83-520: Swansea Bay ( Welsh : Bae Abertawe ) is a bay on the southern coast of Wales . The River Neath , River Tawe , River Afan , River Kenfig and Clyne River flow into the bay. Swansea Bay and the upper reaches of the Bristol Channel experience a large tidal range . The shipping ports in Swansea Bay are Swansea Docks , Port Talbot Docks and Briton Ferry wharves. Each stretch of beach within
166-493: A D-class IB1 inflatable lifeboat . Cosy Corner is a park area, which over the years has housed a theatre, cinema, roller skating rink and ballroom. The Jennings Building, built in 1832, is a grade II listed building and Wales' oldest maritime warehouse. The building was identified as a potentially important facility as part of the Porthcawl Regeneration Strategy ; it houses three hospitality businesses. At
249-520: A Roman Catholic girls' school, the school is now owned and operated by the Cognita Group . This is a state school which provides education for ages 3–11 and is participating in the Foundation Phase. It is a large primary school , with approximately 500 pupils, surrounded by extensive grounds. It has a conservation area and is in the process of building a pond. It has a large outdoor play area and
332-600: A sensory garden . There is an outdoor classroom which is used for a range of activities. This is a state school located in Nottage. The school was built and opened for teaching in 1971 and has since been extended to incorporate the growing needs of the surrounding area and community. The school has been awarded the Eco-schools Green Flag and the BECTA ICT excellence award . This is a mixed state school for pupils between
415-441: 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
498-586: 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
581-647: 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
664-680: A disused quarry at Dean Point from which to source the rock for the lagoon. Construction of an offshore windfarm in the Bay was approved in 2004, but construction was deferred owing to the costs involved. The windfarm was to have been sited at Scarweather Sands, about 5 km (3 mi) off the coast and visible from Porthcawl . [REDACTED] Media related to Swansea Bay at Wikimedia Commons 51°35′N 3°54′W / 51.583°N 3.900°W / 51.583; -3.900 Welsh language Welsh ( Cymraeg [kəmˈraːiɡ] or y Gymraeg [ə ɡəmˈraːiɡ] )
747-567: A grand pavilion, a funfair named Coney Beach (modelled on Coney Island in New York ), a museum, three golf courses and the site of the former black obelisk. Built in 1887 to commemorate Queen Victoria 's Golden Jubilee , Porthcawl's promenade runs along the seafront from Lock's Common in the west to the harbour, before joining the Eastern Promenade and leading to Coney Beach and Griffin Park. It
830-434: A new promenade, town square and car parking. The nearest railway station to Porthcawl is Pyle . Transport for Wales operates services to Cardiff Central , Swansea , Carmarthen and Manchester Piccadilly . Porthcawl railway station once served the town, sited at the top of Station Hill, but was closed in 1963. First Cymru and Stagecoach South Wales operate local bus routes, which include: The A4229 road links
913-591: A potential for electricity generation using tidal lagoons. Around 2015, a proposal was made by Tidal Lagoon Swansea Bay Ltd for a tidal lagoon . The tidal lagoon would be sited just south of the Queen's Dock between River Tawe and River Neath estuaries. This project was controversial, partly due to the amount of subsidy required to make the project viable and also because of the potential damage to an AONB and MCZ in Cornwall where Tidal Lagoon Swansea Bay sought to re-open
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#1732851801258996-675: A rich heritage in the area with Porthcawl RFC . The town has lifeguard clubs that train the lifeguards that guard Coney Beach and Trecco Bay, as well as Rest Bay and Sker beaches. Porthcawl hosts a free weekly Parkrun at 9am each Saturday. It starts on the Lower Promenade in front of the Grand Pavilion, heads out to Rest Bay and finishes near to the pier. The famous world championship boxing match between WBC world featherweight champion Howard Winstone and his challenger, Jose Legra , which Legra won by fifth round technical knockout,
1079-479: 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
1162-410: A tourist-oriented beach at Trecco Bay, at the east end of the town; a sandy beach at Rest Bay , which lies to the north-west of the town; and the quiet and sandy Pink Bay leading out towards Sker Point where a tarmac-covered car park serves a sandy beach. There are many hotels, including the prominent Seabank Hotel , and guest houses as well as a funfair called Coney Beach . Four rocky points line
1245-995: 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 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
1328-453: Is a male voice choir formed in 1980 with 17 members. The choir has 45 members. Each year, the choir performs with a celebrity guest; in 2011, this was Lesley Garrett . Porthcawl has seven beaches: Five rocky points line the Porthcawl shore; from east to west, these are: Newton Point, Rhych Point, Porthcawl Point, Hutchwns Point and Sker Point . There are three scheduled monuments in
1411-532: Is a town and community in the Bridgend County Borough of Wales . It is located on the south coast, 25 miles (40 km) west of Cardiff and 19 miles (31 km) south-east of Swansea . Historically part of Glamorgan and situated on a low limestone headland on the South Wales coast, overlooking the Bristol Channel , Porthcawl developed as a coal port during the 19th century, but its trade
1494-412: Is a GE-built gas-fired power station just inland at Baglan Bay . A second gas-fired power station, the "Abernedd Power Station" at Port Talbot, was approved for construction in 2011. A new biomass power station was approved in 2014 for construction near the coast at Port Talbot. Swansea Bay (along with the rest of the Bristol Channel ) has one of the highest tidal ranges in the world. This offers
1577-670: 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. Porthcawl 51°29′N 3°41′W / 51.48°N 3.69°W / 51.48; -3.69 Porthcawl ( [pɔrθˈkaul] )
1660-667: 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 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
1743-615: Is reputed to have healing properties. Newton village homed St John's School, an independent day school established in 1921, which closed in c2016. It is also home to St Clare's School, which is also an independent day school and was established in 1938 by the Poor Clares order of nuns. The following festivals operate in the town: Porthcawl is one of the top locations in Wales for surfing , with both national and regional competitions held at Rest Bay. Other alternative sports, such as skateboarding and rollerblading , are also popular with
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#17328518012581826-505: Is the label attached to the Welsh of 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
1909-704: 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 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
1992-494: 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
2075-461: 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
2158-525: 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
2241-727: 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 , 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
2324-618: 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
2407-410: The cawl to be a corruption of Gaul , and that the area was an ancient landing point for Gaulish and Breton, or later Frankish and Norman knights. Porthcawl is a holiday resort in South Wales and is home to a large static caravan park known as Trecco Bay , which is owned and operated by Parkdean Resorts . It has an extensive promenade and several beaches, two of which are Blue Flag beaches :
2490-573: 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
2573-589: 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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2656-522: 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 ,
2739-481: 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
2822-539: 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
2905-626: The Porthcawl Community area: Newton dates from the 12th century. St. John 's Church, founded by the Knights of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem 800 years ago and originally built as a fortress, overlooks the village green. The Jolly Sailor pub , the oldest in Porthcawl, and the Ancient Briton pub also overlooks the green. To the south of the church lies St John's Well, the water from which
2988-489: 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,
3071-673: 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
3154-641: The Welsh language official status in Wales. Welsh and English are de jure official languages of 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
3237-515: 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
3320-481: 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
3403-606: 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
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3486-461: The ages of 3 and 11 years, which includes a Foundation Phase Area admitting pupils of nursery age. This is a mixed state school with approximately 235 pupils. St John's School was a co-educational independent school, located in the village of Newton. The school provided preparatory, secondary and tertiary education leading to GCSE qualifications. The school closed at the end of July 2014. The Porthcawl Male Voice Choir, or Côr Meibion Porthcawl ,
3569-428: The area to take place, and also protecting more than 440 existing properties from flood risk. The first phase of Porthcawl's regeneration, Porthcawl Harbourside , was launched on 28 March 2008. A 17-acre (69,000 m ) site has been marketed to developers for a substantial mixed use scheme. The scheme is envisaged to include a new foodstore, extra retail space, leisure and community facilities, up to 450 houses/flats,
3652-462: The bay has its own name: Oyster fishing was once an important industry in Swansea Bay, employing 600 people at its height in the 1860s. However, overfishing, disease and pollution had all but wiped out the oyster population by 1920. In 2005, plans were announced to reintroduce the Oyster farming industry. For the last two decades of the 20th century, the bay was blighted by pollution , partly from
3735-456: 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
3818-414: 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
3901-489: 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 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
3984-470: 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
4067-465: The end of Porthcawl jetty stands a white lighthouse built in 1860, as a navigational aid. It was the last coal and gas-powered lighthouse in the United Kingdom. It switched to being powered by North Sea gas in 1974, before becoming powered by electricity in 1997. The jetty and surrounding area are popular spots for sea fishing. The historic ships the PS Waverley , the last seagoing paddle steamer in
4150-485: 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
4233-460: The former PADS skate park by the Harbour and the new bowl park off Heol Y Goedwig . There are three golf courses to the north of the town including Royal Porthcawl Golf Club , which attracts players from around the world. Porthcawl is home also home to football side Porthcawl Town Athletic F.C. , which boasts 1st, reserve and 3rd teams, as well as numerous junior teams. Rugby Union also has
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#17328518012584316-463: 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
4399-469: 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
4482-451: 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 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
4565-587: 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 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
4648-496: 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
4731-546: The language. As Germanic and Gaelic colonisation of Britain proceeded, 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 )
4814-405: The local authority to reduce the pollution in the Bay but care had to be taken to ensure the pollution did not move to the popular beach resorts in south Gower instead. This original sewer outlet was finally made inactive in around 1996 following the construction of a pipeline which ran all the way back around the Bay following the line of the former Mumbles Railway as far as Beach Street, along
4897-610: 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
4980-448: 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 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,
5063-402: 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
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#17328518012585146-412: 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 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 ,
5229-418: The polluted waters further out to sea. Ironically, the outgoing tide did not carry the raw sewage down the adjacent Bristol Channel , but instead cause it to be sucked in around the circumference of the Bay and only then out down the Channel. If not fully discharged on that tide, the incoming tide would then push the same effluent up the Channel, and once again circulate around the Bay. Efforts were made by
5312-436: 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 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
5395-471: 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
5478-502: 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
5561-407: 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
5644-409: 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
5727-415: The sea-side of the Maritime Quarter and through Swansea Docks to a new £90 million sewage treatment plant at Crymlyn Burrows near Port Tennant . From here a new outlet was made, extending further out to sea. As a consequence of the improvement these works have made, it is hoped that Swansea Bay will achieve Blue Flag Beach status. Aberavon beach was awarded Blue Flag status in December 2007. There
5810-452: The seafront on the site previously occupied by the Esplanade Hotel, which dated back to the late 1880s. The Royal Society of Architects in Wales awarded 'Esplanade House' a Welsh Housing Design Award in 2006, but the architecture has proved unpopular with many local residents who have nicknamed it "the bottle bank". Porthcawl Lifeboat Station, built in 1995, is situated near the harbour. The station operates an Atlantic 85-class lifeboat and
5893-412: 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 , 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
5976-489: The shore: Hutchwns Point, Porthcawl Point (on which a lighthouse stands), Rhych Point and Newton Point. Porthcawl, like many British resorts, has suffered a decline in its holiday trade, especially since most of the South Wales Valleys coal pits closed. A major feature of the summer was the miners' fortnight, when large numbers of miners took their annual break. Tourist attractions in the area include sandy beaches,
6059-410: The surrounding heavy industry and partly from sewerage outlets being sited at inappropriate locations including the main one that was located just seaward of Mumbles Lighthouse . A pumping station inside the cliff adjacent to Knab Rock brought all of Swansea city's effluent in a raw form to this point. Adding to the problem was the natural current flow of the waters in the Bay which often did not move
6142-467: The town council wards: Newton , Nottage , Porthcawl East Central, Porthcawl West Central and Rest Bay . These elect a total of five county councillors. Porthcawl is represented by the following parliamentary constituencies: There are six English medium schools in Porthcawl: four primary schools, one comprehensive school and one private school. Porthcawl Comprehensive School , on the western side of
6225-708: The town, has 1,500 pupils (aged 11–18) and 80 teaching staff. Both Ruth Jones and Rob Brydon attended this school. As at 2011, it was the only school to have received a new Band 1 assessment in the Bridgend County from the Welsh Government. St Clare's School is a co-educational independent school, located in the village of Newton (an eastern part of Porthcawl), in Bridgend County Borough. The school provides preparatory, secondary and tertiary education leading to GCSE and A-level qualifications. Originally
6308-518: 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
6391-559: The world, and the MV Balmoral sail from this area during the summer months. Prior to 1996, the town was divided into the Porthcawl East and Porthcawl West wards, electing a total of seven councillors to Ogwr Borough Council . Subsequent to the creation of Bridgend County Borough Council and as a result of The County Borough of Bridgend (Electoral Arrangements) Order 1998 , the town was divided into five county wards corresponding to
6474-608: 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 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
6557-421: Was held in Porthcawl on 24 July 1968. Porthcawl waterfront is proposed for substantial regeneration as part of the 7 Bays Project . The Planning Guidance outlines proposals that will result in the comprehensive regeneration of Porthcawl's waterfront, stretching from Cosy Corner and the harbour in the south, to Trecco Bay in the east. The plan includes the construction of new sea defences, enabling regeneration of
6640-518: 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
6723-505: 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 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
6806-487: Was restored in 1996. There are many cafes, bars, restaurants and hotels along the promenade, which offer views across the Bristol Channel . The Grand Pavilion , built at a cost of £25,000 in 1932, is the venue for shows, including the annual pantomime . The singer, actor and civil rights activist Paul Robeson once performed 'live' at the Pavilion via a transatlantic telephone link . Controversial luxury flats now dominate
6889-451: Was soon taken over by more rapidly developing ports such as Barry . In the north-west of the town, in the dunes known as Kenfig Burrows , are hidden the last remnants of the town and Kenfig Castle , which were overwhelmed by sand in about 1400. Porth is a common Welsh element meaning "harbour" and the cawl here refers to " sea kale ", which must have grown in profusion or even been collected here. Local folk etymology holds
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