Editing Welsh language (section)

===Use at the European Union===
In November 2008, the Welsh language was used at a meeting of the European Union's [[Council of the European Union|Council of Ministers]] for the first time. The Heritage Minister [[Alun Ffred Jones]] addressed his audience in Welsh and his words were interpreted into the EU's 23 official languages. The official use of the language followed years of campaigning. Jones said "In the UK we have one of the world's major languages, English, as the mother tongue of many. But there is a diversity of languages within our islands. I am proud to be speaking to you in one of the oldest of these, Welsh, the language of Wales." He described the breakthrough as "more than [merely] symbolic" saying "Welsh might be one of the oldest languages to be used in the UK, but it remains one of the most vibrant. Our literature, our arts, our festivals, our great tradition of song all find expression through our language. And this is a powerful demonstration of how our culture, the very essence of who we are, is expressed through language."<ref>{{cite web |author=David Williamson |url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2008/11/21/breakthrough-as-minister-uses-welsh-at-eu-council-91466-22307749/ |title=Breakthrough as minister uses Welsh at EU council |date=21 November 2008 |work=[[WalesOnline]] |access-date=23 May 2010}}</ref>

[[Jill Evans]] MEP used Welsh in a number of speeches in the European Parliament. In 2004, her using Welsh was the first use of the language in the European Parliament.<ref>{{cite web |title=Welsh language debut in EU |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/4020467.stm |work=[[BBC News Online]] |date=17 November 2004 |access-date=26 June 2022}}</ref> The last time Welsh was spoken in the European Parliament was during Evans' last speech shortly before [[Brexit]].<ref>[https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/CRE-9-2020-01-29-INT-1-098-0000_EN.html Speech transcript], European Parliament, 29 January 2020, accessed 26 June 2022]</ref>