welsh speaking

[karenjames6]

Hi i just wondered if how far back in wales pembrokeshire they would have been speaking proper welsh or would it have been english. my family goes back so far approx 1770s or mayby even further. as far as i know they were all born in pembrokeshire.. would they have had a languege of there own up there then and how far back would it have started from karen

[Ladkyis]

Karenjames you don't say where you live so I don't know how much you know about where Pembrokeshire is in Wales so I'll try and paint a verbal picture.

The map of Wales looks like a pigs head with the ear (the Lleyn Peninsula) pointing forward at the top and the snout at the bottom formed by Pembrokeshire

http://www.visitpembrokeshire.com/map_search.asp

This shows a map of Pembrokeshire.

Welsh is the first language of the north of the county while the south of the county is or was mostly English speaking to the extent that it used to be called "Little England beyond Wales" This probably came about during mediaeval times. Welsh has been spoken in Pembrokeshire for as long as Welsh has been a language.

Hope this helps a little

Ann