Editing Dafydd Iwan (section)

==Musical career==
Iwan's earliest material was Welsh translations of songs by American folk/protest singers ([[Woody Guthrie]], [[Pete Seeger]], and [[Bob Dylan]]) until he began to write his first ballads. The most prominent of these were political, including the [[satire|satirical]] song, "Carlo" ("Charles"). This was written for the [[Investiture of Charles, Prince of Wales|investiture of the Prince of Wales]] in 1969.<ref name=Blerwytirhwng>{{cite book|last=Hill|first=Sarah|title=Blerwytirhwng? The Place of Welsh Pop Music|year=2007|publisher=Ashgate Publishing Ltd|location=Aldershot|chapter=Dafydd Iwan and the New Welsh 'Folk Culture'}}</ref> Iwan has also written love ballads and variations on traditional Welsh folk tunes.{{citation needed|date=April 2016}}

By the late 1960s, he was receiving television coverage both for his music and for his political activities as a member of [[Cymdeithas yr Iaith]]. He was imprisoned in 1970 for his refusal to pay fines for defacing English-language road signs as part of the fight for [[Welsh language|Welsh-language]] rights, serving three weeks of a three-month sentence. This event was commemorated in his song "Pam fod eira'n wyn?" ("Why is snow white?").<ref>{{cite web|title=Dafydd Iwan biography|url=http://www.sainwales.com/artists/dafydd-iwan|website=Sainwales.com|access-date=2 March 2013|archive-date=22 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170822180008/http://www.sainwales.com/artists/dafydd-iwan|url-status=dead}}</ref> His song "Peintio'r byd yn wyrdd" ("Painting the World Green") was regarded as a "battle hymn" of the road signs campaign.<ref name="wynjames"/>

During the 1970s, his political interests (and songs) took in such themes as [[Chile under Pinochet|Pinochet's Chile]], [[Welsh devolution]], the [[Vietnam War]] and the [[Northern Ireland]] [[The Troubles|troubles]]. Later songs mention events such as the [[Tiananmen Square protests of 1989|Tiananmen Square massacre]] (1989), the [[Gulf War]] (1990) and opencast mining in the [[south Wales valleys]] (1995).

In 1982 and 1983, Iwan embarked on two tours (and accompanying records) with the folk group [[Ar Log]].

Around the turn of the millennium, he signalled an end to regular performances, although he remains an occasional performer.

=== Yma o Hyd ===
"[[Yma O Hyd]]" ("Still Here") was released in 1981 to “raise the spirits, to remind people we still speak Welsh against all odds. To show we are still here". Since then, the song has become an unofficial Welsh anthem as well as an unofficial anthem for the [[Wales national football team]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-06-02 |title=Yma o Hyd: the defiant Welsh folk song that's been 1,600 years in the making |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/jun/02/dafydd-iwan-yma-o-hyd-welsh-football-anthem |access-date=2022-06-05 |website=the Guardian |language=en}}</ref>

In January 2020, the song reached number one in the UK iTunes chart, spurred on by purchases by supporters of Welsh independence group [[YesCymru]]. The campaign mirrored the success of the [[The Wolfe Tones|Wolfe Tones]] song "[[Come Out, Ye Black and Tans]]" earlier that month.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.walesonline.co.uk/whats-on/music-nightlife-news/dafydd-iwan-welsh-independence-itunes-17553872|title=A Welsh folk legend is outselling Stormzy in the iTunes charts|last=Stephens|first=Lydia|date=12 January 2020|website=Walesonline.co.uk|access-date=12 January 2020}}</ref>

The song was also sung live by Dafydd Iwan before Wales' last two games of their first successful [[FIFA World Cup qualification]] since 1958. [[Gareth Bale]], the Welsh captain also led the Welsh team singing along with Dafydd Iwan after the final match.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mitchelmore |first=Ian |date=2022-03-28 |title=The player behind Dafydd Iwan's iconic Yma o Hyd rendition revealed |url=https://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/player-behind-dafydd-iwans-iconic-23522259 |access-date=2022-06-05 |website=WalesOnline |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Williams |first=Glen |date=2022-06-05 |title=Gareth Bale leads brilliant rendition of Yma o Hyd after Wales beat Ukraine |url=https://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/gareth-bale-leads-incredible-rendition-24151855 |access-date=2022-06-05 |website=WalesOnline |language=en}}</ref> The performance and Wales's qualification led to the song returning to number one in the UK iTunes chart.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Lewis |first1=Thomas |last2=Jones |first2=John |date=2022-06-08 |title=Dafydd Iwan's Yma O Hyd gets to number one in the charts |url=https://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/football/wales-fans-campaign-dafydd-iwan-24169817 |access-date=2022-10-31 |website=WalesOnline |language=en}}</ref>