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The Welsh people ((ウェールズ語:Cymry)) are a nation and ethnic group native to, or otherwise associated with, Wales and the Welsh language. The language was historically spoken throughout Wales, with its predecessor Old British once spoken throughout most of the British mainland. While Welsh remains the predominant language in some areas of Wales, English is the predominant language in most parts of the country. John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain,〔Davies, John (1994) ''A History of Wales''. Penguin: p.54; ISBN 0-14-014581-8.〕 although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have been spoken in Wales far longer. The term Welsh people applies to people from Wales and people of Welsh ancestry perceiving themselves or being perceived as sharing a cultural heritage and shared ancestral origins.〔The Welsh people: chapters on their origin, history and laws by Sir John Rhys, Sir David Brynmor Jones. 1969〕 Today, Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain,〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=The Countries of the UK )〕 and the majority of people living in Wales are British citizens. An analysis of the geography of Welsh surnames commissioned by the Welsh Government found that 718,000 people, or nearly 35% of the Welsh population, have a family name of Welsh origin, compared with 5.3% in the rest of the United Kingdom, 4.7% in New Zealand, 4.1% in Australia, and 3.8% in the United States, with an estimated 16.3 million people in the countries studied having Welsh ancestry.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=The Welsh diaspora: Analysis of the geography of Welsh names )〕 Over 300,000 Welsh people live in London.〔http://www.bbc.com/cymrufyw/29851488〕 ==Terminology== The names "Wales" and "Welsh" are traced to the Proto-Germanic word "Walhaz" meaning "foreigner", "stranger", "Roman", "Romance-speaker", or "Celtic-speaker" which was used by the ancient Germanic peoples to describe inhabitants of the former Roman Empire, who were largely romanised and spoke Latin or Celtic languages.〔Davies, J. ''A history of Wales'' p. 69〕 The same etymological origin is shared by the names of various other Celtic or Latin peoples such as the Walloons and the Vlachs, as well as of the Swiss canton of Valais. (詳細はBrythonic word ''combrogi'', meaning "fellow-countrymen".〔〔Davies (1994) p. 69〕 They thus carry a sense of "land of fellow-countrymen", "our country", and notions of fraternity. The use of the word ''Cymry'' as a self-designation derives from the post-Roman Era relationship of the Welsh with the Brythonic-speaking peoples of northern England and southern Scotland, the peoples of "Yr Hen Ogledd" ((英語:The Old North)). The word came into use as a self-description probably before the 7th century. It is attested in a praise poem to Cadwallon ap Cadfan (''Moliant Cadwallon'', by Afan Ferddig) .〔Davies (1994) p. 71, The poem contains the line: 'Ar wynep Kymry Cadwallawn was'.〕 In Welsh literature, the word ''Cymry'' was used throughout the Middle Ages to describe the Welsh, though the older, more generic term ''Brythoniaid'' continued to be used to describe any of the Britonnic peoples (including the Welsh) and was the more common literary term until c. 1100. Thereafter ''Cymry'' prevailed as a reference to the Welsh. Until c. 1560 the word was spelt ''Kymry'' or ''Cymry'', regardless of whether it referred to the people or their homeland.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Welsh people」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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