History UsefulNotes / LandOfMyFathersAndTheirSheep

http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/125px-Flag_of_Wales_2.svg.png Wales, the land of the Welsh Dragon, Tom Jones and ''{{Torchwood}}''.

Wales was conquered by the English in TheMiddleAges, and became legally a part of the Kingdom of England -- which is why there's no "Welsh Bit" of the Union Jack, which was formed from the flags of the Kingdoms of England, Scotland and, later, Ireland.

* Los Campesinos!

The Welsh language was suppressed with varying degrees of viciousness by the English from the middle ages right up until the 1960s, but since then it has become one of the best-subsidised minority languages in the world, and nowadays around 20% of Welsh people can speak some Welsh, with 14% claiming to use it on a daily basis. Welsh is accorded equal status with English within Wales, so all roadsigns and official notices have to be in both.

A lot of people in Wales are called Jones, Williams or Davies due to the way the Welsh {{Patronymic}} naming system was Anglicised -- people in small villages will have to get nicknames to distinguish each other. This results in SAT exams (see BritishEducationSystem) having to have candidate numbers in Wales.

* According to some theories, KingArthur. If he was a real person, anyway.

* AlanDavies.

Tra môr yn fur i'r bur hoff bau,\\

Ei gwrol ryfelwyr, gwladgarwyr tra mâd,\\

** This band, which usually records their music in English often includes at least a few Welsh language songs on their albums, culminating in 2000's ''Mwng'', the best selling Welsh-language album in rock history.

* Arthur Machen, an author whose ''Great God Pan'' and other stories were a major influence on HPLovecraft.

* Actor Michael Sheen, from Newport and Port Talbot. Cinema's very own TonyBlair.

Welsh is generally regarded by English-speakers as a formidably difficult language, and a glance at the map shows such jaw-crackers as Machynlleth, Pwllheli, and the truly majestic [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch]]. That said, the pronunciation rules are consistent (unlike English) and once you know that a "u" is pronounced "ee"; "dd" is a hard "th" (as in 'there' rather than 'think') ; and a "ll" is a sort-of cross between 'l' and 'th', then it will always be so, although the actual spelling (and hence pronunciation) of a word may change depending on the word preceding it. "Cwm", that perennial favourite of crossword-puzzle enthusiasts, is pronounced "coom" (and means "a hollow in the side of a mountain"). The exception is "y" which has two different sounds, for example in "yr" and "byd". Welsh English often [[LikeIsLikeAComma uses "like"]] as an interjection.

-->-- '''The first verse and chorus of "Land of My Fathers", the unofficial Welsh National Anthem.'''

* Manic Street Preachers

* Several characters from Channel 4's classic sketch show Absolutely -- particularly DIY 'expert' Denzil and his equally repulsive wife, Gwyneth (played by Welsh comedy actor John Sparks and MorwennaBanks).

South Wales is more industrialised than the rest, due to immense coal deposits. A lot of Welsh cultural identity stems from the 19th-century mining industry, when "the Valleys" as the area was known, saw religious revivals, the enthusiastic adoption of the game of Rugby, and a great tradition of choral singing.