100-570: Abergavenny ( / ˌ æ b ər ɡ ə ˈ v ɛ n i / ; Welsh : Y Fenni , pronounced [ə ˈvɛnɪ] , archaically Abergafenni , ' mouth of the River Gavenny ' ) is a market town and community in Monmouthshire , Wales . Abergavenny is promoted as a "Gateway to Wales"; it is approximately 6 miles (10 km) from the border with England and is located where the A40 trunk road and
200-412: A Royalist who changed sides, and other Parliamentarians . In 1639, Abergavenny received a charter of incorporation under the title of bailiff and burgesses . A charter with extended privileges was drafted in 1657, but appears never to have been enrolled or to have come into effect. Owing to the refusal of the chief officers of the corporation to take the oath of allegiance to William III in 1688,
300-441: A Welsh Language Scheme, which indicates its commitment to the equality of treatment principle. This is sent out in draft form for public consultation for a three-month period, whereupon comments on it may be incorporated into a final version. It requires the final approval of the now defunct Welsh Language Board ( Bwrdd yr Iaith Gymraeg ). Thereafter, the public body is charged with implementing and fulfilling its obligations under
400-586: A Welsh-language edge inscription was used on pound coins dated 1985, 1990 and 1995, which circulated in all parts of the UK prior to their 2017 withdrawal. The wording is Pleidiol wyf i'm gwlad (Welsh for 'True am I to my country'), and derives from the national anthem of Wales, " Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau ". UK banknotes are in English only. Some shops employ bilingual signage. Welsh sometimes appears on product packaging or instructions. The UK government has ratified
500-647: A census glossary of terms to support the release of results from the census, including their definition of "main language" as referring to "first or preferred language" (though that wording was not in the census questionnaire itself). The wards in England with the most people giving Welsh as their main language were the Liverpool wards of Central and Greenbank ; and Oswestry South in Shropshire . The wards of Oswestry South (1.15%), Oswestry East (0.86%) and St Oswald (0.71%) had
600-415: A character in the second season, Thomas Watkins , the devious Bellamy family chauffeur , who comes from Abergavenny. In the 1979 spinoff of Upstairs, Downstairs titled Thomas & Sarah , Watkins and Sarah Moffat , another major character, marry and return briefly to Abergavenny. * Much of the 1996 film, Intimate Relations starring Julie Walters , Rupert Graves , Les Dennis and Amanda Holden ,
700-405: A fair amount. 56 per cent of Welsh speakers speak the language daily, and 19 per cent speak the language weekly. The Welsh Government plans to increase the number of Welsh-language speakers to one million by 2050. Since 1980, the number of children attending Welsh-medium schools has increased, while the number going to Welsh bilingual and dual-medium schools has decreased. Welsh is considered
800-399: A new language altogether. The argued dates for the period of "Primitive Welsh" are widely debated, with some historians' suggestions differing by hundreds of years. The next main period is Old Welsh ( Hen Gymraeg , 9th to 11th centuries); poetry from both Wales and Scotland has been preserved in this form of the language. As Germanic and Gaelic colonisation of Britain proceeded,
900-579: A nuclear attack. It was closed in 1968 but reopened in 1973 due to the closure of a bunker near Brynmawr . It closed in 1991 on the stand down of the ROC. It remains mostly intact. The title of Baron Abergavenny was first held by the Beauchamp family. In the late 14th century the reversion of the feudal marcher barony (with the castle, town and surrounding lands appurtenant) was purchased from John Hastings, 3rd Earl of Pembroke, who had no heirs, by William Beauchamp,
1000-605: A rock choir, shire horses, motorcycling stunts, vintage cars and steam engines. The Country and Western Music Festival is attended by enthusiasts of country music . It marked its third year in 2016 and was attended by acts including Ben Thompson, LA Country and many more. The event was last held in 2017. The Abergavenny Writing Festival began in April 2016 and is a celebration of writing and the written word. The Abergavenny Arts Festival, first held in 2018, celebrates arts in their broadest sense and showcases amateur and professional artists from
1100-479: A single discourse (known in linguistics as code-switching ). Welsh speakers are largely concentrated in the north and west of Wales, principally Gwynedd , Conwy County Borough , Denbighshire , Anglesey , Carmarthenshire , north Pembrokeshire , Ceredigion , parts of Glamorgan , and north-west and extreme south-west Powys . However, first-language and other fluent speakers can be found throughout Wales. Welsh-speaking communities persisted well into
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#17328475036661200-555: A small party in via the Market Street gate at midnight. They were able to open the gate and allow a much larger party who set fire to the town and plundered its churches and homes leaving Abergavenny Castle intact. Market Street has been referred to as "Traitors' Lane" thereafter. In 1404 Abergavenny was declared its own nation by Ieuan ab Owain Glyndŵr , illegitimate son of Owain Glyndŵr . The arrangement lasted approximately two weeks. At
1300-680: A supermarket, car park, and library. In January 2012 the Welsh Government announced the repeal of the Abergavenny Improvement Acts of 1854 to 1871 which obliged the holding of a livestock market within the boundaries of Abergavenny town; that repeal being effective from 26 March 2012. The county council, which requested that the Abergavenny Improvement Acts be repealed, supported plans for a new cattle market to be established about 10 miles (16 km) from Abergavenny in countryside at Bryngwyn, some 3 miles (5 km) from Raglan . There
1400-491: A tramroad and the later mainline railway. The high ground at either side is formed by a legacy of the last ice age, the recessional Llanfoist moraine which underlies both the village which gives it its name, the town centre and the Nevill Hall area . The older parts of the town north of its centre are built upon a relatively flat-lying alluvial fan extending west from the area of St Mary's Priory to Cantref and of similar age to
1500-516: Is an electoral ward in Abergavenny , Monmouthshire . The ward elects councillors to Abergavenny Town Council and Monmouthshire County Council . The ward covers an area south and east of the town centre, including Abergavenny Castle itself in the western corner and the residential areas west of the mainline railway line. According to the 2011 UK Census the population of the ward 1,797. Up to three town councillors are elected or co-opted from
1600-602: Is available throughout Europe on satellite and online throughout the UK. Since the digital switchover was completed in South Wales on 31 March 2010, S4C Digidol became the main broadcasting channel and fully in Welsh. The main evening television news provided by the BBC in Welsh is available for download. There is also a Welsh-language radio station, BBC Radio Cymru , which was launched in 1977. Castle (Abergavenny ward) Castle
1700-594: Is close to the town centre and includes the Melville Theatre, which hosts a range of live events. The town held its first Abergavenny Arts Festival in 2018 and also hosts the Abergavenny Food Festival in September each year. William Shakespeare 's play Henry VIII features the character Lord Abergavenny. In 1968 "Abergavenny" was the title of a UK single by Marty Wilde . In 1969, it was also released in
1800-420: Is evidenced by the dropping of final syllables from Brittonic: * bardos 'poet' became bardd , and * abona 'river' became afon . Though both Davies and Jackson cite minor changes in syllable structure and sounds as evidence for the creation of Old Welsh, Davies suggests it may be more appropriate to refer to this derivative language as Lingua Britannica rather than characterising it as
1900-510: Is home to an award-winning brass band. Formed in Abergavenny prior to 1884, the band were joint National Welsh League Champions in 2006 and joint National Welsh League Champions in 2011. The band also operates a Junior Band training local young musicians. The Borough Theatre in Abergavenny town centre hosts live events covering drama, opera, ballet, music, children's events, dance, comedy, storytelling, tribute bands and talks. The Melville Centre
2000-503: Is located strategically just south of the town centre overlooking the River Usk . It was built in about 1067 by the Norman baron Hamelin de Ballon to guard against incursions by the Welsh from the hills to the north and west. All that remains is defensive ditches and the ruins of the stone keep, towers, and part of the curtain wall. It is a Grade I listed building . Various markets are held in
2100-617: Is spoken by smaller numbers of people in Canada and the United States descended from Welsh immigrants, within their households (especially in Nova Scotia ). Historically, it has also been known in English as "British", "Cambrian", "Cambric" and "Cymric". The Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011 gave the Welsh language official status in Wales. Welsh and English are de jure official languages of
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#17328475036662200-736: The Ardal South East league (tier 3) for the 2021–22 season. It is also the home of Abergavenny RFC , a rugby union club founded in 1875 that plays at Bailey Park, Abergavenny . In the 2018–19 season, they play in the Welsh Rugby Union Division Three East A league. Abergavenny Hockey Club, formed in 1897, currently play at the Abergavenny Leisure Centre on Old Hereford Road. Abergavenny Cricket Club play at Pen-y-Pound , Avenue Road and Glamorgan CCC also play some of their games here. Abergavenny Cricket Club
2300-494: The 2016 Australian census , 1,688 people noted that they spoke Welsh. In the 2011 Canadian census , 3,885 people reported Welsh as their first language . According to the 2021 Canadian census , 1,130 people noted that Welsh was their mother tongue. The 2018 New Zealand census noted that 1,083 people in New Zealand spoke Welsh. The American Community Survey 2009–2013 noted that 2,235 people aged five years and over in
2400-461: The 2021 census , 7,349 people in England recorded Welsh to be their "main language". In the 2011 census, 1,189 people aged three and over in Scotland noted that Welsh was a language (other than English) that they used at home. It is believed that there are as many as 5,000 speakers of Patagonian Welsh . In response to the question 'Does the person speak a language other than English at home?' in
2500-674: The Baron Bergavenny (or Abergavenny) . The first Baron was Hamelin de Balun , from Ballon , a small town with a castle in Maine-Anjou near Le Mans . Today it is in the Sarthe département of France. He founded the Benedictine priory , now the Priory Church of St Mary , in the late 11th century. The Priory belonged originally to the Benedictine foundation of St. Vincent Abbaye at Le Mans. It
2600-659: The Battle of Dyrham , a military battle between the West Saxons and the Britons in 577 AD, which split the South Western British from direct overland contact with the Welsh. Four periods are identified in the history of Welsh, with rather indistinct boundaries: Primitive Welsh, Old Welsh, Middle Welsh, and Modern Welsh. The period immediately following the language's emergence is sometimes referred to as Primitive Welsh, followed by
2700-569: The Beeching cuts in the 1960s and the line to Clydach Gorge is now a cycle track and footpath. The Baker Street drill hall was completed in 1896. Adolf Hitler 's deputy, Rudolf Hess , was kept under escort at Maindiff Court Hospital during the Second World War , after his flight to Britain. In 1964, the Royal Observer Corps opened a small monitoring bunker to be used in the event of
2800-573: The Blorenge (559 m, 1,834 ft), the Sugar Loaf (596 m, 1,955 ft), Skirrid Fawr (Great Skirrid), Ysgyryd Fach (Little Skirrid), Deri, Rholben and Mynydd Llanwenarth, known locally as " Llanwenarth Breast". Abergavenny provides access to the nearby Black Mountains and the Brecon Beacons National Park . The Marches Way and Beacons Way pass through Abergavenny whilst
2900-520: The Conservative Party , was created 1st Marquess of Abergavenny . Coldbrook Park was a country house in an estate some 1 + 1 ⁄ 4 miles (2 km) southeast of the town. The house was originally built in the 14th century and belonged to the Herbert family for many generations until purchased by John Hanbury for his son, the diplomat Sir Charles Hanbury Williams . Sir Charles reconstructed
3000-611: The Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1541, the priory's endowment went towards the foundation of a free grammar school , King Henry VIII Grammar School , the site itself passing to the Gunter family. During the Civil War , prior to the siege of Raglan Castle in 1645, King Charles I visited Abergavenny and presided in person over the trial of Sir Trefor Williams, 1st Baronet of Llangibby ,
3100-525: The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages in respect of Welsh. The language has greatly increased its prominence since the creation of the television channel S4C in November 1982, which until digital switchover in 2010 broadcast 70 per cent of Channel 4's programming along with a majority of Welsh language shows during peak viewing hours. The all-Welsh-language digital station S4C Digidol
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3200-576: The Newport, Abergavenny and Hereford Railway . The London North Western Railway sponsored the construction of the railway linking Newport station to Hereford station . The line was taken over by the West Midland Railway in 1860 before becoming part of the Great Western Railway in 1863. A railway line also ran up the valley towards Brynmawr and to Merthyr Tydfil ; this was closed during
3300-834: The North Wales Coast Line to Holyhead , via Wrexham General . These services are all operated by Transport for Wales . The town is located where the A40 trunk road and the A465 Heads of the Valleys road meet. The latter used to meet the A40 in the town centre but the A465 now runs to the east of the town centre. A network of services link the town with local villages. In addition Stagecoach South Wales operate service 23 to Hereford and Newport approximately every two hours while Newport Bus operates service 83 to Monmouth . Abergavenny Castle
3400-539: The Offa's Dyke Path passes through Pandy five miles to the north and the Usk Valley Walk passes through nearby Llanfoist . In the UK 2011 census, the six relevant wards (Lansdown, Grofield, Castle , Croesonen, Cantref and Priory ) collectively listed Abergavenny's population as 12,515. The town hosted the 2016 National Eisteddfod of Wales . The town derives its name from a Brythonic word Gobannia meaning "river of
3500-508: The Old Welsh period – which is generally considered to stretch from the beginning of the 9th century to sometime during the 12th century. The Middle Welsh period is considered to have lasted from then until the 14th century, when the Modern Welsh period began, which in turn is divided into Early and Late Modern Welsh. The word Welsh is a descendant, via Old English wealh, wielisc , of
3600-662: The Proto-Germanic word * Walhaz , which was derived from the name of the Celtic people known to the Romans as Volcae and which came to refer to speakers of Celtic languages, and then indiscriminately to the people of the Western Roman Empire . In Old English the term went through semantic narrowing , coming to refer to either Britons in particular or, in some contexts, slaves. The plural form Wēalas evolved into
3700-618: The United States spoke Welsh at home. The highest number of those (255) lived in Florida . Sources: Calls for the Welsh language to be granted official status grew with the establishment of the nationalist political party Plaid Cymru in 1925, the establishment of the Welsh Language Society in 1962 and the rise of Welsh nationalism in the later 20th century. Of the six living Celtic languages (including two revived), Welsh has
3800-525: The "hugely important role", adding, "I look forward to working with the Welsh Government and organisations in Wales in developing the new system of standards. I will look to build on the good work that has been done by the Welsh Language Board and others to strengthen the Welsh language and ensure that it continues to thrive." First Minister Carwyn Jones said that Huws would act as a champion for
3900-467: The 12th to 14th centuries, of which much more remains than for any earlier period. This is the language of nearly all surviving early manuscripts of the Mabinogion , although the tales themselves are certainly much older. It is also the language of the existing Welsh law manuscripts. Middle Welsh is reasonably intelligible to a modern-day Welsh speaker. The Bible translations into Welsh helped maintain
4000-497: The 15th century, and is now used as the Welsh name. Abergavenny, the English spelling, is in general use. The town originally developed on the high ground to the north of the floodplain of the River Usk and to the west of the valley of the much smaller Gavenny River though has since extended to the east of the latter. It has merged with the originally separate settlement of Mardy to the north but remains separate from that of Llanfoist to
4100-589: The 1880s identified a small part of Shropshire as still then speaking Welsh, with the "Celtic Border" passing from Llanymynech through Oswestry to Chirk . The number of Welsh-speaking people in the rest of Britain has not yet been counted for statistical purposes. In 1993, the Welsh-language television channel S4C published the results of a survey into the numbers of people who spoke or understood Welsh, which estimated that there were around 133,000 Welsh-speaking people living in England, about 50,000 of them in
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4200-522: The 1993 Act nor secondary legislation made under it covers the private sector, although some organisations, notably banks and some railway companies, provide some of their information in Welsh. On 7 December 2010, the Welsh Assembly unanimously approved a set of measures to develop the use of the Welsh language within Wales. On 9 February 2011 this measure, the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011 ,
4300-481: The Assembly which confirms the official status of the Welsh language; which creates a strong advocate for Welsh speakers and will improve the quality and quantity of services available through the medium of Welsh. I believe that everyone who wants to access services in the Welsh language should be able to do so, and that is what this government has worked towards. This legislation is an important and historic step forward for
4400-508: The Brittonic speakers in Wales were split off from those in northern England, speaking Cumbric, and those in the southwest, speaking what would become Cornish , so the languages diverged. Both the works of Aneirin ( Canu Aneirin , c. 600 ) and the Book of Taliesin ( Canu Taliesin ) were written during this era. Middle Welsh ( Cymraeg Canol ) is the label attached to the Welsh of
4500-630: The Castle ward to Abergavenny Town Council. At the May 2017 elections, there was no contest, with three candidates (two Labour and one Conservative ) standing for the three seats. Labour councillor, Stephen Head, resigned in 2018 leading to a by-election being arranged for 26 June. The vacant seat was won by the Conservatives. Castle elects one county councillor to Monmouthshire County Council . Since its first election in 2004 (split from Castle & Grofield)
4600-705: The Celtic language spoken by the ancient Celtic Britons . Classified as Insular Celtic , the British language probably arrived in Britain during the Bronze Age or Iron Age and was probably spoken throughout the island south of the Firth of Forth . During the Early Middle Ages the British language began to fragment due to increased dialect differentiation, thus evolving into Welsh and
4700-539: The Greater London area. The Welsh Language Board , on the basis of an analysis of the Office for National Statistics Longitudinal Study, estimated there were 110,000 Welsh-speaking people in England, and another thousand in Scotland and Northern Ireland. In the 2011 census , 8,248 people in England gave Welsh in answer to the question "What is your main language?" The Office for National Statistics subsequently published
4800-689: The Holy Trinity; the Grade II* listed St John's Masonic Lodge ; Abergavenny Museum ; the Public Library; the Town Hall ; and the remains of Abergavenny town walls behind Neville Street. From 1851, the Monmouthshire lunatic asylum, later Pen-y-Fal Hospital , a psychiatric hospital , stood on the outskirts of Abergavenny. Between 1851 and 1950, over 3,000 patients died at the hospital. A memorial plaque for
4900-411: The Market Hall, for example: Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays – retail market; Wednesdays – flea market; fourth Thursday of each month – farmers' market ; third Sunday of each month – antique fair; second Saturday of each month – craft fair. The Church in Wales church of the Holy Trinity is in the Diocese of Monmouth . Holy Trinity Church was consecrated by the Bishop of Llandaff on 6 November 1840. It
5000-436: The US, under a Marty Wilde pseudonym Shannon , where it was also a minor hit. In The Adventure of the Priory School Sherlock Holmes refers to a case he is working on in Abergavenny. Abergavenny is mentioned by Stan Shunpike, the conductor of the Knight Bus when the bus takes a detour there to drop off a passenger in J. K. Rowling 's Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban . The TV series Upstairs, Downstairs , features
5100-432: The Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011, all new signs have Welsh displayed first. There have been incidents of one of the languages being vandalised, which may be considered a hate crime . Since 2000, the teaching of Welsh has been compulsory in all schools in Wales up to age 16; this has had an effect in stabilising and reversing the decline in the language. Text on UK coins tends to be in English and Latin. However,
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#17328475036665200-436: The Welsh Language Scheme. The list of other public bodies which have to prepare Schemes could be added to by initially the Secretary of State for Wales, from 1993 to 1997, by way of statutory instrument . Subsequent to the forming of the National Assembly for Wales in 1997, the Government Minister responsible for the Welsh language can and has passed statutory instruments naming public bodies who have to prepare Schemes. Neither
5300-597: The Welsh Parliament, the Senedd , with Welsh being the only de jure official language in any part of the United Kingdom, with English being merely de facto official. According to the 2021 census , the Welsh-speaking population of Wales aged three or older was 538,300 (17.8%) and nearly three quarters of the population in Wales said they had no Welsh language skills. Other estimates suggest that 862,700 people (28.0%) aged three or older in Wales could speak Welsh in March 2024. Almost half of all Welsh speakers consider themselves fluent, while 20 per cent are able to speak
5400-445: The Welsh language, though some had concerns over her appointment: Plaid Cymru spokeswoman Bethan Jenkins said, "I have concerns about the transition from Meri Huws's role from the Welsh Language Board to the language commissioner, and I will be asking the Welsh government how this will be successfully managed. We must be sure that there is no conflict of interest, and that the Welsh Language Commissioner can demonstrate how she will offer
5500-426: The Welsh of the 16th century, but they are similar enough for a fluent Welsh speaker to have little trouble understanding it. During the Modern Welsh period, there has been a decline in the popularity of the Welsh language: the number of Welsh speakers declined to the point at which there was concern that the language would become extinct. During industrialisation in the late 19th century, immigrants from England led to
5600-429: The Welsh-speaking heartlands, with the number dropping to under 50 per cent in Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire for the first time. However, according to the Welsh Language Use Survey in 2019–20, 22 per cent of people aged three and over were able to speak Welsh. The Annual Population Survey (APS) by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimated that as of March 2024, approximately 862,700, or 28.0 per cent of
5700-403: The ancestor of Cumbric as well as Welsh. Jackson, however, believed that the two varieties were already distinct by that time. The earliest Welsh poetry – that attributed to the Cynfeirdd or "Early Poets" – is generally considered to date to the Primitive Welsh period. However, much of this poetry was supposedly composed in the Hen Ogledd , raising further questions about the dating of
5800-434: The auction sale of finished sheep, cull ewe/store and fodder (hay and straw), and on some Fridays for the auction sale of cattle. After Newport 's cattle market closed in 2009 for redevelopment, Newport's sales were held at Abergavenny every Wednesday. In 2011 doubts about the future of Abergavenny Cattle Market were raised after Monmouthshire County Council granted planning permission for its demolition and replacement with
5900-446: The blacksmiths", and relates to the town's pre-Roman importance in iron smelting . The name is related to the modern Welsh word gof ( blacksmith ), and so is also associated with the Welsh smith Gofannon from folklore. The river later became, in Welsh, Gafenni , and the town's name became Abergafenni , meaning "mouth of (Welsh: Aber ) the Gavenny ( Gafenni )". In Welsh, the shortened form Y Fenni may have come into use after about
6000-408: The census. In terms of usage, ONS also reported that 14.4 per cent (443,800) of people aged three or older in Wales reported that they spoke Welsh daily in March 2024, with 5.4 per cent (165,500) speaking it weekly and 6.5 per cent (201,200) less often. Approximately 1.7 per cent (51,700) reported that they never spoke Welsh despite being able to speak the language, with the remaining 72.0 per cent of
6100-408: The charter was annulled, and the town subsequently declined in prosperity. Chapter 28 of the 1535 Act of Henry VIII , which provided that Monmouth, as county town , should return one burgess to Parliament, further stated that other ancient Monmouthshire boroughs were to contribute towards the payment of the member. In consequence of this clause Abergavenny on various occasions shared in the election,
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#17328475036666200-414: The course of the 20th century this monolingual population all but disappeared, but a small percentage remained at the time of the 1981 census. Most Welsh-speaking people in Wales also speak English. However, many Welsh-speaking people are more comfortable expressing themselves in Welsh than in English. A speaker's choice of language can vary according to the subject domain and the social context, even within
6300-425: The deceased has now been placed at the site. After its closure in the 1990s, its buildings and grounds were redeveloped as housing. Some psychiatric services are now administered from Maindiff Court Hospital on the outskirts of the town, close to the foot of the Skirrid mountain. Abergavenny has three public urban parks which are listed on the Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in Wales :
6400-408: The decline in Welsh speakers particularly in the South Wales Valleys. Welsh government processes and legislation have worked to increase the proliferation of the Welsh language, for example through education. Welsh has been spoken continuously in Wales throughout history; however, by 1911, it had become a minority language, spoken by 43.5 per cent of the population. While this decline continued over
6500-431: The following decades, the language did not die out. The smallest number of speakers was recorded in 1981 with 503,000 although the lowest percentage was recorded in the most recent census in 2021 at 17.8 per cent. By the start of the 21st century, numbers began to increase once more, at least partly as a result of the increase in Welsh-medium education . The 2004 Welsh Language Use Survey showed that 21.7 per cent of
6600-402: The grounds of Abergavenny Castle , Linda Vista Gardens and Bailey Park . A fourth registered garden, at The Hill to the north of the town, forms part of the grounds of a residential development. Abergavenny is twinned with: One of the eleven Victoria Cross medals won at Rorke's Drift was awarded to John Fielding from Abergavenny. He had enlisted under the false name of Williams . One
6700-411: The highest number of native speakers who use the language on a daily basis, and it is the Celtic language which is considered the least endangered by UNESCO . The Welsh Language Act 1993 and the Government of Wales Act 1998 provide that the Welsh and English languages be treated equally in the public sector, as far as is reasonable and practicable. Each public body is required to prepare for approval
6800-413: The highest percentage of residents giving Welsh as their main language. The census also revealed that 3,528 wards in England, or 46% of the total number, contained at least one resident whose main language is Welsh. In terms of the regions of England , North West England (1,945), London (1,310) and the West Midlands (1,265) had the highest number of people noting Welsh as their main language. According to
6900-504: The house in 1746 with the addition of a nine- bay two-storey Georgian façade with a Doric portico . It was subsequently passed down in the Hanbury Williams family until it was demolished in 1954. Held during the first week of August every year, the National Eisteddfod is a celebration of the culture and language in Wales. The festival travels from place to place, alternating between north and south Wales, attracting around 150,000 visitors and over 250 tradestands and stalls. In 2016 it
7000-431: The language, its speakers and for the nation." The measure was not welcomed warmly by all supporters: Bethan Williams, chairman of the Welsh Language Society, gave a mixed response to the move, saying, "Through this measure we have won official status for the language and that has been warmly welcomed. But there was a core principle missing in the law passed by the Assembly before Christmas. It doesn't give language rights to
7100-431: The last instance being in 1685. The right to hold two weekly markets and three yearly fairs , beginning in the 13th century, was held ever since as confirmed in 1657. Abergavenny was celebrated for the production of Welsh flannel , and also for the manufacture, whilst the fashion prevailed, of goats' hair periwigs . Abergavenny railway station , situated southeast of the town centre, opened on 2 January 1854 as part of
7200-402: The least endangered Celtic language by UNESCO . The language of the Welsh developed from the language of Britons . The emergence of Welsh was not instantaneous and clearly identifiable. Instead, the shift occurred over a long period, with some historians claiming that it had happened by as late as the 9th century , with a watershed moment being that proposed by linguist Kenneth H. Jackson ,
7300-655: The material and language in which it was originally composed. This discretion stems from the fact that Cumbric was widely believed to have been the language used in Hen Ogledd. An 8th-century inscription in Tywyn shows the language already dropping inflections in the declension of nouns. Janet Davies proposed that the origins of the Welsh language were much less definite; in The Welsh Language: A History , she proposes that Welsh may have been around even earlier than 600 AD. This
7400-610: The modern period across the border in England. Archenfield was still Welsh enough in the time of Elizabeth I for the Bishop of Hereford to be made responsible, together with the four Welsh bishops, for the translation of the Bible and the Book of Common Prayer into Welsh. Welsh was still commonly spoken there in the first half of the 19th century, and churchwardens' notices were put up in both Welsh and English until about 1860. Alexander John Ellis in
7500-428: The moraine. In the UK 2011 census, the six relevant wards (Lansdown, Grofield, Castle , Croesonen, Cantref and Priory ) collectively listed Abergavenny's population as 12,515. Gobannium was a Roman fort guarding the road along the valley of the River Usk, which linked the legionary fortress of Burrium ( Usk ) and later Isca Augusta or Isca Silurum ( Caerleon ) in the south with Y Gaer, Brecon and Mid Wales . It
7600-592: The name for their territory, Wales. The modern names for various Romance-speaking people in Continental Europe (e.g. Walloons , Valaisans , Vlachs / Wallachians , and Włosi , the Polish name for Italians) have a similar etymology. The Welsh term for the language, Cymraeg , descends from the Brythonic word combrogi , meaning 'compatriots' or 'fellow countrymen'. Welsh evolved from Common Brittonic ,
7700-613: The other Brittonic languages. It is not clear when Welsh became distinct. Linguist Kenneth H. Jackson has suggested that the evolution in syllabic structure and sound pattern was complete by around AD 550, and labelled the period between then and about AD 800 "Primitive Welsh". This Primitive Welsh may have been spoken in both Wales and the Hen Ogledd ('Old North') – the Brittonic-speaking areas of what are now northern England and southern Scotland – and therefore may have been
7800-464: The people of Wales in every aspect of their lives. Despite that, an amendment to that effect was supported by 18 Assembly Members from three different parties, and that was a significant step forward." On 5 October 2011, Meri Huws , Chair of the Welsh Language Board , was appointed the new Welsh Language Commissioner. She released a statement that she was "delighted" to have been appointed to
7900-471: The population not being able to speak it. The National Survey for Wales, conducted by Welsh Government, has also tended to report a higher percentage of Welsh speakers than the census, with the most recent results for 2022–2023 suggesting that 18 per cent of the population aged 3 and over were able to speak Welsh, with an additional 16 per cent noting that they had some Welsh-speaking ability. Historically, large numbers of Welsh people spoke only Welsh. Over
8000-502: The population of Wales aged 3 and over, were able to speak the language. Children and young people aged three to 15 years old were more likely to report that they could speak Welsh than any other age group (48.4 per cent, 241,300). Around 1,001,500 people, or 32.5 per cent, reported that they could understand spoken Welsh. 24.7 per cent (759,200) could read and 22.2 per cent (684,500) could write in Welsh. The APS estimates of Welsh language ability are historically higher than those produced by
8100-407: The population of Wales spoke Welsh, compared with 20.8 per cent in the 2001 census , and 18.5 per cent in the 1991 census . Since 2001, however, the number of Welsh speakers has declined in both the 2011 and 2021 censuses to about 538,300 or 17.8 per cent in 2021, lower than 1991, although it is still higher in absolute terms. The 2011 census also showed a "big drop" in the number of speakers in
8200-601: The recently upgraded A465 Heads of the Valleys road meet. Originally the site of a Roman fort , Gobannium , it became a medieval walled town within the Welsh Marches . The town contains the remains of a medieval stone castle built soon after the Norman conquest of Wales . Abergavenny is situated at the confluence of the River Usk and a tributary stream, the Gavenny. It is almost entirely surrounded by mountains and hills:
8300-753: The regiment was affiliated with the new formed 1st Cadet Battalion, The Monmouthshire Regiment . See also Category:People from Abergavenny Welsh language Welsh ( Cymraeg [kəmˈraːiɡ] or y Gymraeg [ə ɡəmˈraːiɡ] ) is a Celtic language of the Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people . Welsh is spoken natively in Wales , by some in England , and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut Province , Argentina ). It
8400-527: The required fresh approach to this new role." Huws started her role as the Welsh Language Commissioner on 1 April 2012. Local councils and the Senedd use Welsh, issuing Welsh versions of their literature, to varying degrees. Road signs in Wales are in Welsh and English. Prior to 2016, the choice of which language to display first was the responsibility of the local council. Since then, as part of
8500-687: The second son of the Earl of Warwick; and he was elevated to the House of Lords as Baron Bergavenny. On his death, his wife Joan held the entire barony in survivorship for life until 1435, at which time it passed into the Nevill family; Joan's granddaughter Elizabeth, heir to the barony, married a Neville, Edward Nevill, 3rd Baron Bergavenny . From him it has descended continuously, the title being increased to an earldom in 1784; and in 1876 William Nevill [ sic ] 5th Earl, an indefatigable and powerful supporter of
8600-503: The south due to the presence of the river and its floodplain ; nevertheless Llanfoist is in many ways a suburb of the town. The ground rises gradually in the north of the town before steepening to form the Deri and Rholben spurs of Sugar Loaf. The A4143 crossing of the Usk by means of the historic Usk Bridge is sited at the narrowest point of the floodplain, a site also chosen for the former crossing of
8700-468: The town's Festival of Cycling. A cattle market was held in Abergavenny from 1863 to December 2013. From 1825 to 1863 a sheep market was held at a site in Castle Street, to stop the sale of sheep on the streets of the town. When the market closed, the site was leased and operated by Abergavenny Market Auctioneers Ltd, who held regular livestock auctions on the site. Market days were held on Tuesdays for
8800-518: The use of Welsh in daily life, and standardised spelling. The New Testament was translated by William Salesbury in 1567, and the complete Bible by William Morgan in 1588. Modern Welsh is subdivided into Early Modern Welsh and Late Modern Welsh. Early Modern Welsh ran from the 15th century through to the end of the 16th century, and the Late Modern Welsh period roughly dates from the 16th century onwards. Contemporary Welsh differs greatly from
8900-415: The vibrant local arts scene together with some from further afield. In recent decades the number of Welsh speakers in the town has increased dramatically. The 2001 census recorded that 10% of the local population spoke the language, a five-fold increase over ten years from the figure of 2% recorded in 1991. The town has one of the two Welsh-medium primary schools in Monmouthshire, Ysgol Gymraeg y Fenni, which
9000-588: Was also awarded for the same action to Robert Jones , born at Clytha between Abergavenny and Raglan . Another Abergavenny-born soldier, Thomas Monaghan received his VC for defending his colonel during the Indian Rebellion . In 1908 following the formation of the Territorial Force the Abergavenny Cadet Corps was formed and affiliated with the 3rd Battalion, The Monmouthshire Regiment . In 1912
9100-464: Was also built to keep the peace among the local British Iron Age tribe, the Silures . Cadw considers that the fort was occupied from around CE50 to CE150. Remains of the walls of this fort were discovered west of the castle when excavating the foundations for a new post office and telephone exchange building in the late 1960s. Abergavenny grew as a town in early Norman times under the protection of
9200-480: Was filmed at many locations in and around Abergavenny. Abergavenny railway station lies on the Welsh Marches Line from Newport to Hereford . The weekday daytime service pattern typically sees one train per hour in each direction between Manchester Piccadilly and Cardiff Central , with most trains continuing beyond Cardiff to Swansea and west Wales. There is also a two-hourly service between Cardiff and
9300-655: Was founded in 1834 and celebrated the 175th anniversary of its foundation in 2009. Abergavenny Tennis Club also play at Pen-y-Pound and plays in the South Wales Doubles League and Aegon Team Tennis. The club engages the services of a head tennis professional to run a coaching programme for the town and was crowned Tennis Wales ' Club of the Year in 2010. Abergavenny hosted the British National Cycling Championships in 2007, 2009 and 2014, as part of
9400-532: Was founded in the early 1990s. It is also home to the Abergavenny Welsh society, Cymreigyddion y Fenni, and the local Abergavenny Eisteddfod. Abergavenny was the home of Abergavenny Thursdays F.C. , formed in 1927 and merged with Govilon, the local village side in 2013. The new club, Abergavenny Town F.C. , plays at the Pen-y-pound Stadium, maintained and run by Thursday’s football trust, as members of
9500-450: Was held in Abergavenny for the first time since 1913. The Chair and Crown for 2016 were presented to the festival's Executive Committee at a ceremony held in Monmouth on 14 June 2016. The Abergavenny Food Festival is held in the second week of September each year. The Steam, Veteran and Vintage Rally takes place in May every year. The event expands year on year with the 2016 rally including
9600-463: Was local opposition to this site. The new Monmouthshire Livestock Centre, a 27-acre site at Bryngwyn, opened in November 2013. Abergavenny has hosted the National Eisteddfod of Wales in 1838, 1913 and most recently in 2016. In 2017 the town was named one of the best places to live in Wales. The town's local radio stations are currently Sunshine Radio 107.8 FM and NH Sound 1287 AM. Abergavenny
9700-582: Was originally built as a chapel to serve the adjacent almshouses and the nearby school. It has been Grade II listed since January 1974. Other listed buildings in the town include the parish Priory Church of St Mary , a medieval and Victorian building that was originally the church of the Benedictine priory founded in Abergavenny before 1100; the sixteenth century Tithe Barn near St Mary's ; the Victorian Church of
9800-518: Was passed and received Royal Assent, thus making the Welsh language an officially recognised language within Wales. The measure: The measure required public bodies and some private companies to provide services in Welsh. The Welsh government's Minister for Heritage at the time, Alun Ffred Jones , said, "The Welsh language is a source of great pride for the people of Wales, whether they speak it or not, and I am delighted that this measure has now become law. I am very proud to have steered legislation through
9900-533: Was subsequently endowed by William de Braose , with a tithe of the profits of the castle and town. The church contains some unique alabaster effigies , church monuments and unique medieval wood carving, such as the Tree of Jesse . Owing to its geographical location, the town was frequently embroiled in the border warfare and power play of the 12th and 13th centuries in the Welsh Marches. In 1175, Abergavenny Castle
10000-460: Was the site of a massacre of Seisyll ap Dyfnwal and his associates by William de Braose, 4th Lord of Bramber . Reference to a market at Abergavenny is found in a charter granted to the Prior by William de Braose. Owain Glyndŵr attacked Abergavenny in 1404. According to popular legend, his raiders gained access to the walled town with the aid of a local woman who sympathised with the rebellion, letting
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