2011 Census: First Results on the Welsh Language

The key results for Wales are:

• Between 2001 and 2011, there was a decrease in the number and proportion of people aged 3 and over able to speak Welsh in Wales. The decrease was due to demographic changes in the population (including fewer children, more older adults and the loss of older cohorts with higher levels of Welsh speakers), migration and changes to people’s skills between Censuses.
• The proportion of people able to speak Welsh decreased from 20.8 per cent in 2001 to 19.0 per cent in 2011. Despite an increase in the size of the population, the number of Welsh speakers decreased from 582,000 in 2001 to 562,000 in 2011. Although lower than 2001, the proportion and number of Welsh speakers in 2011 were higher than the equivalent figures for 1991 (18.7 per cent and 508,000 people)(1).
• Differences between 2001 and 2011 varied by age group – with considerable increases for younger children (aged 3-4), a slight increase for adults 20-44, and decreases for other age groups.
• The proportion of people aged 3 and over able to speak Welsh decreased in nearly all local authorities. The largest decreases were in areas with higher proportions of Welsh speakers.
• Carmarthenshire saw the largest percentage point drop – from 50.3 per cent in 2001 to 43.9 per cent in 2011, meaning that less than half the population could speak Welsh by 2011.
• Nearly three quarters of the population (73.3 per cent) had no Welsh language skills in 2011. This is an increase from 71.6 per cent in 2001.
• The proportion of people able to understand spoken Welsh (but not able to speak, read or write) increased slightly from 4.9 per cent in 2001 to 5.3 per cent in 2011.

Summary tables for Welsh Local Authorities will also be published on StatsWales by the end of 2012.

The Census was held on 27 March 2011, and is a key source of information on the Welsh language. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is responsible for the Census in Wales and England.

The 2011 Census question asked ‘Can you understand, speak, read or write Welsh?’ – answered by ticking one or more of five boxes (one for each category and one for ‘None of these’) in any combination. This question was only asked in Wales, and results are presented for those aged 3 and over. The Census did not collect information on fluency levels or on frequency of use.

There will be further releases of Welsh language data from the 2011 Census over the next 18 months; information is available online in the 2011 Census prospectus.

Notes

(1) Note that the 1991 Census question asked ‘Do you…?’ rather than ‘Can you….?’

Further information

Office for National Statistics website: 2011 Census, Key Statistics for Unitary Authorities in Wales

Office for National Statistics website: 2011 Census prospectus

StatsWales website.

Contact

Tel: 029 2082 5088
E-mail: welshlanguagedata@wales.gsi.gov.uk

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