South Wales
A map of South Wales shows light red shading that combines common definitions of south east and south west Wales, including Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire. These areas may also be considered West Wales by some local standards. A point of discussion is whether the first element of the name should be capitalised as 'south Wales' or 'South Wales'. Style guides such as those of the BBC Academy use the form 'south Wales' because it is a geographical expression rather than a specific area with well-defined borders. The Welsh Government states on their international gateway website that it should always be capitalised, yet they use the term to refer to a tourism marketing area which excludes the Swansea and Neath Port Talbot local authority areas. In contradiction, the style guide for the Welsh Government's main website uses 'south Wales'. It is always capitalised on motorway signs. A definition spanning from Pembrokeshire in the west to Monmouthshire in the east attracts over 43 million visitors annually according to the South Wales Guide.
Merthyr Tydfil grew around the Dowlais Ironworks which was founded to exploit locally abundant seams of iron ore. By the 1831 census the population of Merthyr was 60,000 more at that time than Cardiff Swansea and Newport combined. New coal mines were sunk nearby to feed the furnaces and produced coal for export. The Marquess of Bute owned much of the land north of Cardiff and built a steam railway system stretching from Cardiff into many of the South Wales Valleys where the coal was being found. Lord Bute charged fees per ton of coal transported out using his railways. Hundreds of tons of coal were being transported by barge to ports in Cardiff and Newport by the 1830s. Coal was transported by rail transport networks to Newport Docks by the 1870s when it became the largest coal exporting docks in the world. Many thousands of immigrants from the Midlands Scotland Ireland Cornwall and even Italy came and set up homes in the region. Industrial workers were housed in cottages and terraced houses close to the mines and foundries in which they worked.
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. In October 1966 heavy rain made the giant coal tip unstable resulting in the Aberfan disaster. A black wave tore downhill across the Glamorganshire Canal and swept away houses on its path towards the village school. One hundred fourteen children and twenty-eight adults were killed. The recent dumping of small particles of coal and ash known as tailings seems to have been partly responsible. Although nationalised the National Coal Board failed to appreciate the danger they had created. Mining accidents 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.
By July 1985 just thirty-one coal pits remained in the region following closures that continued sharply into the 1980s. Further closures left the region with just one deep mine by the early 1990s and this finally closed in January 2008 after being sold off by the National Coal Board. These industries have since largely been replaced by service sector industries. The cities along the M4 corridor are home to high-profile blue-chip companies such as Admiral Insurance Legal & General and the Welsh-based Principality Building Society. A large number of telephone call centres 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. One site of note on the M4 corridor is Port Talbot Steelworks which is the largest steel producer in the UK and one of the biggest in Europe. In 2021 the Welsh screen sector saw a turnover of £575 million. Prominent film studios have been established in Cardiff Wolf Studios Wales Seren Stiwdios Enfys Studios as well as Bridgend Dragon Studios and Swansea Bay Studios.
The native language of the majority of people in South Wales was historically Welsh but is now English. However there are still significant numbers of Welsh speakers. In western parts of Glamorgan particularly the Neath and Swansea Valleys there remain significant Welsh-speaking communities such as Ystradgynlais and Ystalyfera. The local slang dialect and phrases of the South Wales Valleys communities have been referred to as Wenglish and are often used with comic effect. The dialect is found in such coastal towns as Barry as featured in the BBC comedy series Gavin & Stacey. Several secondary schools offering Welsh medium education operate in this area including Ysgol Gyfun Llanhari in Pontyclun and Ysgol Gyfun Y Cymmer in Porth in the Rhondda. 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 Arabic Somali and Chinese and increasingly Central European languages such as Polish.
The South Wales landscape is marked by numerous chapels places of worship of the various Christian Nonconformist congregations. The largest denomination however became the Calvinistic Methodists later the Presbyterian Church of Wales whose chapels can be seen in many parts. Post-war diversity has brought mosques especially in Cardiff and Newport Sikh gurdwaras including one on the mountain near Abercynon and a growing number of Evangelical and Pentecostal congregations. These often add a strongly international element into local life such as the Pont twinning project between Pontypridd and Mbale Uganda. Radio stations include Capital South Wales Heart South Wales Hits Radio South Wales Greatest Hits Radio South Wales Swansea Bay Radio Radio Carmarthenshire Radio Pembrokeshire Bridge FM BBC Radio Wales BBC Radio Cymru Nation Radio Wales Smooth Wales. The Welsh national media is based in Cardiff where the BBC and ITV have their main studios and offices.
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Common questions
What is the capitalization rule for south Wales according to BBC Academy style guides?
The BBC Academy style guide uses lowercase 'south Wales' because it treats the term as a geographical expression without well-defined borders. In contrast, motorway signs always capitalize the name and the Welsh Government's international gateway website requires capitalization.
When did the Aberfan disaster occur and how many people died in the tragedy?
The Aberfan disaster occurred in October 1966 when heavy rain caused an unstable coal tip to collapse onto a village school. One hundred fourteen children and twenty-eight adults were killed during the event.
Which year did the last deep coal mine in South Wales close permanently?
The final deep mine in the region closed in January 2008 after being sold off by the National Coal Board. This closure followed decades of mining activity that had seen over 43 million visitors annually before the industry declined sharply into the 1980s.
Where are the largest steel producer and major film studios located within South Wales?
Port Talbot Steelworks serves as the largest steel producer in the UK and one of the biggest in Europe. Major film studios including Wolf Studios Wales Seren Stiwdios Enfys Studios Bridgend Dragon Studios and Swansea Bay Studios operate across Cardiff and Swansea.
What languages are commonly spoken by ethnic minority communities in Cardiff and Newport today?
Commonly spoken first languages among ethnic minority communities include Punjabi Bengali Arabic Somali Chinese Polish and other Central European languages. While English is now the majority language, significant Welsh-speaking communities remain in western Glamorgan areas like Ystradgynlais and Ystalyfera.