Dic Sion Dafydd

During the late 18th century, Welsh poet John Jones published the satirical ballad Cerdd Dic Siôn Dafydd, following the story of fictional Welshman Dic Siôn Dafydd as he moves to London and begins to disdain the culture of Wales, instead adopting English culture in order to succeed in England. The ballad notes that Dafydd grew up speaking Welsh but becomes pompous after moving to London, insisting on speaking solely English even to his Welsh-speaking mother. The term Dic Siôn Dafydd has also been used as a political insult in Wales, most commonly to describe a Welsh person perceived as betraying their country for financial and political gain. As an insult, the term has been used to describe Welsh people who become part of the Establishment in Britain while ignoring their Welsh roots. It has also been used to describe Welsh people who only speak English, become Anglophiles or hold Welsh culture in low regard.

The name is also mentioned in the folk song Yma o Hyd: Several Welsh poets have written works in the style of Jones' ballad, including Talhaiarn, who published Dammeg Dic Siôn Dafydd yr Ail ("The Parable of Dic Siôn Dafydd the Second") in 1862. During the 1824 National Eisteddfod in Powys, a competition was held where satirical poems following the englyn form were submitted under the predetermined title Beddargraff Dic Siôn Dafydd ("The Epitaph of Dic Siôn Dafydd").