Ynystawe facts for kids
Ynystawe is a small village located in the City and County of Swansea, Wales. It is part of the Morriston area. You can find Ynystawe about 0.5 miles north of the M4 motorway junction 45. It sits between the villages of Ynysforgan and Clydach in the beautiful Swansea Valley.
The name Ynystawe comes from the Welsh language. Ynys means "island" or "river-meadow," and Tawe is the name of the river that flows right next to the village on its eastern side. This river also gives Swansea its Welsh name, Abertawe.
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Exploring Ynystawe's Landscape
Ynystawe village is built on the lower parts of a steep, green hill called Mynydd Gelliwastad. It also sits on a narrow flat area next to the Tawe river. From the top of the hill, you can see the lower plateau of Mynydd Bach and even Swansea Bay.
The main road through the village is the B4063, which leads towards the nearby village of Clydach. The River Tawe flows westwards below Ynystawe. This is because of a special natural feature called the Glais moraine. A moraine is a pile of rocks and dirt left behind by a glacier. This particular moraine is a curved shape and is a reminder of the last ice age. From the higher parts of the village, you can see this raised area on the valley floor.
A Glimpse into Ynystawe's History
In Ynystawe Park, there is a special stone that remembers a very important person named Hopcyn ap Tomos. He lived from about 1330 to 1408. Hopcyn was a very smart and educated man. He asked for a book to be put together called the Llyfr Coch, which means the Red Book.
This Red Book gathered most of the great Welsh stories and poems from that time into one big collection. It included Welsh prose and poetry, as well as the famous Mabinogion tales. The Llyfr Coch is considered the most complete and amazing collection of Welsh literature. Today, it is kept safe at the University of Oxford's Bodleian Library.
People believed that Hopcyn ap Tomos had special powers to predict the future. Because of this, Owain Glyndŵr, a Welsh leader, called him to his court in Carmarthen in 1403. Glyndŵr wanted Hopcyn to predict what would happen in the upcoming conflict between the Welsh and the English.
Learning in Ynystawe
The only school right in the village is Ynystawe Primary School. It is a small school where lessons are taught in English. Most students from Ynystawe Primary go on to Morriston Comprehensive School for their secondary education. If children prefer to learn in Welsh, there are Welsh-medium primary schools in the nearby villages of Clydach and Llansamlet.
Sports and Fun in Ynystawe
Ynystawe has a local pub called "The Millers Arms," which is on the main road near Ynystawe Park. For sports lovers, there's the Ynystawe Cricket and Football Club. This club is a great place for sports and social events and is located on the edge of the village. The Ynystawe cricket team even won the England & Wales National Village Cricket Championship in 2001, which was a big achievement!
Ynystawe Park is a large open space where everyone can have fun. It has a play area for younger children, courts for tennis and basketball, a bowling green, and a skateboard ramp. There are also pitches for playing football and cricket.
