Since the Nineteenth Century, choral singing has played a prominent part in Welsh culture and society. In the latter part of the Twentieth Century, there were increasing demands to consider the influences of quality of life and well-being on health. As a result, there is a growing field of research that considers the role of the community arts, and choral singing in particular, as social capital, and the way in which they can influence personal and social health and well-being. Due to this growing recognition, this article will consider research that examines the relationship between amateur choir-singing in Wales – as both a musical and social event – and general health and well-being.

In an area of Wales where 50% of the population is bilingual one community physical rehabilitation service had no Welsh-speaking therapists. An internationally standardised outcome measure was used to assess the effectiveness of rehabilitation in this area. This revealed that Welsh speaking patients had significantly poorer results from rehabilitation than non-Welsh speakers (p<0.05), while there was no significant difference where the therapists were bilingual. The results suggest that therapists’ ability to speak patients’ first language impacts on therapy effectiveness. The percentage of individuals who could speak Welsh referred (by health or social care professionals) was compared with the percentage of Welsh speakers which would have been anticipated given the percentage in the general population. Significantly fewer Welsh speakers were referred to the rehabilitation service than the anticipated percentage (p<0.001). Whilst this suggests professionals’ inability to speak Welsh may impact negatively on access to services for Welsh speakers, there may be other multifactorial psycho-social reasons to consider.

Policies introduced to revive the prospects of minority languages have often been the source of substantial disquiet. At times, objections to these policies are expressed in moral terms, with certain measures being accused of transgressing normative principles such as individual freedom and equal opportunity. Given their nature, these moral objections pose interesting questions for liberals. Therefore, how should liberals respond? This article will explore this question by focusing on one controversial aspect of language policy in Wales: the steps taken to set Welsh-language requirements for some jobs in the public sector. This is a practice which has generated substantial debate, with opponents claiming that it undermines the liberal commitment to equality of opportunity in the field of employment and, in particular, transgresses the principle of appointing on the basis of merit. Do such arguments stand up to scrutiny? Do minority language requirements in the field of employment go beyond what liberals would consider acceptable, or can a coherent defence that is clearly rooted within a liberal framework be developed?

Aitchison and Carter’s analyses of the Census over the last decades have succeeded in making the main trends concerning the spatial distribution of Welsh known to everyone with an interest in the future of the language. Even so, some aspects remain unexamined. This paper is an attempt to give a different view of the trends by presenting a number of new analyses. In the first part, language production between 1991 and 2001 that is the effect of the education system, is examined. It is shown that the introduction of the National Curriculum in Gwent led to the biggest changes. In the second part, the geographical distribution of Welsh-speakers is looked at, especially those areas where more than 70% could speak Welsh. Some indices are introduced in order to quantify the situation and to explain the significance of those areas. Lastly, the implications of spatial distribution (or social network) to the use of Welsh is discussed by consideration of a little probability theory.

Heneiddio a Gofal: Ein Cyfrifoldeb a'n Braint' – Darlith Flynyddol Edward Lhuyd y Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol a Chymdeithas Ddysgedig Cymru 2015.Traddodwyd gan yr Athro Mari Lloyd-Williams ar nos Fercher 4 Tachwedd 2015 yn y Drwm, Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru, Aberystwyth.

Ynni, Gwaith a Chymhlethdod: Saith Chwyldro Hanesyddol' - Darlith Flynyddol Edward Lhuyd y Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol a Chymdeithas Ddysgedig Cymru 2017. Traddodwyd gan yr Athro Emeritws R. Gareth Wyn Jones ar nos Iau 9 Tachwedd 2017 yn Pontio, Bangor. Yn y ddarlith hon, dehonglir hanes bywyd ar ein planed dros 4.5 biliwn blwyddyn ei bodolaeth. Dadleuir bod modd adnabod chwe chwyldro ynni ffurfiannol yn hanes ein planed. Drwy ffrwyno ffynhonnell newydd o ynni, daw'r potensial i wneud gwaith ychwanegol, sy'n arwain at gymhlethdod materol ac at gymhlethdod cymdeithasol cynyddol. Beth yw'r patrymau yn y chwe chwyldro? Beth yw eu goblygiadau ar gyfer y seithfed chwyldro, sydd ar ein gwarthaf ni heddiw?

This paper offers a brief examination of the approach taken by the Welsh Language Board, as the principal language policy and planning body in Wales, to aspects of prestige planning and the Welsh language. It describes how devolution, and the recent, first ever, national review by the Welsh Assembly Government of Welsh language policy, provide the immediate context for the work of the Welsh Language Board. The key policy document resulting from that review, Iaith Pawb, is critically analysed and the relationship to it of prestige planning is identified. The Welsh Language Board’s practice of prestige planning is discussed in relation to the discourses of neo-liberalism and post-colonialism in a way that highlights the Board’s focus on consumers rather than citizens.

The rapidly ageing population has been identified as a major global challenge; within Wales there is a growing imbalance in the age-profiles of rural communities in particular. The demands of providing appropriate healthcare for a changing population are exacerbated by lifestyle changes associated with ageing, specifically low levels of physical activity, reduced exposure to the sun and compromised ability to synthesise vitamin D. This report focuses on two important health outcomes affected by these changes that are of increasing concern within Wales: diabetes (DM2: diabetes mellitus type 2) and falls incidence. The article critically reviews the evidence base pertaining to the relationships between physical activity, vitamin D, and both the pathogenesis of DM2 and falls incidence. Current interventions are discussed and a series of recommendations for service delivery within Wales’ rural communities are presented. We argue that there is a clear role for targeting these modifiable lifestyle factors in reducing the prevalence and severity of falls and diabetes, two growing areas of social and economic concern within Wales.

Detholiad o waith Karl Marx yn ei eiriau ei hun wedi eu cyfieithu i'r Gymraeg gan W. J. Rees. Mae'r casgliad hwn yn edrych ar syniadau'r athronydd chwyldroadol ar gymdeithas a chymdeithaseg. Dyfynnir o gyhoeddiadau megis Y Teulu Sanctaidd, Yr Ideoleg Almaenaidd a Maniffesto'r Blaid Gomiwnyddol.

Detholiad o waith Karl Marx yn ei eiriau ei hun wedi eu cyfieithu i'r Gymraeg. Yma ceir disgrifiadau gan Marx ar wahanol fathau o gymdeithas, e.e. cymdeithasau cyntefig, ffiwdal, cyfalafol. Dyfynnir o gyhoeddiadau megis Y Teulu Sanctaidd, Yr Ideoleg Almaenaidd a Maniffesto'r Blaid Gomiwnyddol.

Detholiad o waith Max Weber yn ei eiriau ei hun wedi eu cyfieithu i'r Gymraeg. Weber oedd un o brif sylfaenwyr cymdeithaseg fodern a llywiodd ei ddull gweithio newydd 'Verstehen', sef dull deongliadol neu gyfranogol o astudio ffenomena gymdeithasol, y maes. Rhoddodd Weber bwyslais ar ddeall yr ystyr a phwrpas mae unigolyn yn ei roi i'w weithredoedd ei hun.

Over the last quarter century, housing has become increasingly unaffordable for thevast majority of people. This article seeks to address what has caused this situation, and what its effects are on the individual and on the community. It will also consider how unaffordable housing and the lack of housing opportunities for local people affects the Welsh language. The article will then consider the mechanisms that have been adopted both by the National Assembly for Wales and by the Whitehall Government to resolve the inter-related problems of unaffordable housing and local people being unable to afford to buy houses in their local area, and the extent to which these solutions provide answers to this dilemma that are sustainable in the long term. To conclude, suggestions of how to improve the existing frameworks will be proposed, along with more radical approaches to ensure that housing does not become a luxury commodity.