Finding their Voices: The Young-Adult Poets of the Urdd National Eisteddfod

Very little scholarly research has been undertaken on literary competitions for children and young people despite their potential in shaping and developing young writers, a process which is especially important in ensuring the vitality of minority languages. In the Welsh language, like other minority languages, published literature by young authors is often generated and celebrated through literary competitions. One such competition is the Chair competition held at the Urdd National Eisteddfod, a Welsh-language youth festival attracting around 100,000 visitors annually. The Chair competition is a poetry competition, first held in 1951, and is one of the three main literary competitions for writers between 14 and 25 years of age. This article’s focus will be on the voices of the teenage or young-adult (YA) poets between the ages of 14-19 composing in a minority language, voices that are rarely heard. By exploring these YA responses to Wales and the world at critical junctures in Welsh political history, this research will provide a new way to engage with Welsh-language YA voices. Additionally, it will demonstrate the potential of using literary competitions as a lens through which to explore YA responses to a rapidly-changing Wales in terms of politics, language, and culture. In doing so, the article will also highlight how the Urdd’s main literary competitions have contributed to fostering young Welsh-language writers to ensure the future vitality of the language.