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Petroc

Petroc

Saint Petroc (sometimes spelt Petrock, also Pedrog in Welsh and Perreux in French) (c. 468 - 564) is a sixth century Celtic Christian saint. He was born in Wales but primarily ministered to the Britons of Devon, Cornwall, and Somerset. According to Welsh legend, he was a younger son of the chieftain Glywys Cernyw of Glywysing (now Glamorgan). He has given his name to Llanbedrog, a village of the Lleyn peninsula. "Llan" is an old Welsh word meaning an enclosure, and so was used to denote the land on which churches were built. He studied in Ireland (where he was the teacher of Saint Kevin). After studying, he began his mission to Cornwall, where he founded monasteries at Padstow and Bodmin. Padstow, which is named after him (Padrock-stowe, or Petrock's Place), appears to have been his base for some time. There are numerous other dedications to him throughout Cornwall. In neighbouring Devon the dedications to St Petroc are even more numerous, and the North Devon town of Petrockstow is named after him (as are Newton St Petroc and other towns) and the newly adopted unofficial flag of Devon is dedicated to him. The position of churches bearing his name, nearly always near the coast, reminds us that in those days traveling was done mainly by sea. He is one of the chief saints of Somerset, Devon and Cornwall, and also of Brittany. He is the patron saint of two other churches in Wales, St. Petrox near Pembroke and Ferwig near Cardigan. St Petroc is also the patron of Timberscombe in Somerset. After thirty years, legend says that he went on the pilgrimage to Rome by way of Brittany, where he is venerated under the name of Perreux. In 1177 a Breton stole his relics from Bodmin and gave to the abbey of St. Meen, but Henry II restored them, and they now rest in a small casket on public display in the Church Of St.Petroc at Bodmin. The legendary tales surrounding Petroc are exceptionally vivid and imaginative (giving him a second pilgrimage, travels to India, taming wolves) and may represent interpolation from pagan tales. In iconography, he is usually shown with a stag. His feast day is June 4. See also: Cornish Saints

External links

- St Pedrog's church and pictures of the church see[http://web.onetel.com/~wernfawr/llanbedrogstpedrog.htm]. Petroc Petroc Petroc Petroc Petroc

Welsh language

Welsh (Cymraeg or y Gymraeg), not to be confused with Welsh English (the English language as spoken in Wales), is a member of the Brythonic branch of Celtic spoken natively in Wales (Cymru), and in the Chubut Valley, a Welsh immigrant colony in the Patagonia region of Argentina. There are also speakers of Welsh throughout the world, most notably in England, the United States and Australia.

Status

The 2001 census gives a figure of 20.5% of the population of Wales as Welsh speakers (up from 18.5% in 1991), out of a population of about 3 million; however, the same census shows that 25% of residents were born outside Wales. The number of Welsh speakers throughout the rest of Britain is uncertain, but numbers are high in the main cities and there are speakers along England's border with Wales. Even among the Welsh-speakers, few residents of Wales are monolingual in Welsh. However, a large number of Welsh speakers are more comfortable expressing themselves in Welsh than in English. A speaker's choice of language can vary according to the subject domain (known in linguistics as code-switching). Although Welsh is a minority language, and thus threatened by the dominance of English, support for the language grew during the second half of the 20th century, along with the rise of nationalist political organisations such as the political party Plaid Cymru and Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg (the Welsh Language Society). Welsh as a first language is largely concentrated in the less urban north and west of Wales, principally Gwynedd, Denbighshire, Anglesey (Ynys Môn), Carmarthenshire, North Pembrokeshire, Ceredigion, and parts of western Glamorgan, although first-language and other fluent speakers can be found throughout Wales. Welsh is very much a living language. It is used in conversation every day by thousands and seen in Wales everywhere. The Welsh Language Act 1993 and the Government of Wales Act 1998 provide that the Welsh and English languages should be treated on a basis of equality. Public bodies are required to prepare and implement a Welsh Language Scheme. Thus local councils and the Welsh Assembly use Welsh as an official language, issuing official literature and publicity in Welsh versions (e.g. letters to parents from schools, library information, and council information) and all road signs in Wales should be in English and Welsh, including the Welsh versions of place names. Welsh also has a substantial presence on the Internet, but this is strongly biased towards public bodies: the ratio of search engine hit frequencies for Welsh words to their English equivalents tends to be about 0.1% for formal terms such as addysg/education, cymdeithas/society or llywodraeth/government, but only about 0.01% for everyday terms such as buwch/cow, eirlaw/sleet or cyllell/knife. Welsh Assembly The UK government has ratified the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages in respect to Welsh. The language has greatly increased its prominence since the creation of the television channel S4C in November 1982, which broadcasts exclusively in Welsh during peak viewing hours. The main evening television news provided by the BBC can be found [http://www.bbc.co.uk/cymru/live/newyddion.ram here] (Real Media). BBC Given the British Government's current plans (December 2001) to ensure that all immigrants know English, it remains to be seen if Welsh will be considered a separate case. At present, a knowledge of either Welsh, English or Scottish Gaelic is sufficient for naturalisation purposes and it is believed that this policy will be continued in any proposed changes to the law.

History and development

Like most languages, there are identifiable periods within the history of Welsh, although the boundaries between these are often indistinct. The earliest extant sources of a language identifiable as Welsh go back to about the 6th century, and the language of this period is known as Early Welsh. Very little of this language remains. The next main period, somewhat better attested, is Old Welsh (9th to 11th centuries); this was the language of the laws of Hywel Dda, as well as some poetry from both Wales and Scotland. As Anglo-Saxon colonisation of Great Britain proceeded, the Celtic-speakers in Wales were split off from those in northern England, speaking Cumbrian, and those in the south-west, speaking what would become Cornish, and so the languages diverged. Middle Welsh (or Cymraeg Canol) 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. Middle Welsh is reasonably intelligible, albeit with some work, to a modern-day Welsh speaker. Modern Welsh can be divided into two periods. The first, Early Modern Welsh ran from the 14th century to roughly the end of the 16th century, and was the language used by Dafydd ap Gwilym. Late Modern Welsh began with the publication of William Morgan's translation of the Bible in 1588. Like its English counterpart, the King James Version, this proved to have a strong stabilising effect on the language, and indeed the language today still bears the same Late Modern label as Morgan's language. Of course, many minor changes have occurred since then. The language enjoyed a further boost in the 19th Century, with the publication of some of the first complete and concise Welsh dictionaries. Early work by Welsh lexicographic pioneers such as Daniel Silvan Evans ensured that the language was documented as accurately as possible, and modern dictionaries such as the Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru (the University of Wales Dictionary), are direct descendants of these dictionaries.

Grammar

Phonology

Consonants

Welsh has the following consonant phonemes: occurs only in unassimilated loanwords; the voiceless nasals , , occur only as a consequence of the nasal mutation.

Vowels

The vowels and occur only in Northern dialects; in Southern dialects they are replaced by and respectively. In Southern dialects, the contrast between long and short vowels is found in stressed syllables only; in Northern dialects, the contrast is found only in stressed word-final syllables (including monosyllabic words). The vowel does not occur in the final syllable of words. The diphthongs containing occur only in Northern dialects; in Southern dialects is replaced by , are merged with , and are merged with .

Stress

Stress in polysyllabic words occurs most commonly on the penultimate syllable, more rarely on the final syllable. The positioning of the stress means that related words or concepts (or even plurals) can sound quite different, as syllables are added to the end of a word and the stress moves correspondingly, e.g.:
- Ysgrif — - an article or essay
- Ysgrifen — - writing
- Ysgrifennydd — - a secretary
- Ysgrifenyddes — - a female secretary (Note also how adding a syllable to ysgrifennydd to form ysgrifenyddes changes the pronunciation of the second "y". This is because the pronunciation of "y" depends on whether or not it is in the final syllable.) The connection between the Welsh word ysgrif and the Latin scribo 'I write', from which it is derived, is fairly clear, taking diachronic sound shifts into account.

Orthography

Alphabet

- h indicates voicelessness in mh, nh, and ngh.
- ph occurs occasionally in words derived from Greek (e.g. phenol) but more commonly as a result of aspirate mutation (e.g. ei phen-ôl)
- y indicates in unstressed monosyllabic words (e.g. y "the", fy "my") or non-final syllables, but (N) or (S) everywhere else.
- The digraphs (letters consisting of two characters) are treated as a single letter (with the collation order as listed above), although the same combinations of characters can sometimes also arise as a juxtaposition of two separate letters. For example, the digraph ng representing is alphabetised between g and h (alphabetical order llegach, lleng, lleiaf), but when ng is two letters representing it is alphabetised between nf and nh (alphabetical order danfon, dangos, danheddog).
- si indicates when followed by a vowel
- di and ti sometimes indicate and respectively when followed by a vowel. Otherwise and are spelled j and ts, but only in loanwords like jẁg "jug" and wats "watch".

Spelling the diphthongs

Diacritics

Welsh makes use of a number of diacritics. The circumflex is used to mark long vowels (although not all long vowels are marked with a circumflex). Thus â, ê, î, ô, û, ŵ, ŷ are always long, but a, e, i, o, u, w, y are not necessarily short. The grave accent is sometimes to mark vowels that should be short, when a long vowel would normally be expected, e.g. pas "a cough", pàs "a pass/permit"; mwg "smoke", mẁg 'a mug' [http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=35d8b6b4.955440%40news.portal.ca]. The acute accent is sometimes used to mark a stressed final syllable in a polysyllabic word. Thus the words gwacáu "to empty" and dicléin "decline" have final stress. However, not all polysyllabic words with final stress are marked with the acute accent. The diaeresis indicates that a vowel letter is to be pronounced fully, not as a semivowel, e.g. copïo (to copy) - pronounced , not
- .

Predicting vowel length from orthography

As mentioned above, vowels marked with the circumflex are always long, and those marked with the grave accent are always short. If a vowel is not marked with a diacritic, its length must be determined by its environment. An unmarked vowel is long:
- in a stressed monosyllabic word when no consonant follows, e.g. da "good"
- before b, ch, d, dd, g, f, ff, s, th, e.g. mab "son", hoff "favourite", peth "thing"
- before l, n, r (in the case of i, u), e.g. sgil "behind", llun "picture", hir "long"
- in Northern dialects, before clusters of two consonants when the first one is ll or s, e.g. gwallt "hair", tyst "witness" An unmarked vowel is short:
- in an unstressed (proclitic) word, e.g. a "and"
- before p, t, c, m, ng, e.g. cam "step", llong "ship"
- before l, n, r (in the case of a, e, o, w, y), e.g. tal "tall", llen "curtain", ffwr "fur"
- in Southern dialects, before clusters of two consonants, e.g. sant "saint", gwallt "hair", tyst "witness"
- in Northern dialects, before clusters of two consonants when the first one is n or r, e.g. sant "saint", perth "hedge"
- in Northern dialects, in any syllable that is not both stressed and word-final
- in Southern dialects, in any unstressed syllable

Morphology

Welsh morphology has much in common with that of the other modern Insular Celtic languages, such the use of initial consonant mutations, and the use of so-called "conjugated prepositions" (prepositions that fuse with the personal pronouns that are their object). Welsh nouns belong to one of two grammatical genders, masculine and feminine, but are not inflected for case. Welsh has a variety of different endings to indicate the plural, and two endings to indicate the singular of some nouns. In spoken Welsh, verb inflection is indicated primarily by the use of auxiliary verbs, rather than by the inflection of the main verb. In literary Welsh, on the other hand, inflection of the main verb is usual.

Counting system

The traditional counting system used by the Welsh language is vigesimal, i.e. based on twenties, as in French, where numbers from 11-14 are "x on ten", 16-19 are "x on fifteen" (though 18 can also be "two nines"); numbers from 21-39 are "1-19 on twenty", 40 is "two twenties", 60 is "three twenties", etc. There is also a decimal counting system, favoured by younger people and which appears to be commonly used in Patagonian Welsh, where numbers are "x tens y", e.g. thirty-five in decimal is tri deg pump (three ten five) while in vigesimal it is pymtheg ar ugain (fifteen (itself "five-ten") on twenty). A further complication is that while there is only one word for "one", un, there are masculine and feminine forms of the numbers "two", dau and dwy, "three", tri and tair, and "four", pedwar and pedair, which must agree with the grammatical gender of the objects being counted. Larger numbers tend to use the decimal system, e.g. 1,965 mil, naw chant chwe' deg pump. An exception to this rule is when speaking of years, where after the number of thousands, the individual digits are spoken e.g. 1965 mil naw chwe' pump. This system appears to have temporarily broken down for years after 2000 e.g. 2005 is dwy fil pump.

Other features of Welsh grammar

- Possessives as object pronouns. The Welsh for "I like Rhodri" is "Dw i'n hoffi Rhodri" ("I am liking Rhodri"), but "I like him" is "dw i'n ei hoffi fe" — literally, "I am his liking him"; "I like you" is "dw i'n dy hoffi di" ("I am your liking you"), etc.
- Significant use of auxiliary verbs. While English can either use verbs directly (e.g. I go) or with the aid of an auxiliary verb (I am going, here using to be as the auxiliary), Welsh inclines very strongly towards the latter use. In the present tense, all verbs are used with the auxiliary bod (to be), so dwi'n mynd is literally I am going, but also means simply I go. In the past and future tenses, there are inflected forms of all verbs (which are invariably used in the written language) , but it is more common nowadays in speech to use the verbal noun (berfenw, loosely equal to the infinitive in English) together with the inflected form of gwneud (to do), so I went can be mi es i or mi wnes i fynd and I will go can be mi a' i or mi wna i fynd. There is also a future form using the auxiliary bod, giving fydda i'n mynd (perhaps best translated as I will be going) and an imperfect tense (a continuous/habitual past tense) also using bod, with roeddwn i'n mynd meaning I used to go/I was going.
- Affirmative markers. Mi (mainly North) and Fe (mainly South) are often placed before inflected verbs to show that they are declarative. This is mainly a colloquial formation and is not often seen in Written Welsh or more formal language.

Dialects

Like any natural language, Welsh has a number of different dialects. These are very evident in the spoken, and to a lesser extent the written, language. A convenient, if slightly simplistic, classification is into North Walian and South Walian forms (or "Gog" and "Hwntw" based on the word for North, gogledd, and the South Walian word for "them over there"). The differences between dialects encompass vocabulary, pronunciation and grammar, although particularly in the last regard the differences are in fact relatively minor. A third dialect is Patagonian Welsh, which has developed since the start of the Welsh settlement in Argentina in 1865; it includes Spanish loanwords and terms for local features. An example of the difference between North and South Walian usage would be the question "Do you want a cup of tea?". In the North this would typically be "Dach chi isio panad?", while in the South the question "Dych chi'n moyn dishgled?" would be more likely. An example of a pronunciation difference between Northern and Southern Welsh is the tendency of Southern dialects to "lisp" the letter "s", e.g. mis, a month, would tend to be pronounced mees in the north, and meesh in the south. In fact, the difference between dialects of modern spoken Welsh pale into insignificance compared to the difference between the spoken and literary languages. The latter is significantly more formal and is the language of Welsh translations of the Bible, amongst other things (although the Beibl Cymraeg Newydd — New Welsh Bible — is significantly less formal than the traditional 1588 Bible). Although the question "do you want a cup of tea?" is not likely to occur in literary Welsh usage, if it did it would be along the lines of "a oes arnoch eisiau cwpanaid o de?". Amongst the characteristics of the literary, as against the spoken, language are a higher dependence on inflected verb forms, a shift in the usage of some of the tenses, a reduction in the explicit use of pronouns (since the information is usually conveyed in the verb/preposition inflections) and a greatly reduced tendency to substitute English loanwords for native Welsh words. Breton and Cornish are quite closely-related languages.

Welsh in education

In the 19th century virtually all teaching in the schools of Wales was in English, even in areas where the pupils barely understood English. Some schools used the Welsh Not, a piece of wood, often bearing the letters "W.N.", which was hung around the neck of any pupil caught speaking Welsh. The pupil could pass it on to any schoolmate heard speaking Welsh, with the pupil wearing it at the end of the day being given a beating. Towards the beginning of the 20th century this policy slowly began to change, partly owing to the efforts of Owen Morgan Edwards when he became chief inspector of schools for Wales in 1907. Welsh is now widely used in education. All Welsh universities teach some courses in Welsh (most notably the University of Wales, Bangor and the University of Wales, Aberystwyth) but are primarily English language.
Under the National Curriculum, school children in Wales must study Welsh up to the age of 16. According to the Welsh Language Board[http://www.bwrdd-yr-iaith.org.uk/en/cynnwys.php?cID=7&pID=144], over a quarter of children in Wales attend schools which teach predominantly through the medium of Welsh. The remainder study Welsh as a second language in English-medium schools. Specialist teachers of Welsh called Athrawon Bro support the teaching of Welsh in the National Curriculum.

Welsh in the economy

The economic benefits of the Welsh language are also increasingly being recognised, both by employers and by employees. Throughout Wales more and more employers - in the public, private and voluntary sectors - in response to the growing expectations of their customers, are becoming aware of the benefits of using the language, such as:
- improving the quality of customer service
- attracting new customers
- increasing customer loyalty
- harnessing goodwill at relatively low cost
- gaining a marketing edge over competitors
- enhancing public relations efforts With organisations in all sectors offering more and more bilingual services, they obviously need people with bilingual skills to deliver them. And, in the workplace, the ability to speak or write in Welsh and in English is a valuable skill, just like computer or financial skills. The number of people with bilingual skills needed will of course vary from one organisation to the next, depending on its location what type of service it provides and how it deals with its customers. The reality is that over the next decade in Wales, this situation will continue to develop, in response to customers' wishes and expectations. There will be jobs at all levels for which an ability to work bilingually will be desirable, if not essential. This is one of the major factors which continues to drive the demand for Welsh-medium education and vocational training, as young people and their parents recognise the economic value of the Welsh language.

Welsh in warfare

Secure communications are often difficult to achieve in wartime. Cryptography can be used to protect messages, but this can be a time-consuming process and may not be feasible if the message is urgent. Instead, Navajo code talkers were used by the Americans during World War II. It has been rumoured that British forces used Welsh in a similar manner. More recently, Welsh regiments serving in Bosnia used Welsh for emergency communications that needed to be secure.

External links

- [http://www.clwbmalucachu.co.uk Clwb Malu Cachu, The Website for Welsh Learners]
- http://www.bangor.ac.uk/ced/wfa/cymraeg/ Bangor University's programme of excellent Welsh classes, at venues throughout North Wales, for all levels from complete beginners to the more fluent.
- http://users.comlab.ox.ac.uk/geraint.jones/about.welsh/
- [http://www.gwybodiadur.co.uk The gwybodiadur] (literally "informationary") — provides wide ranges of information on all aspects of the Welsh language
- [http://www.websters-online-dictionary.org/definition/Welsh-english/ Welsh–English Dictionary]
- [http://www.cymru.ac.uk/geiriadur/ Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru] (University of Wales Dictionary of the Welsh Language), a historical dictionary of Welsh (with a [http://www.cymru.ac.uk/geiriadur/gpc_pdfs.htm Second Edition] in progress, including an embryonic on-line version)
- [http://www.cymru.ac.uk/canolfan/ The University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies]
- [http://www.bbc.co.uk/learnwelsh BBC LearnWelsh]
- [http://www.bbc.co.uk/learnwelsh/grammar/index.shtml Welsh Grammar]
- [http://www.cs.cf.ac.uk/fun/welsh/ A Welsh Course]
- [http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/storyofwelsh The Story of Welsh (BBC)] Category:Brythonic languages Category:Languages of the United Kingdom Category:Spoken articles Category:Wales Category:Welsh culture Welsh language als:Walisisch ko:웨일스어 zh-min-nan:Cymru-gí ja:ウェールズ語 nb:Walisisk språk simple:Welsh language

468

Events
- March 3 - Simplicius succeeds Hilarius as Pope
- The Vandal fleet overpowers the navy of Leo I of the Byzantine Empire
- Huns again invade Dacia but are once more repelled by the eastern emperor Leo I. Births Deaths
- February 29 - Pope Hilarius
- Gunabhadra Category:468 ko:468년

6th century

from China, Northern Wei period, was built in the early 6th century.]]

Events

- The first academy of the east the Academy of Gundeshapur founded in Iran by Khosrau I of Persia.
- Irish colonists and invaders, the Scots, began migrating to Caledonia (later known as Scotland)
- Glendalough monastery, Wicklow Ireland founded by St. Kevin
- Zen Buddhists enter Vietnam from China.
- Buddhist Jataka stories are translated into Persian by order of the Zoroastrian king Khosrau.
- Buddhism introduced to Japan from Baekje (Korea) in 552, thus contributing to the changes that occurred in the Asuka period.
- Outbreak of bubonic plague in Constantinople and the rest of the Roman Empire.
- Establishment of Karantania, first stable and independent state of Slovenians and of Slavs.
- The Kutriguri Bulgars move into modern Romania.
- Jewish influence in Aksum.
- Nubia is largely converted to Coptic Christianity.
- The area of modern Aargau falls to the Franks.
- The Kingdom of Funan dies out.
- Black Death raged over south east Asia.
- Silk Road farther into Europe.

Significant persons

- Pope Gregory the Great (590-604)
- Arthur, defeated the Anglo-Saxons
- Justinian, Byzantine Emperor (527-565)
- Belisarius, last great Roman general
- Gregory of Tours (c. 538-594?)
- Beowulf, (fictional?) king of the Geats
- Jordanes, author of the Getica.
- Procopius, a historian.
- Abraham Kidunaia
- Austell

Inventions, discoveries, introductions

- Dionysius Exiguus creates the Anno Domini system, inspired by the birth of Jesus, in 525. This is the system upon which the Julian calendar, Gregorian calendar, and Common Era systems are based.
- Backgammon (nard) invented in Persia by Burzoe
- Chess entered Persia from India and was modified
- Breast-strap horse harness in use in Frankish kingdom
- Byzantine Empire acquires silk technology from China

Decades and years

Category:6th century 06th century ko:6세기 ja:6世紀 simple:6th century th:คริสต์ศตวรรษที่ 6

Saint

In general, the term Saint refers to someone who is exceptionally virtuous and holy. It can be applied to both the living and the dead and is an acceptable term in most of the world's popular religions. The Saint is held up by the community as an example of how we all should act, and his or her life story is usually recorded for the edification of future generations. The process of officially recognizing a person as a Saint, practiced by some churches, is called canonization and serves to hold up those individuals as role models and heroes of Christian virtue. Protestant groups object to this and use only the less formal, broader usage seen in Scripture to include all who are faithful as saints.

Etymology

The term Saint is derived from the Latin Sanctus meaning “Holy”. This is a direct translation from the Greek word άγιος (hagios) also meaning “Holy”. In its original scriptural usage it simply means “Holy” or “Sanctified”. In this form it can be applied to a “Holy” person, a place (άγιον όρος; - The Holy Mountain), a thing, such as Scripture itself (αγιογράφικα - Holy Writing), or even God (άγιον πνεύμα; - The Holy Spirit). But very soon the early Christians began to using the term “Saint” more narrowly to refer to a specific, exemplary individual. (For a lexical explanation, see Liddel & Scott. [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aentry%3D%23525]) The earliest known occurrence of άγιος as "Saint" seems to be in The Shepherd of Hermas, chapter 5 (or 13, depending on how chapters are counted), verse 2. "The Shepherd" was authored at about the same time as 2 Peter.

Short form

Abbreviation for the term Saint is usually “St.” or “St”; in cases where multiple Saints are referenced SS. is the norm.

Historicity

Some theologians believe that many people venerated as Saints never actually existed. The polite term for such "Saints" is ahistorical. Sorting out exactly which Saints are ahistorical is difficult, because of the larger difficulty of proving a negative: the absence of independent records of a Saint's existence doesn't prove she or he never existed; indeed there are no specific records of the existence of many people who lived before the 20th century. The Acta Sanctorum (hagiographical work) of the Bollandists forms a major part of the historiography of named Saints. There are a large number of Christian saints with what appear to be pagan names. Most likely they were pagans who converted to Christianity and subsequently became Saints. However, it is possible that some pre-Christian deities (especially in Rome's area) were accidentally adopted as saints. It is thought that some cults were “Christianized” in a fairly direct manner. The basis for this is usually a similarity of names. For example, it is now commonly asserted that Saint Brigid was based on the Celtic goddess Brigid. The goddess was popular long before Christianity reached Ireland. Another possibility is the melding of the actual life of the Saint with myths related to pre-Christian gods and heroes (see Comparative religion). There are some striking parallels to the events portrayed in the lives of certain saints and fables such as Androcles and the Lion.

Definition specific to religion

Christianity

Roman Catholicism

In the Roman Catholic church, the title of Saint - with a capital 'S' - refers to a person who has been formally canonized (officially recognized) by the Church. Formal Canonization is a lengthy process often taking many years, even centuries. The process includes a thorough investigation of the individual who has been put forth as a candidate for Sainthood. This investigation typically is concerned with examining and confirming (or disproving) any number of visions or miracles that may have been attributed to the person in question, or of the general holiness or specific good deeds that he or she may have done while alive. It should be noted, however, that the Church places special weight on those miracles or instances of intercession that happened after the individual died and which are seen to be demonstrative of the Saint's continued special relationship with God after death. Also, by this definition there are many people in heaven who have not been formally declared as Saints (most typically due to their obscurity and the involved process of formal canonization) but who may nevertheless generically be referred to as saints (lowercase 's'). While it can at times seem so, Saints are not worshiped — this would violate the Ten Commandments — but are asked for their help or their own prayer for a person. Some Saints intercede for specific problems: a "patron saint". Once a person has been declared a Saint, the body of the Saint is considered holy. In past centuries, the remains of Saints were distributed as holy artifacts. In modern times, however, there is a growing trend to respect the body of a Saint, leaving it alone and buried.

Eastern Orthodoxy

In the Eastern Orthodox Church a Saint is defined as anyone who is currently in Heaven, whether recognized here on earth, or not. By this definition, Adam and Eve, Moses, the various Prophets, the Angels and Archangels are all given the title of "Saint". Saints are not given the title by men, but by God The Orthodox believe that God reveals his Saints to us, often by answered prayers and other miracles. For the Orthodox, the formal recognition of a Saint often happens many years after they have been recognized by a localized community. There are numerous small local followings of countless saints that have not yet been recognized by the entire Orthodox church. After a careful process of deliberation by a synod of Bishops, there is a formal service of Glorification in which a Saint is recognized by the entire church. Such was the case with the sainthood of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia and his family. At first the members of the Royal family were recognized as martyrs by the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad in 1981, after which many believers in Russia began to pray to the Tsar and his family. Miracles were reported, including one miraculous icon which prompted an immediate local glorification. In 2000, the Tsar and his family were officially Glorified by the Russian Orthodox Church. A strong proponent of a saint's canonization can be a miraculous condition of their relics (although it is not in itself alone considered sufficient). In Orthodox countries it is often the custom to re-use graves after 3 to 5 years because of the limited space. Bones are respectfully washed and placed in an ossuary, often with the person's name written on the skull. Occasionally when a body is exhumed something miraculous occurs to reveal the person's Sainthood. There have been numerous occurrences where the exhumed bones suddenly give off a wonderful fragrance, like flowers; or sometimes the body is incorrupted, just as it was on the day the person died, despite having not been embalmed (traditionally the Orthodox do not embalm the dead) and having been buried for 3 years. The reason relics are considered sacred is because, for the Orthodox, the separation of body and soul is unnatural. Body and soul both comprise the person, and in the end, body and soul will be reunited; therefore, the body of a saint shares in the “Holiness” of the soul of the saint. Because the Church shows no true distinction between the living and the dead (the Saints are alive in Heaven), the Orthodox treat the saints as if they were still here. They venerate them and ask for their prayers, and consider them brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus. Saints are venerated and loved and asked to intercede for our salvation, but it should be clearly understood that they are not Worshiped; their holiness is from God who alone is worthy of Adoration. As Christ says in the Gospels, "Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve." (Matt 4:10). The relics of Saints are highly respected, even more so than the Roman Catholics. As a general rule only clergy will touch relics in order to move them or carry them in procession, however, in veneration the faithful will kiss the relic to show love and respect toward the saint. Every altar in every Orthodox church contains relics, usually of martyrs. The Church building interiors are covered with the Icons of saints. In the Orthodox Church, baptism is the moment one is born again into Christ. The person entering the baptismal font is not the same person that emerges. It is for this reason that the person is given a new name; always the name of a saint. What is proper is that the person no longer goes by his old name because that person is dead, but uses the new name exclusively. It is also common that instead of birthdays, the person celebrates his Saints Day, the day on the Calendar of Saints ascribed to that particular saint. In Orthodox tradition some saints are known by the title Equal-to-apostles in recognition of their role in evangelising countries.

Protestantism

In many Protestant churches, the word is used more generally to refer to anyone who is a Christian. This is similar in usage to St. Paul's numerous references. In this sense, anyone who is within the Body of Christ is “Holy” because of their relationship with Jesus. However, high-church Anglicans and Episcopalians use the term "saint" similarly to the manner in which Catholics use it.

Latter-day Saints

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints follow the Protestant tradition described above, referring to themselves as "Latter-day Saints", or simply "Saints". This is usually preferred over the nickname "Mormons".

Islam

Islam has, traditionally, had a central place for saints within its cosmology and saints [Arabic: awliya--literally, Friends of Allah (singular: wali)] are mentioned in verses of the Qur'an. Although there is no formal canonization process in Islam, there do exist traditions of the Prophet (hadith) and sayings of the scholars of Islam about what the qualities of a true saint are. These include soundness of faith (aqidah), a strict adherence to the Prophetic traditions (sunnah) and Shar'iah Law, an upright moral character, the performance of charismatic marvels (Ar.: karamat) and, crucially, the acknowledgment by consensus of the orthodox that such and such a person is a saint. i.e. if the Muslim masses consider someone a Saint, he or she is one. Theoretically too a saint is said to have the ability to perform any miracle which the Prophet performed and there is also a spiritual hierarchy of saints in Islam with the Qutb or Ghawth (Pole or Succour) at the apex. This hierrarchy is detailed in the work of the great Andalusian Sufi Muhyuddin Ibn al-Arabi, who is considered one of the great Saints of Islam, as well as many others. Indeed, amongst orthodox, traditional, Muslims, those referred to as [Sufis] by Orientalist scholars of Islam are considered Saints and the two terms are virtually synonyms. Traditionally, the veneration of saints and tombs or shrines in Islam is very widespread and includes all geographical areas of the Muslim world, including the conservative Arabian peninsula. Saints are believed to have a power of intercession with God (Allah), and thus the ability to perform miracles and to give power or blessings known as baraka. In most Muslim countries there are religious festivities associated with saints, such as Urs festivals in India and Pakistan or the annual Mawlid in Egypt. A great Urs is yearly held in the valley of MohraSharif where great saints still live. On these days, the local saint(s) is/are venerated, and blessings are expected. Believers are nevertheless careful to distinguish between the blessings of the prophets (particularly Moses, Jesus and Muhammad) and those of the saints. Saints are an important component of popular Islam and are associated with Sufism, which includes many of the mystical branches of Islam. Sufism has several orders with precepts (tarika) for students (murid) who seek to follow the teachings of a saint. Although saints are acknowledged by many sufis, Sufism distances itself from the more animistic and cultic aspects of the veneration of saints, which includes, as in popular Christianity, all types of religious paraphernalia and popular rituals.

Judaism

The closest notion in Judaism is the tzadik, a righteous person. The Talmud says that at any time at least 36 tzaddikim are living among us: they are anonymous, but it is for their sake that the world is not destroyed. The Talmud and the Kabbalah offer various ideas about the nature and role of these 36 tzaddikim. The term can also be used generically to mean any righteous or saintly person.

Hinduism

Saints are also recognized in Hinduism. However, unlike the Roman Catholic or Orthodox Church, no formal process is required to acknowledge a person as a saint.
- Jagadguru Kripaluji Maharaj, the founder of the Jagadguru Kripalu Parishat, an organization which propagates Raganuga Bhakti, a form of selfless devotional practise and loving service to Radha Rani and Lord Krishna
- Raghavendra Swami, one of the most famous Hindu saints was believed to have performed miracles during his lifetime and continues to bless his devotees. He espoused Vaishnavism monotheism (worship of Vishnu as Supreme God) and Dvaita philosophy.
- Shri Ramakrishna
- Swami Ramana Maharshi
- Shirdi Sai Baba (c. 1838 - October 15, 1918) was an Indian fakir/guru who is regarded by his Hindu and Muslim followers as a saint.
- Tukaram was a great saint who was believed to have performed miracles and was a devotee of Krishna.
- Sant Shiri Nunuram Sahib(1898 - 1973) , A great Saint Whose Aashram is situated in Islamkot city of Sindh Province in Pakistan. See also sant and Hindu Gurus and Saints

Buddhism

The Dhamma or path of purification as outlined by the Buddha leads the disciple eventually to the status of an ariya, a noble-hearted person, of which there are four levels of increasing sanctity and holiness. These are, sotapanna or ‘stream-winner’; sakadagami or ‘once-returner’; anagami or ‘non-returner’; and finally arahant or ‘Holy One’ – a human being who is free from all defilements. Arahant is synonymous with Buddha, a fully enlightened human being, and is frequently used as an epithet of the Buddha Gotama in the liturgy of Southern Buddhism. An arahant may be considered as both a saint and a gnani or Gnostic; somebody who possesses transcendental spiritual knowledge.

Other religions

In many of the more obscure religions of the world, a saint is a man or a woman who has a direct personal link or connection with God and who can put a person on the way back to God. Many gurus overtly or covertly claim to be saints, which followers may believe to be true, even if the objective evidence doesn't match a formal definition of a saint. In the modern religion of Discordianism, sainthood is given very easily. As one of the founders, Kerry Thornley, once said, "To be a saint you don't need to do anything special, you just need to suffer a lot". Discordians don't really agree on who (or what) are saints, but fictional characters are considered "saintlier" than real people, and insanity always helps. Yossarian from Joseph Heller's Catch-22, Don Quixote, and Bokonon from Kurt Vonnegut's Cat's Cradle all appear on the Principia Discordia's list of saintly folk.

Santeria - Voodoo

The veneration of Catholic saints forms the basis of the Cuban Santería religion. In Santería, saints are syncretised with Yoruban deities, and are equally worshipped in churches (where they appear as saints) and in Santería religious festivities, where they appear as deities (orishas); however, this practice is condemned by the Roman Catholic Church. Santeria, Haitian Vodoun, Brazilian Umbanda and other similar religions adopted the Roman Catholic Saints, or the images of the saints, as representations of their own spirits/deities or 'Orishas' in Santeria and 'Lwa' in Vodoun. Although there are many similarities between Vodoun and Santeria, they are different in respect to origin and language (Vodou is French, Santeria is Spanish). The adoption of Catholic Saints was fairly common in the religions that were adapted by the slaves in the New World. It can be understood as a more recent example of the absorption of pre-Christian elements into European "Catholicism" — although with Santeria and Vodoun the native religion seems to be more dominant. Different regions of the world where Catholicism is practiced have varying ways of practicing their faith. The Catholic Church has not always condemned the practices of these "religions" or sub-sects (although there were brief local movements against Vodoun by the Church in Haiti). Perhaps the adoption of the Catholic saints is more of a testament to the durability and adaptability of religions like Vodoun. It is remarkable that Vodoun practitioners can consider themselves Catholic and Vodounists at the same time. Perhaps it is more realistic to say that elements of Catholicism were adapted into Vodoun and Santeria.

Devon

Devon is a large county in South West England, bordering on Cornwall to the west, Dorset and Somerset to the east. The name Devonshire was once common but is now rarely used, although it does feature in some names and titles (such as the Duke of Devonshire), and is still to be seen on signposts in the county.

History

:Main article: History of Devon. Devon was one of the first areas of England settled following the end of the last ice age. Dartmoor is thought to have been settled by Mesolithic hunter-gatherer peoples from about 6000 BC. The name "Devon" derives from the name given by the Romans to the Celtic people who inhabited the south western peninsula of Britain at the time of the Roman invasion c. 50AD , known as the Dumnonii, thought to mean 'Deep Valley Dwellers'. The Romans held the area under Military Occupation for approx 25 years. Later the area became a frontier between Brythonic Dumnonia and Saxon Wessex, and some historians claim that this resulted in the effective conquest of Devon by Wessex by 715 and its formal annexation around 805. However, this is a matter of controversy. Later William of Malmesbury claimed "that the Britons and Saxons inhabited Exeter aequo jure" ("as equals") in 927. By the ninth century, however, the major threat to Saxon control of Devon came not from the native British but from Viking raiders, and sporadic incursions continued until the Norman Conquest. A few Norse placenames remain as a result, for example Lundy Island, though the Vikings' most lasting legacy is probably the move of the cathedral from Crediton to Exeter. Devon has also featured in most of the civil conflicts in England since the Norman conquest, including the Wars of the Roses and Perkin Warbeck's rising in 1497, the Prayer Book Rebellion of 1549 and the English Civil War. Perhaps most notably, the arrival of William of Orange to launch the Glorious Revolution of 1688, took place at Torquay. Devon has produced tin, copper and other metals from ancient times. Devon's tin miners enjoyed a substantial degree of independence through Devon's stannary parliament, which dates back to the twelfth century. The last recorded sitting was in 1748, and it is believed they then adjourned to a pub in Tavistock. Devon is also known for its mariners, such as Sir Francis Drake, Sir Humphrey Gilbert, Sir Richard Grenville and Sir Walter Raleigh, and as the childhood home of psychology pioneer Raymond Cattell.

Economy

Like its neighbouring county to the west, Cornwall, Devon is relatively disadvantaged economically compared to other parts of southern England, due to the decline of many traditional industries such as fishing, mining and farming. Consequently, most of Devon has qualified for the European Community Objective 2 status. The epidemic of Foot and Mouth (Hoof and Mouth) disease in 2001 harmed much of the farming community severely and had knock-on effects on the rest of the county. The attractive lifestyle of the area is drawing in many new industries which are not heavily dependent upon geographical location; Dartmoor, for instance, has recently seen a significant rise in the percentage of its inhabitants involved in the financial services sector. Devon is one of the rural counties, with the advantages and problems characteristic of these.

Flag

Dartmoor] Devon has its own (unofficial) flag which has been dedicated to Saint Petroc, a local saint with numerous dedications throughout Devon and neighbouring counties. The flag was adopted in 2003 after a competition run by BBC Devon [http://www.bbc.co.uk/devon/community_life/features/devon_flag.shtml]. The winning design was created by website contributor Ryan Sealey, and won 49% of the votes cast. However the creation of the flag has caused some controversy. The cross design is reminscent of both England's St George's Cross and neighbouring Cornwall's Saint Piran's Flag (which also uses black and white). The colours of the flag are those popularly identified with Devon, e.g. - the colours of the Rugby Union team, and the Green and White flag flown by the first Viscount Exmouth at the Bombardment of Algiers (now on view at the Teign Valley Museum).

Geology, landscape and ecology

:Main article: Geology of Devon. The Dartmoor National Park lies wholly in Devon, and the Exmoor National Park lies in both Devon and Somerset. In addition Devon is the only county in England to have two completely separate coastlines. Both the North and South coasts offer dramatic views: much of both coastlines is named as Heritage Coast, and the South West Coast Path runs along the entire length of the both. The inland of the county has attractive rolling rural scenery and villages with thatched Cob cottages. All these features make Devon a popular holiday destination for many Britons. The variety of scenery and habitats means that there is an exceptional range of wildlife (see Dartmoor wildlife). A popular challenge among birders is to find over 100 species in the county in a day. The landscape of the south coast consists of rolling hills dotted with small towns, such as Dartmouth, Salcombe, Totnes etc. The towns of Torquay and Paignton are the principal seaside resorts on the south coast. The north of the county is very rural with few major towns except Barnstaple, Great Torrington, Bideford and Ilfracombe.

Politics and administration

The administrative centre of Devon is the city of Exeter. The city of Plymouth, the largest city in Devon, and the conurbation of Torbay (including the towns of Torquay, Paignton and Brixham) are now unitary authorities separate from Devon for the purposes of local government. Nearly half of the holdings of the Duchy of Cornwall are in Devon.

Cities, towns and villages

This is a list of the main towns and cities in Devon, for a complete list of settlements see list of places in Devon. :See also: List of civil parishes in Devon

Places of interest

- Buckfast Abbey
- Castles in Devon
- Dartmoor
- Exmoor
- Heritage railways:
- Bideford & Instow Railway
- Dartmoor Railway
- Paignton & Dartmouth Steam Railway
- Plym Valley Railway
- South Devon Railway
- Jurassic Coast (a World Heritage Site)
- Lundy Island
- Lynmouth

Rivers

See also: :Category:Rivers in Devon
- River Avon
- River Axe
- River Dart
- River Erme
- River Exe
- River Otter
- River Tamar (the border between Devon and Cornwall)
- River Tavy
- River Taw
- River Teign
- River Torridge

Devon as a descriptor

- The cream tea, involving scones, jam and clotted cream, is a local speciality and may well have originated in Devon (neighbouring counties also claim it); in other countries such as New Zealand it is known as a Devonshire tea.
- Devon is the name of a variety of ham, which (presumably) comes from Devon. In New South Wales, Australia, Devon is a name for luncheon meat (processed ham). The name changes in different states of Australia (eg 'Fritz' in South Australia, 'Polony' in Western Australia) but all describe the same type of meat.
- The Devon Rex cat breed originated here.
- Devon and South Devon are breeds of cattle that originated in the county.
- The Devonian is a period in the geologic timescale.

External links

- General information about Devon
- [http://www.devon24.co.uk Devon24] All the local Devon news, sport and leisure
- The BBC [http://www.bbc.co.uk/devon/ Devon information page]
- Extensive general historical and geographical as well as genealogical information at the [http://www.cs.ncl.ac.uk/genuki/DEV/ UK and Ireland Genealogy website]
- [http://www.southwestcoastpath.com/ The South West Coast Path National Trail]
- [http://www.thereabouts.co.uk/devon/ Devon & thereabouts]
- [http://www.devon.gov.uk/ Devon County Council]
- [http://www.passagehousegroup.co.uk/places.asp Places of interest in Devon]
- [http://www.devon-self-catering.net/ A guide to self catering in Devon]
- Alternative Devon - [http://www.alternativedevon.co.uk/ Devon musicians and photography.]
- [http://www.holywells.com/ The Holy Wells of Devon]
- Tourist information:
- [http://www.discoverdevon.com Discover Devon - County Council tourist site]
- [http://www.beautiful-devon.co.uk Beautiful Devon]
- [http://www.devonaccommodation.com Devon Accommodation Guide]
- [http://www.devon24.co.uk/flatfiles/holidayguide/holidayguide.aspx East Devon Holiday Guide]Tourist Guide for the East Devon area, includes town guide, beach guide and epostcards!
- [http://www.northdevongazette.co.uk/northdevongazette/flatfiles/scene/scene.aspx North Devon Scene]Tourist Guide for the North Devon area
- Devon news and sport:
- [http://www.midweekherald.co.uk Midweek Herald] Local newspaper covering the Honiton, Axminster and Seaton areas of East Devon.
- [http://www.northdevongazette.co.uk North Devon Gazette] Free local newspaper covering the Barnstaple, Bideford, Ilfracombe and South Molton areas of North Devon.
- [http://www.exmouthjournal.co.uk Exmouth Journal] Local newspaper covering the Exmouth, Budleigh Salterton, Woodbury and Topsham areas of East Devon
- [http://www.exmouthherald.co.uk Exmouth Herald] Free local newspaper covering the Exmouth, Budleigh Salterton, Woodbury and Topsham areas of East Devon
- [http://www.sidmouthherald.co.uk Sidmouth Herald] Local newspaper covering the Sidmouth and Ottery St Mary areas of East Devon
- [http://www.thisisdevon.co.uk This is Devon] The website of the Western Morning News, Mid Devon Gazette and North Devon Journal.
- [http://www.thisisexeter.co.uk Exeter Express and Echo] Local newspaper covering Exeter.
- [http://www.thisisplymouth.co.uk Plymouth Evening Herald] Local newspaper covering Plymouth.
- [http://www.phototropic.co.uk/landscapeleaps/ Dartmoor Virtual Tour] Landscape Leaps: Dartmoor 360°. Interactive Virtual Tour of Dartmoor National Park, Devon, England.
ja:デヴォン州 simple:Devon

Somerset

:This page is about the county of Somerset in the United Kingdom. For other meanings of Somerset, see Somerset (disambiguation). Somerset is a county in the south-west of England. The county town is Taunton, situated at . Prior to 1974, Somerset adjoined the counties of Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north east, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south east and Devon to the southwest. The county is bounded to the north by the coast of the Bristol Channel. The name is pronounced as though spelt Summerset. Some local people pronounce it Zummerzet as per the local West Country Accent. The name derives from Somersæte, meaning land of the summer people. The name continues in the motto of the county, Sumorsaete ealle, meaning "all the people of Somerset" in Anglo-Saxon. Somerset is a largely rural county famous for its rolling hills and downland, the large flat Somerset Levels, and the Exmoor National Park which straddles the border with Devon. The town of Glastonbury is famous in mythology. The north of the county is administratively independent and includes the city of Bath, a World Heritage Site famous for its Roman history and Georgian architecture. The popular sea-side resort Weston-super-Mare lies on the Bristol Channel coast.

History

:For the full article see History of Somerset The Somerset Levels, and specifically the dry points such as Glastonbury and Brent Knoll, have a long history of settlement, and are known to have been settled by mesolithic hunters. The caves of the Mendip Hills were settled during the neolithic period and contain extensive archaeological sites. There are numerous Iron Age Hill Forts, some of which were later reused in the Dark Ages, such as Cadbury Castle. Somerset, like Dorset to the south, held the Saxon invasion back for over a century, remaining a frontier between the Saxons and the Romano-British and Celts. The first known use of the name Somersæte was in 845 after the region fell to the Saxons. After the Norman Conquest the county was divided into 700 fiefs, and large areas were owned by the crown. In the English Civil War Somerset was largely Royalist, unlike neighbouring Wiltshire. In 1685 the Monmouth Rebellion was played out in Somerset and neighbouring Dorset. The rebels landed at Lyme Regis and traveled north hoping to capture Bristol and Bath, but were defeated at the Battle of Sedgemoor. The traditional northern boundary of the county was the River Avon, but this has crept southwards, with the creation and expansion of the City of Bristol. In 1974 a large part of northern Somerset was removed to form the southern half of the County of Avon. Avon has now been abolished, and North Somerset and Bath and North East Somerset have reverted to Somerset for ceremonial purposes, but are now independent counties in their own right for local government purposes. Somerset contains England's oldest prison still in use, in the small town of Shepton Mallet, and the world's oldest known engineered roadway, the Sweet Track.

Geology, landscape and ecology

:For the full article see Geology of Somerset Much of the landscape of Somerset falls into types determined by the underlying geology. These landscapes are the limestone karst and lias of the north, the clay vales and wetlands of the centre, the oolites of the east and south, and the Devonian sandstone of the west. To the north east of the Levels, the Mendip Hills are moderately high, often mountain limestone hills with an extensive network of caves and underground rivers and a number of gorges, famously Cheddar Gorge. The main habitat on these hills is calcareous grassland, with some arable agriculture. To the south of the hills, on the clay substrate, are a number of broad valleys which support dairy farming and drain into the Somerset Levels. This expanse of flat land, stretching up to 20 miles inland, is only a few feet above sea level. Before it was drained, much of the land was under a shallow brackish sea in winter and a marsh in summer. Drainage started in Roman times, restarting in Saxon times and is continuing now. According to legend Joseph of Arimathea sailed across the levels to Glastonbury, a dry point near the eastern edge of the levels. In the far west of the county, running into Devon, is Exmoor, a high Devonian sandstone moor. The highest point in Somerset is Dunkery Beacon on Exmoor, with an altitude of 519 metres (1704 feet).

Trade, industry and tourism

The main part of Somerset has few significant industrial centers. Bridgwater was developed during the Industrial Revolution as the West Country's leading port. Yeovil is important in the manufacture of helicopters. Many towns have developed small-scale light industries, such as Crewkerne's Ariel Motor Company, Ltd., one of the UK's smallest automobile manufacturers. Agriculture continues to be a major business in the county, if no longer a major employer. Apple orchards were once plentiful, and to this day Somerset is linked to the production of strong cider, arguably more so than any other part of the world. The towns of Taunton and Shepton Mallet are involved with the production of cider, especially Blackthorn Dry Cider, a refined cider rooted in Somerset and sold nationwide. Blackthorn Dry Cider Much of the county is scenic and unspoilt. Tourism is a major industry in the county, estimated in 2001 to support around 23,000 people. Attractions include its coastal towns, part of the Exmoor National Park, the West Somerset Railway (a heritage railway), and the museum of the Fleet Air Arm at RNAS Yeovilton. The town of Glastonbury is famous for its mythical associations, and open-air rock festival (actually in Pilton), while the Cheddar Gorge is famous for caves open to visitors, as well as its locally produced cheese.

Culture

Somerset has long traditions of art, music and literature. Wordsworth and Coleridge wrote while staying in Nether Stowey, Alfoxden and Porlock in the west of the county. Traditional folk music, both song and dance, was important in the largely agricultural communities. Somerset songs were collected by Cecil Sharp and incorporated into a number of works including Holst's A Somerset Rhapsody. Halsway Manor near Williton is an international centre for folk music. The tradition continues today with groups such as The Wurzels. The Glastonbury Festival of Performing Arts takes place most years in Pilton, near Shepton Mallet, attracting over 100,000 music and culture lovers from around the world, world-famous entertainers and local people alike. A number of shows and events form part of the agricultural calendar. See also:
- Music of Somerset

Settlements

The original county town of Somerset was Somerton, but in recent years that role has been transferred to Taunton. The county has two cities, Bath and Wells. Main settlements (with a population of more than 3,000) :For the complete list of settlements see List of places in Somerset

Place names

Somerset placenames are mostly Saxon in origin, though the settlements may well be older. In many cases it is likely that a Saxon place name replaced an earlier Celtic one, for example a charter of 682 concerning Creechborough Hill defines it as "the hill the British call Cructan and we call Crychbeorh". A few modern names are Celtic in origin, such as Tarnock, while others are hybrid, having both Saxon and Celtic elements such as Penhill. Most of the river names are Celtic, such as Axe, while a few may be pre-Celtic such as Parret earlier Pedred.

Places of interest

External links

- [http://www.bbc.co.uk/somerset BBC Somerset]
- [http://www.somerset.gov.uk/ Somerset County Council]
- [http://www.bathnes.gov.uk/ Bath & North East Somerset Council]
- [http://www.n-somerset.gov.uk/ North Somerset Council]
- [http://www.westsomersetonline.gov.uk West Somerset Council]
- [http://www.somersetgateway.com/history/ Somerset Gateway]
- [http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/scripts/nthandbook.dll?ACTION=PROPERTY&PROPERTYID=304/ Dunster Castle Website - National Trust]
- [http://rob-online.co.uk/webcam.shtml Somerset Webcam, when online]
- [http://www.burnham-on-sea.com Burnham-On-Sea, Somerset]

References

- Encyclopædia Britannica, 1911, [http://34.1911encyclopedia.org/S/SO/SOMERSETSHIRE.htm "Somersetshire"].
ja:サマセット州 nb:Somerset simple:Somerset

Glamorganshire

:This article refers to the traditional county of Glamorgan in Wales, United Kingdom. See also Glamorgan (disambiguation) Glamorgan or Morgannwg is a maritime traditional county of Wales, UK, and was previously a medieval kingdom or principality.

Geography

The county is bounded to the north by Brecknockshire, east by Monmouthshire, south by the Bristol Channel, and west by Carmarthenshire and Carmarthen Bay. Its total area is 2,100 km², and total population around 1,220,000. Its highest point is at Craig-y-llyn (600 m). Glamorgan is the most populous and industrialised county in Wales. The northern part of the county is a mountainous area, dissected by deep narrow valleys, with urbanisation typified by ribbon development. Although the coal industry, which shaped these valleys and their communities, has now all but disappeared, this area remains heavily populated with light industry and the service sector now providing the economic base. The Vale of Glamorgan, a lowland area mainly comprising farmland and small villages stretches across most of the south of the county from Porthcawl to Cardiff. Further west, beyond Swansea, lies the Gower Peninsula, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The major rivers of Glamorgan include the River Taff, the Ely, the Ogmore, the Neath, Dulais, the Tawe, the Rhymney (which forms the border with Monmouthshire) and the Loughor (which forms the border with Carmarthenshire). The main towns include Aberdare, Barry, Bridgend, Cardiff, Caerphilly, Cowbridge, Maesteg, Merthyr Tydfil, Mountain Ash, Neath, Penarth, Pontypridd, Porthcawl, Port Talbot and Swansea. The county has a wide and diverse economic base including public administration, agriculture, light industry, manufacturing, service sector and tourism.

Places of Interest

Places of special interest include:
- Aberdulais Falls
- Barry Island pleasure beach
- Caerphilly Castle
- Cardiff Castle
- Castell Coch, Tongwynlais
- Dare Valley Country Park,
- Dunraven Park, Southerndown
- Ewenny Priory
- Gower Peninsula
- Llandaff Cathedral
- Museum of Welsh Life, St. Fagans
- National Museum of Wales, Cardiff
- National Waterfront Museum, Swansea
- Neath Abbey
- Old Beaupre Castle
- Ogmore Castle
- Oxwich Castle
- Margam Country Park,
- Penscynor Wildlife Park, Cilfrew
- Tinkinswood burial chamber
- Vale of Glamorgan Railway
- Weobley Castle, Gower Peninsula

History

By virtue of its location and geography, Morgannwg was the first part of Wales, after Gwent, to be overrun by the Normans.

Administration

The county of Glamorgan falls into several distinct regions: the industrial valleys, the agricultural Vale of Glamorgan, and the scenic Gower Peninsula. Being by far the most populous of the counties, the administrative county of Glamorgan was divided into three at the time of the local government reorganisation of the 1970s, and has now been further subdivided into several unitary authorities.

Townships

- Ystradyfodwg

Lleyn Peninsula

The Lleyn peninsula also known by its Welsh name of the Llŷn extends from north west Wales, southwest of the island of Anglesey. The name is thought to be of Irish origin, and to have the same root as the word Leinster. The peninsula was traditionally traversed by pilgrims to Bardsey Island, and is now a popular holiday destination. It is an area with a large number of protected sites including a National Nature Reserve at Cors Geirch, a National Heritage Coastline and a European Marine Special Area of Conservation as well as 20 Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Its relative isolation has helped to conserve the Welsh language and culture. A survey done in schools in 2003 showed that just over 94% of children between 3 and 15 were able to speak Welsh. Settlements on the Lleyn include:
- Aberdaron, Abersoch
- Criccieth
- Llanbedrog
- Mynytho
- Nefyn
- Pwllheli

External links

- [http://www.irsa-world.org/XI/papers/20-1.pdf/ A comparative study of two agri environmental schemes in cherished landscapes]
- [http://toursuk.allinfoabout.com/wales/llyn.html/ Discover the Lleyn Peninsula]
- [http://lleyn-wales.co.uk/wiki/index.php?pagename=LleynWiki LleynWiki]
- [http://www.lleyn-wales.co.uk/llyn-weather.html LleynWeather] Category:Peninsulas Category:Geography of Wales Category:Caernarfonshire Category:Gwynedd

Enclosure (disambiguation

Enclosure can refer to a number of concepts relating to the surrounding or fencing-off of an area or item:
- The historical Enclosure of common land.
- Enclosure (architecture) — in architecture and spatial design.
- An enclosure (engineering) is a kind of housing.
- An enclosure (electrical) is a cabinet for electrical equipment to protect the equipment and prevent electrical shock.
- Enclosure (archaeology) — an area of land separated from surrounding land by earthworks, walls, or fencing.
- An attachment to a letter.
- The box containing a loudspeaker system.
- In computing, a USB enclosure is a device to convert an internal hard drive into an external one.
- Enclosure (computer game)

External link

[http://www.canadianarchitect.com/asf/principles_of_enclosure/enclosure_defined/enclosure_defined.htm Defining enclosure]

Ireland

:This page is about the island of Ireland. For the state also called Ireland, see Republic of Ireland. :For an explanation of terms like Ulster, Northern Ireland, (Great) Britain and United Kingdom see British Isles (terminology) . British Isles (terminology)] Ireland (Irish: Éire) is the third-largest island in Europe. It lies in the Atlantic Ocean and it is composed of the Republic of Ireland (officially, Ireland), which covers five sixths of the island (south, east, west and north-west), and Northern Ireland; part of the United Kingdom, which covers the northeastern sixth of the island. The population of the island is approximately 5.8 million people; 4.1 million in the Republic of Ireland (1.6 million in Greater Dublin) and 1.7 million in Northern Ireland (0.6 million in Greater Belfast). Belfast 2003. Scotland, the Isle of Man and Wales are visible to the east]]
Geography
Wales with more details).]] A ring of coastal mountains surrounds low central plains. The highest peak is Carrauntuohill (Irish: Corrán Tuathail), which is 1041 m (3414 feet). The island is bisected by the River Shannon, at 259 km (161 mi) the longest river in Ireland or Britain. The island's lush vegetation, a product of its mild climate and frequent but soft rainfall, earns it the sobriquet "Emerald Isle". The island's area is 84,079 km² (32,477 mile²). Ireland is divided into four provinces: Connacht, Leinster, Munster and Ulster. In Irish these are referred to as Cúige's ( Cúige - meaning fifths). Previously there were five provinces - Connacht, Munster, Ulster, Leinster and Meath, comprising the counties of Meath, Westmeath and Longford. These were further divided into 32 counties for administrative purposes. Six of the Ulster counties remain under British sovereignty as Northern Ireland following Ireland's partition in 1922 (the remaining 26 forming present-day Republic of Ireland); since the UK's 1974 reshuffle these county boundaries no longer exist in Northern Ireland for administrative purposes, although Fermanagh District Council is almost identical to the county. In the Republic, the county boundaries are still adhered to for local government, albeit with Tipperary and Dublin subdivided (some cities also have their own administrative regions). For election constituencies, some counties are merged or divided, but constitutionally the boundaries have to be observed. Across Ireland, the 32 counties are still used in sports and in some other cultural areas and retain a strong sense of local identity. Ireland's least arable land lies in the south-western and western counties. These areas are largely spectacularly mountainous and rocky, with beautiful green vistas.

Politics
Dublin Politically, Ireland is divided into:
- The Republic of Ireland, with its capital in Dublin. This state is often simply referred to internally and internationally as "Ireland" in English or "Éire" in Irish. Technically Ireland and Éire are the official names of the state while the "Republic of Ireland" is its official description.
- Northern Ireland is unofficially known as 'the North', and 'Ulster' (the province of Ulster also includes Donegal, Cavan, and Monaghan which are in the Republic). Northern Ireland is a region of the United Kingdom. Prior to the Government of Ireland Act 1920 the island had been a unified political entity within the United Kingdom (see United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland) from 1801. From 1541 the Kingdom of Ireland was established by the King of England, though this realm did not cover the whole island till the early 17th century. Up to then, Ireland had been politically divided into a number of different Irish kingdoms (Leinster, Munster, Connacht, Mide, Ulster, and others). Contrary to some assertions, at no time did a national kingdom headed by an Ard Ri exist. In a number of respects, the island operates officially as a single entity, for example, in most kinds of sports. The major religions, the Roman Catholic Church, the Church of Ireland and the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, are organised on an all-island basis. Some 92% of the population of the Republic of Ireland and about 44% of Northern Ireland is Roman Catholic. Some trade unions are also organised on an all-Irish basis and associated with the Irish Congress of Trades Unions (ICTU) in Dublin, while others in Northern Ireland are affiliated with the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in the United Kingdom - though such unions may organise in both parts of the island as well as in Britain. The island also has a shared culture across the divide in many other ways. Traditional Irish music, for example, though showing some variance in all geographical areas, is, broadly speaking, the same on both sides of the border. Irish and Scottish traditional music have many similarities. The Ireland Funds, an international fund-raising organisation, tries to help people on both sides find peace and reconciliation through community development, education, arts and culture. The island is often referred to as being part of the British Isles. However, some people, especially in Ireland, take exception to this name, which seems to suggest that both islands belong to Britain. For this reason, "Britain and Ireland" is commonly used as a more neutral alternative. Another suggestion, although much less used, is the