Santes Dwynwen / Welsh Valentine's Day Welsh Phrases
Dydd Santes Dwynwen
Santes Dwynwen / Welsh Valentine's Day is called "Dydd Santes Dwynwen" in Welsh and is celebrated on 25 January. The greeting is "Dydd Santes Dwynwen Hapus!" (Happy St Dwynwen's Day!).
Dydd Santes Dwynwen is the Welsh day of love, celebrated on 25 January. While the rest of the world waits until February, Wales has its own patron saint of lovers — and its own phrases to express love.
Essential phrases
Dydd Santes Dwynwen Hapus!
Happy St Dwynwen's Day!
The greeting for Wales's day of love
Rwy'n dy garu di
I love you
The essential phrase for the day
Cariad
Love / sweetheart
The most common Welsh term of endearment
Fy nghariad
My love
Note the soft mutation: cariad → nghariad after fy
Cusana fi
Kiss me
For the bold
Dwi'n dy garu di o waelod calon
I love you from the bottom of my heart
The full declaration
Llwy garu
Love spoon
The traditional Welsh love token — carved wooden spoons
Ynys Llanddwyn
Llanddwyn Island
Dwynwen's island off Anglesey — a place of pilgrimage
Cwtch
Cuddle / safe place
The untranslatable Welsh word for a warm embrace
Annwyl
Dear / beloved
Used in letters and as a term of endearment
Ti yw'r un i fi
You are the one for me
Welsh romantic declaration
Serch
Affection / romantic love
A deeper, more poetic word for love
The history of Dydd Santes Dwynwen
Dwynwen was a 5th-century Welsh princess who, heartbroken in love, became a nun and prayed that all true lovers would find happiness. Her church on Llanddwyn Island off Anglesey became a place of pilgrimage for lovers. The celebration of Dydd Santes Dwynwen has been revived in recent decades and is now widely celebrated across Wales with cards, gifts, and special events.
Further reading
Go beyond the phrases
blas. teaches Welsh with spaced repetition — vocabulary, mutations, grammar, reading, and conversation. Not just for Santes Dwynwen / Welsh Valentine's Day, but for life. Free to start.
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