118-543: The Ffestiniog Railway ( Welsh : Rheilffordd Ffestiniog ) is a heritage railway based on 1 ft 11 + 1 ⁄ 2 in ( 597 mm ) narrow-gauge , located in Gwynedd , Wales. It is a major tourist attraction located mainly within the Snowdonia National Park . The railway is roughly 13 + 1 ⁄ 2 miles (21.7 km) long and runs from the harbour at Porthmadog to
236-470: A refuge siding , and it was not possible to cross passenger trains. In 1999 the box was recommissioned, with replacement signal heads being installed, the Tan-y-Bwlch end trap points were removed and new power cabling was installed. Rhiw Goch has the only regularly staffed signal box on the railway and the 1974 vintage box was replaced by a new enlarged box during 2006/7. This included provision for
354-441: 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
472-594: 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
590-663: 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
708-404: A clock presentation ceremony. Evans continued in service as Manager until his retirement on 1 June 1955 when Garraway was appointed as Manager. The first public passenger train from Porthmadog to Boston Lodge ran on 23 July 1955. Prince returned to service on 3 August 1955. After extensive boiler repairs, Double Fairlie Taliesin returned to service on 4 September 1956. The passenger service
826-492: A major importance. Since restoration commenced in 1954, tourism has been the only significant source of income. The role of the Ffestiniog Railway in the promotion and fulfilment of tourism and in preserving railway heritage has been recognised many times, and notable mentions have included: Recognition of the railway's importance to tourism and heritage has been increasingly marked by financial assistance given to
944-535: A printed timetable was published on 16 September 1856 by Charles Easton Spooner who, following his father, served as Manager and Clerk for 30 years. It shows departures from the Quarry Terminus (later referred to as Dinas, sometimes as Rhiwbryfdir or Rhiw) at 7:30, 9:28, 11:16, 1:14, 3:12 and 5:10. Trains waited ten minutes at the intermediate stations called Tunnel Halt, Hafod y Llyn and Rhiw Goch . The fastest journey time from Quarry Terminus to Boston Lodge
1062-479: 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
1180-412: A station called Portmadoc New . The Welsh Highland line was almost totally dependent on tourism, but this proved slow to develop for several reasons: two slumps in the early 1920s and early 1930s; the rise of road traffic including charabancs ; and the unreliability of the railway with its (even then) ancient carriages and increasingly decrepit locomotives. Light railway operation was being introduced on
1298-642: A very low centre of gravity , which led to them being nicknamed 'bug boxes'. In 1872, the FR introduced the first bogie carriages to operate in Britain, Nos 15 and 16, which were also the first iron-framed bogie coaches in the world and are still in service. The continuous vacuum brake was installed in 1893. The line was fully signalled with electric telegraph and staff and ticket working. Electric Train Staff instruments were introduced in 1912 and they continue in use to
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#17327757792851416-442: A workmen's train on weekdays throughout the year and a summer tourist passenger service. Ordinary passenger services ceased on the FR on 15 September 1939, shortly after the outbreak of World War II. The workmen's passenger service ran for the last time on Saturday, 16 September 1939. Slate trains were from then onwards operated three days each week but gravity operation was discontinued. Slate traffic ceased on 1 August 1946, apart from
1534-1041: 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
1652-477: Is a passing point on the Ffestiniog Railway north of the village of Penrhyndeudraeth in Wales . It was originally a passing loop and an exchange point for the horses that worked the line, opening in 1836. Horses were stabled overnight at Rhiw Goch farm, which adjoins the line further south nearer to the village. When the railway converted to using steam locomotives in 1863, Rhiw Goch passing loop
1770-550: 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. Rhiw Goch Rhiw Goch
1888-688: 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
2006-702: Is no fencing between the footpath and the railway, because the railway does not own the top of the Cob, but used a wayleave under the local act of Parliament, the Portmadoc Harbour Act 1821 ( 1 & 2 Geo. 4 . c.cxv) for improving Porthmadog Harbour. This act was repealed by the Porthmadog Harbour Revision Order 1998 ( SI 1998 /683) and is no longer in force. Welsh language Welsh ( Cymraeg [kəmˈraːiɡ] or y Gymraeg [ə ɡəmˈraːiɡ] )
2124-535: Is now all but buried under slate waste; the rest of the Dinas branch line was removed about 1954–55. Occasional confusion arises because places named Hafod y Llyn Isaf and Dinas also exist on the Welsh Highland Railway , albeit 10 miles (16 km) or more to the northwest of those on the FR. During the late 1850s it became clear that the line was reaching its operational capacity, while the output of
2242-412: Is still possible to pass trains, although Cae Ednyfed, lies within the current Minfford station limits. In 1989 the box was taken out of use, with the signal heads being removed and the token instrument from Tan-y-Bwlch, and the although trap points (from Minffordd) were installed at the Tan-y-Bwlch end of the loop, they were never commissioned. During this period, the ground frame was only usable as
2360-511: 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
2478-732: 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
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#17327757792852596-919: The 0-4-0 type allowed much longer slate trains to be run and this also enabled the official introduction of passenger trains in 1865: the Ffestiniog was the first narrow-gauge railway in Britain to carry passengers. In 1869, the line's first double Fairlie articulated locomotive was introduced and these double-ended machines have since become one of the most widely recognised features of the railway. Down trains continued to run entirely by gravity but faster up journeys and longer trains increased line capacity. A new timetable dated October 1863 shows six departures daily from each terminus at two-hour intervals, starting at 7:00 am and taking 1 hour 50 minutes including stops (totalling 20 minutes) at Tanygrisiau , Hafod-y-Llyn and Penrhyn . Trains passed only at Hafod-y-Llyn (from 1872 Tan-y-Bwlch ). When passenger services started,
2714-500: 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
2832-466: 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
2950-538: 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
3068-782: The Ffestiniog Pumped Storage Scheme . This included a new reservoir, Llyn Ystradau which flooded a mile of the line north of the Moewlwyn Tunnel. In 1972, after the second-longest court case in British legal history, the Festiniog Railway Company obtained compensation for the loss of its route. Two years later, the case influenced the writing of the Land Compensation Act 1973 . On 18 August 1954, Colonel McMullen of
3186-672: The Gorseddau and Croesor Tramways and was later used by Welsh Highland Railway passenger trains from 1923 to 1936. The line over the bridge was last used in 1958 and then dismantled. It was reopened as part of the WHR in 2011. Between Porthmadog Harbour station and Boston Lodge, the railway runs on the Cob , the dyke of the Traeth Mawr polder . The Cob was built between 1807 and 1811 by William Madocks and, in addition to its land reclamation function in conjunction with sluice gates at
3304-527: The Ministry of Transport, Railways Inspectorate inspected the line from Blaenau Ffestiniog to Porthmadog, accompanied by Pegler, several directors and other supporters. Restoration began on 20 September 1954 when Morris Jones, the foreman fitter who had last worked for the railway in March 1947, rejoined the staff. Jones worked to complete the rebuilding of the locomotive Prince which he had been working on when
3422-701: 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
3540-640: 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
3658-423: The slate mining town of Blaenau Ffestiniog , travelling through forested and mountainous terrain. The line is single track throughout with four intermediate passing places. The first mile of the line out of Porthmadog runs atop an embankment called the Cob , which is the dyke of the polder known as Traeth Mawr . The Festiniog Railway Company, which owns the railway, is the oldest surviving railway company in
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3776-594: 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
3894-596: 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
4012-536: 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 ,
4130-486: 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
4248-509: The Blaenau Ffestiniog slate quarries continued to rise. In 1860, the board of the company began to investigate the possibility of introducing steam locomotives to increase the carrying capacity of the railway. Although narrow-gauge steam locomotives had been tried before this, very few had been built to so narrow a gauge. In 1862 the company advertised for manufacturers to tender to build the line's first locomotives. In February 1863,
4366-621: The Britannia bridge, it serves also as a roadway (which, since 1836, has been at a lower level on the landward side) and as a bridge across the Afon Glaslyn. Tolls were charged with a tollgate at Boston Lodge until 2003, when the rights were purchased by the National Assembly for Wales . The higher, original, section of the Cob carries, in addition to the railway, a public footpath throughout virtually its entire length. There
4484-526: The Deviation route before the new Moelwyn Tunnel was opened. North of the new tunnel is a long stretch of track along the west bank of the new reservoir. On 25 June 1977, full-length passenger trains first ran from Dduallt through the new tunnel to a now-dismantled temporary terminus known as Llyn Ystradau . That station was alongside Llyn Ystradau but, because it was on Central Electricity Generating Board land without public access, passengers could not leave
4602-563: The Deviation was officially called the Civil Engineering Group, but its members were popularly known (and are still remembered) as the Deviationists , who completed an enormous task over 13 years. The completion of the railway through to Tanygrisiau (height 640 ft or 195 m) left the FR with just one and a half miles (2.4 km) to go to its goal of Blaenau Ffestiniog (height 710 ft or 216 m) but
4720-493: The FR and WHR to cut operating overheads. In 1923, to gain additional expertise in this, Colonel H. F. Stephens was appointed as part-time engineer to both companies. Stephens became Chairman and Managing Director of both companies in 1924. When the WHR was taken into receivership in 1927, Colonel Stephens was appointed as Receiver for the WHR and financial administration of both companies moved to Tonbridge in Kent . The fortunes of
4838-408: The FR company's financial administration moving to Dolgarrog. Jack was also chairman of the new Welsh Highland Railway . He was instrumental in getting government backing for its completion on the understanding that the FR and the WHR would be jointly managed from Porthmadog, with maintenance undertaken at Boston Lodge and with other economies of scale. In 1923, the FR line was joined to the WHR line at
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4956-408: The Festiniog Railway Company, like most narrow-gauge railways, remained independent. In 1921, this was due to political influence, whereas in 1947 it was left out of British Railways because it was closed for traffic, despite vigorous local lobbying for it to be included. Various important developments in the railway's early history were celebrated by the firing of rock cannon at various points along
5074-526: The Ffestiniog Railway, which it illustrated with a drawing of a lady in Welsh National Dress (then still in regular local use) travelling on an FR up train (since many empty slate wagons – with two standing brakesmen – were attached at the rear) with the caption "On the Ffestiniog Railway". The guide uses the "double F" spelling throughout. It was, however, in the inter-war years from 1919 to 1939 that tourism, though always valued, came to acquire
5192-550: 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
5310-471: The WHR, despite great efforts, failed to improve and it became bankrupt in 1933. To protect their investments, the joint owners of both companies arranged for the WHR to be leased by the FR. However the WHR losses continued with the loss of the Moel Tryfan slate traffic in 1935, and it closed to passengers at the end of the 1936 season and to goods in 1937. The FR continued to operate its slate traffic,
5428-496: 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,
5546-637: 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
5664-667: 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
5782-526: 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
5900-487: 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
6018-630: 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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#17327757792856136-490: The assets of the old company could be transferred and before final consent to rebuild the railway was given. The first section from Caernarfon to Dinas , the Caernarfon Light Railway, was opened and operated by the FR from 11 October 1997. This section was not hampered by these extended legal procedures and was built as a Light Railway Order, as it was not part of the original Welsh Highland Railway route;
6254-414: The bid of George England and Co. was accepted and production of the first locomotives was begun. The first of these locomotives, Mountaineer was delivered to Porthmadog on 18 July 1863, followed a few days later by The Princess . After a number of trials and some modifications (notably the addition of domes) to the locomotive, the first official train ran on 23 October 1863. These steam locomotives of
6372-408: 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
6490-811: The company in the local act, the Festiniog Railway Act 1832 ( 2 & 3 Will. 4 . c. xlviii) that created the railway. It is the oldest surviving railway company in the world (although not the oldest working railway – a record that goes to the Middleton Railway , in Leeds), having been founded by the act of Parliament on 23 May 1832 with capital mostly raised in Dublin by Henry Archer , the company's first secretary and managing director. Most British railways were amalgamated into four large groups in 1921 and then into British Railways in 1948 but
6608-466: The company towards capital expenditure. Prior to September 1987, the FR had received £1,273,127 in gifts and grants. Of this: £450,476 was Gifts from the FR Society and FR Trust and other supporters; £379,335 from Wales Tourist Board; £134,320 from EEC Grants and £308,996 from other public sources. Major grants received subsequently have been: In 1989 a grant of £430,000 (£1,351,259 in 2023), mainly from The EEC (National Programme of Community Interest for
6726-461: The complexities of reconstructing that unique but rather derelict urban section of narrow-gauge railway took a further four years. As well as 1 + 1 ⁄ 2 miles (2.4 km) of new track and its formation, which was the responsibility of the FR permanent way department and its volunteers, much other work needed to be done. Most of the work, like the deviation itself, was undertaken by volunteers who, in many cases, assumed full responsibility for
6844-409: The country, mostly found in north and mid Wales. At Porthmadog, the original line came via the streets and across the Britannia bridge from the 1836 terminus at the northernmost end of the Welsh Slate Company's Wharf where the FR officially started. This was the second datum point for all pre-1954 mileage calculations. (the first being in Blaenau Ffestiniog). The line over the bridge also connected with
6962-414: 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
7080-489: 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
7198-408: 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
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#17327757792857316-457: The design as well as the execution of discrete projects, each under a volunteer project leader. There were four decrepit footbridges each needing to be demolished and rebuilt to the new FR loading gauge . The decrepit steel bridge across the Afon Barlwyd required total replacement, with timber (Karri) beams using the original abutments and piers. The new deck is formed of old rails. Walls and fences throughout had to be repaired or replaced. These and
7434-408: The down passenger and goods portions were combined into a single train headed by the locomotive. The loaded slate trains continued to operate by gravity until the end of passenger services in 1939. Slate trains eventually became very long – trains of less than eighty slate wagons carried two brakesmen but over eighty wagons (and this became common) required three brakesmen. About one wagon in every six
7552-431: 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
7670-446: The former London and North Western Railway (1867), North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways (1877–81), Portmadoc, Beddgelert and South Snowdon Railway and Welsh Highland (1922-3) Railway. The FR also links with the WHR (Porthmadog) at Pen-y-Mount Station, north of Porthmadog. Rails increased in weight and strength as traffic changed. One of the earliest references to tourism is in the LNWR Tourist Guide for 1876, which waxed lyrical about
7788-541: The former Moelwyn tunnel, which is plugged near its usually-submerged northern end. Between Dduallt and the old tunnel, parts of the old railway formation can be clearly seen below the new route. The new 310-yard (280 m) tunnel was constructed between 1975 and 1977 by three Cornish tin mining engineers with a small team of employees. It had to be blasted through a granite spur of the Moelwyn mountain. The tunnel plant included stone crushing and grading equipment, which produced track ballast and other aggregates from
7906-411: 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
8024-413: 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
8142-400: 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
8260-527: 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
8378-431: 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
8496-555: 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 )
8614-479: The line since the 1960s. This action may have delayed the start of rebuilding of the Welsh Highland Railway, although the alternative plan was dependent on the continued co-operation of Gwynedd County Council to ensure that the track bed was used solely for railway purposes. This was not guaranteed, as pressure from various groups who objected to the rebuilding of the railway was significant and it
8732-456: The line, but they refused the offer. TCL were introduced to the FR and decided that the aims and objectives of TCL and the FR were similar thus, since 1988, the FR company has been totally committed to the reopening of the Welsh Highland Railway . All TCL-owned shares/debentures were transferred to the FR on the condition that they would be returned if the railway was not built. The next few years were marked by protracted legal procedures before
8850-409: The line. This led a group to form 'Trackbed Consolidation Limited' (TCL) and, after some detective work, TCL managed to trace and purchase shares and debentures in the original WHR company. They felt that an alternative plan was available, one where the original company could be brought out of receivership. It was originally the intent of TCL to provide the track bed to the WHR (1964) Company to rebuild
8968-513: The line. Cannon were fired, for instance, to mark the laying of the first stone at Creuau in 1833, the railway's opening in 1836, and the opening of the Moelwyn Tunnel in 1842. The passing of a later act for the railway also saw cannon celebrations, but on this occasion, a fitter at Boston Lodge, who was assisting with firing, lost the fingers of one hand in an accident. The line was constructed between 1833 and 1836 to transport slate from
9086-451: The main line had ceased functioning, the company could not dismantle the railway, so the track and infrastructure were left in place. An amending act of Parliament could have been sought to repeal the old one, but the company did not have the money. However, without maintenance, the line soon became overgrown and unusable. From 1949, various groups of rail enthusiasts attempted to revitalise the railway. In 1951, railway enthusiast Alan Pegler
9204-530: The many other varied tasks formed Project Blaenau. One major task near Tanygrisiau was the responsibility of Gwynedd County Council , which had at some time after 1955 taken advantage of the absence of trains to demolish what was probably Britain's lowest road under railway bridge. In early 1980, therefore, they replaced Dolrhedyn bridge and even managed to give it a few inches extra headroom for road vehicles. Civil engineering contractors were employed in conjunction with British Rail and Gwynedd County Council for
9322-622: 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
9440-472: The new route with its bridges and roadworks and the new joint station on the former Great Western Railway station site. British Rail commenced using the new station on 22 March 1982. Ffestiniog trains returned to Blaenau on Tuesday, 25 May 1982, thus marking the 150th Anniversary of royal assent to the Festiniog Railway Act 1832. The new joint station with British Rail at Blaenau Ffestiniog
9558-448: 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,
9676-473: 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
9794-551: 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 ,
9912-411: The permanent staff by working in every department of the railway. Stations were given new buildings, canopies and platforms, often replacing the previous temporary structures and improving the image of the railway for the future. After fully reopening in 1982 and carrying 200,000 passengers annually, the railway became the second largest Welsh tourist attraction after Caernarfon Castle . Many saw this as
10030-436: 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
10148-471: 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
10266-502: 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
10384-407: 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
10502-557: The present day. By the 1920s, the demand for slate as a roofing material dropped owing to the advent of newer materials and to the loss of the overseas trade during World War I. As a result, the railway suffered a gradual decline in traffic. In 1921, the Aluminium Corporation at Dolgarrog in the Conwy Valley bought for £40,000 (£2,240,000 in 2023), a controlling interest in the FR and Henry Jack became Chairman,
10620-522: The promoting of tourism in Dyfed, Gwynedd and Powys); in 1995 a grant of £500,000 (£1,214,073 in 2023), to promote work in Blaenau Ffestiniog and in 1998 a Heritage Lottery Fund grant of £375,000 (£833,476 in 2023), for the construction of workshops to facilitate the restoration of historic vehicles. Today the railway is promoted as one of The Great Little Trains of Wales , a joint marketing scheme launched in 1970 that encompasses ten narrow-gauge railways in
10738-410: The quarries around the inland town of Blaenau Ffestiniog to the coastal town of Porthmadog where it was loaded onto ships. The railway was graded so that loaded wagons could be run by gravity downhill all the way from Blaenau Ffestiniog to the port. The empty wagons were hauled back up by horses, which travelled down in special 'dandy' wagons. To achieve this continuous grade (about 1 in 80 for much of
10856-404: The railway closed. He was joined at Boston Lodge works by two volunteers, Bill Harvey and Allan Garraway . The completion of sixty years service with the FR by Robert Evans (for almost 25 years as Manager) was marked on 6 November 1954 and a special train was run from Minffordd to Porthmadog to celebrate the occasion and convey Evans, his wife, Alan Pegler (Company Chairman) and guests en route to
10974-635: The re-introduction of the Ffestiniog Railway Letter Service . Between 1965 and 1978, the Ffestiniog Railway Deviation, a 2 + 1 ⁄ 2 -mile (4 km) long diversionary route, was constructed between Dduallt and Tanygrisiau in order to avoid the Ffestiniog hydro-electric power station and its reservoir (Llyn Ystradau). The Deviation (this is the conventional name for such railway works)
11092-409: 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
11210-441: The result of Pegler's drive and ability to inspire others with his unquenchable enthusiasm to fulfil his dream. Pegler, who remained fully involved with the railway until his death in 2012 as President, was appointed OBE in the 2006 New Year Honours in recognition of his contribution. In 1988, the Festiniog Railway Company was involved in a controversial plan to stop the neighbouring Welsh Highland Railway (WHR) being rebuilt, as it
11328-622: The revivalists was held at a Bristol college on 8 September. Amongst the twelve in attendance were Allan Garraway , Harold Holcroft and Vic Mitchell . Mitchell would later be appointed a director of the company. Pegler later released complete control of the company without any personal financial gain to the Ffestiniog Railway Trust, which still owns and runs the railway today. In 1954, the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB) built
11446-502: The section from Duffws to the North Western yard through Blaenau Ffestiniog town centre, which was leased on 7 October 1946 to the quarry owners. This provided the railway company, which retained the services of a resident manager at Porthmadog, with a small income throughout the moribund years. The original act of Parliament which permitted the building of the line made no specific provision for its closure or abandonment. Although
11564-651: 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
11682-554: The site of Dinas station had been sold off and thus was not part of the assets of the old WHR company. Other powers under a Transport & Works Order enabled restoration to Waunfawr in 2000 and to Rhyd Ddu in 2003. Hafod y Llyn was reached in 2009 and Pont Croesor in 2010. By 2010, the tracks of the WHR and Ffestiniog Railway had been reconnected at Harbour Station, linking Caernarfon to Porthmadog and passenger services started in 2011. The completed Welsh Highland Railway or Rheilffordd Eryri (its Welsh name) comprises parts of
11800-487: The speed by the application of brakes as needed. At passing loops, trains passed on the right and this continues to be a feature of Ffestiniog Railway operation. There is evidence for tourist passengers being carried as early as 1850 without the blessing of the Board of Trade , but these journeys would also observe the timetable. Hafod y Llyn was replaced by Tan y Bwlch around 1872. Dinas (Rhiw) Station and much of that branch
11918-441: The spoil for use on the railway. Before it opened to rail traffic, the new tunnel had to be lined throughout its length with liquid cement reinforced with steel mesh in a process called ' shotcreting '. From 26 May 1975, and over two summers, a pull and push service, officially called The Shuttle , powered by diesel locomotive Moel Hebog with carriage 110, was operated from Dduallt to Gelliwiog , to enable tourists to experience
12036-522: The station other than by train. The remaining section included some specialised engineering work at its summit (668 feet (204 m)) where the new line passes over the power station pipelines. This was followed by two public road crossings with automatic signalling, on the FR's only reverse or down gradient, to rejoin the old route in Tanygrisiau station (640 feet (195 m)), which was reopened on 24 June 1978. The largely volunteer group building
12154-526: 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
12272-480: The usual practice was for locomotive-hauled up trains to consist of loaded general goods and mineral wagons, followed by passenger carriages, followed by empty slate wagons with brakesmen. Down trains were run in up to four separate (uncoupled) portions: loaded slate wagons, goods wagons, passenger carriages and the locomotive running light. This unusual and labour-intensive method of operation was highly dangerous, at least as far as passengers were concerned; consequently,
12390-521: The way), the line followed natural contours and employed cuttings and embankments built of stone and slate blocks without mortar. Prior to the completion in 1842 of a long tunnel through a spur in the Moelwyn Mountain , the slate trains were worked over the top via inclines (designed by Robert Stephenson ), the site of which can still be seen although there are few visible remnants. Up to six trains daily were operated in each direction and
12508-402: The world. It also owns the Welsh Highland Railway , which was re-opened fully in 2011. The two railways share the same track gauge and meet at Porthmadog station, with occasional trains working the entire 40-mile (64 km) route from Blaenau Ffestiniog to Caernarfon . The railway company is properly known as the "Festiniog Railway Company". The single F spelling is in the official title of
12626-469: Was 1 hour 32 minutes, including three stops. From Boston Lodge, the slate wagons were hauled to and from Porthmadog harbour by horses. Up trains took nearly six hours from Boston Lodge to the Quarry Terminus and each train ran in up to four sections, each hauled by a horse and comprising eight empty slate wagons plus a horse dandy. This timetable gave a maximum annual capacity of 70,000 tons of dressed slate. Two brakesmen travelled on each down train, controlling
12744-412: Was approached by friends to buy and clear the outstanding debt on the derelict Ffestiniog Railway, to enable its purchase. Lent £3,000 by his father, he and the volunteers obtained control of the company on 24 June 1954. Pegler was appointed the new company's first Chairman, with the objective to operate the railway as a tourist attraction and gradually restore the line to working order. The first meeting of
12862-460: Was built mostly by volunteers. At the southern end is the Dduallt spiral formation which is unique on a public railway in the United Kingdom. Including a bridge, it was constructed entirely by volunteers, and gains an initial height rise of 35 feet (10.7 m) in order (after a further one mile (1.6 km) of new volunteer-built railway and a new tunnel) to clear the flooded track bed north of
12980-622: 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
13098-481: Was concerned at the effect a nearby heritage railway competitor could have on the FR business. The initial plan would have involved the FR Company buying the original track bed of the WHR from the old company's receiver and giving it to Gwynedd County Council, provided no railway-related developments were allowed on the land. This was greeted with dismay by the WHR (1964) Company, which had been attempting to preserve
13216-560: Was equipped with a brake, the others being unbraked. Trains continued to pass at Tan-y-Bwlch and, to a lesser extent, at Minffordd. The Summer timetable for 1900 had nine trains daily in each direction and trains had been accelerated to one hour from Porthmadog to Duffws including stops at Minffordd , Penrhyn, Tan-y-Bwlch, Dduallt (request), Tanygrisiau, Blaenau (LNWR) and Blaenau (GWR) . Speeds in excess of 40 mph (64 km/h) were then normal. The original passenger coaches (some of which survive) were small four-wheeled vehicles with
13334-405: Was extended to Minffordd on 19 May 1956, to Penrhyn on 5 June 1957 and to Tan-y-Bwlch on 5 April 1958. Increasing traffic put severe demands on the track – over 7 miles (11 km) had been reopened in four years. A long period of consolidation, rolling stock restoration and track renewal followed before the extension to Dduallt on 6 April 1968. This extension was celebrated on 28 May 1968 by
13452-425: Was no longer needed and was closed. The passing loop was reinstated at Rhiw Goch in 1975. Its location, approximately equidistant from Minffordd and Tan-y-Bwlch stations, allows maximum flexibility in timetabling, permitting up and down trains to cross with minimum waiting. The location provides a long passing loop which accommodates full length Ffestiniog trains. This is the only former 'horse station' at which it
13570-453: Was officially opened on 30 April 1983 by George Thomas , Speaker of the House of Commons , who unveiled a plaque that records his visit. With the major project of track restoration to Blaenau finally complete, attention could be turned to other matters. More Fairlie locomotives were built or restored and new carriages were built. At Minffordd, a new hostel was built for volunteers who support
13688-518: 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
13806-517: 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
13924-485: Was the stated intention of the council to apply for an abandonment order on gaining the track bed. This would have left the track bed open for seizure by adverse possession ('squatters' rights') by farmers, use in other ways such as footpaths, road improvement schemes etc., as the statutory designation of the track bed as a railway would have been discontinued. Over the years, the presence of plans for footpaths and roads had indeed made it difficult for anyone wishing to rebuild
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