Famed for its strikingly rugged landscape, the small nation of Wales—which comprises six distinctive regions—was one of Celtic Europe’s most prominent political and cultural centers, and it retains aspects of culture that are markedly different from those of its English neighbors. Welsh is the most vibrant of the Celtic languages in terms of active speakers, and is the only Celtic language not considered endangered by UNESCO.
Some coastal caves in Wales were occupied about 200,000 years ago, during the Paleolithic Period (Old Stone Age). Additional waves of settlers arrived from continental Europe and lowland Britain during the Neolithic Period (New Stone Age) and Bronze Age, and iron-wielding Celtic peoples invaded after 2000 bce. The basic culture of these peoples survived the Roman occupation and was later strengthened and broadened by Celtic immigrations from other parts of Britain