Caernarfon
47622
215818004
2008-05-29T21:00:08Z
Benea
4456044
[[WP:UNDO|Undid]] revision 215796643 by [[Special:Contributions/86.161.62.9|86.161.62.9]] ([[User talk:86.161.62.9|talk]])
{{otheruses|Carnarvon}}
{{infobox UK place|
|country = Wales
|welsh_name=
|constituency_welsh_assembly=
|latitude= 53.14
|longitude= -4.27
|official_name= Caernarfon
|unitary_wales= [[Gwynedd]]
|lieutenancy_wales= [[Gwynedd]]
|constituency_westminster= [[Caernarfon (UK Parliament constituency)|Caernarfon]]
|post_town= CAERNARFON
|postcode_district = LL55
|postcode_area= LL
|dial_code= 01286
|static_image=[[Image:Caernarfon.jpg|237px]]
|static_image_caption=<small>Caernarfon town from [[Caernarfon castle]]</small>
|os_grid_reference= SH485625
|london_distance= 247.1mi
|population= 9,611
}}
'''Caernarfon''' (the original [[Welsh language|Welsh]] spelling is now almost always used in preference to the [[Anglicisation|anglicised]] forms, "Caernarvon" or "Carnarvon") is a [[List of UK place names with royal patronage|royal town]] in [[Gwynedd]], northwest [[Wales]].
The name comes from Welsh ''Caer yn Arfon'' = "[[castle]] in [[Arfon]]", referring to the [[Roman Empire|Roman]] fort named [[Segontium]]. ''Arfon'' means "[region] opposite [[Anglesey]]". In Welsh it is {{pronounced|kaɨrˈnarvɔn}} (approximately "kire-NAR-von"), but it tends to be {{pronEng|kɑrˈnɑrvən}} in [[English language|English]].
== History ==
Caernarfon is the traditional [[county town]] of the [[historic counties of Wales|historic county]] of [[Caernarfonshire]]. The town is best known for its great stone [[Caernarfon castle|castle]], built by [[Edward I of England]] and consequently sometimes seen as a symbol of English domination. Edward's architect, [[James of St. George]], may well have modelled the castle on the [[walls of Constantinople]], possibly being aware of the alternative Welsh name ''Caer Gystennin''; in addition, Edward was a supporter of the [[Crusade]]r cause. On higher ground on the outskirts of the town are the remains of an earlier occupation, the [[Segontium Roman Fort]].
Caernarfon was constituted a [[borough]] in 1284 by charter of Edward I. The charter, which was confirmed on a number of occasions, appointed the mayor of the borough Constable of the Castle [[ex officio]].<ref>[http://www.caernarfontowncouncil.gov.uk/eng/siarter.html ''The Town Charter'', Caernarfon Royal Town Council, accessed October 21, 2007]</ref> The former [[municipal borough]] was designated a royal borough in 1963. The borough was abolished by the [[Local Government Act 1972]] in 1974, and the status of "royal town" was granted to the [[community council|community]] which succeeded it.<ref>[http://www.visitcaernarfon.com/features/royalstatus.htm] The Town's Armorial Bearings & Royal Status (Caernarfon Online)</ref>
==Toponymy==
In the year [[1221]] a charter granted to the canons of [[Penmon (place)|Penmon]] priory, in Anglesey, by [[Llywelyn the Great]], refers to ''Kaerinarfon''
[http://www.cefnpennar.com/carnarvon/index.htm], and ''[[Brut y Tywysogion]]'' uses the forms ''Kaerenarvon'' and ''Caerenarvon''.
<ref>Thomas Jones (ed.) ''Brut y Tywysogion[:] Peniarth MS. 20'' (Cardiff, 1941). It should however be noted that medieval orthography in every language varies considerably and variant spellings of a name or word often occur in the same manuscript text.
''Kaerinarfon'', ''Kaerenarvon'' and ''Caerenarvon'' correspond to Caer-yn-Arfon in modern Welsh orthography. The letter "y" would naturally be lost in the spoken language, thus giving the standard Welsh name ''Caernarfon'' ("Caer 'n Arfon"). </ref> An early alternative name was ''Caer Seiont''. It is called ''Caer Aber Sei(o)n(t)'' ("the fort on the estuary of the river Seiont") in the medieval Welsh tale ''[[Breuddwyd Macsen]]'', and was also known as ''Caer Gystennin'' ("The Castle of Constantin")
<ref>See Sir [[Ifor Williams]]' notes in his edition of ''Breuddwyd Maxen'' (Bangor, 1920). The name appears for the first time in the work of [[Nennius]]. Pre-conquest medieval Welsh poets such as [[Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd]] sometimes use the name ''Caer Gystennin''.
</ref>
==Demography==
The population of Caernarfon is the most Welsh-speaking community in all of Wales. 86.1% of the population could speak Welsh in the 2001 census, with the largest majority of Welsh speakers in the 10-14 age group, where 97.7% could speak it fluently. The town is nowadays a rallying-point for the [[Welsh nationalism|Welsh nationalist]] cause. Its population, with nearby [[Y Felinheli]] and [[Penygroes]] is about 14,000.
Caernarfon residents are known colloquially as "Cofis" ({{pronounced|ˈkɒvi}}). The word "Cofi" is also used locally in Caernarfon to describe the local [[dialect]], which is a rather peculiar mixture of Welsh and English, swapping words and [[grammar|grammatical]] constructs somewhat haphazardly.
== Investitures ==
In 1911, [[David Lloyd George]], then [[Member of Parliament]] for the borough, conceived the idea of holding the investiture of the new [[Prince of Wales]] at Caernarfon Castle, believing that this would help pacify nationalist opinion whilst arousing a more British patriotic feeling. The ceremony took place on [[13 July]], with the royal family paying a rare visit to Wales, and the future King [[Edward VIII of the United Kingdom|Edward VIII]] was duly invested.
On [[1 July]] [[1969]] the [[Charles, Prince of Wales#Created Prince of Wales|investiture]] ceremony was again held at [[Caernarfon Castle]], the recipient on this occasion being [[Charles, Prince of Wales]]. Despite nationalist threats and protests, the ceremony went ahead without incident, except that two members of [[Mudiad Amddiffyn Cymru]] (Welsh Defence Movement), Alwyn Jones and George Taylor, were killed when their bomb - intended for the railway line at [[Abergele]] in order to stop the Royal Train - exploded prematurely.
Caernarfon is also home to the regimental museum of the [[Royal Welch Fusiliers]] (archaic English spelling of the word ''Welsh'').
== Culture and trivia ==
{{Trivia|date=December 2007}}
[[Caernarfon railway station]] in St. Helen's Road is the northern terminus of the narrow gauge [[Welsh Highland Railway]]. Caernarfon was at one time an important port, exporting [[Slate industry in Wales|slate]] from the [[Nantlle Valley]] quarries. [[Caernarfon Airport]] is {{convert|4.5|mi|km}} to the south west, and offers pleasure flights and an aviation museum.
Caernarfon hosted the [[National Eisteddfod]] in 1862, 1894, 1906, 1921, 1935, 1959 and 1979. Unofficial National Eisteddfod events were also held there in 1877 and 1880.
In 1955, Caernarfon was in the running for the title of [[Capital of Wales]] on historical grounds. But the town's campaign was heavily defeated in a ballot of Welsh local authorities, with 11 votes compared to Cardiff's 136. [[Cardiff]] therefore became Wales' first official capital city.
Caernarfon has a small harbour and a [[Blue Flag beach]] at Victoria Harbour.
The oldest public house in Caernarfon is the [[Black Boy Inn]] which remained in the same family for over 40 years until recently sold to a hotel group.
The town is twinned with [[Landerneau]] in [[Britanny]].
It appears as a settlement under the name Caernarvon in the PC game [[Medieval II: Total War]].
==References==
{{reflist}}
==See also==
* [[Caernarfon (UK Parliament constituency)]]
* [[George Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon]]
==External links==
{{commonscat|Caernarfon}}
*[http://www.caernarfon.com/index.html Official Website]
*[http://website.lineone.net/~cwinpenny/wales/caernarfon01.jpg View of Caernarfon Castle]
*[http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9018519/Caernarfon Encyclopaedia Britannica Caernarfon]
*[http://www.greatorme.org.uk/Caernarfon.html Visit to Caernarfon]
*[http://www.caernarfononline.co.uk Facts and news about Caernarfon]
*[http://www.gtj.org.uk/en/item1/11292 Aerial photograph of Caernarfon]
[[Category:Towns in Gwynedd]]
[[Category:Beaches of Wales]]
[[Category:Welsh county towns]]
[[Category:Tourism in Gwynedd]]
[[Category:Welsh Highland Railway]]
[[Category:Caernarfonshire]]
[[Category:Welsh self-government]]
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