The village of Pontyates offers a local garage, its own fire and rescue station, two bilingual primary schools, a post office, a fish and chip shop, public houses, a hairdressers and places of worship. The village is situated on the banks of the Gwendraeth Fawr river. It sits adjacent to the B4309 that runs between the towns of Carmarthen and Llanelli which are both about 10 miles from the village. The village is primarily Welsh-speaking. Pontyates is set in a rural area which hosts impressive views of the surrounding valleys from the top of the hill. It is known to have two sides to the village, the Carmarthen side and the Llanelli side, known locally as "pentre hyn" (this village) and "pentre draw" (that village), depending on which side the speaker stands. The population was around 4000 in 1929 according to the parish entry of that year (Sourced from 'The Welsh Church Year Book, 1929').
Statisticsedit
(According to National Statistics Online)
Average Age - 42
Average Commute - 12.8 (miles)
Gender Ratio - 1.06 (female/male)
Population in Good Health - 58.3%
Students - 3%
Historyedit
From 1909 to 1953 Pontyates had its own railway station run by the Burry Port and Gwendraeth Valley Railway company. Pontyates was one of the stations that lay between Llanelli and the coal mine at Cwmmawr. The fact that the line was built down the old canal route meant that it was prone to flooding. The station at Pontyates was closed in 1953. Despite it being no longer in use, the railway line still runs across the road today and can be walked across as part of the mining heritage trail.
Origin of nameedit
According to the BBC Wales programme 'What's in a name'. 'Pontyates' is said to have been named after an English family, Yates. 'Pont' translates as 'bridge' in English and the Welsh word 'Y' means 'of'. This would mean the literal translation of Pontyates is Bridge-of-Yates. However, due to the name's similarity to the local word 'iet' meaning 'gate' the village is more commonly referred to as 'Pontiets'. A testament to this is the fact that both names appear on the welcome sign when entering the village. Another more realistic understanding of the origin of the village's name which locals believe is that 'iet' which means gate in Welsh was used as the village is the gateway to the Gwendreath Valley/Cwm Gwendraeth from the coast.
Sportedit
Pontyates is home to the rugby club Pontyates R.F.C. which plays in the Welsh Rugby Union, Division Five West Central League.
June Brown - famous for her role as Dot Cotton in BBC's EastEnders, was evacuated to the village during the Second World War.
Referencesedit
^"Custom report - Nomis - Official Labour Market Statistics".
December 18, 2023
pontyates, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, july, 2022, lear. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Pontyates news newspapers books scholar JSTOR July 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message Pontyates Welsh Pont iets is a village straddling two communities situated in the Gwendraeth Valley halfway between Carmarthen and Llanelli in Carmarthenshire West Wales the population in 2011 was 1 449 1 PontietsWelsh Pont ietsPontietsLocation within CarmarthenshirePopulation1 449 OS grid referenceSN470085CommunityLlanelli RuralLlangyndeyrnPrincipal areaCarmarthenshirePreserved countyDyfedCountryWalesSovereign stateUnited KingdomPost townLlanelliPostcode districtSA15Dialling code01269PoliceDyfed PowysFireMid and West WalesAmbulanceWelshUK ParliamentLlanelliCarmarthen East and DinefwrSenedd Cymru Welsh ParliamentLlanelliCarmarthen East and DinefwrList of places UK Wales Carmarthenshire 51 45 07 N 4 13 01 W 51 752 N 4 217 W 51 752 4 217 Contents 1 General information 2 Statistics 3 History 4 Origin of name 5 Sport 6 Notable people 7 ReferencesGeneral information editThe village of Pontyates offers a local garage its own fire and rescue station two bilingual primary schools a post office a fish and chip shop public houses a hairdressers and places of worship The village is situated on the banks of the Gwendraeth Fawr river It sits adjacent to the B4309 that runs between the towns of Carmarthen and Llanelli which are both about 10 miles from the village The village is primarily Welsh speaking Pontyates is set in a rural area which hosts impressive views of the surrounding valleys from the top of the hill It is known to have two sides to the village the Carmarthen side and the Llanelli side known locally as pentre hyn this village and pentre draw that village depending on which side the speaker stands The population was around 4000 in 1929 according to the parish entry of that year Sourced from The Welsh Church Year Book 1929 Statistics edit According to National Statistics Online Average Age 42 Average Commute 12 8 miles Gender Ratio 1 06 female male Population in Good Health 58 3 Students 3 History editFrom 1909 to 1953 Pontyates had its own railway station run by the Burry Port and Gwendraeth Valley Railway company Pontyates was one of the stations that lay between Llanelli and the coal mine at Cwmmawr The fact that the line was built down the old canal route meant that it was prone to flooding The station at Pontyates was closed in 1953 Despite it being no longer in use the railway line still runs across the road today and can be walked across as part of the mining heritage trail Origin of name editAccording to the BBC Wales programme What s in a name Pontyates is said to have been named after an English family Yates Pont translates as bridge in English and the Welsh word Y means of This would mean the literal translation of Pontyates is Bridge of Yates However due to the name s similarity to the local word iet meaning gate the village is more commonly referred to as Pontiets A testament to this is the fact that both names appear on the welcome sign when entering the village Another more realistic understanding of the origin of the village s name which locals believe is that iet which means gate in Welsh was used as the village is the gateway to the Gwendreath Valley Cwm Gwendraeth from the coast Sport editPontyates is home to the rugby club Pontyates R F C which plays in the Welsh Rugby Union Division Five West Central League Notable people editMandy Rice Davies famous for her role in the Profumo affair June Brown famous for her role as Dot Cotton in BBC s EastEnders was evacuated to the village during the Second World War References edit Custom report Nomis Official Labour Market Statistics Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Pontyates amp oldid 1161311185, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
