What is the Welsh name for Wales?

The Welsh name for Wales is Cymru. The word is pronounced approximately “KUM-ree,” although the exact pronunciation follows Welsh sounds that do not map perfectly onto English spelling.

Cymru is the modern Welsh-language name for the country, while Cymry refers to the Welsh people. Both words are connected with an older Brittonic term commonly interpreted as meaning “fellow countrymen” or “compatriots.” The name therefore reflects an identity based on belonging to the same land or community.

The English name Wales has a very different history. It comes from an Anglo-Saxon Germanic term related to “foreigner” or “Welsh,” a label used for speakers of Celtic languages. Wales is thus an exonym—an outside name—whereas Cymru is the country’s native Welsh name.

Cymru appears widely in modern public life, including Welsh institutions, tourism campaigns, sports organizations, and bilingual signs. Welsh is an official language of Wales alongside English, and the country’s Welsh-language name is also used in the formal name Cymru Wales.