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The greatest change in Welsh society over the course of the 20th century was the enhanced role of women and the challenge this caused to traditional concepts of the family.

In Victorian Wales, women were 'the angels of the home' and in the early 20th century the country had few ardent suffragettes. The inter-war years saw some advances, with the granting of votes to women on the same terms as men and the recognition that women's rights to their children and their property were equal to those of their husbands.

Yet in 1945 less than a quarter of the employed population was female. This proportion rose rapidly in subsequent decades, partly as a result of the decline in heavy industry.

By the 1990s, Treorchy in the Rhondda was one of many places in Wales with more working women than working men. Women's earnings, however, continued to lag behind those of men. The number of children per couple declined, a development discernable from at least the 1920s, and by the end of the 20th century the Welsh population was hardly replacing itself.

The very concept of couples was in decline with single mothers numerous, especially in areas of high social deprivation. The ability of a woman to control her fertility was an enormous break with the past; the full implications of that change have yet to be totally appreciated.

In the early 20th century, the south Wales coalfield was a magnet for immigrants from all parts of the United Kingdom, and the rural areas were characterised by massive out-migration.

By the end of the century the situation was reversed: well over 80% of the inhabitants of the coalfield were Welsh by birth, whereas in many rural areas, the proportion was below 50%.

The relative cheapness of Welsh land and rural housing, the rise of the self-sufficiency movement and the growth of electronic communications which permitted a living to be made even in the remotest areas were all factors in the increase in the number of rural immigrants, as was the demographic collapse experienced by many indigenous communities.

Migration led to considerable strains: many Welsh-speaking communities felt overwhelmed, and throughout the countryside there was tension between the pre-urban natives and the post-urban incomers.

In the early 20th century, when Cardiff had a more cosmopolitan population than any other British city apart from London, the rest of Wales had few immigrants from outside Europe. By the end of the century, the larger towns had significant communities of 'New Commonwealth' origins, causing national life to be much enriched by multi-culturalism.