/legislation_fields/schedule-5.htm |access-date=6 October 2010 |publisher=National Assembly for Wales |year=2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101120052232/http://assemblywales.org/bus-home/bus-legislation/bus-legislation-guidance/bus-legislation-guidance-documents/legislation_fields/schedule-5.htm |archive-date=20 November 2010 }}</ref> The Welsh Government also promotes Welsh interests abroad.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.iwa.wales/agenda/2019/02/expanding-wales-international-footprint/|first=Owain|last=Richards|title=Expanding Wales' international footprint|publisher=IWA|date=8 February 2019|access-date=3 April 2023}}</ref>

===Law===
{{Main|2 = Welsh law|3 = Law of the United Kingdom|4 = English law}}
[[File:The Old Court House Ruthin Wales.jpg|thumb|The Old Court House, [[Ruthin]], Denbighshire, built 1401, following [[Owain Glyndŵr]]'s attack on the town|alt=A half timbered building of two floors, with four sets of leaded windows to the front aspect and one set to the side. The build has a steep, slate roof, with a single chimney placed left of centre. Steps and a ramp lead up to its single visible entrance]]
[[File:Laws of Hywel Dda (f.4.r) Judge cropped.jpg|thumb|Illustration of a Welsh judge from the ''[[Laws of Hywel Dda]]'']]By tradition, Welsh Law was compiled during an assembly held at [[Whitland]] around 930 by [[Hywel Dda]], king of most of Wales between 942 and his death in 950. The '[[Cyfraith Hywel|law of Hywel Dda]]' ({{langx|cy|Cyfraith Hywel}}), as it became known, codified the previously existing [[Celtic Law|folk laws and legal customs]] that had evolved in Wales over centuries. Welsh Law emphasised the payment of compensation for a crime to the victim, or the victim's kin, rather than punishment by the ruler.<ref>{{cite web |title=History and Development of the Welsh Language in the Courts |url=http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/cms/12003.htm#1 |access-date=7 October 2010 |publisher=[[Her Majesty's Courts Service]] |date=11 June 2007 |website=[[Her Majesty's Courts Service]] website |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110606124550/http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/cms/12003.htm#1 |archive-date=6 June 2011 }}; Davies (2008) p. 450; Davies (1994) p. 86</ref> Other than in the [[Welsh Marches|Marches]], where [[March law]] was imposed by the Marcher Lords, Welsh Law remained in force in Wales until the [[Statute of Rhuddlan]] in 1284. [[Edward I of England]] annexed the [[Principality of Wales]] following the death of [[Llywelyn ap Gruffudd]], and Welsh Law was replaced for criminal cases under the Statute. Marcher Law and Welsh Law (for civil cases) remained in force until [[Henry VIII of England]] annexed the whole of Wales under the [[Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542]] (often referred to as the Acts of Union of 1536 and 1543), after which English law applied to the whole of Wales.<ref name="HMCS">{{cite web |title=History and Development of the Welsh Language in the Courts |url=http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/cms/12003.htm#1 |access-date=7 October 2010 |publisher=[[Her Majesty's Courts Service]] |date=11 June 2007 |website=[[Her Majesty's Courts Service]] website |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110606124550/http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/cms/12003.htm#1 |archive-date=6 June 2011 }}</ref><ref>Davies (1994) p. 225</ref> The [[Wales and Berwick Act 1746]] provided that all laws that applied to England would automatically apply to Wales (and the Anglo-Scottish border town of [[Berwick-upon-Tweed|Berwick]]) unless the law explicitly stated otherwise; this Act was repealed with regard to Wales in 1967. English law has been the legal system of [[England and Wales]] since 1536.<ref name="Wales Hist 263">Davies (1994) p. 263</ref>

English law is regarded as a [[common law]] system, with no major [[Codification (law)|codification]] of the law and legal [[precedent]]s are binding as opposed to persuasive. The court system is headed by the [[Supreme Court of the United Kingdom]] which is the highest court of appeal in the land for criminal and civil cases. The [[Senior Courts of England and Wales]] is the highest [[Trial court|court of first instance]] as well as an [[appellate court]]. The three divisions are the [[Court of Appeal of England and Wales|Court of Appeal]], the [[High Court of Justice of England and Wales|High Court of Justice]], and the [[Crown Court]]. Minor cases are heard by [[magistrates' court (England and Wales)|magistrates' court]]s or the [[County Court]]. In 2007 the Wales and Cheshire Region (known as the Wales and Cheshire Circuit before 2005) came to an end when Cheshire was attached to the North-Western England Region. From that point, Wales became a legal unit in its own right, although it remains part of the single [[jurisdiction]] of [[England and Wales]].<ref>Davies (2008) p. 453</ref>

The [[Senedd]] has the authority to draft and approve laws outside of the [[Parliament of the United Kingdom|UK Parliamentary]] system to meet the specific needs of Wales. Under powers approved by a [[2011 Welsh devolution referendum|referendum]] held in March 2011, it is empowered to pass primary legislation, at the time referred to as an Act of the National Assembly for Wales but now known as an [[Act of Senedd Cymru]] in relation to twenty subjects listed in the [[Government of Wales Act 2006]] such as health and education. Through this primary legislation, the [[Welsh Government]] can then also enact more specific [[secondary legislation|subordinate legislation]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Subordinate legislation |url=https://law.gov.wales/constitution-government/how-welsh-laws-made/subordinate-legislation/?lang=en#/constitution-government/how-welsh-laws-made/subordinate-legislation |website=law.gov.wales |publisher=Welsh Government |access-date=16 July 2020 |date=13 February 2015 |archive-date=19 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200619065644/https://law.gov.wales/constitution-government/how-welsh-laws-made/subordinate-legislation/?lang=en#/constitution-government/how-welsh-laws-made/subordinate-legislation |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Wales is served by four regional police forces: [[Dyfed-Powys Police]], [[Gwent Police]], [[North Wales Police]], and [[South Wales Police]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Two of the four Welsh police forces 'require improvement' in the way they prevent and investigate crime|url=http://www.itv.com/news/wales/2016-02-18/two-of-the-four-welsh-police-forces-require-improvement-in-the-way-they-prevent-and-investigate-crime/|work=ITV News|date=18 February 2016|access-date=29 February 2016}}</ref> There are five [[prisons in Wales]]: four in the southern half of the country, and [[HM Prison Berwyn|one]] in [[Wrexham Industrial Estate|Wrexham]]. Wales has no women's prisons: female inmates are imprisoned in England.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/north_east/8545805.stm|title=MPs urge UK government to build north Wales prison|work=BBC News|date=3 March 2010|access-date=31 December 2010}}; {{cite web|url=http://www.hmprisonservice.gov.uk/adviceandsupport/prison_life/femaleprisoners/|title=Female Prisoners|website=hmprisonservice.gov.uk|author=HM Prison Service|date=21 September 2000|access-date=31 December 2010|archive-url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20110206184958/http://www.hmprisonservice.gov.uk/adviceandsupport/prison_life/femaleprisoners/|archive-date=6 February 2011}}</ref>

==Geography and natural history== <!-- [[Welsh mountains]] redirects here -->
{{Main|Geography of Wales}}
{{See also|List of settlements in Wales by population|List of towns in Wales|List of cities in Wales}}
{{See also|Natural resources of Wales}}
[[File:Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) from Crib Goch, Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri National Park, Cymru (Wales) 09.jpg|thumb|292x292px|[[Snowdon]] ({{langx|cy|Yr Wyddfa}}) [[Gwynedd]], the highest mountain in Wales]]
Wales is a generally mountainous country on the western side of central southern Great Britain.<ref name="ONS Cymru">{{Cite book |url=http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/social-trends-rd/the-official-yearbook-of-the-united-kingdom/2005-edition/the-official-yearbook-of-the-united-kingdom---2005-edition.pdf |publisher=[[Office for National Statistics]] |year=2004 |title=UK 2005 – The Official Yearbook of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |pages=2 & 30|access-date=10 February 2012 |isbn=978-0-11-621738-7}}</ref> It is about {{convert|170|mi}} north to south.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.visitwales.co.uk/about-wales-guide-to-wales-culture-people-and-language/welsh-geography/ |title=Geography: About Wales |publisher=[[Welsh Government]]|year=2010|access-date=3 October 2010|website=[[Visit Wales]] website|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101028210819/http://www.visitwales.co.uk/about-wales-guide-to-wales-culture-people-and-language/welsh-geography/|archive-date=28 October 2010|url-status=dead}}</ref> The oft-quoted "[[The size of Wales|size of Wales]]" is about {{convert|20779|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://eulis.eu/service/countries-profile/england-and-wales/ |publisher=[[EULIS|European Land Information Service]] |title=England and Wales |access-date=2 October 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720161018/http://eulis.eu/service/countries-profile/england-and-wales/ |archive-date=20 July 2011 }}</ref> Wales is bordered by England to the east and by sea in all other directions: the [[Irish Sea]] to the north and west, [[St George's Channel]] and the [[Celtic Sea]] to the southwest and the [[Bristol Channel]] to the south.<ref>{{cite hansard |url=https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/written-answers/1974/dec/16/celtic-sea#S5CV0883P0-06989|title=Celtic Sea |house=House of Commons |date=16 December 1974 |volume=883 |column=317W}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://iho.int/uploads/user/pubs/standards/s-23/S-23_Ed3_1953_EN.pdf |title=Limits of Oceans and Seas, 3rd edition + corrections |year=1971|publisher=[[International Hydrographic Organization]] |access-date=28 December 2020|page=42 [corrections to page 13]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111008191433/http://www.iho-ohi.net/iho_pubs/standard/S-23/S23_1953.pdf|archive-date=8 October 2011}}</ref> Wales has about {{convert|1680|mi}} of coastline (along the mean high water mark), including the mainland, Anglesey and Holyhead.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cartography.org.uk/default.asp?contentID=749 |title=How long is the UK coastline? |first=Giles |last=Darkes |date=January 2008 |access-date=6 October 2015 |publisher=The [[British Cartographic Society]] |archive-date=22 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120522042745/http://www.cartography.org.uk/default.asp?contentID=749 |url-status=dead }}</ref> [[List of islands of Wales|Over 50 islands]] lie off the Welsh mainland, the largest being [[Isle of Anglesey|Anglesey]], in the north-west.<ref>{{cite web|title=Discover Welsh islands with unique scenery, wildlife and heritage |url=https://www.visitwales.com/inspire-me/holidays/escape-welsh-islands |publisher=VisitWales |access-date=15 May 2020}}</ref>

Much of Wales's diverse landscape is mountainous, particularly in the north and central regions. The mountains were shaped during the last ice age, the [[Devensian glaciation]]. The highest mountains in Wales are in [[Snowdonia]] ({{lang|cy|Eryri}}), of which five are over {{convert|1000|m|ft|abbr=on}}. The highest of these is [[Snowdon]] ({{lang|cy|Yr Wyddfa}}), at {{convert|1085|m|ft|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2009/aug/02/mount-snowdon-cafe|work=[[The Guardian]] |date=2 August 2009|title=High tea: Mount Snowdon's magical mountaintop cafe |access-date=28 September 2010 |location=London |first=Jonathan |last=Glancey}}</ref><ref name="WalesOnline mynyddoedd">{{cite web |url =http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2010/09/22/mountain-upgraded-to-super-status-91466-27315826/ |title = Mountain upgraded to 'super' status |access-date = 30 September 2010 |date = 22 September 2010 |publisher = [[Media Wales|Media Wales Ltd]] |website=[[WalesOnline]] website}}</ref> The 14 Welsh mountains, or 15 if including [[Carnedd Gwenllian]]{{spaced ndash}}often discounted because of its low [[topographic prominence]]{{spaced ndash}}over {{convert|3000|ft|m|abbr=off}} high are known collectively as the [[Welsh 3000s]] and are located in a small area in the north-west.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.welsh3000s.co.uk/|publisher=welsh3000s.co.uk |title=The Welsh 3000s Challenge |access-date=28 September 2010}}</ref> The highest outside the 3000s is [[Aran Fawddwy]], at {{convert|905|m|ft|abbr=off}}, in the south of Snowdonia.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.snowdoniaguide.com/aran_fawddwy.html|publisher=snowdoniaguide.com |title=Aran Fawddwy |access-date=2 October 2010}}</ref> The [[Brecon Beacons]] ({{lang|cy|Bannau Brycheiniog}}) are in the south (highest point [[Pen y Fan]], at {{convert|886|m|ft|abbr=off}}),<ref>Nuttall, John & Anne (1999). The Mountains of England & Wales – Volume 1: Wales (2nd edition ed.). Milnthorpe, Cumbria: Cicerone. {{ISBN|978-1-85284-304-5}}.</ref> and are joined by the [[Cambrian Mountains]] in [[Mid Wales]] (highest point [[Pumlumon]], at {{convert|752|m|ft|abbr=off}}).<ref>{{cite web|title=Ordnance Survey|url=https://www.bing.com/maps/?mkt=en-gb&v=2&cp=52.4675~-3.7828&lvl=12&sp=Point.52.4675_-3.7828_Plynlimon&sty=s|access-date=6 June 2020}}</ref>

[[File:Map of Wales.svg|thumb|Relief map of Wales:<br />{{legend|#e9c6af|Topography above {{convert|600|ft|m}}}}{{legend|#228b22|[[National parks of Wales|National Parks]]}}]]
Wales has [[National parks of Wales|three national parks]]: Snowdonia, Brecon Beacons, and [[Pembrokeshire Coast]] ({{lang|cy|Arfordir Penfro}}). It has [[Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Wales|five Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty]]: Anglesey, the [[Clwydian Range and Dee Valley]], the [[Gower Peninsula]], the [[Llŷn Peninsula]], and the [[Wye Valley]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://wales.gov.uk/topics/environmentcountryside/consmanagement/aonb/?lang=en |publisher=[[Welsh Government]] |website=[[Welsh Government]] website |title=Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty |access-date=6 October 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120625232127/http://wales.gov.uk/topics/environmentcountryside/consmanagement/aonb/?lang=en |archive-date=25 June 2012 }}</ref> The Gower Peninsula was the first area in the United Kingdom to be designated as an [[Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty]], in 1956. As of 2019, the [[coastline of Wales]] had 40 [[Blue Flag beach]]es, three Blue Flag marinas and one Blue Flag boat operator.<ref>{{cite web|title=All of Wales' Blue Flag beaches in 2019|url=https://www.walesonline.co.uk/whats-on/travel/wales-blue-flag-beaches-2019-16271891|last=Knapman|first=Joshua|date=14 May 2019|website=walesonline|access-date=15 May 2020}}</ref> The south and west coasts of Wales, along with the Irish and Cornish coasts, are frequently blasted by Atlantic [[westerlies]]/south-westerlies that, over the years, have sunk and wrecked many vessels. In 1859 over 110 ships were destroyed off the coast of Wales in a hurricane that saw more than 800 lives lost across Britain.<ref>Davies (2008) p.778</ref> The greatest single loss occurred with the sinking of the ''[[Royal Charter (ship)|Royal Charter]]'' off Anglesey in which 459 people died.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/northwest/sites/history/pages/tomparryllandudnopier.shtml |publisher=BBC |date=28 April 2006 |title=Stormy Weather |access-date=26 September 2010 |website=[[BBC]] North West Wales website |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110126035354/http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/northwest/sites/history/pages/tomparryllandudnopier.shtml |archive-date=26 January 2011 }}</ref> The 19th century saw over 100 vessels lost with an average loss of 78 sailors per year.<ref name="Davies 814">Davies (2008) p.814</ref> Wartime action caused losses near Holyhead, [[Milford Haven]] and Swansea.<ref name="Davies 814"/> Because of offshore rocks and unlit islands, Anglesey and Pembrokeshire are still notorious for shipwrecks, most notably the [[Sea Empress oil spill|''Sea Empress'' oil spill]] in 1996.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/spl/hi/picture_gallery/06/uk_the_sea_empress_disaster/html/1.stm |publisher=BBC |year= 2000|title=In detail: The Sea Empress disaster|access-date=26 September 2010 |work=[[BBC News]] website}}</ref>

The first border between Wales and England was zonal, apart from around the River Wye, which was the first accepted boundary.<ref name="Davies75">Davies (2008) p. 75</ref> Offa's Dyke was supposed to form an early distinct line but this was thwarted by Gruffudd ap Llewellyn, who reclaimed swathes of land beyond the dyke.<ref name="Davies75"/> The Act of Union of 1536 formed a linear border stretching from the mouth of the Dee to the mouth of the Wye.<ref name="Davies75"/> Even after the Act of Union, many of the borders remained vague and moveable until the Welsh Sunday Closing act of 1881, which forced local businesses to decide which country they fell within to accept either the Welsh or English law.<ref name="Davies75"/>

===Geology===
{{main|Geology of Wales}}
The earliest geological period of the [[Paleozoic|Palaeozoic]] era, the [[Cambrian]], takes its name from the [[Cambrian Mountains]], where geologists first identified Cambrian remnants.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://palaeos.com/paleozoic/cambrian/cambrian.htm |publisher=[[palaeos]].com |date=11 April 2002 |title=The Cambrian Period of the Paleozoic Era: 542 to 488 Million Years Ago |access-date=2 October 2010 |archive-date=26 November 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101126092715/http://palaeos.com/Paleozoic/Cambrian/Cambrian.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name=Sedgwick1852>{{cite journal|doi=10.1144/GSL.JGS.1852.008.01-02.20|last=Sedgwick |first=A. |year=1852|title=On the classification and nomenclature of the Lower Paleozoic rocks of England and Wales|journal=Q. J. Geol. Soc. Lond. |volume=8|issue=1–2 |pages=136–138|s2cid=130896939 |url=https://zenodo.org/record/2432137 |issn=0370-291X}}</ref> In the mid-19th century, [[Roderick Murchison]] and [[Adam Sedgwick]] used their studies of Welsh geology to establish certain principles of [[stratigraphy]] and [[palaeontology]]. The next two periods of the Palaeozoic era, the [[Ordovician]] and [[Silurian]], were named after ancient Celtic tribes from this area.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://palaeos.com/paleozoic/silurian/silurian.htm|publisher=[[palaeos]].com|date=11 April 2002|title=The Silurian: The Silurian Period of the Paleozoic Era: 444 to 416 Mya|access-date=10 February 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120309135815/http://palaeos.com/paleozoic/silurian/silurian.htm|archive-date=9 March 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://palaeos.com/paleozoic/ordovician/ordovician.htm|publisher=[[palaeos]].com|date=11 April 2002|title=The Ordovician: The Ordovician Period of the Paleozoic Era: 488 to 444 million years ago|access-date=10 February 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120307063915/http://palaeos.com/paleozoic/ordovician/ordovician.htm|archive-date=7 March 2012}}</ref>

===Climate===
{{main|Climate of Wales}}
{{climate chart
|Wales
|1.3|6.5|158.6
|1.1|6.6|114
|2.4|8.6|118.8
|3.4|11|85.9
|6|14.5|80.7
|8.6|16.8|86.2
|10.9|19.1|78.4
|10.7|18.8|106
|8.8|16.2|124
|6.5|12.8|153.2
|3.7|9.3|156.8
|2.2|7.4|173.3
|source=[http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/averages/19712000/areal/wales.html Met Office]
|float=right
}}
[[File:Milvus milvus R(ThKraft).jpg|thumb|upright=0.75|A [[Red kite]], considered one of the [[national symbols of Wales]] and voted the nation's favourite bird<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-07-03 |title=National symbols of Wales |url=https://www.wales.com/about/culture/national-symbols-wales |access-date=2022-09-05 |website=Wales |language=en}}</ref>]]
Wales lies within the [[Temperateness|north temperate zone]]. It has a changeable, [[maritime climate]] and is one of the wettest countries in Europe.<ref name="Met Off 1">{{cite web|url=http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/regional-climates/wl/ |publisher=[[Met Office]] |year=2010|title=Met Office: Regional Climate: Wales|access-date=26 September 2010 |website=[[Met Office]] website}}</ref><ref name="Davies148-150">Davies (2008) pp. 148–150</ref> Welsh weather is often cloudy, wet and windy, with warm summers and mild winters.<ref name="Met Off 1"/><ref name="WalesOnline soggy">
{{cite web|url=http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0200wales/tm_objectid=14140027&method=full&siteid=50082&headline=soggiest-city-in-britain-pays-high-price-for-rain-name_page.html|title=Soggiest city in Britain pays high price for rain|publisher=[[Media Wales|Media Wales Ltd]]|last=Turner |first=Robert|access-date = 26 September 2010|date = 26 July 2010}}
</ref> 
* Highest maximum temperature: {{convert|37.1|°C|0|abbr=on}} at [[Hawarden]], Flintshire on 18 July 2022.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Heatwave latest: Wales sees hottest day on record, provisional figures show |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-62184978 |access-date=2022-07-18 |language=en-gb}}</ref>
* Lowest minimum temperature: {{convert|-23.3|°C|0|abbr=on}} at [[Rhayader]], Radnorshire (now [[Powys]]) on 21 January 1940.<ref name="Met Office Temp">{{cite web |title=Wales: climate |url=http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/wl/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120113130422/http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/wl/ |archive-date=13 January 2012 |access-date=9 September 2010 |publisher=[[Met Office]]}}</ref>
* Maximum number of hours of sunshine in a month: 354.3 hours at [[Dale Fort]], Pembrokeshire in July 1955.<ref name="Met Haul 1">{{cite web|url=http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/wl/|title=Met Office:Regional Climate: Wales|year=2009|publisher=[[Met Office]]|access-date=6 October 2009|website=Met Office website|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120113130422/http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/wl/|archive-date=13 January 2012}}</ref>
* Minimum number of hours of sunshine in a month: 2.7 hours at Llwynon, [[Brecknockshire]] in January 1962.<ref name="Met Haul 1"/>
* Maximum rainfall in a day (0900 UTC − 0900 UTC): {{convert|211|mm}} at [[Rhondda]], Glamorgan, on 11 November 1929.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Digital Archive of Extreme UK Rainfall Events|url=http://www.hydro-gis.co.uk/pdf_files/digital_archive_flyer.pdf|publisher=Hydro-GIS Ltd.|access-date=2 October 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120312105749/http://www.hydro-gis.co.uk/pdf_files/digital_archive_flyer.pdf|archive-date=12 March 2012}}</ref>
* Wettest spot – an average of {{convert|4473|mm|0}} rain a year at [[Crib Goch]] in Snowdonia, Gwynedd (making it also the wettest spot in the United Kingdom).<ref>
{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/3354276/The-wetter-the-better.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120128075059/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/3354276/The-wetter-the-better.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=28 January 2012|title=The wetter, the better|newspaper=[[The Independent]]|last=Clark|first=Ross|date=28 October 2006|access-date=2 September 2009|location=London}}</ref>

===Flora and fauna===
{{Main|Biodiversity of Wales}}

Wales's wildlife is typical of Britain with several distinctions. Because of its long coastline, Wales hosts a variety of seabirds. The coasts and surrounding islands are home to colonies of [[northern gannet|gannet]]s, [[Manx shearwater]], [[Atlantic puffin|puffin]]s, [[black-legged kittiwake|kittiwakes]], [[European shag|shags]] and [[razorbill]]s. In comparison, with 60 per cent of Wales above the 150m contour, the country also supports a variety of upland-habitat birds, including [[common raven|raven]] and [[ring ouzel]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ecologymatters.co.uk/pdf/Wales_Ring_Ouzel_paper.pdf |title=Wales Ring Ouzel Survey 2006 |publisher=Ecology Matters Ltd. |last=Green |first=Mick |year=2007 |access-date=6 September 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120311210912/http://www.ecologymatters.co.uk/pdf/Wales_Ring_Ouzel_paper.pdf |archive-date=11 March 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/north_east/4644626.stm |title=Black ravens return to the roost |publisher=BBC |date=24 January 2006 |access-date=6 September 2010}}</ref> [[Birds of prey]] include the [[merlin (bird)|merlin]], [[hen harrier]] and the [[red kite]], a national symbol of Welsh wildlife.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rspb.org.uk/news/details.asp?view=print&id=tcm:9-176206 |title=Red kite voted Wales' Favourite Bird |publisher=[[Royal Society for the Protection of Birds]] |date=11 October 2007 |access-date=6 September 2010 |archive-date=23 August 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100823014457/http://www.rspb.org.uk/news/details.asp?view=print&id=tcm:9-176206 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In total, more than 200 different species of bird have been seen at the [[RSPB]] reserve at [[Conwy]], including seasonal visitors.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rspb.org.uk/reserves/guide/c/conwy/about.aspx |title=About Conwy |publisher=RSPB.org.uk |date=16 April 2010 |access-date=6 September 2010}}</ref> Larger mammals, including brown bears, wolves and wildcats, died out during the Norman period. Today, mammals include shrews, voles, badgers, otters, stoats, weasels, hedgehogs and fifteen species of bat. Two species of small rodent, the [[yellow-necked mouse]] and the [[hazel dormouse|dormouse]], are of special Welsh note being found at the historically undisturbed border area.<ref name="Davies533">Davies (2008) p. 533</ref> The [[pine marten]], which has been sighted occasionally, has been reintroduced in parts of Wales since 2015, having previously not been officially recorded since the 1950s.<ref>{{cite news |title=Pine marten spotted on Anglesey after 30 years |work=BBC News |date=12 July 2022 |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-62137570 |access-date=2 December 2022}}</ref> The [[European polecat|polecat]] was nearly driven to extinction in Britain, but hung on in Wales and is now rapidly spreading. [[Feral goat]]s can be found in Snowdonia.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2006/nov/13/conservationandendangeredspecies.uknews |title=Goats have roamed Snowdonia for 10,000 years; now they face secret cull |first=John|last=Vidal|work=guardian.co.uk |date=13 November 2006 |access-date=14 August 2011 |location=London}}</ref> In March 2021, [[Natural Resources Wales]] (NRW) granted a licence to release up to six [[beaver]]s in the [[River Dyfi|Dyfi Valley]], the first official beaver release in Wales.<ref>{{cite news|publisher=BBC News|date=30 March 2021|last=Grug|first=Mari|title=Licensed beavers released in Wales for the first time|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-56565050|access-date=31 March 2021}}</ref>

Believed to be home to some of Wales's rarest land invertebrates, some 2,500 disused coal tips are the subject of study by the Welsh Government; the tips are home to a wide variety of other wildlife.<ref>{{cite news|publisher=BBC News|title=Coal tip repairs threaten rare wildlife, ecologists warn|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-66632770|author=Steffan Messenger & Gavin Fischer|date=29 August 2023|access-date=29 August 2023}}</ref>

The waters of south-west Wales of Gower, Pembrokeshire and Cardigan Bay attract marine animals, including [[basking sharks]], Atlantic [[grey seal]]s, leatherback turtles, dolphins, [[porpoises]], jellyfish, crabs and lobsters. Pembrokeshire and Ceredigion, in particular, are recognised as an area of international importance for [[bottlenose dolphin]]s, and [[New Quay]] has the only summer residence of bottlenose dolphins in the whole of the UK. River fish of note include [[Salvelinus|char]], eel, [[salmon]], [[shad]], [[sparling]] and [[Arctic char]], while the [[gwyniad]] is unique to Wales, found only in [[Bala Lake]]. Wales is known for its shellfish, including [[Cockle (bivalve)|cockles]], [[limpet]], [[mussel]]s and [[Common periwinkle|periwinkles]]. [[Herring]], [[mackerel]] and [[hake]] are the more common of the country's marine fish.<ref name="Hist 286-288">Davies (1994) pp. 286–288</ref> The north facing high grounds of Snowdonia support a [[Relict (biology)|relict]] pre-glacial flora including the iconic Snowdon lily – ''[[Gagea serotina]]'' – and other [[alpine climate|alpine]] species such as ''[[Saxifraga cespitosa]]'', ''[[Saxifraga oppositifolia]]'' and ''[[Silene acaulis]]''. Wales has a number of plant species not found elsewhere in the UK, including the spotted rock-rose ''[[Tuberaria guttata]]'' on Anglesey and ''[[Draba aizoides]]'' on the Gower.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Atlas of the British Flora|editor1-last=Perring |editor1-first=E.H. |editor2-last=Walters |editor2-first=S.M. |year=1990 |publisher=BSBI |location= Melksham, Great Britain|isbn=978-0-901158-19-2 |page=43}}</ref>

==Economy==
{{Main|Economy of Wales}}
[[File:Profile of Wales.png|thumb|right|A profile of the economy of Wales in 2012]]
[[File:This is Trade and Investment. This is Wales. Welsh Government video.webm|thumb|A 2021 introduction to some of the largest companies based in Wales, including: Airbus, bipsync, HCI Pharmaceutical, ReNeuron, Deloitte, Coaltown Coffee, DMM International and Freudenberg]]
Over the last 250 years, Wales has been transformed from a [[Agriculture in Wales|predominantly agricultural country]] to an industrial, and then to a [[post-industrial economy]].<ref>Davies (2008), pp. 233, 697; {{Cite book |last=Day |first=Graham |url=https://archive.org/details/makingsensewales00dayg |title=Making sense of Wales |publisher=University of Wales Press |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-7083-1771-6 |location=Cardiff |page=[https://archive.org/details/makingsensewales00dayg/page/n96 87] |url-access=limited}}</ref> In the 1950s, Wales's GDP was twice as big as Ireland's; by the 2020s, Ireland's economy was four times that of Wales. Since the Second World War, the [[service sector]] has come to account for the majority of jobs, a feature typifying most advanced economies.<ref>Davies (2008), p. 233–234</ref> in 2018, according to OECD and Eurostat data, gross domestic product (GDP) in Wales was £75&nbsp;billion, an increase of 3.3 per cent from 2017. GDP per head in Wales in 2018 was £23,866, an increase of 2.9 per cent on 2017. This compares to Italy's GDP/capita of £25,000, Spain £22,000, Slovenia £20,000 and New Zealand £30,000.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Barry |first=Mark |date=4 January 2021 |title=The Environment, Tax and Wales |url=https://swalesmetroprof.blog/2021/01/04/the-environment-tax-and-wales/#_edn25 |access-date=13 January 2021 |website=swalesmetroprof.blog}}</ref><ref name="Nation Cymru">{{Cite news |last=Lloyd |first=Dai |date=14 November 2020 |title=Wales is not a global anomaly – it can be independent just like every other nation |publisher=Nation Cymru |url=https://nation.cymru/opinion/wales-is-not-a-global-anomaly-it-can-be-independent-just-like-every-other-nation/ |access-date=13 January 2021}}</ref> In the three months to December 2017, 72.7 per cent of working-age adults [[employment rate|were employed]], compared to 75.2 per cent across the UK as a whole.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Llywodraeth Cymru {{!}} Welsh Government |url=http://gov.wales/statistics-and-research/key-economic-statistics |access-date=24 February 2018 |website=gov.wales}}{{Dead link|date=January 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> For the 2018–19 fiscal year, the [[Welsh fiscal deficit]] accounts for 19.4 per cent of Wales's estimated GDP.<ref name="Cardiff">{{Cite news |date=2 July 2019 |title=Shortfall in public finances in Wales due to lower revenues, report finds |work=Cardiff University |url=https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/news/view/1523654-shortfall-in-public-finances-in-wales-due-to-lower-revenues,-report-finds |access-date=23 April 2020}}</ref>

In 2019, Wales was a net exporter of electricity. It produced 27.9 TWh of electricity while only consuming 14.7 TWh.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.gov.wales/sites/default/files/publications/2021-01/energy-generation-in-wales-2019.pdf |title=Energy Generation in Wales 2019 |publisher=Regen; [[Welsh Government]] |quote=Wales is a net exporter of electricity, having consumed approximately 14.7 TWh (1) of electricity in 2019, while generating approximately 27.9 TWh.}}</ref> In 2021, the Welsh government said that more than half the country's energy needs were being met by renewable sources, 2 per cent of which was from 363 [[hydroelectric power|hydropower]] projects.<ref name="BBC210302">{{Cite news |last=Duggan |first=Craig |date=2 March 2021 |title=Climate change: Private hydropower schemes 'on cliff edge' |publisher=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-56242378 |access-date=2 March 2021}}</ref>

By UK law, Wales contributes to items that do not directly benefit Wales e.g. over £5&nbsp;billion for [[HS2]] "which will damage the Welsh economy by £200m pa", according to the UK and Welsh Government's transport adviser Mark Barry. Wales also pays more in military costs than most similar-sized countries e.g. Wales pays twice the amount Ireland spends on the military.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Barry |first=Mark |date=7 January 2020 |title=Wales and HS2… |url=https://swalesmetroprof.blog/2020/01/07/wales-and-hs2/ |access-date=13 January 2021 |newspaper=Mark Barry}}</ref> The UK government spends £1.75bn per year on the military in Wales, which is almost as much as Wales spends on education every year (£1.8&nbsp;billion in 2018/19) and five times as much as the total amount spent on the police in Wales (£365&nbsp;million).<ref>{{Cite web |title=IISS Military Balance 2020 |url=https://www.iiss.org/-/media/images/comment/military-balance-blog/2020/02/new-defence-budgets-and-expenditure-2019.jpg?h=586&la=en&mw=865&w=865&hash=FFC0A4DBDC2F9F9DF53D890823D6F0073CA75ABF |publisher=International Institute for Strategic Studies |access-date=20 January 2021 |archive-date=3 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803180459/https://www.iiss.org/-/media/images/comment/military-balance-blog/2020/02/new-defence-budgets-and-expenditure-2019.jpg?h=586&la=en&mw=865&w=865&hash=FFC0A4DBDC2F9F9DF53D890823D6F0073CA75ABF |url-status=dead }}</ref>

From the middle of the 19th century until the post-war era, the mining and export of coal was the dominant industry. At its peak of production in 1913, nearly 233,000 men and women were employed in the [[South Wales coalfield]], mining 56 million tons of coal.<ref>{{Cite web |year=2002 |title=South Wales coalfield timeline |url=http://www.agor.org.uk/cwm/timeline.asp |access-date=11 September 2010 |publisher=University of Wales Swansea}}</ref> Cardiff was once the largest coal-exporting port in the world and, for a few years before the First World War, handled a greater tonnage of cargo than either London or Liverpool.<ref>{{cite news|title= Coal Exchange to 'stock exchange'|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/6586105.stm |publisher=BBC|access-date=11 October 2008|date=26 April 2007|work=[[BBC News]] website}}; {{Cite web |date=18 April 2007 |title=Coal and Shipping Metropolis of the World |url=http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/rhagor/article/1911/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090105222219/http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/rhagor/article/1911/ |archive-date=5 January 2009 |access-date=11 October 2008 |website=[[Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales]] website |publisher=[[Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales]]}}</ref> In the 1920s, over 40 per cent of the male Welsh population worked in [[heavy industry]].<ref name="IWA 2003">{{Cite book |last=Williams |first=Phil |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6oXtL_7xFssC&pg=PA31 |title=The psychology of distance: Wales: one nation |date=September 2003 |publisher=[[Institute of Welsh Affairs]] |isbn=978-1-86057-066-7 |series=Papurau Gregynog |volume=3 |location=Cardiff |publication-date=2003 |page=31 |author-link=Phil Williams (Welsh politician)}}</ref> According to [[Phil Williams (Welsh politician)|Phil Williams]], the [[Great Depression]] "devastated Wales", north and south, because of its "overwhelming dependence on coal and steel".<ref name="IWA 2003" /> From the mid-1970s, the Welsh economy faced massive restructuring with large numbers of jobs in heavy industry disappearing and being replaced eventually by new ones in [[light industry]] and in services. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Wales was successful in attracting an above average share of [[foreign direct investment]] in the UK.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Massey |first=Glenn |date=August 2009 |title=Review of International Business Wales |url=http://wales.gov.uk/docs/det/publications/091013reviewofibwen.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091204133015/http://wales.gov.uk/docs/det/publications/091013reviewofibwen.pdf |archive-date=4 December 2009 |access-date=11 September 2010 |publisher=[[Welsh Government]] |page=10}}</ref> Much of the new industry was essentially of a "branch (or "screwdriver") factory" type where a manufacturing plant or call centre is in Wales but the most highly-paid jobs in the company are elsewhere.<ref>{{Cite web |title=A Review of Local Economic and Employment Development Policy Approaches in OECD Countries |url=http://wales.gov.uk/docs//dfm/research/090617oecden.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20110222124621/http://wales.gov.uk/docs//dfm/research/090617oecden.pdf |archive-date=22 February 2011 |access-date=11 September 2010 |website=OECD Local Economic and Employment Development (LEED) Programme |publisher=OECD |page=8}}</ref><ref name="Economi">{{Cite web |year=2005 |title=Wales A Vibrant Economy |url=http://wales.gov.uk/deet/publications/bande/wave/wavee.pdf?lang=en |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101216020108/http://wales.gov.uk/deet/publications/bande/wave/wavee.pdf?lang=en |archive-date=16 December 2010 |access-date=2 October 2010 |publisher=[[Welsh Government]] |pages=12, 22, 40, 42}}</ref>

Poor-quality soil in much of Wales is unsuitable for crop-growing, so livestock farming has been the focus of farming. About 78 per cent of the land surface is used for agriculture.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Area of agricultural land, by type of crop and grass (Thousand Hectares) |url=http://www.statswales.wales.gov.uk/TableViewer/tableView.aspx?ReportId=2829 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120303114602/http://www.statswales.wales.gov.uk/TableViewer/tableView.aspx?ReportId=2829 |archive-date=3 March 2012 |access-date=2 October 2010 |website=StatsWales}} Total agricultural area (2004): 1633.5 thousand hectares (16,335 km<sup>2</sup>), Wales area 20,779 km<sup>2</sup></ref> The Welsh landscape, with its three national parks and [[Blue Flag beach]]es, attracts [[Tourism in Wales|large numbers of tourists]], who bolster the economy of rural areas.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/south_west/8672318.stm |title=Tourism hope over record 45 beach flags in Wales |publisher=BBC|date=11 May 2010|access-date=7 September 2010|work=[[BBC News]] website}}; {{Cite web |title=Tourism – Sector Overview Wales |url=http://www.gowales.co.uk/en/graduate/workingInWales/keyIndustryProfiles/tourism/index.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100409072132/http://www.gowales.co.uk/en/graduate/workingInWales/keyIndustryProfiles/tourism/index.html |archive-date=9 April 2010 |access-date=7 September 2010 |website=[[GO Wales]] website |publisher=[[GO Wales]]}}</ref> Wales, like Northern Ireland, has relatively few high [[value-added]] employment in sectors such as finance and research and development, attributable in part to a comparative lack of "economic mass" (i.e. population) – Wales lacks a large metropolitan centre.<ref name="Economi" /> The lack of high value-added employment is reflected in lower economic output per head relative to other regions of the UK: in 2002 it stood at 90 per cent of the EU25 average and around 80 per cent of the UK average.<ref name="Economi" /> In June 2008, Wales made history by becoming the first nation to be awarded [[Fairtrade certification|Fairtrade status]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=6 June 2008 |title=Welsh Government &#124; Written – Wales – the world's first 'Fair Trade Nation' |url=http://wales.gov.uk/about/cabinet/cabinetstatements/2008/wft/?lang=en |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100122150728/http://wales.gov.uk/about/cabinet/cabinetstatements/2008/wft/?lang=en |archive-date=22 January 2010 |access-date=19 June 2010 |website=[[Welsh Government]] website |publisher=[[Welsh Government]]}}</ref>

The [[pound sterling]] is the currency used in Wales. Numerous Welsh banks issued their own banknotes in the 19th century: the last bank to do so closed in 1908. Since then the [[Bank of England]] has had a monopoly on the issue of banknotes in Wales.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Carradice |first=Phil |title=The collapse of the Welsh banks |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/waleshistory/2010/03/collapse_of_welsh_banks.html#more/ |access-date=30 September 2010 |website=[[BBC Cymru Wales]] website |publisher=BBC }}; {{cite web |url=http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/about/scottish_northernireland.htm |title=The Bank of England's Role in Regulating the Issue of Scottish and Northern Ireland Banknotes |publisher=[[Bank of England]] |year=2010 |access-date=30 September 2010 |website=[[Bank of England]] website |archive-date=4 February 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120204061720/http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/about/scottish_northernireland.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> The [[Bank of Wales|Commercial Bank of Wales]], established in Cardiff by [[Julian Hodge|Sir Julian Hodge]] in 1971, was taken over by the [[Bank of Scotland]] in 1988 and absorbed into its parent company in 2002.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Commercial Bank of Wales, Carmarthen Branch, Papers |url=http://www.archiveswales.org.uk/anw/get_collection.php?inst_id=30&coll_id=1738&expand= |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716085038/http://www.archiveswales.org.uk/anw/get_collection.php?inst_id=30&coll_id=1738&expand= |archive-date=16 July 2011 |access-date=8 September 2010 |publisher=Archives Wales}}</ref> The [[Royal Mint]], which issues the [[Coins of the pound sterling|coinage]] circulating through the whole of the UK, has been based at a single site in [[Llantrisant]] since 1980.<ref>{{Cite web |year=2010 |title=www.royalmint.gov.uk |url=http://www.royalmint.com/Corporate/History/OurHistory.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101012035225/http://www.royalmint.com/Corporate/History/OurHistory.aspx |archive-date=12 October 2010 |access-date=26 September 2010 |website=[[Royal Mint]] website |publisher=[[Royal Mint]]}}</ref> Since [[decimalisation]], in 1971, at least one of the coins in circulation emphasises Wales such as the 1995 and 2000 one pound coin (above). As at 2012, the last designs devoted to Wales saw production in 2008.<ref>{{Cite web |date=10 February 2012 |title=The New Designs Revealed |url=http://www.royalmint.com/newdesigns/designsRevealed.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20080522150734/http://www.royalmint.com/newdesigns/designsRevealed.aspx |archive-date=22 May 2008 |access-date=11 October 2008 |website=[[Royal Mint]] website |publisher=[[Royal Mint]]}}</ref>

During 2020, and well into 2021, the restrictions and lockdowns necessitated by the [[COVID-19 pandemic]] affected all sectors of the economy and "tourism and hospitality suffered notable losses from the pandemic" across the UK.<ref>{{Cite web |date=18 March 2021 |title=Covid-19 impact on the Tourism and Hospitality Sector, an insight from the latest Economic Commentary |url=https://fraserofallander.org/covid-19-impact-on-the-tourism-and-hospitality-sector-an-insight-from-the-latest-economic-commentary/ |publisher=University of Strathclyde |quote=... health and economic crisis ... In particular, tourism and hospitality suffered notable losses from the pandemic.}}</ref> As of 6 April 2021, visitors from "red list" countries were still not allowed to enter unless they were UK residents. Restrictions will "likely be in place until the summer", one report predicted, with June being the most likely time for tourism from other countries to begin a rebound.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Travel to the UK during Covid-19: What you need to know before you go |publisher=CNN |url=https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/uk-travel-covid-19/index.html |access-date=8 April 2021 |quote=It is too early to say which countries will be on the green list when non-essential international travel resumes}}</ref> On 12 April 2021, many tourist facilities were still closed in Wales but non-essential travel between Wales and England was finally permitted. Wales also allowed non-essential retail stores to open.<ref>{{Cite web |date=13 April 2021 |title=Covid lockdown eases: Celebrations as pub gardens and shops reopen |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-56710858 |publisher=BBC News}}</ref>&nbsp;

== Transport ==
{{Main|Transport in Wales}}
===Main roads===
*The [[M4 motorway]] running from West London to South Wales links [[Newport, Wales|Newport]], [[Cardiff]] and [[Swansea]]. Responsibility for the section of the motorway within Wales, from the [[Second Severn Crossing]] to [[Pont Abraham]] services, sits with the Welsh Government.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Responsibilities of the Minister for Economy, Transport and North Wales |url=https://gov.wales/ken-skates-ms#section-15156 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200721124617/https://gov.wales/ken-skates-ms#section-15156 |archive-date=21 July 2020 |access-date=21 July 2020 |publisher=Welsh Government}}</ref>
*The [[A55 road|A55 expressway]] has a similar role along the North Wales coast, connecting [[Holyhead]] and [[Bangor, Gwynedd|Bangor]] with Wrexham and Flintshire. It also links to northwest England, principally [[Chester]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=One of the most important roads in Wales |url=https://www.roads.org.uk/motorway/a55 |access-date=21 July 2020 |publisher=Roads.org.uk}}</ref>
*The main north-south Wales link is the [[A470 road|A470]], which runs from Cardiff to [[Llandudno]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Owen |first=Cathy |date=6 June 2014 |title=The A470 is Britain's favourite road |url=https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/a470-britains-favourite-road-yes-7228725 |publisher=Wales Online}}</ref>
===Rail===
[[File:Rail network of Wales 2021.svg|thumb|Rail network of Wales, 2021|226x226px]] [[Rail transport in Wales]] includes the [[Wales & Borders franchise]], which is overseen by the Welsh Government with most passenger services operated by [[Transport for Wales Rail]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=28 February 2017 |title=Transport for Wales – Design of Wales and Borders Rail Service Including Metro |url=https://gov.wales/sites/default/files/consultations/2018-01/170228-tw-consultation-document-en.pdf |access-date=16 July 2020 |publisher=Welsh Government}}</ref> The Cardiff region has its own [[Valley Lines|urban rail network]]. [[Beeching cuts]] in the 1960s mean that most of the remaining network is geared toward east-west travel connecting with the [[Irish Sea]] ports for ferries to Ireland.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ferry connections |url=https://tfwrail.wales/ferry-connections |access-date=21 July 2020 |publisher=Transport for Wales}}</ref> Services between north and south Wales operate through the English cities of [[Chester]] and [[Hereford]] and towns of [[Shrewsbury]], [[Gobowen railway station|Gobowen for Oswestry]] and along the [[Welsh Marches Line]], with trains on the [[Heart of Wales Line]] from [[Swansea railway station|Swansea]] to [[Llandovery railway station|Llandovery]], [[Llandrindod Wells railway station|Llandrindod]] and [[Knighton railway station|Knighton]], connecting with the [[Welsh Marches line]] at [[Craven Arms railway station|Craven Arms]]. Trains in Wales are mainly diesel-powered but the [[South Wales Main Line]] branch of the [[Great Western Main Line]] used by services from [[Paddington railway station|London Paddington]] to Cardiff is [[21st-century modernisation of the Great Western main line|undergoing electrification]], although the programme has experienced significant delays and cost overruns.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Barry |first=Sion |date=19 March 2020 |title=Final bill for electrifying the Great Western Mainline from South Wales to London £2bn over original budget |url=https://www.business-live.co.uk/economic-development/final-bill-electrifying-great-western-17948591 |access-date=21 July 2020 |publisher=Business Live}}; {{cite web|url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/cardiffonline/cardiff-news/2011/01/25/business-leaders-back-electric-railway-demand-91466-28047043/ |title=Business leaders back electric railway demand| publisher=WalesOnline.co.uk. |date= 25 January 2011| access-date=7 June 2012}}; {{cite web|url=http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/rail/pi/rail-electrification.pdf|publisher=Department for Transport|title=Britain's Transport Infrastructure, Rail Electrification|access-date=7 June 2012|year=2009|url-status=dead|archive-url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20100408232230/http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/rail/pi/rail-electrification.pdf|archive-date=8 April 2010}}{{page needed|date=May 2020}}</ref> A [[Proposed Wales North-South railway|North-South railway]] has been suggested to better link North and South Wales.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Crump |first=Eryl |date=2020-03-21 |title=Campaigners want these two railway lines reopened to link North and South Wales |url=https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/campaigners-want-reopen-two-gwynedd-17948401 |access-date=2022-10-31 |website=North Wales Live |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":02">{{Cite web |date=2022-07-21 |title=Plan to outline rail link between the south of Wales and Aberystwyth by 2027 |url=https://nation.cymru/news/north-south-wales-rail-link/ |access-date=2022-10-31 |website=Nation.Cymru |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-09-18 |title=New Welsh Government rail map raises campaigners' hope for a north-south railway |url=https://nation.cymru/news/new-welsh-government-rail-map-raises-campaigners-hope-for-a-north-south-railway/ |access-date=2022-10-31 |website=Nation.Cymru |language=en-GB}}</ref>

===Air and ferries===
[[Cardiff Airport]] is the international airport of Wales. Providing links to European, African and North American destinations, it is about {{convert|12|mi}} southwest of [[Cardiff city centre]], in the Vale of Glamorgan. Intra-Wales flights used to run between Anglesey (Valley) and Cardiff, and were operated since 2017 by [[Eastern Airways]];<ref>{{Cite news |last=Harding |first=Nick |date=11 March 2017 |title=Eastern Airways take over Cardiff to Anglesey route |work=UK Aviation News |url=https://ukaviation.news/eastern-airways-take-cardiff-anglesey-route/ |access-date=16 July 2020}}</ref> as of 2022, those flights are no longer available. Other internal flights operate to northern England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Cardiff Airport-Destinations |url=https://www.cardiff-airport.com/destinations/ |access-date=21 July 2020 |publisher=Cardiff Airport – maes awyr caerdydd}}</ref> Wales has four commercial ferry ports. Regular ferry services to Ireland operate from [[Holyhead]], [[Pembroke Dock]] and [[Fishguard]]. The Swansea to [[Cork (city)|Cork]] service was cancelled in 2006, reinstated in March 2010, and withdrawn again in 2012.<ref>{{Cite news |date=10 March 2010 |title=Revived Swansea-Cork ferry service sets sail |work=[[BBC News]] website |publisher=BBC |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/south_west/8561187.stm |access-date=19 June 2010}}; {{cite news|title=Swansea-Cork ferry: Fastnet Line to close service with loss of 78 jobs|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-south-west-wales-16854680|access-date=15 April 2012 |date=2 February 2012 |publisher=BBC |work=[[BBC News]] website}}</ref>

==Education==
{{Main|Education in Wales|History of education in Wales}}
{{See also|List of universities in Wales|List of further education colleges in Wales|Lists of schools in Wales}}
[[File:Llanbedr Pont Steffan.jpg|thumb|right|St. David's Building, Lampeter campus, [[University of Wales, Trinity Saint David]] ({{lang|cy|Prifysgol Cymru, Y Drindod Dewi Sant}}). Founded in 1822, it is the oldest degree-awarding institution in Wales.<ref>{{Citation |title=Lampeter, University of Wales |date=1 May 2008 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/education/2008/may/01/universityguide.highereducation63 |work=[[The Guardian]] |access-date=17 October 2014}}</ref>]] A distinct education system has developed in Wales.<ref name="Davies238">Davies (2008) p. 238</ref> Formal education before the 18th century was the preserve of the elite. The first grammar schools were established in Welsh towns such as [[Ruthin]], Brecon and Cowbridge.<ref name="Davies238" /> One of the first successful schooling systems was started by [[Griffith Jones (Llanddowror)|Griffith Jones]], who introduced the circulating schools in the 1730s; these are believed to have taught half the country's population to read.<ref name="Davies239">Davies (2008) p. 239</ref> In the 19th century, with increasing state involvement in education, Wales was forced to adopt an education system that was English in ethos even though the country was predominantly [[nonconformity in Wales|Nonconformist]], Welsh-speaking and demographically uneven{{clarify|date=April 2024}} because of the economic expansion in the south.<ref name="Davies239" /> In some schools, to ensure Welsh children spoke English at school, the [[Welsh Not]] was employed as corrective punishment; this was much resented,<ref>{{Cite web |year=2010 |title=The Welsh language in 19th century education |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/history/sites/themes/society/language_education.shtml |access-date=24 November 2010 |website=[[BBC Cymru Wales|BBC Cymru Wales history]] website |publisher=[[BBC Cymru Wales]]}}; {{cite book|title=Schooling in rural societies |last=Nash |first=Roy |page=90|publisher=[[Methuen Publishing|Methuen & Co. Ltd]] |location=London |year=1980 |isbn=978-0-416-73300-6|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=D_wNAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA90|access-date=24 November 2010}}; {{cite book|title=Attitudes and language |last=Baker |first=Colin |page=99|publisher=Multilingual Matters|series=Multilingual Matters |volume=83 |location=Clevedon |year=1992 |isbn=978-1-85359-142-6|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uC24FqNcfXYC&pg=PA99|access-date=24 November 2010}}</ref> although the extent of its use is difficult to determine.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Fitz |first=John |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NUyaAl432SYC&pg=PA248 |chapter=Local identity and national systems: the case of Wales |title=Ethnicity, race, and nationality in education: a global perspective |publisher=Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc. |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-8058-3837-4 |editor1-last=Shimahara |editor1-first=N. Ken |location=Mahwah, New Jersey |page=248 |access-date=24 November 2010 |editor-last2=Holowinsky |editor-first2=Ivan Z. |editor-last3=Tomlinson-Clarke |editor-first3=Saundra}}</ref> State and local governmental edicts resulted in schooling in the English language which, following the 1847 Inquiry into the State of Education in Wales – an event subsequently referred to as the [[Treachery of the Blue Books]] ({{Langx|cy|Brad y Llyfrau Gleision}}) – was seen as more academic and worthwhile for children.<ref>Davies (1994) pp. 378–381</ref>

The [[Aberystwyth University|University College of Wales]] opened in Aberystwyth in 1872. [[Cardiff University|Cardiff]] and [[Bangor University|Bangor]] followed, and the three colleges came together in 1893 to form the [[University of Wales]].<ref name="Davies239" /> The [[Welsh Intermediate Education Act 1889|Welsh Intermediate Education Act of 1889]] created 95 secondary schools. The Welsh Department for the Board of Education followed in 1907, which gave Wales its first significant educational devolution.<ref name="Davies239" /> A resurgence in Welsh-language schools in the latter half of the 20th century at nursery and primary level saw attitudes shift towards teaching in the medium of Welsh.<ref name="Davies240">Davies (2008) p. 240</ref> Welsh is a compulsory subject in all of Wales's state schools for pupils aged 5–16 years old.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jones |first=Megan |title=Welsh-medium education and Welsh as a subject |url=http://www.assembly.wales/research%20documents/rs16-048/16-048-english-web.pdf |access-date=26 February 2018 |website=National Assembly for Wales}}</ref> While there has never been an exclusively Welsh-language college, Welsh-medium higher education is delivered through the individual universities and has since 2011 been supported by the [[Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol]] (Welsh-language National College) as a delocalised federal institution. In 2021–2022, there were 1,470 maintained schools in Wales.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Schools by local authority, region and type of school |url=https://statswales.gov.wales/Catalogue/Education-and-Skills/Schools-and-Teachers/Schools-Census/Pupil-Level-Annual-School-Census/Schools/schools-by-localauthorityregion-type |access-date=2022-11-06 |website=statswales.gov.wales}}</ref> In 2021–22, the country had 471,131 pupils taught by 25,210 full-time equivalent teachers.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Pupils by Assembly constituency and sector |url=https://statswales.gov.wales/Catalogue/Education-and-Skills/Schools-and-Teachers/Schools-Census/Pupil-Level-Annual-School-Census/Pupils/pupils-by-assemblyconstituency-sector |access-date=2022-12-03 |website=statswales.gov.wales}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Full-time equivalent teachers by Assembly constituency and category |url=https://statswales.gov.wales/Catalogue/Education-and-Skills/Schools-and-Teachers/teachers-and-support-staff/School-Staff/fteteachers-by-assemblyconstituency-category |access-date=2022-12-03 |website=statswales.gov.wales |archive-date=3 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221203180711/https://statswales.gov.wales/Catalogue/Education-and-Skills/Schools-and-Teachers/teachers-and-support-staff/School-Staff/fteteachers-by-assemblyconstituency-category |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Healthcare==
{{Main|Healthcare in Wales}}
[[File:University Hospital of Wales, Heath Park - Cardiff - geograph.org.uk - 1736088.jpg|thumb|[[University Hospital of Wales]], Cardiff]]
Public healthcare in Wales is provided by [[NHS Wales]] ({{lang|cy|GIG Cymru}}), through [[List of NHS Wales trusts and health boards|seven local health boards and three all-Wales trusts]]. It was originally formed as part of the NHS structure for England and Wales by the [[National Health Service Act 1946]], but with powers over the NHS in Wales coming under the Secretary of State for Wales in 1969.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wales.nhs.uk/nhswalesaboutus/historycontext/1960s |title=health in Wales – 1960s |publisher=[[NHS Wales]] |access-date=8 September 2010 |website=[[NHS Wales]] website|date=23 October 2006 }}</ref> Responsibility for NHS Wales passed to the Welsh Assembly under devolution in 1999, and is now the responsibility of the [[Minister for Health and Social Services]].<ref name="WHS 2009">{{cite web|title=Edwina Hart MBE AM|url=http://wales.gov.uk/about/cabinet/cabinetm/edwinahart;jsessionid=QJJfMMhBDBQpMsbkHp2J50txLztJBrC2xfT9NzQxGrm245RLn6Th!82924164?lang=en|publisher=[[Welsh Government]]|access-date=12 September 2010|website=[[Welsh Government]] website|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120113053257/http://wales.gov.uk/about/cabinet/cabinetm/edwinahart;jsessionid=QJJfMMhBDBQpMsbkHp2J50txLztJBrC2xfT9NzQxGrm245RLn6Th!82924164?lang=en|archive-date=13 January 2012}}</ref> Historically, Wales was served by smaller 'cottage' hospitals, built as voluntary institutions.<ref name="Davies361">Davies (2008), p.361</ref> As newer, more expensive, diagnostic techniques and treatments became available, clinical work has been concentrated in newer, larger district hospitals.<ref name="Davies361"/> In 2006, there were seventeen district hospitals in Wales.<ref name="Davies361"/> NHS Wales directly employs over 90,000 staff, making it Wales's biggest employer.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Staff directly employed by the NHS: as at 30 June 2022 |url=https://gov.wales/staff-directly-employed-nhs-30-june-2022 |access-date=2022-12-03 |website=GOV.WALES |date=23 November 2022 |language=en}}</ref> The National Survey for Wales in 2021–22 reported that 72 per cent of adults surveyed had good or very good general health, 19 per cent had fair general health and 8 had bad or very bad general health.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Adult general health and illness – additional variables, 2020–21 onwards |url=https://statswales.gov.wales/Catalogue/National-Survey-for-Wales/Population-Health/Adult-general-health-and-illness/generalhealthandillness-additional-by-year |access-date=2023-01-01 |website=statswales.gov.wales}}</ref> The survey recorded that 46 per cent of Welsh adults had a long-standing illness, such as arthritis, asthma, diabetes or heart disease.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Adult general health and illness (National survey for Wales): April 2021 to March 2022 |url=https://www.gov.wales/adult-general-health-and-illness-national-survey-wales-april-2021-march-2022 |access-date=2023-01-01 |website=GOV.WALES |date=3 August 2022 |language=en}}</ref> The survey also reported that 13 per cent of the adult population were [[smoking|smokers]], 16 per cent admitted drinking alcohol above weekly recommended guidelines, while 56 per cent undertook the recommended 150 minutes of physical activity each week.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Adult lifestyles – additional variables, 2020–21 onwards |url=https://statswales.gov.wales/Catalogue/National-Survey-for-Wales/Population-Health/Adult-Lifestyles/adultlifestyles-additional-from-202021 |access-date=2023-01-01 |website=statswales.gov.wales}}</ref> According to the survey, 30 per cent of adults in Wales reported to have eaten at least 5 portions of fruit or vegetables the previous day and 36 per cent reported a healthy weight.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Adult lifestyle (National Survey for Wales): April 2021 to March 2022 |url=https://www.gov.wales/adult-lifestyle-national-survey-wales-april-2021-march-2022 |access-date=2023-01-01 |website=GOV.WALES |date=19 July 2022 |language=en}}</ref>

==Demography==
{{Main|Demographics of Wales}}

===Population history===
{{historical populations
| title = Population of Wales
| 1536
| 278,000
| 1620
| 360,000
| 1770
| 500,000
| 1801
| 587,000
| 1851
| 1,163,000
| 1911
| 2,421,000
| 1921
| 2,656,000
| 1939
| 2,487,000
| 1961
| 2,644,000
| 1991
| 2,811,865
| 2001
| 2,910,200
| 2011
|3,063,456
| 2021
| 3,107,500
| footnote = Estimated (pre-1801);<br/>census (post-1801)<ref>{{cite book |first=John |last=Davies |title=A History of Wales|pages=[https://books.google.com/books?id=ogTq2KRuu9IC&pg=PT257 258–259, 319] |date=1993 |publisher=Penguin UK |isbn=978-0-14-192633-9}}; {{Cite web |title=200 Years of the Census in ... Wales: Census 2001 |url=http://www.statistics.gov.uk/census2001/bicentenary/pdfs/wales.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090319202324/http://www.statistics.gov.uk/census2001/bicentenary/pdfs/wales.pdf |archive-date=19 March 2009}}</ref><br/> 2001 census<ref>{{Cite web |title=Census 2001: Population by area, ethnicity and gender |url=https://statswales.gov.wales/Catalogue/Equality-and-Diversity/Ethnicity/Census-2001/Population-by-Area-Ethnicity-Gender |access-date=2022-06-28 |website=statswales.gov.wales |archive-date=25 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220925114446/https://statswales.gov.wales/Catalogue/Equality-and-Diversity/Ethnicity/Census-2001/Population-by-Area-Ethnicity-Gender |url-status=dead }}</ref><br/>2021 census<ref name="2021 census">{{Cite web |date=2022-06-28 |title=Population and household estimates, Wales: Census 2021 – Office for National Statistics |url=https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates/bulletins/populationandhouseholdestimateswales/census2021 |access-date=2022-06-28 |website=www.ons.gov.uk}}</ref>
}}
The population of Wales doubled from 587,000 in 1801 to 1,163,000 in 1851 and had reached 2,421,000 by 1911. Most of the increase came in the coal mining districts, especially [[Glamorganshire]], which grew from 71,000 in 1801 to 232,000 in 1851 and 1,122,000 in 1911.<ref>Brian R. Mitchell and Phyllis Deane,  ''Abstract of British Historical Statistics'' (Cambridge, 1962) pp 20, 22</ref> Part of this increase can be attributed to the [[demographic transition]] seen in most industrialising countries during the [[Industrial Revolution in Wales|Industrial Revolution]], as death rates dropped and birth rates remained steady. However, there was also large-scale migration into Wales during the Industrial Revolution. The English were the most numerous group, but there were also considerable numbers of Irish and smaller numbers of other ethnic groups,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Industrial Revolution |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/storyofwelsh/content/industrialrevolution.shtml |access-date=17 October 2009 |publisher=BBC}}; {{cite web|author=LSJ Services [Wales] Ltd |url=http://www.therhondda.co.uk/living/population.html |title=Population ''therhondda.co.uk''. Retrieved 9 May 2006 |publisher=Therhondda.co.uk |access-date=17 October 2009 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080520075715/http://www.therhondda.co.uk/living/population.html |archive-date = 20 May 2008}}</ref> including [[Welsh Italians|Italians]], who migrated to South Wales.<ref>{{Cite web |title=BBC Wales&nbsp;– History&nbsp;– Themes&nbsp;– Italian immigration |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/history/sites/themes/society/migration_italian.shtml |access-date=17 October 2009 |publisher=BBC}}</ref> Wales also received immigration from various parts of the British [[Commonwealth of Nations]] in the 20th century, and [[Black British people|African-Caribbean]] and [[British Asian|Asian]] communities add to the ethnocultural mix, particularly in urban Wales. Many of these self-identify as Welsh.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Socialist Unity &#124; Debate & analysis for activists & trade unionists |url=http://www.socialistunity.com/?p=1587 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111018050201/http://www.socialistunity.com/?p=1587 |archive-date=18 October 2011 |access-date=10 October 2016}}</ref>

The population in 1972 stood at 2.74&nbsp;million and remained broadly static for the rest of the decade. However, in the early 1980s, the population fell due to net [[Human migration|migration]] out of Wales. Since the 1980s, net migration has generally been inward, and has contributed more to [[population growth]] than [[Sub-replacement fertility|natural change]].<ref name="Overview">{{Cite web |title=Wales's Population: A Demographic Overview 1971–2005 |url=http://new.wales.gov.uk/docrepos/40382/40382313/statistics/population/pop-2007/wales-pop2005/wales-pop2005-e1.pdf?lang=en |access-date=29 August 2017 |website=New.wales.gov.uk}}{{dead link|date=November 2023|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> The resident population of Wales in 2021 according to the [[2021 United Kingdom census|census]] was 3,107,500 (1,586,600 female and 1,521,000 male), an increase of 1.4 per cent over 2011. A decreased change from the 5 per cent increase between 2001 and 2011.<ref name="Region populations">{{Cite web |year=2012 |title=2011 Census: Population Estimates for the United Kingdom, 27 March 2011 |url=http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/dcp171778_292378.pdf |access-date=19 December 2012 |publisher=Office for National Statistics}}</ref> Wales accounted for 5.2 per cent of the [[Demographics of the United Kingdom|population of England and Wales]] in 2021. [[List of cities in Wales|Wales has seven cities]]: Cardiff, Newport, Swansea, Wrexham, [[Bangor, Gwynedd|Bangor]], [[St Asaph]] and [[St Davids]]. (The last two of these have [[city status in the United Kingdom]] despite their small populations.)<ref>{{Cite web |date=19 June 2019 |title=This is Wales: Cities in Wales |url=https://www.wales.com/about/location-climate/welsh-cities |access-date=4 May 2020}}</ref> Wrexham, north Wales's largest settlement, became Wales's newest and seventh city in September [[Platinum Jubilee Civic Honours|2022]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Record number of city status winners announced to celebrate Platinum Jubilee |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/news/record-number-of-city-status-winners-announced-to-celebrate-platinum-jubilee |access-date=2022-06-28 |website=GOV.UK |language=en}}; {{Cite web |date=5 September 2022 |title=Crown Office {{!}} The Gazette |url=https://www.thegazette.co.uk/notice/4154400 |access-date=2022-09-05 |website=www.thegazette.co.uk |publisher=[[The London Gazette]] |quote=THE QUEEN has been pleased by Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the Realm dated 1 September 2022 to ordain that the County Borough of Wrexham shall have the status of a City.}}</ref>

{{Largest cities
| nonav = y
| country     = Wales
| stat_ref    = [[Office for National Statistics]] 2011 Census<ref>{{United Kingdom district population citation}}</ref>
| list_by_pop = List of towns and cities in Wales by population
| div_name    = Council area
| div_link    =
| city_1 = Cardiff | div_1 = Cardiff Council{{!}}City & County of Cardiff | pop_1 = 335,145 | img_1 = Cardiff Castle and Millennium Stadium.jpg
| city_2 = Swansea | div_2 = City and County of Swansea Council{{!}}City & County of Swansea | pop_2 = 239,000 | img_2 = Meridian Tower Swansea Skyline.jpg
| city_3 = Newport, Wales{{!}}Newport | div_3 = Newport City Council{{!}}Newport City | pop_3 = 128,060 | img_3 = Newportciviccentre.jpg
| city_4 = Wrexham | div_4 = Wrexham County Borough | pop_4 = 61,603 | img_4 = Wrexham - geograph.org.uk - 163421.jpg
| city_5 = Barry, Wales{{!}}Barry | div_5 = Vale of Glamorgan | pop_5 = 54,673
| city_6 = Neath | div_6 = Neath Port Talbot | pop_6 = 50,658
| city_7 = Cwmbran | div_7 = Torfaen | pop_7 = 46,915
| city_8 = Bridgend | div_8 = Bridgend County Borough| pop_8 = 46,757
| city_9 = Llanelli | div_9 = Carmarthenshire | pop_9 = 43,878
| city_10 = Merthyr Tydfil | div_10 = Merthyr Tydfil | pop_10 = 43,820
| city_11 = Caerphilly | div_11 = Caerphilly County Borough | pop_11 = 41,402
| city_12 = Port Talbot | div_12 = Neath Port Talbot | pop_12 = 37,276
| city_13 = Pontypridd | div_13 = Rhondda Cynon Taf | pop_13 = 30,457
| city_14 = Aberdare | div_14 = Rhondda Cynon Taf | pop_14 = 29,748
| city_15 = Colwyn Bay| div_15 = Conwy County Borough | pop_15 = 29,405
| city_16 = Pontypool| div_16 = Torfaen | pop_16 = 28,334
| city_17 = Penarth| div_17 = Vale of Glamorgan | pop_17 = 27,226
| city_18 = Rhyl| div_18 = Denbighshire | pop_18 = 25,149
| city_19 = Blackwood, Wales{{!}}Blackwood| div_19 = Caerphilly County Borough | pop_19 = 24,042
| city_20 = Maesteg | div_20 = Bridgend County Borough | pop_20 = 18,888
}}

===Language===
{{Main|Languages of Wales}}
{{see also|Welsh language|Welsh-speaking population}}[[File:Welsh speakers in the 2011 census.png|thumb|The proportion of respondents in the 2011 census who said they could speak Welsh|217x217px]]Welsh is an official language in Wales as legislated by the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011.<ref>{{cite web |title=Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011 |url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/mwa/2011/1/contents |access-date= |work=[[legislation.gov.uk]] |publisher=[[The National Archives (United Kingdom)|The National Archives]] |quote=The Welsh language has official status in Wales. |df=dmy-all}}</ref> Both Welsh and English are also official languages of the Senedd.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Official Languages Scheme |url=https://senedd.wales/NAfW%20Documents/About%20the%20Assembly%20section%20documents/ols/ols-en.pdf |website=Senedd.Wales}}</ref> The proportion of the Welsh population able to speak the Welsh language fell from just under 50 per cent in 1901 to 43.5 per cent in 1911, and continued to fall to a low of 18.9 per cent in 1981.<ref name=":03">[http://www.statistics.gov.uk/CCI/nugget.asp?ID=445 Results of the 2001 Census: Country of birth (www.statistics.gov.uk)]</ref> The results of the 2001 Census showed an increase in the number of Welsh speakers to 21 per cent of the population aged 3 and older, compared with 18.7 per cent in 1991 and 19 per cent in 1981. This compares with a pattern of steady decline indicated by census results during the 20th century.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Results of the 2001 Census from www.statistics.gov.uk |url=http://www.statistics.gov.uk/cci/nugget.asp?id=447}}</ref> In the 2011 census it was recorded that the proportion of people able to speak Welsh had dropped from 20.8 per cent to 19 per cent (still higher than 1991). Despite an increase in the overall size of the Welsh population this still meant that the number of Welsh speakers in Wales dropped from 582,000 in 2001 to 562,000 in 2011. However this figure was still much higher than 508,000 or 18.7 per cent of people who said they could speak Welsh in the 1991 census.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Welsh Government {{!}} 2011 Census: First Results on the Welsh Language |url=http://wales.gov.uk/topics/statistics/headlines/population2012/121211/?lang=en |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131007223211/http://wales.gov.uk/topics/statistics/headlines/population2012/121211/?lang=en |archive-date=7 October 2013}}</ref>

According to the [[2021 United Kingdom census|2021 census]], the Welsh-speaking population of Wales aged three or older was 17.8 per cent (538,300 people) and nearly three-quarters of the population in Wales said they had no Welsh language skills.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Welsh language in Wales (Census 2021) |url=https://gov.wales/welsh-language-wales-census-2021-html |access-date=2022-12-06 |website=GOV.WALES |date=6 December 2022 |language=en}}</ref> Other estimates suggest that 29.7 per cent (899,500) of people aged three or older in Wales could speak Welsh in June 2022.<ref name="gov-wales-2021-2022-lang-survey">{{Cite web |title=Welsh language data from the Annual Population Survey: July 2021 to June 2022 |url=https://gov.wales/welsh-language-data-annual-population-survey-july-2021-june-2022 |access-date=2022-10-28 |website=GOV.WALES |date=25 October 2022 |language=en}}</ref>

English is spoken by almost all people in Wales and is the main language in most of the country. [[Code-switching]] is common in all parts of Wales and is known by various terms, though none is recognised by professional linguists.<ref name="Davies 262">Davies (2008) p. 262</ref> "[[Welsh English|Wenglish]]" is the Welsh dialect of the English language. It has been influenced significantly by Welsh grammar and includes words derived from Welsh.<ref>Davies (1994) p. 623; {{Cite news |last=Hill |first=Claire |date=2 October 2006 |title=Why butty rarely leaves Wales |work=[[WalesOnline]] website |publisher=[[Media Wales|Media Wales Ltd]] |url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/tm_objectid=17853095&method=full&siteid=50082&headline=why-butty-rarely-leaves-wales-name_page.html |access-date=15 November 2010}}</ref> Northern and western Wales retain many areas where Welsh is spoken as a first language by the majority of the population, and English learnt as a second language. Although [[Monolingualism|monoglotism]] in young children continues, life-long monoglotism in Welsh no longer occurs.<ref>Davies (2008) p. 940</ref>

Since [[Poland]] joined the European Union, Wales has seen a significant increase in Polish immigrants. This has made [[Polish language|Polish]] the most common main language in Wales after English and Welsh, at 0.7 per cent of the population.<ref>{{Cite web |title=What do the 2021 Census results tell us so far? |url=https://research.senedd.wales/research-articles/what-do-the-2021-census-results-tell-us-so-far/ |access-date=2023-01-01 |website=research.senedd.wales |language=en-GB}}</ref>

===Religion===
{{main|Religion in Wales}}
[[File:StDavidsCathedral Tower&SouthTransept.JPG|upright=0.75|thumb|[[St. David's Cathedral]], Pembrokeshire]]
Forms of [[Christianity in Wales|Christianity]] have dominated religious life in what is now Wales for more than 1,400 years.<ref>L. Alcock, ''Kings and Warriors, Craftsmen and Priests in Northern Britain AD 550–850'' (Edinburgh: Society of Antiquaries of Scotland), {{ISBN|0-903903-24-5}}, p. 63.</ref><ref>Lucas Quensel von Kalben, "The British Church and the Emergence of the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom", in T. Dickinson and D. Griffiths, eds, ''Anglo-Saxon Studies in Archaeology and History, 10: Papers for the 47th Sachsensymposium, York, September 1996'' (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999), {{ISBN|086054138X}}, p. 93.</ref>
The 2021 census recorded that 46.5 per cent had "No religion", more than any single religious affiliation and up from 32.1 per cent in 2011.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |title=Ethnic group, national identity, language and religion in Wales (Census 2021) |url=https://gov.wales/ethnic-group-national-identity-language-and-religion-wales-census-2021-html |access-date=2022-11-29 |website=GOV.WALES |date=29 November 2022 |language=en}}</ref> The largest religion in Wales is Christianity, with 43.6 per cent of the population describing themselves as Christian in the 2021 census.<ref name=":5" /> The [[patron saint]] of Wales is [[Saint David]] ({{lang|cy|Dewi Sant}}), with [[Saint David's Day]] ({{lang|cy|Dydd Gŵyl Dewi Sant}}) celebrated annually on 1 March.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Catholic Encyclopedia: ''St. David'' |url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04640b.htm |access-date=22 May 2015 |publisher=New Advent}}</ref> The early 20th century saw a religious revival, the [[1904–1905 Welsh Revival]], which started through the evangelism of [[Evan Roberts (minister)|Evan Roberts]] and brought large numbers of converts, sometimes whole communities, to non-Anglican Christianity.<ref>Davies (2008), p. 739</ref>

The [[Church in Wales]] with 56,000 adherents has the largest attendance of the denominations.<ref name="Faith in Wales">{{Cite web |year=2008 |title=Faith in Wales, Counting for Communities |url=http://www.gweini.org.uk/download/English%2003_03%20comp%20smaller.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131024162623/http://www.gweini.org.uk/download/English%2003_03%20comp%20smaller.pdf |archive-date=24 October 2013 |access-date=6 September 2010 |page=21}}</ref> It is a province of the [[Anglican Communion]], and was part of the Church of England until disestablishment in 1920 under the [[Welsh Church Act 1914]]. The first [[Nonconformist (Protestantism)|Independent Church]] in Wales was founded at [[Llanvaches]] in 1638 by [[William Wroth]]. The [[Presbyterian Church of Wales]] was born out of the [[Welsh Methodist revival]] in the 18th century and seceded from the [[Church of England]] in 1811.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Glamorgan Archives, Glamorgan Presbyterian Church Marriage registers |url=http://www.archiveswales.org.uk/anw/get_collection.php?inst_id=33&coll_id=76790&expand= |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160427122509/http://www.archiveswales.org.uk/anw/get_collection.php?inst_id=33&coll_id=76790&expand= |archive-date=27 April 2016 |access-date=9 September 2010 |publisher=Archives Wales}}</ref> The second largest attending faith in Wales is [[Roman Catholicism in the United Kingdom|Roman Catholic]], with an estimated 43,000 adherents.<ref name="Faith in Wales" />

Non-Christian religions are small in Wales, making up approximately 2.7 per cent of the population.<ref name="2011 Census Faith">{{Cite news |date=11 December 2012 |title=Statistical bulletin: 2011 Census: Key Statistics for Wales, March 2011 |publisher=Office for National Statistics |url=http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/census/2011-census/key-statistics-for-unitary-authorities-in-wales/stb-2011-census-key-statistics-for-wales.html#tab---Religion |access-date=11 December 2012}}</ref> [[Islam in the United Kingdom|Islam]] is the largest, with 24,000 (0.8 per cent) reported Muslims in the 2011 census.<ref name="2011 Census Faith" /> There are also communities of [[Hinduism in the United Kingdom|Hindus]] and [[Sikhism in the United Kingdom|Sikhs]], mainly in the south Wales cities of Newport, Cardiff and Swansea, while the largest concentration of [[Buddhism|Buddhists]] is in the western rural county of [[Ceredigion]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Religion in Britain |url=http://www.diversiton.com/religion/census/britain.asp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150424025633/http://www.diversiton.com/religion/census/britain.asp |archive-date=24 April 2015 |access-date=21 September 2010 |publisher=diversiton.com}}</ref> [[History of the Jews in Wales|Judaism]] was the first non-Christian faith to be established in Wales since Roman times, though by 2001 the community had declined to approximately 2,000<ref>{{Cite web |date=15 June 2006 |title=History of religion: Multicultural Wales |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/religion/sites/timeline/pages/religion_in_wales_15.shtml |access-date=19 June 2010 |publisher=BBC}}</ref> and as of 2019 only numbers in the hundreds.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Prior |first=Neil |date=20 July 2019 |title=Recording Wales' disappearing Jewish history |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-49030675 |access-date=19 November 2019}}</ref>

=== Ethnicity ===
{{Main|Demographics of Wales#Ethnicity}}
[[File:Shirley Bassey (1971).jpg|thumb|Singer [[Shirley Bassey]]|195x195px]]
The 2021 census showed that 93.8 per cent of the population of Wales identified as "White", compared to 95.6 per cent in 2011. 90.6 per cent of the population identified as "White: Welsh, English, Scottish, Northern Irish or British" in 2021. The second-highest ethnicity in 2021 was "Asian, Asian Welsh or Asian British" at 2.9 per cent of the population, compared to 2.3 per cent in 2011. 1.6 per cent of the population identified as "Mixed or multiple ethnic groups", compared to 1.0 per cent in 2011; 0.9 per cent of the population identified as "Black, Black Welsh, Black British, Caribbean or African", compared to 0.6 per cent in 2011; and 0.9 per cent identified as "Other ethnic group" compared to 0.5 per cent in 2011. The local authorities with the highest proportions of "high-level" ethnic groups other than "White" were mainly urban areas including Cardiff, Newport and Swansea. 5.3 per cent of households in Wales were multiple ethnic group households, up from 4.2 per cent in 2011.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ethnic group, national identity, language and religion in Wales (Census 2021) |url=https://gov.wales/ethnic-group-national-identity-language-and-religion-wales-census-2021-html |access-date=2022-12-02 |website=GOV.WALES |date=29 November 2022 |language=en}}</ref>

In 2021, the first statue of a named, non-fictional woman outdoors was raised for Wales's first black headteacher, [[Betty Campbell]]. In 2023, [[Patti Flynn]] (a contemporary of [[Shirley Bassey]], both of [[Tiger Bay]], Cardiff) became the first black Welsh woman to be awarded a purple plaque.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2023-03-24 |title=Cardiff: Patti Flynn first black woman awarded purple plaque |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-65039113 |access-date=2023-05-25}}</ref>

=== National identity ===
{{Main|Welsh national identity}}
The 2021 census showed that 55.2 per cent identified as "Welsh only" and 8.1 per cent identified as "Welsh and British", giving the combined proportion of 63.3 per cent for people identifying as Welsh.<ref name=":14">{{Cite web |title=Ethnic group, national identity, language and religion in Wales (Census 2021) |url=https://gov.wales/ethnic-group-national-identity-language-and-religion-wales-census-2021-html |access-date=2022-11-30 |website=GOV.WALES |date=29 November 2022 |language=en}}</ref> The Welsh Annual Population Survey showed that the proportion of people who identified as Welsh versus another identity was 62.3 per cent in 2022, compared to 69.2 per cent in 2001.<ref>{{Cite web |title=National identity by year and identity |url=https://statswales.gov.wales/Catalogue/Equality-and-Diversity/National-Identity/nationalidentity-by-year-identity |access-date=2022-11-22 |website=statswales.gov.wales |archive-date=15 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180815164250/https://statswales.gov.wales/Catalogue/Equality-and-Diversity/National-Identity/nationalidentity-by-year-identity |url-status=dead }}</ref> A 2022 YouGov poll found that 21 per cent considered themselves Welsh not British, 15 per cent more Welsh than British, 24 per cent equally Welsh and British, 7 per cent more British than Welsh, 20 per cent British and not Welsh, and 8 per cent other; a total of 67 per cent thus considered themselves Welsh to some degree.<ref name=":11">{{Cite web |title=YouGov / The Sunday Times Survey Results |url=https://docs.cdn.yougov.com/7lxb647ksn/SundayTimes_StateOfTheUnion_220819%20%28Wales%29.pdf |website=YouGov}}</ref>

==Culture==
{{Main|Culture of Wales}}
Wales has a distinctive culture including its own language, customs, holidays and music. There are four [[List of World Heritage Sites in Wales|UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Wales]]: [[Castles and Town Walls of King Edward in Gwynedd|The Castles and Town Walls of King Edward I in Gwynedd]]; [[Pontcysyllte Aqueduct]] and Canal; the [[Blaenavon Industrial Landscape]]; and [[The Slate Landscape of Northwest Wales]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Centre |first=UNESCO World Heritage |title=UNESCO World Heritage Centre – World Heritage List |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/ |access-date=2022-06-28 |website=UNESCO World Heritage Centre |language=en}}</ref>

===Mythology===
{{main|Welsh mythology}}
Remnants of native Celtic [[mythology]] of the pre-Christian [[Britons (historic)|Britons]] was passed down orally by the ''cynfeirdd'' (the early poets).<ref name="cynfeirdd">{{Cite book |last=Snyder |first=Christopher Allen |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QI_-cR_nZYsC&pg=PA258 |title=The Britons |publisher=[[Wiley-Blackwell]] |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-631-22260-6 |pages=258–261 |author-link=Christopher Snyder (historian) |access-date=26 November 2010}}</ref> Some of their work survives in later [[Medieval Welsh literature|medieval Welsh manuscripts]]: the [[Black Book of Carmarthen]] and the [[Book of Aneirin]] (both 13th-century); the [[Book of Taliesin]] and the [[White Book of Rhydderch]] (both 14th-century); and the [[Red Book of Hergest]] (c.&nbsp;1400).<ref name="cynfeirdd" /> The [[prose]] stories from the White and Red Books are known as the ''[[Mabinogion]]''.<ref>Davies (2008) p. 525</ref> Poems such as ''[[Cad Goddeu]]'' (The Battle of the Trees) and mnemonic list-texts like the ''[[Welsh Triads]]'' and the ''[[Thirteen Treasures of the Island of Britain]]'', also contain mythological material.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ford |first=Patrick K |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DeaGo-Qkf2kC&pg=PA183 |title=The Mabinogi and Other Medieval Welsh Tales |publisher=[[University of California Press]] |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-520-25396-4 |edition=2nd |location=Berkeley and Los Angeles |page=183 |access-date=26 November 2010}}; {{Cite book |last=Koch |first=John Thomas |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f899xH_quaMC&pg=PA1324 |title=Celtic culture: a historical encyclopedia |publisher=[[ABC-CLIO]] |year=2006 |isbn=978-1-85109-440-0 |location=Santa Barbara |pages=359&nbsp;&&nbsp;1324 |author-link=John T. Koch |access-date=26 November 2010}}; {{Cite book |last=White |first=Donna R |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yDVykkOOP6QC&pg=PA123 |title=A century of Welsh myth in children's literature |publisher=[[Greenwood Publishing Group]] |year=1998 |isbn=978-0-313-30570-2 |location=Westport, CT |page=123 |access-date=26 November 2010}}</ref> These texts include the earliest forms of the [[Arthurian legend]] and the traditional history of post-[[Roman Britain]].<ref name="cynfeirdd" /> Other sources of Welsh [[folklore]] include the 9th-century Latin historical compilation ''[[Historia Britonum]]'' (the History of the Britons) and [[Geoffrey of Monmouth]]'s 12th-century Latin [[chronicle]] {{Lang|la|[[Historia Regum Britanniae]]}} (the History of the Kings of Britain), and later folklore, such as ''The Welsh Fairy Book'' by W. Jenkyn Thomas.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Koch |first=John Thomas |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f899xH_quaMC&pg=PA927 |title=Celtic culture: a historical encyclopedia |publisher=[[ABC-CLIO]] |year=2006 |isbn=978-1-85109-440-0 |location=Santa Barbara |pages=925–927 |author-link=John T. Koch |access-date=26 November 2010}}; {{Cite book |last=Koch |first=John Thomas |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f899xH_quaMC&pg=PA760 |title=Celtic culture: a historical encyclopedia |publisher=[[ABC-CLIO]] |year=2006 |isbn=978-1-85109-440-0 |location=Santa Barbara |pages=759–760 |author-link=John T. Koch |access-date=26 November 2010}}</ref>

===Literature===
{{Main|Literature of Wales (Welsh language)|List of Welsh writers|Literature of Wales (English language)}}
[[File:Black Book of Carmarthen (f.4.r).jpg|thumb|Welsh poetry from the 13th-century [[Black Book of Carmarthen]].]]

Wales has one of the oldest unbroken literary traditions in Europe<ref name="Davies464">Davies (2008) p. 464</ref> going back to the sixth century and including [[Geoffrey of Monmouth]] and [[Gerald of Wales]], regarded as among the finest Latin authors of the Middle Ages.<ref name="Davies464" /> The earliest body of Welsh verse, by poets [[Taliesin]] and [[Aneirin]], survive not in their original form, but in much-changed, medieval versions.<ref name="Davies464" /> Welsh poetry and native lore and learning survived through the era of the [[Medieval Welsh literature#Poets of the Princes (c. 1100 – c. 1300)|Poets of the Princes]] ({{circa|1100}}–1280) and then the [[Medieval Welsh literature#Poets of the Nobility, or Cywyddwyr (c. 1300 – c. 1600)|Poets of the Gentry]] ({{circa|1350}}–1650). The former were professional poets who composed eulogies and elegies to their patrons while the latter favoured the [[cywydd]] metre.<ref name="Davies688-9">Davies (2008) pp. 688–689</ref> The period produced one of Wales's greatest poets, [[Dafydd ap Gwilym]].<ref>Davies (2008) p. 191</ref> After the Anglicisation of the gentry the tradition declined.<ref name="Davies688-9" />

Despite the extinction of the professional poet, the integration of the native elite into a wider cultural world did bring other literary benefits.<ref name="Davies465">Davies (2008) p. 465</ref> Renaissance scholars such as [[William Salesbury]] and [[John Davies (Mallwyd)|John Davies]] brought [[Renaissance humanism|humanist]] ideals from English universities.<ref name="Davies465" /> In 1588 [[William Morgan (Bible translator)|William Morgan]] became the first person to translate the [[Welsh Bible|Bible into Welsh]].<ref name="Davies465" /> From the 16th century the proliferation of the 'free-metre' verse became the most important development in Welsh poetry, but from the middle of the 17th century a host of imported accentual metres from England became very popular.<ref name="Davies465" /> By the 19th century the creation of a Welsh epic, fuelled by the eisteddfod, became an obsession with Welsh-language writers.<ref name="Davies466">Davies (2008) p. 466</ref> The output of this period was prolific in quantity but unequal in quality.<ref name="Williams121">{{Cite book |last=Williams |first=David |title=A Short History of Modern Wales |publisher=John Murray |year=1961 |location=London |page=121}}</ref> Initially excluded, religious denominations came to dominate the competitions, with bardic themes becoming scriptural and didactic.<ref name="Williams121" />

Developments in 19th-century Welsh literature include [[Lady Charlotte Guest]]'s translation into English of the Mabinogion, one of the most important medieval Welsh prose works of Celtic mythology. 1885 saw the publication of ''[[Rhys Lewis (novel)|Rhys Lewis]]'' by [[Daniel Owen]], credited as the first novel written in the Welsh language. The 20th century saw a move from the verbose Victorian Welsh style, with works such as [[Thomas Gwynn Jones]]'s ''[[Ymadawiad Arthur]]''.<ref name="Davies466" /> The First World War had a profound effect on Welsh literature with a more pessimistic style championed by [[T. H. Parry-Williams]] and [[R. Williams Parry]].<ref name="Davies466" /> The industrialisation of south Wales saw a further shift with the likes of [[Rhydwen Williams]] who used the poetry and metre of a bygone rural Wales but in the context of an industrial landscape. The inter-war period is dominated by [[Saunders Lewis]], for his political and reactionary views as much as his plays, poetry and criticism.<ref name="Davies466" />

The careers of some 1930s writers continued after World War Two, including those of [[Gwyn Thomas (novelist)|Gwyn Thomas]], [[Vernon Watkins]], and [[Dylan Thomas]], whose most famous work ''[[Under Milk Wood]]'' was first broadcast in 1954. Thomas was one of the most notable and popular Welsh writers of the 20th century and one of the most innovative poets of his time.<ref>Davies (2008) p. 861</ref> The attitude of the post-war generation of Welsh writers in English towards Wales differs from the previous generation, with greater sympathy for Welsh nationalism and the Welsh language. The change is linked to the nationalism of [[Saunders Lewis]] and the burning of the Bombing School on the [[Llŷn Peninsula]] in 1936.<ref>''The Pocket Guide'', p. 122.</ref> In poetry [[R. S. Thomas]] (1913–2000) was the most important figure throughout the second half of the 20th century. He "did not learn the Welsh language until he was 30 and wrote all his poems in English".<ref>''Los Angeles Times'', "Obituary", 27 September 2000</ref> Major writers in the second half of the 20th century include [[Emyr Humphreys]] (1919–2020), who during his long writing career published over twenty novels,<ref>''Emyr Humphreys: Conversations and Reflections'', ed. M. Wynn Thomas. University of Wales Press: Cardiff, 2002, p. 8.</ref> and [[Raymond Williams]] (1921–1988).<ref>{{Cite web |last=Maurice Cowling |date=1 February 1990 |title=Raymond Williams in retrospect |url=https://newcriterion.com/issues/1990/2/raymond-williams-in-retrospect |access-date=3 May 2020 |publisher=New Criterion}}</ref>

===Museums and libraries===
[[File:National Library of Wales.jpg|right|thumb|The [[National Library of Wales]], [[Aberystwyth]]]]
[[Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales]] was founded by [[royal charter]] in 1907 as the National Museum of Wales. It operates at seven sites: [[National Museum Cardiff]], [[St Fagans National History Museum]], [[Big Pit National Coal Museum]], [[National Wool Museum]], [[National Slate Museum]], [[National Roman Legion Museum]], and the [[National Waterfront Museum]]. Entry to all sites is free.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://museum.wales/corporate/|title=About us|publisher=Museum Wales|access-date=6 April 2023}}</ref> The [[National Library of Wales]], based in [[Aberystwyth]], houses important collections of printed works, including the [[National Library of Wales#Sir John Williams Collection|Sir John Williams Collection]] and the [[Shirburn Castle]] collection,<ref name="Davies594">Davies (2008) p. 594</ref> as well as art collections including portraits and photographs, [[ephemera]] and [[Ordnance Survey]] maps.<ref name="Davies594" />

===Visual arts===
{{Main|Welsh art}}
{{See also|Architecture of Wales}}
Works of [[Celtic art]] have been found in Wales.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Celtic Art in Iron Age Wales, NMOW |url=https://museum.wales/articles/2007-05-03/Celtic-Art-in-Iron-Age-Wales/ |access-date=9 May 2020 |publisher=[[National Museum Wales|Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales]]}}</ref> In the [[Early Medieval]] period, the [[Celtic Christianity]] of Wales was part of the [[Insular art]] of the [[British Isles]]. A number of [[illuminated manuscript]]s [[:Category:Illuminated manuscripts of Welsh origin|from Wales]] survive, including the 8th-century [[Hereford Gospels]] and [[Lichfield Gospels]]. The 11th-century [[Ricemarch Psalter]] (now in [[Dublin]]) is certainly Welsh, made in [[St David's]], and shows a late Insular style with unusual Viking influence.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Moody |first1=Theodore William |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SJSDj1dDvNUC&pg=PA540 |title=A New History of Ireland: Prehistoric and early Ireland |last2=Cróinín |first2=Dáibhí Ó |last3=Martin |first3=Francis X |last4=Byrne |first4=Francis John |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-19-821737-4 |location=London |page=540 |author-link=Theodore William Moody |author-link2=Dáibhí Ó Cróinín |author-link3=F. X. Martin |author-link4=Francis John Byrne |access-date=21 November 2010}}; {{Cite book |last=Walsh |first=Alexander |url=https://runeberg.org/irescan/0032.html |title=Scandinavian Relations with Ireland during the Viking Period |publisher=Talbot Press |year=1922 |isbn=978-1-152-77368-4 |location=Dublin |page=20 |access-date=21 November 2010}}</ref>

Some Welsh artists of the 16th–18th centuries tended to leave the country to work, moving to London or Italy. [[Richard Wilson (painter)|Richard Wilson]] (1714–1782) is arguably the first major British landscapist; although more notable for his Italian scenes, he painted several Welsh scenes on visits from London. By the late 18th century, the popularity of [[landscape art]] grew and clients were found in the larger Welsh towns, allowing more Welsh artists to stay in their homeland. Artists from outside Wales were also drawn to paint Welsh scenery, at first because of the [[Celtic Revival]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=NMOW, Art in 18th Century Britain |url=http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/2249/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100125090402/http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/2249/ |archive-date=25 January 2010 |access-date=22 June 2010 |publisher=[[National Museum Wales|Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales]]}}; {{Cite web |title=NMOW, Welsh Artists of the 18th Century |url=http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/2261/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100125090429/http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/2261/ |archive-date=25 January 2010 |access-date=19 June 2010 |publisher=[[National Museum Wales|Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales]]}}</ref>
[[File:The Bard (1774).jpeg|thumb|''The Bard'', 1774, by [[Thomas Jones (artist)|Thomas Jones]] (1742–1803).]]
An [[Act of Parliament]] in 1857 provided for the establishment of a number of art schools throughout the United Kingdom, and the [[University of Wales Institute, Cardiff|Cardiff School of Art]] opened in 1865. Graduates still very often had to leave Wales to work, but [[Betws-y-Coed]] became a popular centre for artists, and its artists' colony helped to form the [[Royal Cambrian Academy of Art]] in 1881.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Royal Cambrian Academy |url=http://www.rcaconwy.org/our_history-5.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110523004755/http://www.rcaconwy.org/our_history-5.aspx |archive-date=23 May 2011 |access-date=19 June 2010 |publisher=[[Royal Cambrian Academy of Art]]}}; {{Cite news |date=27 October 2020 |title=Rare chance to see work by Betws-y-Coed artists' colony |publisher=BBC |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/northwestwales/hi/people_and_places/arts_and_culture/newsid_9131000/9131480.stm |access-date=9 May 2020}}</ref> The sculptor Sir William [[Goscombe John]] made works for Welsh commissions, although he had settled in London. [[Christopher Williams (Welsh artist)|Christopher Williams]], whose subjects were mostly resolutely Welsh, was also based in London. [[Thomas E. Stephens (artist)|Thomas E. Stephens]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Charles Davenport Lockwood 1877–1949 |url=http://www.stamfordhistory.org/dav_lockwood.htm |access-date=30 September 2010 |publisher=stamfordhistory.org}}</ref> and [[Andrew Vicari]] had very successful careers as portraitists, based respectively in the United States and France.<ref>{{Cite news |date=16 November 2001 |title=I am the king of painters |work=The Guardian |location=London |url=https://www.theguardian.com/education/2001/nov/16/arts.highereducation |access-date=30 September 2010}}</ref>

Welsh painters gravitated towards the art capitals of Europe. [[Augustus John]] and his sister [[Gwen John]] lived mostly in London and Paris. However, the landscapists Sir [[Kyffin Williams]] and [[Peter Prendergast (artist)|Peter Prendergast]] lived in Wales for most of their lives, while remaining in touch with the wider art world. [[Ceri Richards]] was very engaged in the Welsh art scene as a teacher in Cardiff and even after moving to London; he was a figurative painter in international styles including [[Surrealism]]. Various artists have moved to Wales, including [[Eric Gill]], the London-Welshman [[David Jones (poet)|David Jones]], and the sculptor [[Jonah Jones (sculptor)|Jonah Jones]]. [[The Kardomah Gang]] was an intellectual circle in Swansea, centred on the poet [[Dylan Thomas]] and the poet and artist [[Vernon Watkins]], which also included the painter [[Alfred Janes]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=11 February 2006 |title=Dylan Thomas and the Kardomah set |work=[[The Independent]] |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/dylan-thomas-and-the-kardomah-set-6109407.html |access-date=16 July 2020}}</ref>

South Wales had several notable [[pottery|potteries]], one of the first important sites being the [[Ewenny#Potteries|Ewenny Pottery]] in [[Bridgend]], which began producing earthenware in the 17th century.<ref name="Davies701">Davies (2008) pp. 701–702</ref> In the 18th and 19th centuries, with more scientific methods becoming available, more refined ceramics were produced: this was led by the [[Cambrian Pottery]] (1764–1870, also known as "Swansea pottery"), and later [[Nantgarw Pottery]] near Cardiff, which was in operation from 1813 to 1820 making fine [[porcelain]], and then utilitarian pottery from 1833 until 1920.<ref name="Davies701" /> [[Portmeirion Pottery]], founded in 1960 by [[Susan Williams-Ellis]] (daughter of [[Clough Williams-Ellis]], creator of the Italianate village of [[Portmeirion]], [[Gwynedd]]) is based in [[Stoke-on-Trent]], England.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Cooper |first=Emmanuel |date=28 January 2008 |title=Obituary-Susan Williams-Ellis |work=[[The Guardian]] website |location=London |url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2008/jan/28/2 |access-date=29 November 2010}}</ref>

===National symbols and identity===
{{Main|Welsh national identity|National symbols of Wales}}
[[File:Welsh Dragon (Y Ddraig Goch).svg|thumb|The [[Welsh Dragon|red dragon]], a popular symbol in Wales.]]
Wales is regarded as a modern [[Celtic nations|Celtic nation]] which contributes to its national identity,<ref name=":4" /><ref name="kochnation">{{Cite book |last=Koch |first=John |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f899xH_quaMC&q=celtic+nation |title=Celtic Culture : A Historical Encyclopedia |publisher=ABL-CIO |year=2005 |isbn=978-1-85109-440-0 |pages=xx, 300, 421, 495, 512, 583, 985 |access-date=24 November 2011}}</ref> with Welsh artists regularly appearing at [[List of Celtic festivals|Celtic festivals]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Success for BBC Cymru Wales at Celtic Media Festival 2022 |url=https://www.bbc.com/mediacentre/2022/bbc.com/mediacentre/2022/success-for-bbc-wales-at-celtic-media-festival-2022/ |access-date=2022-09-26 |website=www.bbc.com |language=en }}{{Dead link|date=October 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}; {{Cite web |title=Explore Celtic culture in new S4C programme from Inter-Celtic Festival of Lorient {{!}} Arts Council of Wales |url=https://arts.wales/news-jobs-opportunities/explore-celtic-culture-new-s4c-programme-inter-celtic-festival-lorient |access-date=2022-09-26 |website=arts.wales |language=en }}</ref> The [[Welsh Dragon|red dragon]] is the principal symbol of national identity and pride, personifying the fearlessness of the Welsh nation.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |date=2019-07-03 |title=National symbols of Wales |url=https://www.wales.com/about/culture/national-symbols-wales |access-date=2022-09-06 |website=Wales |language=en}}</ref> The dragon is first referenced in literature as a symbol of the people in the [[Historia Brittonum]]. [[Vortigern]] ({{Langx|cy|Gwrtheyrn}}), [[King of the Britons|King of the Celtic Britons]], is interrupted while attempting to build a fort at Dinas Emrys. He is told by Ambrosius{{Efn|"{{langx|la|Ambrosius vocor, id est, Embreis Guletic.|lit="I am called Ambrosius, that is Embreis Guletic"}}.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.thelatinlibrary.com/histbrit.html |title=Historia Brittonum |location=42 |access-date=26 September 2022}}</ref> Embreis Guletic is probably Emrys Gwledig.}} to dig up two dragons beneath the castle. He discovers a red dragon representing the [[Celtic Britons]], and a white dragon representing Anglo-Saxons. Ambrosius prophesies that the Celtic Britons will reclaim the island and push the Anglo-Saxons back to the sea.<ref name="HistoriaBrittonum">''[[wikisource:History of the Britons|Historia Brittonum]]'' by Nennius (translated by J.A.Giles)</ref>

As an emblem, the red dragon of Wales has been used since the reign of [[Cadwaladr]], [[List of rulers of Wales|King of Gwynedd]] from around 655 AD, and appears prominently on the national [[flag of Wales]], which became an official flag in 1959.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2019-07-06 |title=Wales history: Why is the red dragon on the Welsh flag? |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-47389680 |access-date=2022-09-06}}</ref> The banner of [[Owain Glyndŵr]] is associated with Welsh nationhood; it was carried into battle by Welsh forces during [[Glyndŵr Rising|Glyndŵr's battles]] against the English, and includes four lions on red and gold.<ref>{{Cite web |title=BBC Wales – History – Themes – Welsh flag: Banner of Owain Glyndwr |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/history/sites/themes/society/flag_owainglyndwr.shtml |access-date=2022-07-29 |website=www.bbc.co.uk}}</ref> The standard is similar to the arms of [[Llywelyn ap Gruffudd]] (Llywelyn the Last), the last Prince of Wales before the conquest of Wales by [[Edward I of England]]. The design may also be influenced by the arms of Glyndŵr's parents, both of whom had lions in their arms. [[Owain Glyndŵr Day]] is celebrated on 16 September in Wales and there have been calls to make it a national bank holiday.<ref>{{Cite web |last=WalesOnline |date=2004-09-15 |title=Flying the flag to remember Glyndŵr |url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/flying-flag-remember-glyndwr-2422875 |access-date=2022-08-12 |website=WalesOnline |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":13">{{Cite web |title=Calls for 'Glyndwr Day' on anniversary |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/wales/926973.stm |access-date=2022-09-20 |publisher=BBC News}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Glyndŵr Day is worthy of a new national holiday |url=https://www.thenational.wales/news/19582497.glyndwr-day-worthy-new-national-holiday/ |access-date=2022-09-15 |website=The National Wales |language=en |archive-date=2 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221202155519/https://www.thenational.wales/news/19582497.glyndwr-day-worthy-new-national-holiday/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> The [[Prince of Wales's feathers]] is also used in Wales: it consists of three white feathers emerging from a gold coronet, and the German motto ''Ich dien'' (I serve). Several Welsh representative teams, including [[Logo of the Welsh Rugby Union|the Welsh rugby union]], and Welsh regiments in the [[British Army]], including the [[Royal Welsh]], use the badge or a stylised version of it.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Williams |first=Nino |date=2018-11-25 |title=The uncomfortable truth about the three feathers symbol embraced by Wales |url=https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/local-news/uncomfortable-truth-three-feathers-symbol-15451660 |access-date=2022-08-12 |website=WalesOnline}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/30076214|title=Royal Welch Fusiliers badge|publisher=Imperial War Museum|access-date=4 April 2023}}</ref>{{efn|Wales is not separately represented on the [[Union Jack]] as, at the time of the flag's creation, Wales was considered part of England.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Deacon |first=Thomas |date=2018-09-12 |title=Why Wales isn't represented on the Union Jack |url=https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/wales-isnt-represented-union-jack-15138001 |access-date=2022-09-15 |website=WalesOnline}}</ref>}}

On 1 March, Welsh people celebrate [[Saint David's Day]], commemorating the death of the country's patron saint in 589.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Bergsagel |first1=John |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DmpsCwAAQBAJ&dq=st+david+welsh+identity&pg=PA307 |title=Of Chronicles and Kings: National Saints and the Emergence of Nation States in the High Middle Ages |last2=Riis |first2=Thomas |last3=Hiley |first3=David |date=2015-12-09 |publisher=Museum Tusculanum Press |isbn=978-87-635-4260-9 |pages=307 |language=en}}</ref> It is not a recognised [[bank holiday]] although there have been calls to make it so.<ref name=":8">{{Cite web |last=Mosalski |first=Ruth |date=2022-02-15 |title=10,000 want St David's Day to be a bank holiday but UK gov says no |url=https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/politics/st-davids-day-bank-holiday-23099964 |access-date=2022-02-22 |website=WalesOnline |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":52">{{Cite news |date=2006-03-01 |title=Poll backs St David's Day holiday |language=en-GB |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/wales/4760362.stm |access-date=2022-02-22}}</ref><ref name=":6">{{Cite web |title=Should patron saint's days be bank holidays? {{!}} YouGov |url=https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/articles-reports/2018/04/23/brits-support-patron-saints-days-bank-holidays-ind |access-date=2022-02-23 |website=yougov.co.uk |language=en-gb}}</ref> The day is celebrated by schools and cultural societies across Wales, and customs include the wearing of a [[leek]] or a [[daffodil]], which are two national emblems of Wales. Children also wear the national costume.<ref>{{Cite web |title=St David's Day |url=https://museum.wales/articles/1183/St-Davids-Day/ |access-date=2022-12-02 |website=Museum Wales |language=en}}</ref> The origins of the leek can be traced to the 16th century, while the daffodil became popular in the 19th century, encouraged by [[David Lloyd George]].<ref name="Davies189">Davies (2008) p. 189</ref> This is attributed to confusion (or association) between the Welsh for leeks, {{lang|cy|cennin}}, and that for daffodils, {{lang|cy|cennin Pedr}} or St. Peter's leeks.<ref name="ONS Cymru" /> A report in 1916 gave preference to the leek, which has appeared on British pound coins.<ref name="Davies189" /> Other Welsh festivals include [[Gŵyl Mabsant|Mabsant]] when parishes would celebrate the patron saint of their local church, although this is now rarely observed,<ref>{{Cite web |date=7 September 2007 |title=The forgotten festivals of Wales |url=http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/rhagor/article/1913/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110122162419/http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/rhagor/article/1913/ |archive-date=22 January 2011 |access-date=3 October 2010 |website=[[National Museum Wales|Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales]] website |publisher=[[National Museum Wales|Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales]]}}</ref> and a more modern celebration, [[Dydd Santes Dwynwen]] (St Dwynwen's Day), observed on 25 January in a similar way to St Valentine's Day.<ref>{{Cite web |date=6 May 2007 |title=St. Dwynwen's Day-Diwrnod Santes Dwynwen January 25th |url=http://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/Wales-History/StDwynwen.htm |access-date=29 November 2010 |website=[[National Museum Wales|Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales]] website |publisher=[[National Museum Wales|Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales]]}}</ref>

"{{lang|cy|[[Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau]]}}" ({{langx|en|Land of My Fathers}}) is the ''de facto'', national anthem of Wales and is played at events such as football or rugby matches involving the Wales national team, as well as the opening of the Senedd and other official occasions.<ref>{{Cite web |year=2010 |title=Welsh National Anthem: History: About Wales |url=http://www.visitwales.co.uk/about-wales-guide-to-wales-culture-people-and-language/welsh-history/welsh-national-anthem/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110101202124/http://www.visitwales.co.uk/about-wales-guide-to-wales-culture-people-and-language/welsh-history/welsh-national-anthem/ |archive-date=1 January 2011 |access-date=21 October 2010 |website=[[Visit Wales]] website |publisher=[[Welsh Government]]}}; {{cite news |date=1 December 2008 |title=The anthem in more recent years |work=[[BBC Cymru Wales]] website |publisher=BBC |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/6586105.stm |access-date=21 October 2010}}</ref> "{{lang|cy|Cymru am byth}}" ("Wales forever") is a popular Welsh motto.<ref>{{Cite news |date=6 February 2015 |title=Cymru am byth! The meaning behind the Welsh motto |work=[[WalesOnline]] |url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/lifestyle/fun-stuff/cymru-am-byth-meaning-behind-8592076 |access-date=22 March 2016}}</ref> Another Welsh motto "Y [[Welsh Dragon|Ddraig Goch]] Ddyry Cychwyn" ("the [[Welsh Dragon|red dragon]] inspires action") has been used on the [[Royal Badge of Wales]] when it was created in 1953.<ref>{{Cite web |title=BBC – Wales – History – Themes – Welsh Flag: An official emblem |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/history/sites/themes/society/flag_officialemblem.shtml |access-date=2022-09-06 |website=www.bbc.co.uk}}</ref>

===Sport===
{{Main|Sport in Wales}}
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[[File:Millennium Stadium (aerial view).jpg|thumb|[[Millennium Stadium]], Cardiff]]
More than 50 [[Governing bodies of sports in Wales|national governing bodies]] regulate and organise their sports in Wales.<ref>{{Cite web |year=2010 |title=NGB websites: About us: Sport Wales – Chwaraeon Cymru |url=http://www.sportwales.org.uk/about-us/how-we-can-help/working-in-partnership/national-governing-bodies-of-sport/ngb-websites.aspx?lang=en& |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120310074525/http://www.sportwales.org.uk/about-us/how-we-can-help/working-in-partnership/national-governing-bodies-of-sport/ngb-websites.aspx?lang=en& |archive-date=10 March 2012 |access-date=29 November 2010 |website=[[Sport Wales]] website |publisher=[[Sport Wales]]}}</ref> Most of those involved in competitive sports select, organise and manage individuals or teams to represent their country at international events or fixtures against other countries. Wales is represented at major world sporting events such as the [[FIFA World Cup]], [[Rugby World Cup]], [[Rugby League World Cup]] and the [[Commonwealth Games]]. At the [[Olympic Games]], Welsh athletes compete alongside those of Scotland, England and Northern Ireland as part of a [[Great Britain at the Olympics|Great Britain]] team. Wales has hosted several international sporting events.<ref name="walessportsevents">{{Cite web |date=1 July 2015 |title=How Wales became a magnet for major sports events |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/33342995 |access-date=14 September 2015 |website=BBC Sport |publisher=BBC}}</ref> These include the [[1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games|1958 Commonwealth Games]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games |url=http://www.thecgf.com/games/intro.asp?yr=1958 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170414195235/http://thecgf.com/games/intro.asp?yr=1958 |archive-date=14 April 2017 |access-date=14 September 2015 |publisher=Commonwealth Games Federation}}</ref> the [[1999 Rugby World Cup]], the [[2010 Ryder Cup]] and the [[2017 UEFA Champions League Final]].<ref name=walessportsevents/><ref>{{Cite web |date=3 June 2017 |title=Highlights: Juventus 1–4 Real Madrid |url=http://www.itv.com/champions-league/highlights-juventus-1-4-real-madrid |access-date=26 June 2017 |publisher=ITV plc}}</ref>

Although football has traditionally been the more popular sport in [[North Wales]], [[rugby union in Wales|rugby union]] is seen as a symbol of [[Welsh national identity|Welsh identity]] and an expression of national consciousness.<ref>Davies (2008) p. 782</ref> The [[Wales national rugby union team]] takes part in the annual [[Six Nations Championship]] and has also competed in every [[Rugby World Cup]], hosting the tournament in [[1999 Rugby World Cup|1999]]. The five professional sides that replaced the traditional club sides in major competitions in 2003 were replaced in 2004 by the four regions: [[Cardiff Blues]], [[Dragons (rugby union)|Dragons]], [[Ospreys (rugby union)|Ospreys]] and [[Scarlets]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=3 April 2003 |title=Questions facing Wales' regional plans |work=[[BBC Sport]] website |publisher=BBC |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/welsh/2913753.stm |access-date=2 October 2010}}; {{Cite news |date=1 June 2004 |title=WRU axe falls on Warriors |work=[[BBC Sport]] website |publisher=BBC |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/welsh/3754959.stm |access-date=2 October 2010}}</ref> The Welsh regional teams play in the [[United Rugby Championship]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Pro14 Clubs |url=https://www.pro14.rugby/clubs |access-date=30 April 2020 |archive-date=13 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200813115816/https://www.pro14.rugby/clubs |url-status=dead }}</ref> the [[Heineken Champions Cup]] if they qualify<ref>{{Cite web |title=Heineken Champions Cup |url=https://www.epcrugby.com/champions-cup/clubs/ |access-date=4 May 2020}}</ref> and the [[European Rugby Challenge Cup]], again dependent on qualification.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Nick Verier |date=10 April 2014 |title=European Rugby Statement |publisher=The Rugby Paper |url=https://www.therugbypaper.co.uk/featured-post/15722/european-rugby-statement/ |access-date=4 May 2020}}</ref> [[Rugby league in Wales]] dates back to 1907. A professional [[Welsh League]] existed from 1908 to 1910.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Lush |first1=Peter |title=Tries in the Valley: A History of Rugby League in Wales |last2=Farrar, Dave |publisher=London League Publications |year=1998 |isbn=978-0-9526064-3-7 |location=London |page=19}}</ref>

Wales has had [[football in Wales|its own football]] league, the [[Welsh Premier League]], since 1992.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Evans |first=Alun |title=A Brief History of the League |url=http://www.welshpremier.com/History.ink |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720112816/http://www.welshpremier.com/History.ink |archive-date=20 July 2011 |access-date=23 November 2010 |publisher=Welsh Premier League}}</ref> For historical reasons, five Welsh clubs play in the [[English football league system]]: [[Cardiff City F.C.|Cardiff City]], [[Swansea City A.F.C.|Swansea City]], [[Newport County A.F.C|Newport County]], [[Wrexham A.F.C.|Wrexham]], and [[Merthyr Town F.C. (2010)|Merthyr Town]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=5 November 2010 |title=The Cardiff and Swansea Derby |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/waleshistory/2010/11/the_cardiff_and_swansea_derby.html |access-date=23 November 2010 |website=[[BBC Cymru Wales]] website |publisher=BBC}}</ref> The country has produced a considerable number of [[List of Wales international footballers|footballers]] who have played at international level.<ref>{{Cite web |date=13 October 2014 |title=Gareth Bale: Ryan Giggs says winger can be Wales' greatest |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/29607612 |access-date=14 September 2015 |website=BBC Sport |publisher=BBC}}</ref> At [[UEFA Euro 2016]], the [[Wales national football team|Wales national team]] achieved their best ever finish, reaching the semi-finals.<ref>{{Cite web |title=UEFA 2016 |url=https://www.uefa.com/newsfiles/euro/2016/2017905_fr.pdf |access-date=30 April 2020}}</ref>

In international [[cricket]], Wales and England field a single representative team, administered by the [[England and Wales Cricket Board]] (ECB), called the [[England cricket team]], or simply 'England'.<ref>{{Cite web |title=What we do at the ECB |url=http://www.ecb.co.uk/ecb/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140624020944/http://www.ecb.co.uk/ecb/ |archive-date=24 June 2014 |access-date=23 November 2010 |publisher=[[England and Wales Cricket Board]]}}</ref> Occasionally, a separate [[Wales national cricket team|Wales team]] play limited-overs competitions. [[Glamorgan County Cricket Club]] is the only Welsh participant in the England and Wales County Championship.<ref>{{Cite web |title=History of Welsh county cricket |url=http://www.glamorgancricket.com/detail-item.php?int_id=54&str_page_name=13 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090328032604/http://www.glamorgancricket.com/detail-item.php?int_id=54&str_page_name=13 |archive-date=28 March 2009 |access-date=23 November 2010 |publisher=[[Glamorgan County Cricket Club|Glamorgan Cricket]] |df=dmy-all}}</ref> Wales has produced notable participants of individual sports including [[snooker]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Snooker |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/southeast/sport/community/pages/snooker.shtml |access-date=23 November 2010 |website=BBC Wales south east |publisher=BBC}}</ref> track and field,<ref>{{Cite news |year=2009 |title=Colin Jackson, Record breaking 110m hurdler |work=BBC Wales south east |publisher=BBC |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/southeast/halloffame/sport/colin_jackson.shtml |access-date=23 November 2010}}; {{Cite news |date=29 March 2010 |title=Paralympian Tanni Grey-Thompson becomes people's peer |work=[[BBC News]] website |publisher=BBC |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/wales/8593755.stm |access-date=23 November 2010}}</ref> [[Cycle sport|cycling]],<ref>{{Cite web |date=15 January 2013 |title=Nicole Cooke Retires |url=http://www.cardiffajaxcycling.co.uk/news/nicole-cooke-retire/ |access-date=16 February 2017 |publisher=Cardiff Ajax Cycling Club}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=29 July 2018 |title=Geraint Thomas seals maiden Tour de France title with Paris procession |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2018/jul/29/geraint-thomas-seals-tour-de-france-title-paris-team-sky-chris-froome |access-date=31 July 2018 |website=Guardian}}</ref> and [[List of Welsh boxing champions|boxing]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Joe Calzaghe, Wales's greatest ever boxer? |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/southeast/halloffame/sport/joe_calzaghe.shtml |access-date=23 November 2010 |website=BBC Wales south east |publisher=BBC}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Davies |first=Sean |date=25 March 2008 |title=Wales' boxing world champions |work=[[BBC Sport]] website |publisher=BBC |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/boxing/7313653.stm |access-date=23 November 2010}}</ref>

===Media===
{{Main|Media in Wales}}
{{see also|List of newspapers in Wales|Radio in Wales|Television in Wales}}
[[File:Filming "Torchwood" in Cardiff (2).jpg|thumb|A number of BBC productions, such as ''[[Doctor Who]]'' and ''[[Torchwood]]'', have been filmed in Wales.]]
Wales became the UK's first [[digital television]] nation in 2010.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Turner |first=Helen |date=1 April 2010 |title=Celebration for UK's first digital country |url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2010/04/01/celebration-for-uk-s-first-digital-country-91466-26152342/ |access-date=25 November 2010 |website=[[WalesOnline]] website |publisher=[[Media Wales|Media Wales Ltd]]}}</ref> [[BBC Cymru Wales]] is the national broadcaster,<ref name="BBC amdanyn nhw">{{Cite web |year=2010 |title=About BBC Cymru Wales |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/info/ |access-date=30 September 2010 |website=[[BBC]] website |publisher=BBC}}</ref> producing both television and radio programmes in Welsh and English.<ref>{{Cite web |title=About the BBC |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/aboutthebbc/cymruwales/about |access-date=15 May 2020 |website=www.bbc.co.uk}}</ref> It has also produced programmes such as ''[[Life on Mars (British TV series)|Life on Mars]]'', ''[[Doctor Who]]'' and ''[[Torchwood]]'' for BBC's network audience across the United Kingdom.<ref name="BBC amdanyn nhw" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=18 March 2008 |title=Bafta TV award nominees announced |url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/2008/03/18/bafta-tv-award-nominees-announced-91466-20639892/ |access-date=30 September 2010 |website=[[WalesOnline]] website |publisher=[[Media Wales|Media Wales Ltd]]}}</ref> [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]], the UK's main commercial broadcaster, has a Welsh-orientated service branded [[ITV Cymru Wales]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=30 June 2014 |title=ITV begins broadcasting from new Wales HQ in Cardiff Bay |url=https://www.itv.com/news/wales/2014-06-30/itv-begins-broadcasting-from-new-wales-hq-in-cardiff-bay/ |access-date=15 May 2020 |website=ITV News}}</ref> [[S4C]] began broadcasting in 1982. Its output was mostly in Welsh at peak hours, but shared English-language content with [[Channel 4]] at other times. Since the [[digital television transition|digital switchover]] the channel has broadcast exclusively in Welsh.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=ap Dyfrig |first1=Rhodri |last2=Jones |first2=George |year=2006 |title=The Welsh Language in the Media |url=http://www.aber.ac.uk/~merwww/images/MonograffCymraeg231006.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611232439/http://www.aber.ac.uk/~merwww/images/MonograffCymraeg231006.pdf |archive-date=11 June 2011 |access-date=25 November 2010 |website=Mercator Institute for Media, Languages and Culture |publisher=[[Aberystwyth University]] |pages=13–14}}</ref> [[BBC Radio Cymru]] is the BBC's Welsh-language radio service, which broadcasts throughout Wales.<ref name="BBC amdanyn nhw" /> A number of independent radio stations broadcast in the Welsh regions, predominantly in English. In 2006, several regional radio stations broadcast in Welsh: output ranged from two two-minute news bulletins each weekday ([[Radio Maldwyn]]) to over 14 hours of Welsh-language programmes weekly ([[Swansea Sound]]) to essentially bilingual stations such as [[Heart Cymru]] and [[Radio Ceredigion]].<ref>{{Cite web |last1=ap Dyfrig |first1=Rhodri |last2=Jones |first2=George |year=2006 |title=The Welsh Language in the Media |url=http://www.aber.ac.uk/~merwww/images/MonograffCymraeg231006.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611232439/http://www.aber.ac.uk/~merwww/images/MonograffCymraeg231006.pdf |archive-date=11 June 2011 |access-date=25 November 2010 |website=Mercator Institute for Media, Languages and Culture |publisher=[[Aberystwyth University]] |pages=16–18}}</ref>

Most of the newspapers sold and read in Wales are national newspapers available throughout Britain. The ''[[Western Mail (Wales)|Western Mail]]'' is Wales's only print national daily newspaper.<ref name="BBC papurau">{{Cite news |date=28 August 2010 |title=Concern over newspapers' decline in Wales |work=[[BBC News]] website |publisher=BBC |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-11111396 |access-date=25 November 2010}}</ref> Wales-based regional daily newspapers include the ''[[Daily Post (North Wales)|Daily Post]]'' (which covers North Wales), the ''[[South Wales Evening Post]]'' (Swansea), the ''[[South Wales Echo]]'' (Cardiff), and the ''[[South Wales Argus]]'' (Newport).<ref name="BBC papurau" /> ''[[Y Cymro]]'' is a Welsh-language newspaper, published weekly.<ref name="Mercator">{{Cite web |last1=ap Dyfrig |first1=Rhodri |last2=Jones |first2=George |year=2006 |title=The Welsh Language in the Media |url=http://www.aber.ac.uk/~merwww/images/MonograffCymraeg231006.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611232439/http://www.aber.ac.uk/~merwww/images/MonograffCymraeg231006.pdf |archive-date=11 June 2011 |access-date=25 November 2010 |website=Mercator Institute for Media, Languages and Culture |publisher=[[Aberystwyth University]] |pages=22–23}}</ref> ''Wales on Sunday'' is the only Welsh Sunday newspaper that covers the whole of Wales.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Luft |first=Oliver |date=12 November 2010 |title=Wales on Sunday to unveil redesign this weekend |url=http://www.pressgazette.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=1&storycode=46290 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110616120311/http://www.pressgazette.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=1&storycode=46290 |archive-date=16 June 2011 |access-date=25 November 2010 |website=[[Press Gazette]] website |publisher=[[Press Gazette]]}}</ref> The [[Books Council of Wales]] is the Welsh-Government-funded body tasked with promoting Welsh literature in Welsh and English.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jones |first=Alun Ffred AC/AM |date=4 March 2010 |title=Remit letter for the Welsh Books Council 2010–11 |url=http://wales.gov.uk/docs/drah/publications/20100304welshbookscouncilremitlettereng.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110222124627/http://wales.gov.uk/docs/drah/publications/20100304welshbookscouncilremitlettereng.pdf |archive-date=22 February 2011 |access-date=25 November 2010 |publisher=[[Welsh Government]]}}</ref> The BCW provides publishing grants for qualifying English- and Welsh-language publications.<ref>{{Cite web |year=2009 |title=What is the Welsh Books Council? |url=http://www.cllc.org.uk/hafan-home?diablo.lang=eng |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170703202341/http://www.cllc.org.uk/hafan-home?diablo.lang=eng |archive-date=3 July 2017 |access-date=25 November 2010 |website=[[Welsh Books Council]] website |publisher=[[Welsh Books Council]]}}</ref> Around 650 books are published each year, by some of the dozens of Welsh publishers.<ref name="Llyfrau">{{Cite web |last1=ap Dyfrig |first1=Rhodri |last2=Jones |first2=George |year=2006 |title=The Welsh Language in the Media |url=http://www.aber.ac.uk/~merwww/images/MonograffCymraeg231006.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611232439/http://www.aber.ac.uk/~merwww/images/MonograffCymraeg231006.pdf |archive-date=11 June 2011 |access-date=25 November 2010 |website=Mercator Institute for Media, Languages and Culture |publisher=[[Aberystwyth University]] |page=34}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=22 November 2010 |title=Y Fasnach Lyfrau Ar-Lein – Welsh Book Trade Info |url=http://www.wbti.org.uk/directorydetails.html?id=10100 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001123042/http://www.wbti.org.uk/directorydetails.html?id=10100 |archive-date=1 October 2011 |access-date=25 November 2010 |website=[[Welsh Books Council]] website |publisher=[[Welsh Books Council]]}}</ref> Wales's main publishing houses include [[Gomer Press]], [[Gwasg Carreg Gwalch]], [[Honno (press)|Honno]], the [[University of Wales Press]] and [[Y Lolfa]].<ref name="Llyfrau"/> Journals with a Welsh focus include ''Cambria'' (a Welsh affairs magazine published bi-monthly in English),<ref>{{Cite news |date=24 October 2005 |title=Phone fault hits Welsh magazine |work=[[BBC News]] website |publisher=BBC |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/south_west/4371472.stm |access-date=25 November 2010}}</ref> ''Planet,'' and ''[[Poetry Wales]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |year=2010 |title=About |url=http://poetrywales.co.uk/wp/about/ |access-date=25 November 2010 |website=[[Poetry Wales]] website |publisher=[[Poetry Wales]]}}; {{Cite web |year=2010 |title=Planet: The International Magazine for Wales |url=http://www.planetmagazine.org.uk/html/newsite/index.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100413110021/http://www.planetmagazine.org.uk/html/newsite/index.htm |archive-date=13 April 2010 |access-date=25 November 2010 |website=[[Poetry Wales]] website |publisher=[[Poetry Wales]]}}</ref> Welsh-language magazines include the current affairs titles ''[[Golwg]]'' ("View"), published weekly, and ''[[Barn (Welsh magazine)|Barn]]'' ("Opinion"), published monthly.<ref name="Mercator" /> ''Y Wawr'' ("The Dawn") is published quarterly by ''[[Merched y Wawr]]'', the national organisation for women.<ref name="Mercator" /> ''[[Y Traethodydd]]'' ("The Essayist"), a quarterly publication by the [[Presbyterian Church of Wales]], first appeared in 1845 and is the oldest Welsh publication still in print.<ref name="Mercator" />

===Cuisine===
{{Main|Welsh cuisine}}
[[File:Cawl Cymreig.jpg|thumb|right|[[Cawl]], a traditional meat and vegetable dish from Wales.|179x179px]]
Traditional Welsh dishes include [[laverbread]] (made from ''[[Porphyra umbilicalis]]'', an edible [[seaweed]]), [[bara brith]] (fruit bread), [[cawl]] (a lamb stew), [[cawl cennin]] ([[leek soup]]), and [[Welsh cake]]s.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ross |first=Cai |title=Top 10 foods to try in Wales |url=https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/top-10-foods-try-wales |access-date=8 August 2020 |website=BBC Good Food |publisher=BBC}}</ref> [[Cockle (bivalve)|Cockles]] are sometimes served as a traditional breakfast with bacon and laverbread.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Turner |first=Robin |date=3 November 2004 |title=laverbread |work=[[WalesOnline]] website |publisher=[[Media Wales|Media Wales Ltd]] |url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/tm_objectid=14828141&method=full&siteid=50082&headline=laverbread-name_page.html |access-date=27 November 2010}}</ref> Although Wales has its own traditional food and has absorbed much of the cuisine of England, Welsh diets now owe more to the countries of [[Indian cuisine|India]], [[Chinese cuisine|China]] and the [[Cuisine of the United States|United States]]. [[Chicken tikka masala]] is the country's favourite dish, while hamburgers and Chinese food outsell [[fish and chips]] as takeaways.<ref name="Davies293">Davies (2008) p.293</ref>

===Performing arts===

====Music and festivals====
{{Main|Music of Wales|List of festivals in Wales}}
<!----Name spam section--->[[File:Sir Tom Jones at The Queen's Birthday Party (cropped-2).jpg|thumb|233x233px|Singer [[Tom Jones (singer)|Tom Jones]]]]
Wales, "the land of song", is notable for its solo artists, its [[Men's chorus|male voice choirs]] and its harpists.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |year=2006 |title=Wales: Cultural life: Music, literature and film |encyclopedia=Britannica |edition=Online}}</ref> The annual ''[[National Eisteddfod]]'' is the country's main performance festival. The ''Llangollen [[International Eisteddfod]]'' provides an opportunity for the singers and musicians of the world to perform. The Welsh Folk Song Society publishes collections of historical songs and tunes.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Welsh Folk Song Society |url=http://www.canugwerin.com/en/publications.php |access-date=22 January 2015 |publisher=canugwerin.com |archive-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304235049/http://www.canugwerin.com/en/publications.php |url-status=dead }}</ref> Traditional instruments of Wales include the ''telyn deires'' ([[triple harp]]), fiddle, ''[[crwth]]'' (bowed lyre) and the ''pibgorn'' (hornpipe).<ref>Davies (2008) pp. 179, 281, 353, 677</ref> Male voice choirs emerged in the 19th century, formed as the tenor and bass sections of chapel choirs, and embraced the popular secular hymns of the day.<ref name="Davies532">Davies (2008), p. 532.</ref> Welsh congregations and choirs were known for singing in a rousing four-voice style, becoming characteristic of the country.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jenkins |first=Geraint H. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sriBkaHhpREC&dq=wales+land+of+song&pg=PA209 |title=A Concise History of Wales |date=2007 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-82367-8 |pages=209 |language=en}}</ref> Many of the historic choirs survive in modern Wales, singing a mixture of traditional and popular songs.<ref name="Davies532" />

The [[BBC National Orchestra of Wales]] performs in Wales and internationally. The [[Welsh National Opera]] is based at the [[Wales Millennium Centre]] in [[Cardiff Bay]], while the [[National Youth Orchestra of Wales]] was the first of its type in the world.<ref>{{Cite news |date=3 August 2010 |title=Music Preview: National Youth Orchestra of Wales |work=[[WalesOnline]] website |publisher=[[Media Wales|Media Wales Ltd]] |url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/showbiz-and-lifestyle/music-in-wales/2010/08/03/music-preview-national-youth-orchestra-of-wales-91466-26982123/ |access-date=26 September 2010}}</ref> Wales has a tradition of producing notable singers in both the classical and pop arenas,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Wales' finest: 15 of the best Welsh musicians |url=https://www.classicfm.com/discover-music/latest/gallery-wales/ |access-date=8 August 2020 |publisher=Classic FM |archive-date=3 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803124013/https://www.classicfm.com/discover-music/latest/gallery-wales/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> as well as some popular bands.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Heatley |first=Michael |date=April 2017 |title=Badfinger: bad breaks, dumb luck and sheer tragedy |url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/badfinger-bad-breaks-dumb-luck-tragedy-peter-ham |access-date=8 August 2020 |publisher=Classic Rock Magazine}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Manic Street Preachers |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/music/sites/manic-street-preachers/ |access-date=8 August 2020 |website=www.bbc.co.uk |publisher=BBC}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=The best Welsh bands of all time |url=https://www.radiox.co.uk/features/x-lists/best-welsh-bands/ |access-date=8 August 2020 |publisher=Radio X}}</ref> The Welsh [[folk music]] scene has enjoyed a resurgence in the 21st century.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Aaron |first=Martin |date=24 October 2013 |title=Ten of the best: A history of Welsh folk music tradition |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-24557218 |access-date=21 July 2020}}</ref>

====Drama====
{{see also|Cinema of Wales|List of Welsh television series}}
[[File:Catherine Zeta-Jones VF 2012 Shankbone 2.jpg|thumb|195x195px|[[Catherine Zeta-Jones]], born in [[Swansea]]]]

The earliest surviving Welsh plays are two medieval [[miracle play]]s, ''Y Tri Brenin o Gwlen'' ("The three Kings from Cologne") and ''Y Dioddefaint a'r Atgyfodiad'' ("The Passion and the Resurrection").<ref>Davies (2008) p. 222</ref> A recognised Welsh tradition of theatre emerged during the 18th century, in the form of an [[Play (theatre)|interlude]], a metrical play performed at fairs and markets.<ref>Davies (2008) p. 223</ref> Drama in the early 20th century thrived, but the country established neither a Welsh National Theatre nor a national ballet company.<ref name="Davies192" /> After the Second World War, the substantial number of amateur theatre companies reduced by two-thirds.<ref name="Davies224">Davies (2008) p. 224</ref> Competition from television in the mid-20th century led to greater professionalism in the theatre.<ref name="Davies224" /> Plays by [[Emlyn Williams]] and [[Alun Owen]] and others were staged, while Welsh actors, including [[Richard Burton]] and [[Anthony Hopkins]], were establishing international reputations.<ref name="Davies224" /><ref>{{Cite news |title=Actor Sir Anthony Hopkins inspires students at old college |work=BBC News |date=5 October 2016 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-37563350 |access-date=4 November 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Price |first=Karen |date=22 January 2010 |title=Movers and shakers revitalising our arts – Cont. |work=[[WalesOnline]] website |publisher=[[Media Wales|Media Wales Ltd]] |url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/lifestyle/showbiz/movers-shakers-revitalising-arts-1941085 |access-date=27 November 2010}}</ref> Wales has also produced some well-known comedians.<ref>{{Cite news |date=18 April 2012 |title=Why so funny? – The top 10 Welsh comedians |work=[[WalesOnline]] website |publisher=[[Media Wales|Media Wales Ltd]] |url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/lifestyle/funny---top-10-welsh-2048196 |access-date=14 February 2016}}</ref>

==== Dance ====
{{see also|Welsh dance|Welsh stepdance}}
[[File:Traditional Welsh dance and dress, Senedd, St David's Day 2009 Gwisgoedd a dawnsio traddodiadol Gymreig, Senedd, Dydd Gŵyl Dewi 2009 (3678719264).jpg|thumb|232x232px|Welsh dancer at the Senedd building]]
Traditional dances include Welsh [[Welsh dance|folk dancing]] and [[Welsh stepdance|clog dancing]]. The first mention of dancing in Wales is in a 12th-century account by [[Gerald of Wales|Giraldus Cambrensis]], but by the 19th century traditional dance had all but died out due to religious opposition.<ref name="Davies192">Davies (2008) p. 192</ref> In the 20th century a revival was led by [[Lois Blake]] (1890–1974).<ref name="Davies192" /> Clog dancing was preserved and developed by Hywel Wood (1882–1967) and others who perpetuated the art on local and national stages.<ref name="Davies193">Davies (2008) p. 193</ref> The Welsh Folk Dance Society was founded in 1949.<ref name="Davies193" /> [[Contemporary dance]] grew out of Cardiff in the 1970s.<ref name="Davies193" /> The [[National Dance Company Wales]], formed in 1983, is now resident at the Wales Millennium Centre.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Smith |first=Mike |date=22 February 2013 |title=30th birthday celebrations for National Dance Company Wales |url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/showbiz-and-lifestyle/showbiz/2013/02/22/30th-birthday-celebrations-for-national-dance-company-wales-91466-32856193/ |access-date=28 February 2013 |publisher=walesonline.co.uk}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Wales}}
* [[List of movements in Wales]]
* [[Outline of Wales]]

== Notes ==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
'''Citations'''
{{Reflist}}

'''Sources'''
* Census 2001, [https://web.archive.org/web/20090319202324/http://www.statistics.gov.uk/census2001/bicentenary/pdfs/wales.pdf ''200 Years of the Census in ... Wales'' (2001)]
* {{Cite book|last=Davies|first=John|author-link=John Davies (historian)|title=A History of Wales| publisher=Penguin| year=1994| location=London|isbn = 978-0-14-014581-6}}
* {{cite book |editor1-first=John |editor1-last=Davies |editor2-first=Nigel |editor2-last=Jenkins |editor2-link=Nigel Jenkins |editor3-first=Menna |editor3-last=Baines|editor4-first=Peredur I. |editor4-last=Lynch|editor4-link=Peredur Lynch|title=[[Encyclopaedia of Wales|The Welsh Academy Encyclopaedia of Wales]] |year=2008 |publisher=University of Wales Press |location=Cardiff |isbn=978-0-7083-1953-6 }}

==External links==
{{Sister project links|Wales|s=Category:Wales|b=no|voy=Wales}}
<!--- NOTE: please do add links here, but add them to the Open Directory Project at DMOZ. If you have a website you want to promote, that will give you a backlink; here, all links are no follow. All SPAM links and non-official or commercial sites WILL be removed immediately. --->
* [https://senedd.wales/en/Pages/Home.aspx/ Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament]
* [https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/ BBC Wales]
* {{osmrelation|58437}}
* [http://www.visitwales.com/ VisitWales.com]. The official international guide to places to stay and things to do in Wales.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20071119123113/http://www.gtj.org.uk/ Gathering the Jewels – Welsh Heritage and Culture]
* [https://www.geograph.org.uk/browser/#!/country+%22Wales%22/display=plus/pagesize=100/sort=random/image=991 Photographs of Wales] on Geograph Britain and Ireland
* [https://www.genuki.org.uk/big/wal Further historical information and sources at GENUKI]

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