The romantic idea of Wales as a 'nation' only really took off in the past century; perhaps I should have said 'late 19th/early 20th century'.
The wikipedia source you quote itself says 'Michael D. Jones is recognised as the first to advocate a political solution to defending Welsh identity, and therefore is seen as one of the most significant forerunners of Welsh nationalism'.
So much for the 'ancient nation' of Wales if its 'most significant forerunner' died in 1898! The notion of welsh 'nationalism' was dreamt up as a political excuse for preserving the welsh language. There is absolutely no historical continuity between the 'nationalism' of the various bickering welsh tribes and princelings before the English conquest and that invented by people like Michael D. Jones. The Welsh 'nationalist' movement today indulges in a lot of flagrant historical revisionism in relation to this.
Of course, I'm don't object to the preservation of the Welsh language, but it's no reason to invent a 'nation' that never was.


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