Notwithstanding such signs of vitality, Welsh culture is struggling to survive in contemporary Canada. The most striking evidence of its endangered state is the decline of the Welsh language. In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, language had distinguished Welsh migrants from other British settlers in Canada. Such is no longer the case. In the 1991 census only 2,070 people declared Welsh to be their first language; of these, 1,580 said that it was their only first language, and 490 said that they spoke it as well as other languages. This compares with 2,055 Welsh-speakers in 1976. The overwhelming majority of the 2,070 Canadians with Welsh as a first language in 1991 lived in Ontario (860), British Columbia (545), and Alberta (325). Only 210 people throughout all of Canada declared Welsh to be the language that they spoke at home.
The decline of the Welsh language in Canada has been accompanied, not surprisingly, by the decline of Welsh ethnic distinctiveness. Most Welsh Canadians in the twentieth century have celebrated not their specific Welsh national heritage but their general British civil heritage. In consequence, the majority of Welsh Canadians have never been closely associated with particular expressions of Welshness in Canada. Today, Canadian-born Welsh are part of the English-speaking mainstream, and even the vast majority of recent immigrants do not join Welsh societies. By the late twentieth century, the maintenance of ‘Welshness’ had become, for most, a private and individual affair.
There are many reasons for the decline of the Welsh language and its associated culture. In the first place, the Welsh language was long closely identified with various religious organizations, and, once these organizations began to lose popular support, acculturation into the English-speaking mainstream quickly followed. It may also be argued that religious factionalism was one reason for the decline of Welsh ethnic identity, especially within the Alberta settlements. Though religious nonconformity helped shape Welsh national identity, especially in the nineteenth century, in small emigrant communities factionalism not only prevented the establishment of strong churches but also, over the long term, brought Welsh Anglicans, Methodists, and Presbyterians into communion with English, Scots, and Irish Canadians.
Other forces, too, have facilitated assimilation. As persons of British descent, the Welsh have not experienced any structural impediment to full participation in contemporary Canadian life, and so in their case assimilation has been a painless and virtually automatic process. The Welsh have taken full advantage of this situation and indeed have long been a small part of a hegemonic majority. At the same time, as with other immigrants groups, intermarriage between Welsh and other Canadians has undermined group cohesion, while geographical and occupational mobility has militated against the maintenance of settled ethnic communities. Finally, the relative decline in the rate of Welsh emigration has weakened Welsh communities.
Canadians of Welsh origin exhibit many of the tendencies of long-established immigrant groups. Their public attachment to Wales tends to be more symbolic than real, revolving around choirs, rugby players, and the mysteries and delights of the homeland. Still, many Welsh now recognize that they, too, are one of Canada’s ethnic groups and as such they need to organize themselves effectively if they are to build upon their contributions to the country’s development. Recently there have been increased levels of attendance at festivals, musical events, Welsh-language classes, and the like. This may represent an attempt to capture something of a fast-dwindling heritage or it may reflect a desire to celebrate multiculturalism as a permanent feature of Canadian society. Either way, Canadians of Welsh origin will continue to have a deeply rooted presence in many communities.
