South Pembrokeshire - Wales - Heritage Tourism, Ancestry, DNA and Economic Patriotism.

As of 2017 the tourism industry in Wales has been estimated to have had an annual turnover of ￡4.8 billion. This Group is focused on Economic Patriotism by helping regrow Heritage Tourism after COVID-19. Encouraging Pembrokeshire's Residents, Visitors, and Diaspora to learn more about Pembrokeshire's fascinating heritage and its ancestors. Little England beyond Wales is a name applied to an area of southern Pembrokeshire and southwestern Carmarthenshire in Wales, which has been English in language and culture for many centuries despite its remoteness from England. Its origins may lie in the Irish, Norse, Norman, Flemish and Saxon settlement that took place in this area more than in other areas of southwest Wales. Its northern boundary is known as the Landsker Line.

Background- Forbes Dec 7, 2019 - "Early this year, an MIT Technology Review report estimated that more than 26 million people have turned to DNA-testing companies to get their genomes analyzed. “If the pace continues, the gene troves could hold data on the genetic makeup of more than 100 million people within 24 months,” the article projected. Once customers receive their results, many plan a bucket-list trip to a country they may not have previously visited.

The travel industry has embraced the DNA travel trend with gusto. Late last spring, Airbnb partnered with 23andMe to offer trip-planning guides for heritage travel. EF Go Ahead Tours has teamed up with Ancestry.com to offer heritage tours. Each trip, which includes an AncestryDNA kit and pre-trip family history review, is accompanied by a geneaologist.

The rise of DNA travel is also prevalent on Airbnb. Since 2014, the number of travelers using Airbnb for tracing their roots increased by 500 percent, and 78 percent of these trips are taken in pairs or solo, suggesting that these are introspective journeys or an important moment to share with a significant other. Additionally, as our guests grow older, their desire to understand their roots grows as well — guests aged 60-90 are the most likely to take heritage travel trips. And the most popular places of origin for DNA trips are the places typically known for their history of immigration 

In addition, a few European destinations now bend over backward to help travelers track down their ancestral homes. Tourism Ireland, for example, has an entire section of its website dedicated to helping U.S. tourists with Irish roots figure out whether their forefathers hailed from the streets of Dublin or the wilds of Connemara. VisitScotland has a step-by-step guide to uncovering your Scottish connections."

As Gemma Treharne-Foose wrote on 31 Oct 2017 “The only mistake a country can make – is not to connect with its diaspora. Just as the global Irish have been a massive asset to Ireland, so the global Welsh could be a huge asset to Wales."

Whether through historic links or genealogical ties, cultural exchanges born out of mutual desire to reach out beyond borders, legendary figures, or more trivial connections, Wales has always interacted vigorously with the rest of the world. Dylan Moore and Jim Morphy present Wales Arts Review’s far from definitive A-Z of the Welsh Diaspora.

"It would be disingenuous, perhaps, not to start in the Americas, the original New World, which has long been home to Diaspora communities from across the globe. Wales is unique in that despite its rich and extensive connections across North America, outlined below and explored further by Cath Barton in her interview with Lorin Morgan-Richards, its most famous ‘colony’ is that at Y Wladfa in Patagonia, Argentina. The 150th anniversary of the area’s settlement by those original Cymric pioneers in 2015 will mark the end of Y Wladfa’s obscure pub quiz question status and lead to wider recognition of the reality and wonder of Welsh-speaking communities halfway across the world. DATE: 31.10.13  WRITTEN BY: WALES ARTS REVIEW  POSTED IN: ARTICLES, COMMENT https://www.walesartsreview.org/an-a-z-of-the-welsh-diaspora/

Thank you for reading my article - Please join our Group which is focused on Economic Patriotism by helping regrow Heritage Tourism after COVID-19. Encouraging Pembrokeshire's Residents, Visitors, and Diaspora to learn more about Pembrokeshire's fascinating heritage and its ancestors. Alan MacKelworth https://www.dhirubhai.net/groups/12382098/