Road signs in Wales
Encyclopedia
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
follow the same design principles as those in other parts of the United Kingdom
Road signs in the United Kingdom
Road signs in the United Kingdom conform broadly to European norms, though a number of signs are unique to Britain and direction signs omit European route numbers.-History:...
. However, all modern road signs feature directions in both the Welsh
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
and English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
languages, with the Welsh first in many principal areas.
Current policy
The Welsh Government's position on place names as shown on road signs within its jurisdiction is outlined in its Welsh Language Scheme, which, in section 6.9 Traffic signs, states:"The signs for which we are responsible (mostly motorway and trunk road signs) will be bilingual. Signs which are in English only at the moment will be made bilingual when they are replaced.... When both languages are included on one sign with one language above the other, the order in which the languages appear will follow the practice adopted by the local authority where the sign is located."The latter proviso applies because local authorities have discretion over the forms used on local highway signs. In the predominantly Welsh-speaking areas of Wales, the Welsh form of the name is usually given first; in other areas, the English name is usually given first. There is pressure from Welsh speakers in Denbighshire
Denbighshire
Denbighshire is a county in north-east Wales. It is named after the historic county of Denbighshire, but has substantially different borders. Denbighshire has the distinction of being the oldest inhabited part of Wales. Pontnewydd Palaeolithic site has remains of Neanderthals from 225,000 years...
and Conwy to have the Welsh forms given first in their respective counties.
The guidance also states: "Signs containing place names in England will contain the Welsh and English versions of the name....". This proviso has led to new motorway signs in south Wales which direct towards England showing the names Llundain and Bryste as well as their English names, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
.
History
Roderic Bowen
Evan Roderic Bowen KC was a Welsh Liberal Party politician.Bowen was educated at Cardigan County School, University College, Aberystwyth, St John's College, Cambridge, Brussels and the Inns of Court. He served in the Army for five years during World War II, reaching the rank of Captain...
recommended that they should be provided systematically throughout Wales.
Controversy
Some drivers have complained that the use of bilingual signs increases danger, especially in cases where signs are printed differently in each language or where language barrierLanguage barrier
Language barrier is a figurative phrase used primarily to indicate the difficulties faced when people who have no language in common attempt to communicate with each other...
s prevent the delivery of detailed instructions.
Painted instructions
Throughout Wales, instructions for drivers appear on the road itself. One of the most common painted instructions is - slow.Road sign mistakes
The requirement for bilingual signs has sometimes led to errors, such as the two languages presenting differing information.In 2006, a bilingual pedestrian sign in Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
told pedestrians to "look right" in English, and (look left) in Welsh.
In 2008, a sign for a goods entrance for a supermarket in Swansea
Swansea
Swansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
was mistakenly printed with an automatic e-mail response which read which translates as I am not in the office at the moment. Please send any work to be translated.
Pressure campaigns for bilingual signs
The Welsh-language pressure group Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg have been campaigning for a number of years with the (Where's the Welsh?) scheme, which campaigns for all road signs in Wales to display both Welsh and English information on public information signs. The campaign is most noted for its placement of stickers with the group's logo, a dragon's tongue, on signposts that are written only in English.See also
- Road signs in the United KingdomRoad signs in the United KingdomRoad signs in the United Kingdom conform broadly to European norms, though a number of signs are unique to Britain and direction signs omit European route numbers.-History:...
- Welsh Assembly GovernmentWelsh Assembly GovernmentThe Welsh Government is the devolved government of Wales. It is accountable to the National Assembly for Wales, the legislature which represents the interests of the people of Wales and makes laws for Wales...
- List of Welsh principal areas by percentage Welsh language