More than 20,000 people are now successfully completing Welsh language courses each year, new figures confirm, signalling a remarkable surge in interest and participation in learning Cymraeg.
The data from Y Ganolfan Dysgu Cymraeg Genedlaethol – the National Centre for Learning Welsh – shows a 61% increase in learner completions since the 2017-2018 academic year. In the most recent year, a record 20,445 individuals finished courses, with significant growth driven by young people and workplace learners. The number of 16- to 24-year-olds completing courses has soared by 483% since 2018-2019, while learners coming via their workplaces now account for 39% of the total, a trend Estyn has described as “one of the cornerstones of linguistic planning initiatives in the workplace.”
A Political Vision Meets Cultural Momentum
This mini-boom forms a backdrop of vibrant public engagement as Plaid Cymru, historically the party most defined by its commitment to the language, campaigns from a position of polling strength ahead of the Senedd election. The party, whose political thought is traced in Prof Richard Wyn Jones’s work “Putting Wales First”, has promised a raft of measures to embed Welsh more deeply in everyday life should it lead the next Welsh government.
The cultural shift, however, extends far beyond any single party. Since devolution in 1999, bilingualism has become increasingly common, with Welsh-speaking embraced as a positive marker of cultural identity. The story of the protest song “Yma o Hyd”, written by former Plaid president Dafydd Iwan, exemplifies this: it has evolved from a miner’s strike anthem into a modern-day second national anthem, topping UK iTunes charts and symbolising a widespread sense of resilience.
Welsh Labour has also played a central role, setting the ambitious Cymraeg 2050 strategy which aims for one million Welsh speakers and has driven policy like the landmark Welsh Language and Education Act. This legislation seeks to ensure all pupils leave education as confident Welsh speakers, with targets for increasing Welsh-medium teaching.
The Stark Challenges Behind the Boom
Despite the encouraging learner numbers, the future of Welsh as a living community language faces profound and interconnected challenges. A recent five-year report by the Welsh Language Commissioner emphasised that while the absolute number of speakers has remained stable for decades, it has not increased in line with overall population growth, leaving the language more vulnerable proportionally.
This statistical picture is complex; while the Welsh Government’s survey suggests 829,000 speakers, the 2021 census recorded 538,000, a discrepancy attributed to differing self-assessment of skills. The Commissioner has warned that meeting the 2050 target will require “bold and transformative” intervention, suggesting a “revolution” is needed.
The most acute threat is socio-economic, concentrated in the language’s heartlands. In areas like Gwynedd and Anglesey (Ynys Môn), a lack of access to good employment and affordable housing is driving a youthful exodus, directly undermining the viability of predominantly Welsh-speaking communities. This is exacerbated by the market for second homes and holiday lets; in 2022, Gwynedd had 13.4% of its dwellings used for this purpose, with Anglesey at 9.9%.
Politically, the growth of Reform UK presents a direct challenge. Its leader, Nigel Farage, has pledged to scrap the one million speaker target and undo the Welsh Language and Education Act. He has controversially referred to Welsh speakers as “foreign speakers”, a stance viewed as a fundamental threat to the legislative and cultural framework supporting the language’s revival.
Furthermore, the educational ambition faces practical hurdles. The expansion of Welsh-medium education, increasingly sought by parents, is constrained by ongoing challenges in teacher recruitment and retention, putting pressure on the goals set out in the 2050 strategy.
As learner numbers break records, the path forward hinges on addressing the gulf between classroom success and community sustainability. The task for any future government will be to translate this vibrant demand into stable, thriving Welsh-speaking communities, ensuring the language flourishes where people live, work, and raise their families.
