Welsh Canadian
Encyclopedia
As of 2006 440,965 Canadian identify themselves as having some Welsh
descent, with 27,115 of these identifying as exclusively Welsh.
, who led an expedition to find the Northwest Passage
in 1612. Other early Welsh in Canada came after the signing of the Treaty of Paris
in 1763 and following the aftermath of the American Revolution
(1775–1783). Welsh mapmaker David Thompson
was one of the great explorers of the North West Company in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, and is often called "Canada's Greatest Geographer." He covered 130,000 kilometres on foot and surveyed most of the Canada-United States border in the early days of exploration.
One of the first efforts to encourage Welsh emigration to Canada began in 1812, when Welsh native John Mathews
endeavoured to bring his family to Canada. Mathews left home at a young age and went on to become a successful businessman in the United States
. When he returned to Wales, he found his family living in poverty and became convinced they should emigrate to Canada. In 1817 his family settled in the township of Southwald, near what is now London, Ontario
. By 1812 he had brought over more relatives who built homes on the 100 acre (0.404686 km²) lots granted to them by Colonel Thomas Talbot. The colony attracted 385 Welsh settlers by 1850 and retained its predominantly Welsh character until the late 1870s.
Early Welsh immigration to Canada was also spurred on by the Cariboo Gold Rush
in British Columbia
in 1858. The development of underground mining provided employment for many Welsh coal miners who decided to remain in the area.
In 1902 Welsh immigrants arrived from Patagonia
, which had been incorporated into Argentina
in 1881. Compulsory military service and a series of floods that ruined Welsh farmers' crops led to some emigrants resettling in Bangor, Saskatchewan, where they once again took up farming. A community of Welsh farmers was also established at Wood River near Ponoka, Alberta
.
had the highest number of people of Welsh descent with about 60,000.
Many Welsh people came to Alberta at the turn of the century. Most came from the mining and industrial regions of Wales to work in the coal mines around Edmonton
, where they soon became active in the trade union movement. David Milwyn Duggan
, a Welshman, was the mayor of Edmonton from 1921 to 1923.
Today the Welsh community in Alberta is served by three main organizations: The Calgary Welsh Society, St. David's Welsh Society of Edmonton and the Ponoka Welsh Society. These associations function primarily as social clubs, featuring lectures, films and dinner meetings on a regular basis. The St. David's Welsh Society of Edmonton is a regular participant in the city's Heritage Days event, and in 2005 the group will celebrate its centennial anniversary. Welsh people are famous worldwide for music and song, and choirs are often a part of Welsh community associations. This stems from the bard
ic tradition in Wales. The St. David's Welsh Male Voice Choir of Edmonton has existed for over 100 years and performs several times throughout the year.
, Ponoka, Calgary
, Red Deer, Edmonton
and Fort McMurray.
A newsletter serves the Welsh communities in Calgary and Lethbridge, while in Edmonton the St. David's Society issues a bulletin twice a year informing its members about upcoming events. Some Welsh Canadians subscribe to Ninnau, the Welsh national newspaper published in New York.
Welsh-Canadians have been active in the country's cultural life, supplying Canada with some of its more lively characters including novelist Robertson Davies
, Powys Thomas, co-founder of the national theatre school, and Robert Harris
, painter of the Fathers of Confederation.
seminars in-person and online and attempts to teach the Welsh language are being made across the country.
Welsh people
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.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, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
descent, with 27,115 of these identifying as exclusively Welsh.
The Welsh in Canada
The first Welshman to arrive in Canada is believed to have been Sir Thomas ButtonThomas Button
Sir Thomas Button was a Welsh officer of the Royal Navy and explorer who in 1612–1613 commanded an expedition that unsuccessfully attempted to locate explorer Henry Hudson and to navigate the Northwest Passage. It was, nonetheless, a voyage of discovery andThomas Button was an explorer as...
, who led an expedition to find the Northwest Passage
Northwest Passage
The Northwest Passage is a sea route through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways amidst the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans...
in 1612. Other early Welsh in Canada came after the signing of the Treaty of Paris
Treaty of Paris (1763)
The Treaty of Paris, often called the Peace of Paris, or the Treaty of 1763, was signed on 10 February 1763, by the kingdoms of Great Britain, France and Spain, with Portugal in agreement. It ended the French and Indian War/Seven Years' War...
in 1763 and following the aftermath of the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
(1775–1783). Welsh mapmaker David Thompson
David Thompson (explorer)
David Thompson was an English-Canadian fur trader, surveyor, and map-maker, known to some native peoples as "Koo-Koo-Sint" or "the Stargazer"...
was one of the great explorers of the North West Company in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, and is often called "Canada's Greatest Geographer." He covered 130,000 kilometres on foot and surveyed most of the Canada-United States border in the early days of exploration.
One of the first efforts to encourage Welsh emigration to Canada began in 1812, when Welsh native John Mathews
John Mathews
John Mathews may refer to:* John Mathews , Governor of South Carolina in 1782 and 1783* John Mathews * Fr. John Mathews, Professor of New Testament, India...
endeavoured to bring his family to Canada. Mathews left home at a young age and went on to become a successful businessman in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. When he returned to Wales, he found his family living in poverty and became convinced they should emigrate to Canada. In 1817 his family settled in the township of Southwald, near what is now London, Ontario
London, Ontario
London is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada, situated along the Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. The city has a population of 352,395, and the metropolitan area has a population of 457,720, according to the 2006 Canadian census; the metro population in 2009 was estimated at 489,274. The city...
. By 1812 he had brought over more relatives who built homes on the 100 acre (0.404686 km²) lots granted to them by Colonel Thomas Talbot. The colony attracted 385 Welsh settlers by 1850 and retained its predominantly Welsh character until the late 1870s.
Early Welsh immigration to Canada was also spurred on by the Cariboo Gold Rush
Cariboo Gold Rush
The Cariboo Gold Rush was a gold rush in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Although the first gold discovery was made in 1859 at Horsefly Creek, followed by more strikes at Keithley Creek and Antler Horns lake in 1860, the actual rush did not begin until 1861, when these discoveries were...
in British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
in 1858. The development of underground mining provided employment for many Welsh coal miners who decided to remain in the area.
In 1902 Welsh immigrants arrived from Patagonia
Patagonia
Patagonia is a region located in Argentina and Chile, integrating the southernmost section of the Andes mountains to the southwest towards the Pacific ocean and from the east of the cordillera to the valleys it follows south through Colorado River towards Carmen de Patagones in the Atlantic Ocean...
, which had been incorporated into Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
in 1881. Compulsory military service and a series of floods that ruined Welsh farmers' crops led to some emigrants resettling in Bangor, Saskatchewan, where they once again took up farming. A community of Welsh farmers was also established at Wood River near Ponoka, Alberta
Ponoka, Alberta
Ponoka is a town in the province of Alberta, Canada. It is situated in the south/central parkland region of rolling hills. Industries are agriculture , and oil and gas production...
.
Welsh in Alberta
In a 2001 census, AlbertaAlberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
had the highest number of people of Welsh descent with about 60,000.
Many Welsh people came to Alberta at the turn of the century. Most came from the mining and industrial regions of Wales to work in the coal mines around Edmonton
Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
, where they soon became active in the trade union movement. David Milwyn Duggan
David Milwyn Duggan
David Milwyn Duggan was a politician in Alberta, Canada, a mayor of Edmonton, a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, and a leader of the Conservative Party of Alberta.-Early life:...
, a Welshman, was the mayor of Edmonton from 1921 to 1923.
Today the Welsh community in Alberta is served by three main organizations: The Calgary Welsh Society, St. David's Welsh Society of Edmonton and the Ponoka Welsh Society. These associations function primarily as social clubs, featuring lectures, films and dinner meetings on a regular basis. The St. David's Welsh Society of Edmonton is a regular participant in the city's Heritage Days event, and in 2005 the group will celebrate its centennial anniversary. Welsh people are famous worldwide for music and song, and choirs are often a part of Welsh community associations. This stems from the bard
Bard
In medieval Gaelic and British culture a bard was a professional poet, employed by a patron, such as a monarch or nobleman, to commemorate the patron's ancestors and to praise the patron's own activities.Originally a specific class of poet, contrasting with another class known as fili in Ireland...
ic tradition in Wales. The St. David's Welsh Male Voice Choir of Edmonton has existed for over 100 years and performs several times throughout the year.
Welsh Culture in Canada
Welsh festivals in Canada today include Eisteddfodau, and Gymanfa Ganu. The Welsh in Canada celebrate St. David's Day, the celebrations include storytelling and singing; banquets are also held in LethbridgeLethbridge
Lethbridge is a city in the province of Alberta, Canada, and the largest city in southern Alberta. It is Alberta's fourth-largest city by population after Calgary, Edmonton and Red Deer, and the third-largest by area after Calgary and Edmonton. The nearby Canadian Rockies contribute to the city's...
, Ponoka, Calgary
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
, Red Deer, Edmonton
Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
and Fort McMurray.
A newsletter serves the Welsh communities in Calgary and Lethbridge, while in Edmonton the St. David's Society issues a bulletin twice a year informing its members about upcoming events. Some Welsh Canadians subscribe to Ninnau, the Welsh national newspaper published in New York.
Welsh-Canadians have been active in the country's cultural life, supplying Canada with some of its more lively characters including novelist Robertson Davies
Robertson Davies
William Robertson Davies, CC, OOnt, FRSC, FRSL was a Canadian novelist, playwright, critic, journalist, and professor. He was one of Canada's best-known and most popular authors, and one of its most distinguished "men of letters", a term Davies is variously said to have gladly accepted for himself...
, Powys Thomas, co-founder of the national theatre school, and Robert Harris
Robert Harris (painter)
Robert Harris was a Welsh-born Canadian painter most noted for his portrait of the Fathers of Confederation....
, painter of the Fathers of Confederation.
Welsh Language in Canada
In Alberta, it is easy to find Welsh languageWelsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
seminars in-person and online and attempts to teach the Welsh language are being made across the country.
See also
- WalesWalesWales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
- Welsh (ethnicity)Welsh peopleThe Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.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, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
- Welsh AmericanWelsh AmericanWelsh Americans are citizens of the United States whose ancestry originates wholly or partly in Wales. In the 2008 U.S. Census community survey, an estimated 1.98 million Americans had Welsh ancestry, 0.6% of the total U.S. population. This compares with a population of 3 million in Wales. However,...
- Welsh Argentine