Welcome to Wales

•Wales is a country situated in the West of Britain.•Wales covers about 10 per cent of the island of GB, but has only about 5 per cent of the population of the United Kingdom. •The area of Wales is 20,764 sq. Km.•Wales is surrounded by water on three sides: to the north, the Irish Sea; to the south, the Bristol Channel; and to the west, Saint George's Channel and Cardigan Bay.

• The population of Wales is about three million.• About 20 per cent of the people speak Welsh, an

ancient Celtic language. • English and Welsh are both official languages.

• Wales has high mountains, including Mount Snowdon, the second highest mountain in Britain. Snowdon looks very peaceful and beautiful.

• The longest rivers are the Severn and Wye, which both empty into the Bristol Channel.

• Wales has 3 national parks – Snowdonia, the Brecon Beacons, and the Pembrokeshire Coast.

Cardiff

Cardiff Castle

•The Romans settled in Cardiff in 55AD and built a military fort on the site of Cardiff Castle.•Cardiff is an industrial city, which also has a cathedral, a university.

Symbols of Wales

St. David is the patron saint of Wales. He was a monk who lived on bread, water, herbs and leeks and died on March 1, 589 A. D.

The leek had been recognized as the emblem of Wales since the middle of the 16th century.

The daffodil is also a Welsh national emblem because its Welsh name is translated as a type of leek.

The Red Dragon of Wales, although perhaps of Chinese origin, was introduced to Britain by the Romans some eighteen hundred years ago.

•English and Welsh are the two official languages of Wales. English is the most widely spoken language. •Wales has always been known as a country of music and song.