Culture and recreation in Cardiff facts for kids
Cardiff is a vibrant city with many cool cultural spots. You can explore the historic Cardiff Castle and Castell Coch. There are also modern places like the Wales Millennium Centre and Cardiff Bay. Cardiff was even a finalist for the European Capital of Culture in 2008!
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Languages Spoken in Cardiff
Cardiff has a really interesting history when it comes to languages. Over time, people have spoken Welsh, English, Latin, Norse, and Anglo-Norman here. The Romans built the first "castle on the Taff" river. Later, Vikings helped Cardiff grow by trading from its port. Many street names in Cardiff, like Dumballs Road, come from the Vikings!
Welsh was the main language in Cardiff for a long time, from the 1200s until the city grew very fast in the Victorian era. By 1850, many churches still held services only in Welsh. In the 1800s, many Irish people moved to Cardiff for work. They helped create the unique "Cardiff accent" along with people from other parts of Britain.
Today, Welsh is slowly becoming more common again. This is thanks to Welsh-language schools and people moving from other parts of Wales. Between 1991 and 2001, the number of Welsh speakers in Cardiff grew a lot. Now, about 11% of people in Cardiff speak Welsh. In some areas, like Pentyrch, even more people speak it!
Because many different people live in Cardiff, lots of languages are spoken here. Studies show that people in Cardiff speak at least 94 different languages! The most common foreign languages include Somali, Urdu, Bengali, and Arabic.
Fun Festivals
Cardiff loves to host festivals! The Big Weekend Festival happens every summer in the city centre. It offers free music concerts with famous artists. There are also fun fairground rides and a Children's Festival at Cardiff Castle. This annual Cardiff Festival is one of the UK's largest free outdoor events, attracting over 250,000 visitors! Cardiff also hosted Radio 1's Big Weekend in 2003.
Cardiff has hosted the National Eisteddfod many times. This is a huge Welsh festival celebrating Welsh culture, music, and poetry. Cardiff is special because it has two permanent stone circles. These are used by the Gorsedd of Bards during the Eisteddfod. One is in Gorsedd Gardens, and the other is in Bute Park.
Since 1983, Cardiff has been home to the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World competition. This is a very famous opera event that takes place every two years. The city also has smaller events like The Cardiff Design Festival. This festival shows off amazing Welsh design. There's also the Sŵn festival, a music festival organized by BBC Radio 1 DJ Huw Stevens. The Cardiff Chinese New Year Celebrations are held every year in Cardiff Bay.
Cardiff also hosts food festivals, like the Bite Food Festival.
Amazing Parks
Cardiff is famous for its many beautiful parks. About 10% of the city is covered in green spaces! Bute Park is Cardiff's main park. It used to be the grounds of the castle. It stretches north from Queen Street, a main shopping street. When you combine it with Llandaff Fields and Pontcanna Fields, it creates a huge open space along the River Taff.
Other popular parks include Roath Park in the north. This park was given to the city in 1887 and has a very popular boating lake. There's also Victoria Park, which was Cardiff's first official park. Thompson's Park is another lovely green space.
In 2006, Cardiff won a special award called the Entente Florale. This award recognized the beauty of its parks and flower displays.
Music and Nightlife
Cardiff has a lively and diverse music scene. It's home to the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and Welsh National Opera. Many famous bands and singers come from Cardiff or have strong links to the city. These include Charlotte Church, Shirley Bassey, Catatonia, Super Furry Animals, The Oppressed, Kids in Glass Houses, Los Campesinos, The Hot Puppies, The School, We're No Heroes, Budgie, and Shakin' Stevens. Other well-known acts like The Automatic, Jem, Funeral for a Friend, Lostprophets, Bullet for My Valentine, Stereophonics and Manic Street Preachers also have connections to Cardiff.
Cardiff has a great nightlife with many bars, pubs, and clubs. Most of these are in the city centre, especially on St. Mary's Street. Recently, Cardiff Bay has also become a popular spot for modern bars and restaurants. The Brewery Quarter on St. Mary's Street is a new area with many places to eat and drink. Cardiff always has events happening throughout the year. The city is growing fast, especially the Bay area. The nightlife is a big draw, and many visitors come to Cardiff for events at places like the Millennium Stadium, which can hold thousands of people.
Other Entertainment
Cardiff Bay is a hub for entertainment. The Red Dragon Centre has a Hollywood Bowl for bowling, a Grosvenor Casino, and an Odeon cinema. This cinema has Wales' only IMAX theatre! The centre also has many restaurants. The Millennium Plaza centre in the city centre offers similar entertainment. You can also find a Hard Rock Cafe on St Mary Street in the city centre.
If you like comedy, Cardiff has some great clubs. These include The Glee Club in Mermaid Quay and Jongleurs in the city centre.
Shopping Fun
Cardiff is one of the best places to shop in the UK! It has three main modern shopping centres: St. David's Centre, Queens Arcade, and the Capitol Centre. The St. David's Centre has been expanded, adding about 200 new shops, apartments, and a John Lewis department store.
Besides these modern centres, Cardiff also has many beautiful Victorian shopping arcades. These include High Street Arcade, Castle Arcade, Wyndham Arcade, Royal Arcade, and Morgan Arcade.
Queen Street is where you'll find many popular chain stores like Topshop, Topman, Boots, Gap, Dorothy Perkins, Primark, and Zara. On St. Mary Street, you'll find Wales' oldest and largest department store, Howells, along with smaller unique shops. Don't forget The Hayes, home to Spillers Records, which is the oldest record shop in the world!
Cardiff also has several markets. There's the huge Victorian indoor Cardiff Central Market. There's also the Riverside Community Market, which sells local and organic produce. You can also find retail parks outside the city centre, like Newport Road and Cardiff Bay.
