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Journal of Language and Social Psychology, Vol. 25, No. 4, 351-376 (2006)
DOI: 10.1177/0261927X06292803

Imagining Wales and the Welsh Language

Ethnolinguistic Subjectivities and Demographic Flow

Nikolas Coupland

Hywel Bishop

Betsy Evans

Peter Garrett

Cardiff University Cardiff, United Kingdom

A survey of approximately 2,000 informants with links to Wales provided differentiated data on Welsh social identities and affiliation, engagement with Welsh cultural practices, and perceptions of the ethnolinguistic vitality of the Welsh language and of domain priorities for Welsh. The data were interrogated mainly in relation to "flowgroups" (participants with different patterns of lived history inside and outside Wales) and groups based on degrees of Welsh-language competence. Flows and competence were potent factors predicting felt affiliation to Wales and many other subjective stances. Strong affiliation to Wales and moderate levels of optimism about Welsh's future were expressed, feelings not restricted to informants within Wales. The Welsh diaspora in North America offers strong symbolic support for the project of Wales and for the Welsh language, as do returning émigrés. Perspectives on cultural flow challenge assumptions about cultural boundedness and authenticity. The data show the need to account for Welsh ethnolinguistic subjectivities in terms of demographic mobility and complexity.

Key Words: Wales • Welsh language • diaspora • affiliation • vitality • heritage • globalization


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