WALES
FoR
EVER
CYMRU AM BYTH

Wales is one of the four nations of the United Kingdom.

It is bordered by:
- north: the Irish Sea
- south: the Bristol Channel
- east: England
- west: St. George´s Channel

Country Facts:
Motto: Cymru am byth (Wales for ever).
National day: 1st of March
Flag: the red dragon
Area: 20, 779 sq km
Population: 3,004,600
Capital city: Cardiff
Currency: sterling pound
Official languages: English and Welsh

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WELSH FLAG

• The red dragon is probably the oldest symbol of Wales.
• If you go to Wales, you can see red dragons everywhere:
on signs, in souvenir shops, in flags, in shields, …

PATRON SAINT
• Saint David is the patron saint of Wales.

The 1st
of March, St David’s Day, is Wales’ national day.
It’s celebrated by Welsh people all over the world.

On this day people wear leeks or daffodils,
traditional Welsh emblems.

CURRENCY
The currency is the pound sterling, as in the rest of the UK.

CAPITAL CITY
• The Welsh capital city is Cardiff.
Cardiff is one of the flattest cities in Britain.
It has got more hours of sunlight than any other city
in Britain.

Cardiff has been the capital of Wales since 1955.
In fact, it’s the youngest capital in Europe.

Cardiff Castle is a popular tourist attraction. It’s also a place
where many rock concerts and other performances take place.

OTHER MAIN CITIES

Swansea has a beautiful bay
and a large marina. It is the
second largest city in Wales.
A statue of Dylan Thomas,
a famous Welsh author
who lived in Swansea.
Swansea

Newport
Newport is a cathedral and a university city in south
east Wales. It´s the third largest city in the
country.

Anglesey is an island separated from the mainland by
the Menai Strait.
You can cross over one of its two bridges.
There is a ferry port on the island from which you
can sail to Dublin.
Anglesey

How do you pronounce the name of this town?
Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch
Wales has got the town with the longest name in the world.

WALES HAS GOT:
• 3 national parks
• 3 million people
• 11 million sheep (there are more
sheep than humans)
• 750 miles of coastline
• 43 blue flag beaches

Snowdonia National Park
• Snowdon is the highest mountain in Wales
and is in the second largest National Park,
after the Lake District.

Brecon Beacons National Park
The Brecon Beacons National Park is a place of rivers and
mountains with all sorts of outdoor activities.

Pembrokeshire National Park
Pembrokeshire National Park is on the coast.
Fishguard is a major ferry link between Pembrokeshire and
Rosslare in Ireland. It has a new high-speed catamaran. A
lot of wild life can be found in the sea.

In Wales you can find high mountains, picturesque lakes,

long sandy beaches, rivers,

bays and waterfalls,

high sand dunes

and the deepest cave in Britain.

Snowdon is the highest peak in Wales (1085 m - 3560 ft)

Welsh ancestors were the Celts.
They were warriors, farmers and
traders.
The Welsh are very
proud of their Celtic
origin.
They keep alive their
traditions and still
speak Welsh, their
ancient Celtic language.
A BIT OF HISTORY

There are over 400 castles in Wales! Some of them are
in ruins, but many are still standing and are some of the
most famous and well-preserved castles in Britain.

There are 2 official
languages in Wales:
English and Welsh.
Everybody in Wales
can speak English, but
for about 20% of the
population, the
mother tongue is
Welsh.
OFFICIAL LANGUAGES

Welsh is the oldest living
language in Europe.
The letters K, Q, V and Z do
not appear in the Welsh
alphabet.
All children learn Welsh at
school.
Nearly all signs are written in
both Welsh and English.
WELSH

Principality
Wales has got a Royal Prince: the Prince of Wales.
Wales is a principality. This means that it´s ruled by
a prince.
Traditionally the Prince of Wales is the eldest son
of the English monarch.

The present Prince of Wales is Prince Charles who is
expected to become the next British King.

SPORT
The Welsh are crazy about rugby, their
national sport.
Golf is another popular sport and they
like football too.

CURIOSITIES
Wales inspired Lewis Carroll to write “Alice in
Wonderland”.
Harry Potter, Robin Hood and Snow White and the
Huntsman were filmed here.

FAMOUS WELSH ACTORS
RICHARD BURTON
CATHERINE ZETA JONES
ANTHONY HOPKINS

OTHER FAMOUS WELSH
ROALD DAHL, writer
GEORGE EVEREST, explorer.
The highest peak in the world
was named beacuse of him.
TOM JONES, singer
GARETH BALE, footballer

Since the 12th century
there are special
competitions to find the
best poets, writers and
musicians in the country.
Wales has always
been known as a
country of poetry
and music.
CULTURE

The most important
eisteddfod is the
National Eisteddfod of
Wales. It’s the largest
cultural festival of its
kind in Europe, and a
very important event in
the Welsh calendar.
It takes place every
August and lasts
for 8 days.
EISTEDDFOD

A favorite souvenir
for the tourists is
a Welsh love spoon.
They are made of wood
and are very
beautifully carved.
In the past, young men carved
a spoon to give to his
sweetheart as a sign of his
love.
LOVE SPOONS

Traditionally, the spoons
were carved from one piece
of wood and they had a
number of symbols such as:
- hearts (for love)
- bells (for the hoped-for
wedding)
- a horseshoe (for luck)
- a dragon (for protection)

Today, love spoons are often given in weddings,
birthdays and Christmas as gifts.

WISHING WELLS
There are lots of wishing wells all over Wales.
Traditionally, people throw a coin and make a
wish.

MAKE A WISH AND THROW YOUR COIN INTO THE WELL
I wish to ....
I wish for ...

I wish for + NOUN

I wish to + VERB