West Wales
52°26′02″N 4°16′30″W / 52.434°N 4.275°W
West Wales (Welsh: Gorllewin Cymru) is not clearly defined as a particular region of Wales. Some definitions of West Wales include only Pembrokeshire, Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire, which historically comprised the Welsh principality of Deheubarth[1]: 87, 95 and was called "South West Wales" in the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS).[2] Other definitions include Swansea and Neath Port Talbot but exclude Ceredigion.[3][4] The "West Wales and the Valleys" NUTS area includes more westerly parts of North Wales.[2]
The preserved county of Dyfed covers what is generally considered to be West Wales; between 1974 and 1996, Dyfed was a county, with a county council and six district councils.
Historic use
Historically, the term West Wales was applied to the Kingdom of Cornwall during the Anglo-Saxon invasion of Britain and the period of the Heptarchy.[5] The Old English word Wealas, a Germanic term for inhabitants of the Western Roman Empire, which the Anglo-Saxons came to apply especially to the Britons, gave its name to Wales and is also the origin of the second syllable in the name Cornwall.
Railways
Mainlines
Heritage lines
See also
- Geography of Wales
- South West Wales
- South Wales
- Mid Wales
- North Wales
- Principality of Deheubarth
- Kingdom of Dyfed
- West Wales Raiders
Notes
- ^ Davies, John (1994). A History of Wales. Penguin History. ISBN 978-0-14-014581-6.
- ^ a b ONS NUTS guide to Wales statistical groupings
- ^ West Wales Chamber of Commerce
- ^ Future Skills Wales Project Summary Report for West Wales 1998-2007
- ^ The Historical Atlas by William R. Shepherd, 1926
