WALES, CHURCH IN

independent Anglican church in Wales that changed from the Roman Catholic faith during the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century. At the time of the Reformation, the Welsh church was directly controlled by the English church and was thus separated from Rome when Henry VIII declared himself the head of the Church of England (1534). Christianity in Wales dates from at least the 4th century, and by the 7th century Roman and Celtic missionaries had converted the entire country. When the pagan Anglo-Saxons invaded Britain in the 5th century, Wales became one of the strongholds of the Celtic church. It clung to its independence and refused to submit to the rules and customs of the Roman Catholic church until the 12th century, when the archbishop of Canterbury gained supremacy over the Welsh Christians. The Reformation was generally accepted with little dissent in Wales, but in the 17th and 18th centuries the church went through a period of decay, primarily because of lack of leadership from Englishmen who were appointed to important positions in the Welsh church. When the Methodist revival began in the 18th century, the majority of the Welsh people left the Welsh Anglican church and joined the new church. Because Anglicanism subsequently had little following in Wales, the church was disestablished in 1920. It gained in numbers and strength after disestablishment. The Church in Wales forms one province made up of six dioceses. The bishops of the dioceses are elected by representatives from the dioceses, and they elect one of their number as archbishop of the church. Cultural life Although united politically, administratively, and economically with England since the Act of Union of 1536, Wales has been able to preserve, maintain, and develop a somewhat independent cultural identity. It is the interplay between English and Welsh elements-sometimes united, sometimes independent, and sometimes in conflict-that characterizes contemporary cultural life in Wales. A more distinctive perception of Welsh identity emerged in the final decades of the 20th century, arguably underpinning support for creation of the National Assembly for Wales, which was approved by referendum in 1997. Wales may be described as possessing a Welsh-speaking, rural north and west and an English-speaking, urban, and industrial south and east. The Welsh-speaking areas long considered themselves culturally Welsh rather than British, and during the 20th century many Welsh thus sought connections to a wider pan-Celtic network of minority groups such as Bretons, Basques, and Galicians. The English-speaking areas, on the other hand, largely rejected definitions of Welsh identity that were too closely allied to the Welsh language, and some promoted an alternative cosmopolitanism. By the early 21st century the divide between the two groups had begun to break down as a wider sense of inclusive Welshness took hold. The process was reinforced by the revival of the Welsh language in South Wales and its widespread presence in the media. Harold Carter Pyrs Gruffudd Daily life Daily life in Wales varies markedly by region. Social advantage and deprivation can exist side by side, particularly in parts of South Wales. The population also varies in terms of its cultural diversity, from the cosmopolitanism of Cardiff to the traditionally monolithic industrial communities. Although rural Wales has often been described as a cultural heartland, many of its small towns have lost a measure of their cultural, and especially linguistic, distinctiveness. Nonetheless, many parts of northern and western Wales remain predominantly Welsh-speaking, and people there may live their daily lives largely through the medium of Welsh, perhaps including their places of employment. Children receive Welsh-language instruction at preschool, primary, and secondary levels, and some courses at the University of Wales are taught in Welsh in addition to those focusing on the Welsh language and literature. Wales celebrates the national holidays of Great Britain. In addition many institutions have effectively made St. David's Day (March 1), the feast day of the patron saint of Wales, into a Welsh holiday. The country's cuisine exhibits the universalizing tendencies of Western culture (with fast food restaurants and processed foods), though some traditional dishes remain popular, including cawl (a light soup containing lamb), Welsh cakes (small fruit scones cooked on a griddle), bara brith (a rich fruit bread), and laver bread (a red seaweed typically fried with oatmeal and cockles). The Welsh people have enjoyed a revival of traditional foods and of organic farming, with notable contributions from migrants to rural Wales. The long heritage of some groups with Italian ancestry, particularly in South Wales, is manifest in the large number of family-owned ice cream producers as well as in cafes that are known locally as Bracchis.