South Wales
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2008-07-16T14:12:24Z
Pyeater
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'''South Wales''' ({{lang-cy|De Cymru}}) is an area of [[Wales]] bordered by [[England]] and the [[Bristol Channel]] to the east and south, and [[Mid Wales]] and [[West Wales]] to the north and west. The most densely populated and richest region in the South West of the U.K. home to around 2.1 million people and includes the [[capital city]] of [[Cardiff]], itself home to over 300,000 and two other major cities. Land covers several thousands of kilometers squared. There is one [[national park]] in the region called the [[Brecon Beacons]] and covers about a third of South Wales, it is home to the highest mountain south of [[Snowdon]], [[North Wales]], namely [[Pen Y Fan]].
The extent of South Wales is loosely defined, but it is generally considered to be the area surrounding the [[M4 motorway]], including the [[historic counties of Wales|counties]] of [[Glamorganshire]] and [[Monmouthshire (historic)|Monmouthshire]] and sometimes extending westwards to include south [[Carmarthenshire]] and south [[Pembrokeshire]]. In the western extent, from [[Swansea]] westwards, local people would probably recognise that they lived in both South Wales and in [[West Wales]] - there is considerable overlap in these somewhat artificial boundaries. The northern border is particularly ill-defined, but the [[A40 road|A40]] may be a good approximation whilst others consider the more southerly [[A465 road|Heads of the Valleys Road]] as the boundary.
Approximately 78% of the total population of [[Wales]] is in South Wales based on estimates from the 2001 census data.{{Fact|date=June 2008}}
South Wales incorporates the capital [[Cardiff]], as well as [[Newport]], [[Swansea]] and [[Bridgend]]. The area also includes [[Neath Port Talbot]], the [[South Wales Valleys]] and the more rural settings of the [[Brecon Beacons National Park]], [[Vale of Glamorgan]] and [[Monmouthshire]].
==History==
The [[South Wales Valleys]] and upland mountain ridges were once a very rural area of great natural beauty, noted for its river valleys and ancient forests and lauded by romantic [[poet]]s such as [[William Wordsworth]]. This changed to a considerable extent during the early [[Industrial Revolution]] when the [[Glamorgan]] and [[Monmouthshire]] valley areas were exploited for [[coal]] and [[iron]]. By the [[1830s]], hundreds of tons of coal were being transported by barge to ports in [[Cardiff]] and [[Newport]]. In the [[1870s]], coal was transported by [[railway]] networks to [[Newport Docks]], at the time the largest coal exporting docks in the world, and by the 1880s coal was being exported from [[Barry]] in the [[Vale of Glamorgan]].
The [[Marquess of Bute]], who owned much of the land north of [[Cardiff]], built a steam railway system on his land that stretched from Cardiff into many of the [[South Wales Valleys]] where the coal was being found. Lord Bute then charged taxes per ton of coal that was transported out using his railways. With [[coal mining]] and [[iron]] [[smelting]] being the main trades of South Wales, many thousands of immigrants from [[England]], [[Scotland]], [[Ireland]], [[Cornwall]] and even [[Italy]] came and set up homes and put down roots in the region. Very many came from other coal mining areas such as [[Somerset]], the [[Forest of Dean]] in [[Gloucestershire]] and the [[tin]] mines of [[Cornwall]] such as [[Geevor Tin Mine]], as a large but experienced and willing workforce was required. Whilst some of the migrants left, many settled and established in the [[South Wales valleys]] between [[Swansea]] and [[Abergavenny]], English speaking communities with a unique identity. Industrial workers were housed in cottages and terraced houses close to the mines and foundries in which they worked. The large influx over the years caused overcrowding which lead to outbreaks of [[Cholera]], and on the social and cultural side, the near-loss of the [[Welsh language]] in the area.
The [[1930s]] inter-war [[Great Depression in the United Kingdom]] saw the loss of almost half of the coal pits in the [[South Wales coalfield]] and this number declined further in the years following [[World War II]]. This number is now very low, following the [[UK miners' strike (1984-1985)]], with only [[Tower Colliery]] remaining as a working coal mine until [[January 2008]].
Despite the intense industrialisation of the [[coal mining]] valleys, many parts of the landscape of South Wales such as the upper [[Neath]] valley, the [[Vale of Glamorgan]] and the valleys of the [[River Usk]] and [[River Wye]] remain distinctly beautiful and unspoilt and have been designated [[SSSI]], [[Sites of Special Scientific Interest]].
[[Image:brecon beacons.jpg|800px|center|thumb|<center>The [[Brecon Beacons]], seen from the South.</center>]]
===Famous Industrialised Areas in the 19th & 20th centuries===
[[Merthyr Tydfil]] (Tydfil the Martyr): The town's [[Dowlais]] [[Ironworks]] was founded to exploit the abundant seams of [[iron ore]] and in time it became the largest [[iron]] producing town in the world. New coal mines were sunk nearby to feed the voracious [[furnace]]s and in time produced coal for export . By the [[1831]] [[census]] the population of Merthyr was 60,000 - more at that time than [[Cardiff]], [[Swansea]] and [[Newport]] combined. The town was the birthplace of [[Joseph Parry]], composer of the haunting Welsh tune [[Myfanwy]] and his humble home can be compared with the nearby mock-Gothic Cyfartha Castle and [[Cyfarthfa Ironworks]] built in [[1825]] for [[William Crawshay]] the local [[ironmaster]].
The [[Heads of the Valleys]] towns, including [[Rhymney]], [[Tredegar]] and [[Ebbw Vale]] rose out of the industrial revolution; producing coal, metal ores and later [[steel]].
[[Aberfan]]: The Merthyr Vale colliery began to produce coal in [[1875]]. Spoil from the mine workings was piled on the hills close to the village which grew nearby. Tipping went on until the [[1960s]]. The industry was by then nationalised but even the [[National Coal Board]] failed to appreciate the true nature of the danger they helped to create. In October [[1966]] heavy rain made the giant coal tip unstable. The recent dumping of small particles of coal and ash known as 'tailings' seems to have been partly responsible. A thirty foot high black wave tore downhill across the [[Glamorganshire canal]] and swept away houses on its path towards the village school. One 114 children and 28 adults were killed.
The [[Rhondda]] Valleys ([[Rhondda Fach]] and [[Rhondda Fawr]]) housed around 3,000 people in [[1860]] but by [[1910]] the population had soared to 160,000. The Rhondda had become the heart of a massive South Walian coal industry. [[Mining accident]]s below ground were common and in [[1896]] fifty-seven men and boys were killed in a gas explosion at the [[Tylorstown]] Colliery. An enquiry found that the pit involved had not been properly inspected over the previous fifteen months.
The [[River Ebbw]] valley which stretches from [[Ebbw Vale]] to [[Newport]]. Includes the mining towns and villages of [[Newbridge, Caerphilly|Newbridge]], [[Risca]], [[Crumlin, Caerphilly|Crumlin]], [[Abercarn]] and [[Cwmcarn]]. The [[carboniferous]] Black Vein coal seams in the area lay 900 feet below the surface and the mining activity associated with it was responsible for many tragic subsurface explosions, roof collapses and [[Mining accident]]s.
Now the valleys' heavy industrial past is overprinted with urban regeneration, tourism and multi-national investment.
==Gallery==
<center><gallery>
<!-- Deleted image removed: Image:Westgate Hotel.jpg|A scene from [[Newport city centre|Newport City Centre]] -->
Image:ValeGlamorgan1.jpg|The rich countryside of the [[Vale of Glamorgan]]
Image:Central Cardiff.jpg|Montage showing landmarks in [[Cardiff]]
Image:Cardiff1.jpg|Western Central Cardiff from the Cardiff Eye (60m Wales Wheel), Cardiff
Image:wales_blaenavon_bigpit.jpg|The [[Big Pit National Coal Museum]] at [[Blaenavon]] - South Wales' economic past in coal mining
Image:EbbwVale1.jpg|A typical scene from the valleys - The view from [[Ebbw Vale]].
Image:Llantwit Major Beach Bristol Channel.jpg|South Wales Coastline overlooking the Bristol Channel at [[Llantwit Major]]
</gallery></center>
==Language==
The language of the vast majority of people in South Wales is [[English language|English]], but there are many who speak [[Welsh language|Welsh]]. However in western parts of [[Glamorgan]], particularly the [[Neath]] and [[Swansea Valley]]s, there remain significant Welsh-speaking communities such as ([[Ystradgynlais]] and [[Ystalyfera]]) which share a heritage with the fellow ex-[[Anthracite]] mining areas of eastern [[Carmarthenshire]], as much as the [[Glamorgan]] valleys.
The local [[slang]] [[dialect]] and phrases of the [[South Wales Valleys]] communities have been referred to as '[[Wenglish]]', with often comic effect [http://talktidy.com/s.html].
Welsh, however, is now a compulsory language up to [[GCSE]] level for all students who start their education in [[Wales]]. This has meant the strength of the language, as a 2nd language, has increased considerably in the last 20 years. Several schools offering Welsh-language education operate in this area, for example [[Ysgol Gyfun Y Cymmer]] in [[Porth]] the [[Rhondda]], [[Ysgol Gyfun Gwynllyw]] in [[Pontypool]], [[Ysgol Gyfun Plasmawr]] in [[Cardiff]] & [[Ysgol Gyfun Rhydywaun]] In [[Aberdare]], which have done much to enhance the status of the language among young people.
A significant number of people from ethnic-minority communities speak another language as their first language, particularly in [[Cardiff]] and [[Newport]]. Commonly-spoken languages in some areas include [[Punjabi]], [[Bengali language|Bengali]], [[Arabic]], [[Somali language|Somali]] and [[Chinese language|Chinese]], and increasingly [[Eastern Europe]]an languages such as [[Polish language|Polish]].
==Culture==
:''See also: [[Culture of Wales]]''
The traditional pastimes of the area include [[Rugby football|rugby]] and [[music]]. Today music ranges from the traditional [[Music of Wales|Welsh]] [[Male Voice]] [[Choir]]s of the Valleys such as [[Treorchy Male Choir]] to the South Wales Hardcore Scene. Bands such as [[Lostprophets]], [[Bullet for My Valentine]], [[Stereophonics]], [[Manic Street Preachers]], [[Funeral for a Friend]], [[The Automatic]], [[Skindred]], Midasuno, Save Your Breath, SaidMike, elsid, kick box riot, [[Kids In Glass Houses]] and [[The Blackout (band)|The Blackout]] all come from the South Wales area.
==Industry today==
The former heavy industries of [[coal]] and [[iron]] production have long disappeared, largely replaced by [[service sector]] industries. The cities along the [[M4 corridor]] are home to a number of high-profile blue-chip companies such as [[Admiral Insurance]], [[Legal & General]] and the Welsh based [[Principality Building Society]]. A large number of telephone [[call centre]]s are located in the region and in particular in the Valleys area. [[Merthyr Tydfil]] is home to the principal UK call centre for German mobile telephone company, [[T-Mobile]].
The [[television]] and [[film]] sectors are fast becoming a major industry in south Wales, with the development, by the [[BBC]], of a vast dedicated production studio in [[Nantgarw]], just north of Cardiff, for the highly successful [[Doctor Who]] series. [[Lord Attenborough]] is shortly due to open the first completely-new film studio in the UK in over fifty years. Dragon International Studios, a huge purpose-built studio complex located alongside the [[M4 motorway]], between [[Bridgend]] and [[Llantrisant]] contains a number of large soundstages which have already attracted the interest of a number of [[Hollywood]] directors and producers alike, looking for suitable facilities in [[Europe]].
==Local media==
Radio stations in the area include:
*[[106.3 Bridge FM]]
*[[Real Radio]]
*[[Red Dragon FM]]
*[[Gold (radio)|South Wales Gold]]
*[[96.4 FM The Wave]]
*[[Swansea Sound]]
*[[Scarlet FM]]
==See also==
* [[South West Wales]]
* [[Geography of Wales]]
* [[Subdivisions of Wales]]
* [[M4 Corridor]]
* [[South Wales coalfield]]
* [[South Wales Valleys]]
* [[New South Wales]] in [[Australia]]
==External links==
* [http://www.south-wales.org.uk/ Independent Guide to South Wales]
* [http://www.southwalesonline.net/ South Wales Online - Community news, info and business directory for South Wales]
* [http://www.goweruk.com Gower - Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty]
[[Category:Regions of Wales]]
[[Category:Subdivisions of Wales]]
[[cy:De Cymru]]
[[de:Südwales]]
[[fr:Galles du Sud]]
[[nl:Zuid-Wales]]