BILINGUALISM IN WALES
SIR,—I was amused to find a member of my own University admitting his ignorance of Welsh literature, betraying his ignorance of Welsh life and yet prepared to honour us with his opinion on the future of the Welsh language. Mr. Oliver (to whose letter in your last issue 1 refer) would be well advised to discuss his work on Wales with the Jesus Professor of Celtic or with an officer of the Dafydd ap Gwilym Society before submitting it to the Spectator.
The main language problem in Wales today is not, as Mr. Oliver suggests, the " degeneration " of Welsh into a mere " medium for gossip." On the contrary, the danger today is that Welsh should become predominantly the language of scholars and professional men. The twentieth century has proved to be one of the most fruitful periods of Welsh literary history. Some critics would rate several of • our modern writers higher than Dylan Thomas. first place in the schools. What is really significant is the growing number of gifted English-speaking Welshmen who feel the need for Welsh, master the language, and re- associate with the organic Welsh community. Is it too much to hope that Mr. Oliver, having added to his interests in Wales some know- ledge of her affairs, will eventually become one of them ?—Yours faithfully, I. BOWEN REFS Cefnydd, Dolgelley, North Wales
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