Reaffirming Irish-Welsh Ties with New Pilgrimage Following 6th Century Celtic Saints

Pilgrimages and walking pilgrimage trails have become incredibly popular in recent years. It’s said that nearly 500,000 people travel to Spain to trek the expansive Camino de Santiago, which we’d know as the “Way of St James.” Soon, making use of the sprawling landscape on both sides of Saint George’s Channel, there’ll be an expansive pilgrimage combining Ireland and Wales.

The new pilgrimage being crafted by the British Pilgrimage Trust will follow in the ancient footsteps of St Aidan in the 6th Century. It’ll trail from Ferns in Ireland all of the way across to Wales, where St Aiden met St David. Cementing this pilgrimage across the two nations will only reaffirm and strengthen the innate bond between both nations of strong Celtic roots. Importantly for local communities, too, pilgrims spend over twice as long in the area.

Luck carries across the Irish Sea

Without a shadow of a doubt, when people get the chance to embark on this new pilgrimage, they’ll be on the lookout for the Celtic symbols of luck coveted in Wales and Ireland. The most commonly held symbol of luck between the two nations is the Celtic Cross. The theory goes that it was created to attempt to convert the Druids to Christianity, or that it represents the god of thunder, Taranis, and his wheel. Either way, it’s a lucky charm.

There’s a commonly held high degree of superstition and belief in lucky charms in Ireland and Wales, which continues to be a draw beyond the holding of a Celtic Cross or picking of a four-leaf clover today. Knowing the cultural ties of lucky Celtic symbols to these nations offers a way for modern businesses and even sports teams to connect to their audiences.

You only have to look as far as The New Saints in the Welsh Premier League or Shamrock Rovers of the Irish Premier Division to see the symbolism and ties to this similar history. Similarly, one of the reasons why the new online casino and its slots section prove so popular in both countries is its selection of these lucky symbol-inspired games. With the All Lucky Clovers trilogy and Charms and Cloves, it’s clear that they think these themes will prove popular.

As Wales and, more prominently, Ireland proved to be the last sanctuaries of the Celtic tribes when Rome came to conquer, it makes sense that their culture is much better preserved than to the east in England. When the pilgrimage opens officially, there are bound to be pilgrims who want to experience the Celtic ways on both sides of the sea and could target the Winter Solstice and Summer Solstice celebrations to do so.

Keeping the Celtic tongues alive

Both the Welsh and Irish languages are deeply Celtic dialects, but as has been found in person and online, English is becoming increasingly dominant. A Census taken last decade found that only 1.7 per cent of Irish speak Gaelic daily, while one-in-six people in Wales speak Welsh on a daily basis. So, while the Celtic Routes expand from Irish across to Wales, it may also be wise for the Irish to lean over and see how Welsh is being kept alive.

Both languages are being taught in schools and are a part of the national curriculum, but it’s clear that the Irish need some help from their cross-sea neighbours to keep it alive. Efforts in Wales had seen a bump in Welsh speakers from the 80s to the 10s, particularly because the government had to commit to the preservation of the language. This was greatly down to the work of the Welsh Language Society, which campaigned relentlessly.

The two Celtic nations will soon welcome a new wave of pilgrims to walk their stunning surroundings to retread the path of St Aidan. Being such closely-connected nations, perhaps further cultural collaborations can come from this new Celtic road.