#my dissertation was all about the depiction of Welshness in English-language literature so I'm forever armed with sources lol

[textpostscymraeg]

i feel like an 'illegitimate' welsh person since i can't speak welsh. do you have any advice on this? diolch <3

To quote Dai Smith's Wales! Wales?: "Wales is a singular noun but a plural existence."

To speak Welsh is just one of countless ways to have a Welsh identity, and not speaking Welsh by no means invalidates the myriad ways you are Welsh. Whether you were born here, emigrated here, have ties from across the border or across the sea, supported Wales in the 2016 Euros — whatever applies to you, you are Welsh.

I'm not going to suggest ways for you to feel 'more' Welsh because, well, that's not my place at all. (Unless you have people in your life who are actively making you feel bad for not speaking Welsh, in which case my advice is to backflip as far away from possible from them because they're stinky dickheads.)

But if you want to explore these thoughts further and learn more, I highly recommend Welsh [Plural], a collection of essays edited by Darren Chetty, Grug Muse, Hannan Issa and Iestyn Tyne that explores the plurality of the Welsh identity and how there's no one-size-fits-all definition. Very good read!