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Eich Gwefan Chi / YOUR Site on the Internet



Items on this page in alphabetic order:

A-Aberfan
A-Assembly
B-Bilingualism
C-Cardiff Bay
C-Celts
C-Chapels
C-Coal
C-Cool Cymru
C-Cymdeithas yr Iaith
Call Centres
Capel Celyn
E-Eisteddfods
I-Italian Caf‚s
M-Mari Lwyd
P-Pobl y Cym
R-Rugby
S-St David's Day
T-Twmpath
W-Wind Power




Mari Lwyd The tradition of the Mari Lwyd (Grey Mare) is being kept alive by a number of folk groups in South Wales.

The decorated horses skull was the centre of midwinter celebrations.

Shown in the photograph is the Mari Lwyd of the group Dawnswyr Cwm Rhondda, who meet regularly and perform at various events - see Local Organisations




A-Aberfan

On 21 October 1966 part of a coal tip beside the town of Aberfan near Merthyr Tydfil slipped, burying the Pant-glas junior school. 116 children and 28 adults died. Measured purely in numbers of victims the Welsh coal industry had seen worse tragedies, but the loss of so many children under such appalling circumstances has deeply affected the Welsh psyche. Today few people who are old enough to remember are unaware of what they were doing when they heard the news that day.



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A-Assembly

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In 1997 Wales voted in a referendum in favour of establishing a Welsh Assembly. The majority was extremely small and by far the largest group of voters (about half) were those who didn't vote.

The Assembly was established in Cardiff Bay, a swank new waterside quarter, about three hours by car from London and about six hours from North Wales. A new Assemlby building (planned by an English architect) is planned.

The vote was won by a curious aliance of those who wanted an assembly, those who wanted a parliament (with the power to pass laws) and those who saw it as a step toward complete Welsh independence. The present consitutional arrangments are far from certain to last a long time.

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B-Bilingualism



Penygraig Library Throughout Wales signs on public buildings are in both Welsh and English.

Appearances can, however, be deceiving. Beneath the superficial bilingualism can lie systems which operate uniquely in English.

The library in Penygraig, Rhondda Fawr.



Following the passing of the Welsh Language Act in 1993 Wales is offically a bilingual country. Road signs and official documents appearing in the press are written in both Welsh and English.

What happens beneath the surface varies extemely from one part of the country to another. In Rhondda-Cynon-Taff almost all meetings (including the governing of Welsh-speaking schools) are held in English. In Camarthenshire recently (February 2000) the appointment of a non-Welsh speaking senior education official lead to widespread protest and a reversal of the decision.

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Capel Celyn

(in preparation)

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Call Centres

At the present time (February 2000) there are about 40 Call Centres in Wales.

Some companies say that they are attracted to Wales by the attractiveness of the Welsh accent, but the cheapness of land, the willingness of Welsh people to work for less than in most other places in the UK and the willingness of the Welsh Development Agency to help out with capital costs are probably more convincing reasons.

Call centres are very popular with politicians, eager to be associated with "Jobs Created" headlines. Critics point to the stress of battery-hen working conditions for workers whose every move and every word is recorded and monitored.

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C-Cardiff Bay

Cardiff Bay has undergone extensive urban regeneration with new offices, upmarket housing, tourist attractions and hotels. The development has received an enormous boost since the decision to set up a Welsh Assembly by locating it in Cardiff Bay - in a new building designed by an English architect. The Bay itself has been dammed off with a new water level, artificially held constant, suitable for pleasure boats. In this development, original residents of the area have been little more than spectators. The barrage scheme has been particualry controversial with concern at the effect of the loss of the tidal mudflats on bird life and the maintenance of water levels perilously close to flooding surrounding residential areas. The operation of the barrage has been a matter of dispute between the Environmental Agency and the Cardiff Bay Development Corporation.


C-Celts



Graves showing cross and circle The symbol of Celtic Christianity is the cross and circle.

I it has survied in use until comparatively modern times - as these 19th Century gravestones testify.

Church graveyard in Merthyr Mawr, Glamorgan.



At one time the Celts inhabited much of Europe. Today as a result of successive invasions they have been pushed to the Western fringes of Europe. Celtic traditions live on in Western Scotland, Ireland, Wales and Brittany.

In Wales there is a resurgance of Celtic identity amongst the young. The song "Yma o hyd" by Dafydd Iwan has been adopted as an anthem by many wishing to see themselves as distinct from others in Britain. The refrain goes "Er gwaetha pawb a phopeth ..Ry'n ni yma o hyd" = "In spite of everyone and everything - We're still here!"


C-Chapels

There are a large number of disused chapels in Wales, a testimony to the decline in worship in recent generations.

The competition between Church and Chapel has extended far beyond a simple rivalry of beliefs to include matters of class, language and control of power.

Although it is something of an oversimplification, the church has been associated with families who have moved to Wales, the English-speaking, land owning gentry. The chapels have attracted the agricultural and industrial working class. The chapels have been a major factor in maintaining the Welsh language and a sense of Welsh identity.

The main confrontation took place toward the end of the last century with refusal to pay the tithe (a tax of 10% of earnings which went to the church) which caused outrage amongst the chapel-going working classes.

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C-Coal

The history of industrial South Wales over the last century and a half has been dominate by the coal industry. It has been the main source of employment, a social centre of communities, as well as the source of source of pollution and ill-health amongst miners and the source of frequent disasters, many of which resulted in the loss of over 100 lives. The worst individual disaster took place in Senghennydd in 1913, as the result of a gas explosion, with the loss of 439 men and boys.

It was also the source of industrial unrest and confrontation between miners and mine-owners, marked by events such as the Tonypandy riots, where Winston Churchill, as Home Secretary, sent in troops to restore order. A growing sense of trade-unionism and the nationalisation of the coal industry under the first postwar Labour government lead to more civilised industrial relations, although there were periodic strikes.

In 1984-85 the miners engaged in a protracted strike which was eventually lost. There followed a series of mine closures, which the miners, weakened by the strike, were not in a position to oppose. In South Wales today there exists only one major working coal mine, the Tower Colliery, which is run as a cooperative by the miners themselves.

Many believe that the closures were not a result of rational economic decision-making but an act of vengance by Margaret Thatcher against the miners who defied her authority.

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C-Cool Cymru

When Tony Blair came to power in 1997 he signaled to the the arrival of a new generation with a more informal style and youthful image. "Rule Britannia" got changed to "Cool Britannia" and (not to be outdone) Wales became "Cool Cymru". The time was marked by the rise to prominence of bands such as "Catatonia" and "Manic Street Preachers".

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C-Cymdeithas yr Iaith

By the 1960s it became clear that the future of the Welsh language was under threat. (According to census figures the period 1961-1971 saw a reduction of almost 20% in the number of Welsh speakers.) This coincided with a rise in student protest generally. The Cymdeithas yr Iaith (Welsh Language Society) sought to defend the language through pressing for official recognition of the Welsh language, often by means of direct action such as repainting road signs. The activities of Cymdeithas yr Iaith were a significant factor leading to the passing of the Welsh Language Act in 1993.

The Cumdeithas yr Iaith has its own website - see Links

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E-Eisteddfods

The modern Eisteddfod (= sitting - a meeting for the purpose of competing in poetry, music and prose) dates back about two centuries but is more the product of imagination than an accurate reconstruction of earlier bardic gatherings - complete with ceremonies conducted in druidic costume and ancient horns. The most famous Eisteddfod is the national Eisteddfod which is held annually at the beginning of August. The location changes from year to year. There is also a Youth Esiteddfod and International Eisteddfod.


I-Italian Cafés

In the 19th century there was a steadily migration of workers from Italy to Britain. Particularly in South Wales the Italians found a successful livelihood in selling ice cream - usually made in crowded home kitchens and sold from barrows. Later they were able to use the hard-earned profits to set up cafés. These were often known as "Bracchis" (pronounced "brackys") after the name of one family particularly prominent in the business.

Particularly in the period between the two world wars the Italian cafés flourished. At the peak of the coal mining industry there were as many Italian cafés as coal mines. They became more than simply places to consume coffee. They became important social centres and, particularly during the depression, places where young men could pass time and where courting couples could meet.

During the Second World War, many Italians were interned, being considered of doubtful loyalty in the war against Germany and Italy. Since the war the number has declined, although a few remain open. One of particular interest is Bacchetta's Station Café in Porth - see Local Attractions .

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M-Mari Lwyd

One of Wales's more bizarre (and perhaps macabre) traditions is that of the Mari Lwyd (Grey Mare), centred around a horse's skill, decorated with sheets ribbons.

In dark midwinter nights the Mari Lwyd would be taken from inn to inn, where its arrival would be marked by a rivaly of wit in making up verses between those inside and those outside.

The tradition is kept alive by several folk groups in South Wales. For further information, see (null)^www.folkwales.org.uk (null) .
P-Pobl y Cym

The soap opera Pobl y Cwm is the most popular single program on Welsh-language television.

It is based on tales of the frequent changes of fortune of people living in the fictitious town of "Cwm Deri" located in the Swansea Valley. Like its North of England equivalent, "Coronation Street", life is centred around a pub, called the "Deri Arms".

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R-Rugby

Rugby (a game which is significantly different to American Rugby Football) is followed with such passion that at times of key internationals everything else disappears from conversation and on match days a significant fracftion of the male population disappears from many of the valleys.

To get the flavour of what it is all about, it is best to visit the Gwlad website - see Links

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S-St David's Day

St David is Wales's patron saint and on the anniversary of his death (1 March) many people appear in public wearing a daffodil. For more information about Saint David - see Famous Figures in Welsh History

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Two dancers
The Twmpath

The twmpath is a traditional form of Welsh dancing - rather like the Welsh version of a barn dance.

It is a tradition kept alive by a number of clubs and groups of dancers, some of whom dance in tradtional costume.

Two dancers from the Bridgend-based group Dawnswyr Penybont perform at an event in Penrhys organised by the CYD and Menter Iaith




T-Twmpath

The twmpath is a tradtional Welsh form of dancing, rather like a barn dance, based on cirles and squares and in which partners are changed as the dance progresses.

It is a lively social occasion, bringing together people of all generations.

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W-Wind Power



Wind Turbines
Wind Power in Wales

Wind Power is a controversial issue in Wales, seen by some as an ideal clean and renewable source of energy and by others as a blot on the landscape and a deterrent to tourism.

Wind Power benefits from subsidy for non-fossil fuels, a subsidy also enjoyed by nuclear power. Many environmentalists see the manner in which the subsidy is administered as a barrier to small-scale unobtrusive schemes and one which promotes instead large scale developments in optimal wind harnassing sites, which also are places where their visual impact is greatest.

The turbines in the photograph are located at Penrhiw, near Bridgend.



A recent addition to the Welsh landscape has been the arrival of clusters of electricity-generating windmills. This arrival has not been without controversy, with objections being made on the ground that it ruins sites of natural beauty and has a detrimental effect on tourism.

Environmental groups, whilst welcoming the development of renewable energy, are concerned that the system of subsidies, intended to reduce reliance on fossil fuels, encourage large-scale developments in locations where the impact on the landscape is greatest.

A recent successful example of self-reliance on a small scale has been the establishment of a small-scale wind-power development by local farmers under the name "Cwmni Gwynt Teg" (=Fair Wind Company).

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This page was last updated on 12 December 2000 __________ Back to:net-cymru Home Page