According to the latest Welsh language data from the Annual Population Survey, published in early 2026, in the past 2 years, there has been a decline in the number of Welsh, or Cymraeg, speakers in Wales.

Although, this is not the only case of a decrease in Welsh speakers in the country’s history.

As Britain’s oldest language, Cymraeg is native to the British Isles, originating from a Celtic language spoken by the ancient Britons.

Welsh holds archaic, and long-lasting ties to the land of Britain, but has not always been given the respect that the language deserves.

Historically, the Welsh language has come under serious threat and has struggled to survive against England’s colonialism and imperialism. Under Henry VIII’s rule, the language's official status was removed.

The Welsh people endured a ban of the language in public administration and the legal system, extending into education, commonly referred to as the ‘Welsh Not.’

During the mid 20th century, the discrimination of the Welsh language was recognised and addressed. Since the 1940’s, laws and legislations have re-instated the official equal status of the language and re-introduced it into the educational curriculum to keep the language alive.

Despite the history of subjugation, the Welsh language and culture have shown resilience against brutality.

The Welsh have fought back and not let their history prohibit the sanctity of their language, customs and traditions.

However, it is undeniable the language has been affected by a history of suppression.

In 2001, for the first time in over a century, the estimated number of recorded Welsh speakers in Wales began to increase and generally continued until 2023.

At the end of 2025, there was an estimated 828,500 Welsh speakers recorded living in Wales, which means 26.9% of the population claimed to be able to speak Welsh.

A remarkable increase from 2021’s estimated 17.3%.

Following the survey, the Welsh Government responded: ‘we’re working on a wide range of actions to achieve our aims of a million Welsh speakers by 2050, and to increase opportunities for people to use their Cymraeg.’

In 2025, they introduced the Welsh Language and Education Act, which aims to boost Welsh in education and public life, encouraging the language in areas with fewer Welsh speakers.

Alongside free Welsh lessons for 16 to 25-year-olds and increasing the availability of Welsh language technology.

As a result, it was found that children and young people of Wales were more likely to report that they could speak Welsh than any other age group, with 46.5% being Welsh speakers.

Owain Meirion, the Chair of Cymdeithas yr Iaith, commented ‘we often hear from politicians that the Welsh language belongs to everyone, but this rhetoric is not realised.

The result of that is the continuous decline in the number who can speak Welsh.’

Meirion advocates that to improve the use of the Welsh language in Wales, the government should, ‘set a target for the number of children in Welsh-medium education, restore and increase the amount of Welsh content in the media and expand and strengthen the legal rights of the people of Wales to use the language.’

In Wales, despite a decrease in the number of Welsh speakers since 2023, the progress made is an achievement to be recognised. The endurance of the language remains prominent for many and has become a true testament to the pride of Welsh identity. This reflects the hard work of the Welsh people to keep their language and legacy well and truly alive.