Over 1m people in Wales can sing ‘Yma o Hyd’, opinion poll shows

Over a million people in Wales can sing Yma o Hyd, a new opinion poll has suggested.

According to a survey conducted by YouGov on behalf of YesCymru, 35% confirmed that they knew at least the chorus to Dafydd Iwan’s iconic protest song, which became Wales’ anthem at the World Cup in Qatar.

On the basis of the 2021 census figures for those aged 16 and over, this means that well over a million people in Wales are able to sing some of the lyrics.

This is, of course, without including the 230,000 primary school children who learnt the song in anticipation of Wales appearance in the World Cup this year.

The poll also reveals that the Welsh parliament is trusted by considerably more people in Wales than the UK parliament.

59% trusted the Senedd while only 26% trusted Westminster to look after the interests of the people of Wales.

There has been little movement in levels of support for Independence since 2021, when YesCymru last commissioned YouGov to poll on this issue, with 29% of those polled declaring some support for Independence (or 32% with don’t knows removed).

However, 40% said that the Senedd should have more powers compared to only 28% who disagreed.

‘Durable’

Gwern Gwynfil, Yes Cymru CEO, said that the results showed that “it is very clear that the status quo is unacceptable to the Welsh population”.

“It is our responsibility in YesCymru to build a strong and convincing case for Independence to win the support of the majority and create a new Wales that can take its place on the International stage,” he said.

“We cannot be content with consistent support from a third of the population, we must persuade another third to cross the threshold to Independence.”

Elfed Williams, YesCymru Chair said: ‘’Over the past decade support for Independence in Wales has tripled. Today we stand in the same place as the Scottish campaign for Independence in 2014.

“We must continue to win the hearts and minds of Wales one by one until we too can emulate our Celtic relatives in the North and build a sweeping, durable majority in support of Welsh Independence.’’