Cymraeg thrives despite challenges
In February 2026, the newly elected Reform UK councillor of Ynys Mon (Anglesey), Celfyn Furlong, publicly opposed the controversial Reform UK proposed policy of scrapping the current government’s ‘one million Welsh speakers by 2050’ target.
Reform UK reiterated their proposed policy during their Senedd election manifesto launch on 5th March 2026. This follows previous comments made by party leader, Nigel Farage, in June 2025 when he referred to the target as being “meaningless”.
These political developments have reopened the debate about the status of Cymraeg and the challenges that it faces.
Say Something in Welsh
In North Wales, Aran Jones is the author of the SaySomethingin Method, a unique memory-based approach to language learning. The method has been applied to multiple languages, but Cymraeg remains at it’s heart.
The Say Something in Welsh (SSIW) community has over 40,000 active accounts and approximately over 100,000 people have used the course. Learners are all across the world.
Whilst numbers are an important part of a language’s sustainability, a strong sense of community is also needed. “I think that the enthusiastic welcome that Welsh speakers usually give Welsh learners these days is one of the most powerful aspects of learning the language,” Aran said. “The sense of connection it gives can be life-changing”.
Challenges Faced
Alongside the political, Cymraeg also faces economic and social challenges.
Census 2021 Welsh language data highlights that more people from outside of Wales are now living there than in 2011. Non-Welsh speaking people moving into Wales, alongside Welsh speaking people moving out of Wales, can alter the presence and future of Cymraeg within communities.
There are also broader economic challenges for Welsh speaking areas, such as young people moving away from their communities for employment opportunities.
To tackle these challenges, Aran says “it’s important to have a headline target like a million speakers, and I think that has helped drive some attitude change”
Record Number of Welsh Language Learners
Despite the challenges faced, data released by the National Centre for Learning Welsh on 17th March 2026 shows that 20,445 people completed Centre courses in 2024-2025, the highest number of learners since Centre records began and a 12% annual increase compared to 2023 – 2024 figures.
The 2024- 2025 data also shows a 61% increase in learners since the Centre first published data in 2017 – 2018.
As reported by Nation.Cymru, a Welsh Government spokesperson said “These record figures show that Cymraeg is a thriving language that people of all ages want to be part of, and it’s a significant milestone as we aim to reach a million Welsh speakers.
“We are proud to support the National Centre for Learning Welsh to help people on their learning Welsh journey”.
The Future of Cymraeg
Whilst Cymraeg clearly faces ongoing challenges, a dedicated community of Welsh language practitioners, speakers, and learners are helping to ensure that it not only survives but thrives and is celebrated.
To Welsh learners out there, Aran’s advice is simple. “Keep going. If you keep going, you’ll get there - it’s just about not giving up when you feel stuck”.
Reform UK were approached for comment.