This chapter outlines the linguistic properties of Welsh and its historical and sociolinguistic context. It sketches the main features of Welsh phonology, including vowel, diphthong and consonant phoneme inventories, focusing on issues involving vowel length, the complex set of diphthongs, and voiceless nasal consonants, including major dialect differences. Mutation, changes in word-initial consonants triggered by morphosyntactic features, is a characteristic of Welsh that has drawn considerable attention, and both phonological and morphosyntactic aspects of the phenomenon are discussed. In morphology, topics of interest include extensive regular vowel alternation and the formation of the singular–plural distinction. Mildly synthetic verbal morphology sits alongside another typologically significant property, inflection of prepositions for person and number. Major features of Welsh syntax include head-initial and VSO word order, restrictions on finite verbs in complement clauses, an elaborate system of clause-initial particles, and marking of predicate adjectives and nominals with a dedicated predicative particle. A final section looks at current sociolinguistic issues, including changes in the traditional diglossic relationship between literary and spoken Welsh, and changes that are often attributed to language contact and revitalisation.

The first principal part of this chapter explores sacred music in Wales from the Roman period to the English conquest. Christian observance in Wales may have been unbroken from the time of the Roman invasion onwards, and the four medieval cathedrals existed as sacred sites before Augustine’s mission of 578. Wales was part of the western Latin Church within the province of Canterbury. From the thirteenth century it was strongly influenced by the liturgical Use of Salisbury. However, only two substantial notated musical sources survive, both from the earlier fourteenth century: the Anian of Bangor Pontifical (with stronger provenance in East Anglia than Wales) and the Penpont antiphonal from the diocese of St Davids. This chapter considers their implications for our understanding of the repertoire and practice of sacred music in medieval Wales and also explores the role of the organ in the liturgy, drawing on the evidence of the pre-Reformation organ case at Old Radnor in Powys. The latter part of the chapter considers the effects of the Reformation on worship in Wales up to 1650. It examines compositions by John Lloyd, Philip ap Rhys and Elway Bevin, all of likely Welsh descent, and explains the significance of sources associated with Chirk Castle Chapel for understanding liturgical music in this period. After the Reformation, the English Book of Common Prayer was as alien as the Latin books it replaced in much of Wales. The Welsh translations of the Book of Common Prayer and the Bible were therefore crucial; the chapter concludes with an examination of Edmwnd Prys’ Welsh metrical psalter, Llyfr y Psalmau (1621).

This chapter explores the place of the Welsh language in the life of the Church in Wales. Prior to disestablishment, though the Bible and Prayer Book had been translated into Welsh in the sixteenth century, within the established Church of England there was a general contempt for the Welsh language and the church was alienated from Welsh speaking communities. In the years after 1920, the story of the language in the church may be best understood in its social and political contexts: there was no equality of status as between English and Welsh in the life of the church - English dominated. 1947-1967 witnessed both rejuvenation as well as scandal, paerticularly surrounding the election of Welsh-speaking bishops. Then followed years of turbulence, with political campaigns in secular society and politics for greater protection and promotion of the language. These impacted on the church. From the 1970s we see the translation into Welsh of such texts as the constitution and forms of service. The Welsh Language Act 1993, the devolution legislation of 1998, and native Welsh law resulting from it, has consolidated the principle of the equality of Welsh and English in the church. But the church still faces issues in implementing the values embodied in these political and legal changes in many aspects of its life and ministry.