Celtic nations

The Celtic nations, also called the Celtic countries, are a group of regions in Northwestern Europe where Celtic languages and cultural traits have survived into the modern era. Six are widely recognised: Brittany, Cornwall, Ireland, the Isle of Man, Scotland and Wales. In each of them a Celtic language is spoken to some extent, from the Brittonic family in Brittany, Cornwall and Wales and from the Goidelic family in Scotland, Ireland and the Isle of Man. Galicia in Spain is also often counted. Cornish and Manx lost their last traditional community speakers but have been revived by learners. The idea rests on the linguistic work of Edward Lhuyd in the early eighteenth century and is promoted today by pan-Celtic bodies such as the Celtic League and the Celtic Congress. It is a cultural and linguistic grouping, not a state or an administrative unit.