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Fairwater ( cy, Y Tyllgoed) is a district and
community A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a country, village, tow ...
in the west of
Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...
, capital of
Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
. It is located a few miles from
Culverhouse Cross Culverhouse Cross ( cy, Croes Cwrlwys) is a district straddling the boundary between Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, in the community of Wenvoe. The district is centred on a major traffic roundabout that links West Cardiff to the M4 mo ...
which connects Cardiff to the
M4 motorway The M4, originally the London-South Wales Motorway, is a motorway in the United Kingdom running from west London to southwest Wales. The English section to the Severn Bridge was constructed between 1961 and 1971; the Welsh element was largely ...
. The population taken at the 2011 census was 12,981.


Etymologies

The original Welsh name Tyllgoed derives from "tyll" meaning "to hole" or "to burrow" and "coed" meaning "woods" or "trees". Tyllgoed is a name common to a number of streams in Wales that burrow through woods and it is likely this name would have originally applied to the stream that still runs through Fairwater today. The similarity of the first element to the Welsh word "tywyll" meaning "dark" led some later writers to derive the name as "dark woods". However, this derivation is now considered a
folk etymology Folk etymology (also known as popular etymology, analogical reformation, reanalysis, morphological reanalysis or etymological reinterpretation) is a change in a word or phrase resulting from the replacement of an unfamiliar form by a more famili ...
, especially given that the name is first recorded under the spellings ''Tull Coit'' and ''Tollcoit in the land of Ystrad Ager'', in the 12th century
Book of Llandaff The Book of Llandaff ( la, Liber Landavensis; cy, Llyfr Llandaf, ', or '), is the chartulary of the cathedral of Llandaff, a 12th-century compilation of documents relating to the history of the diocese of Llandaff in Wales. It is written primaril ...
. The entry states that the area was given to
Llandaff Cathedral Llandaff Cathedral ( cy, Eglwys Gadeiriol Llandaf) is an Anglican cathedral and parish church in Llandaff, Cardiff, Wales. It is the seat of the Bishop of Llandaff, head of the Church in Wales Diocese of Llandaff. It is dedicated to Saint Peter ...
during the time of its fourteenth Bishop, Berthguin, in the early 8th century. The English name Fairwater may ultimately derive from the
Ecclesiastical Latin Latin, also called Church Latin or Liturgical Latin, is a form of Latin developed to discuss Christian thought in Late Antiquity and used in Christian liturgy, theology, and church administration down to the present day, especially in the Cathol ...
in this entry, as the term ''bella aqua'' (literally "fair water") is recorded in its
marginalia Marginalia (or apostils) are marks made in the margins of a book or other document. They may be scribbles, comments, glosses (annotations), critiques, doodles, drolleries, or illuminations. Biblical manuscripts Biblical manuscripts have ...
. In later centuries, the area became the benefice of one of Llandaff's
prebend A prebendary is a member of the Roman Catholic or Anglican clergy, a form of canon with a role in the administration of a cathedral or collegiate church. When attending services, prebendaries sit in particular seats, usually at the back of the ...
s, named as the "Prebend of Fairwell", or the "Prebend of Farewell" in the cathedral's own documents. Even today, one of the cathedral's historic canons' stalls is still named "Fairwater".


Amenities

This leafy district is divided between the mainly privately owned 1930s
semi-detached A semi-detached house (often abbreviated to semi) is a single family duplex dwelling house that shares one common wall with the next house. The name distinguishes this style of house from detached houses, with no shared walls, and terraced house ...
housing developments at the southern end, and more 1950s public housing stock towards the northern end closer to neighbouring
Pentrebane Pentrebane ( cy, Pentre-Baen) is a district in the west of Cardiff, capital of Wales. It is part of the Fairwater community. Description Pentrebane was built in the 1960s on agricultural land to the northwest of Fairwater. The newer estate si ...
. It includes Fairwater Park (known locally as "the Dell"), Fairwater Leisure Centre, a
skatepark A skatepark, or skate park, is a purpose-built recreational environment made for skateboarding, BMX, scootering, wheelchairs, and aggressive inline skating. A skatepark may contain half-pipes, handrails, funboxes, vert ramps, stairsets, q ...
and numerous playing fields. Fairwater has two
secondary school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...
s. The larger of the two, with over a thousand pupils, is the Welsh-medium
Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Plasmawr Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Plasmawr is a Welsh-medium comprehensive secondary school in Cardiff. It opened in September 1998 as the second school of its kind in Cardiff. Its buildings had formerly belonged to Waterhall Secondary Modern School and mo ...
. The other is
Cantonian High School Cantonian High School is an English-medium 11-18 community school maintained by Cardiff local authority. It is located in Fairwater and serves the surrounding area in the west of Cardiff, Wales. There are currently more than 1000 pupils on roll a ...
, which has nearly 700 pupils. The building in which Plasmawr stands was originally opened in 1959 as Waterhall Secondary Modern School. Pupils at the school included
Martyn Woodroffe Martyn John Woodroffe (born 8 September 1950) is a Welsh swimmer. Swimming career He won a silver medal at the 1968 Olympic Games. Woodroffe was born in Cardiff, Wales. He represented Wales at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Game ...
an
Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...
swimming
Silver Medal A silver medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of, or plated with, silver awarded to the second-place finisher, or runner-up, of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc ...
ist in
1968 Summer Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1968), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XIX Olimpiada) and commonly known as Mexico 1968 ( es, México 1968), were an international multi-sport eve ...
in
Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
. It is on the grounds of old Cantonian lower school, but in recent times has had many new developments built on the site. Peter Lea Primary and Fairwater Primary schools are in the area. Cantonian has produced several Welsh international
football (soccer) Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
players. In recent times
Ryan Green Ryan Green (born 20 October 1980) is a Welsh footballer who plays as a Defender. He earned two international caps for Wales in 1998, breaking Ryan Giggs's record as their youngest player, a record which has since been surpassed. Club career ...
(once Wales' youngest international),
Jermaine Easter Jermaine Maurice Easter (born 15 January 1982 in Cardiff) is a former Welsh international footballer who played as a striker. Club career Easter started his career as a trainee at Wolverhampton Wanderers, before being released, and joining Ha ...
and
Joe Ledley Joseph Christopher Ledley (born 23 January 1987) is a Welsh former professional footballer who played as a central midfielder. He started his career with then Championship side Cardiff City where he spent six years. He helped the club to the F ...
and, a little further back,
John Toshack John Benjamin Toshack (born 22 March 1949) is a Welsh former professional football player and manager. He began his playing career as a teenager with his hometown club Cardiff City, becoming the youngest player to make an appearance for th ...
. Famous former pupils also include the model and
Gary Lineker Gary Winston Lineker (; born 30 November 1960) is an English former professional footballer and current sports broadcaster. He is regarded as having been one of the greatest English strikers. His media career began with the BBC, where he has p ...
's wife Danielle Bux and director of the film
Human Traffic ''Human Traffic'' is a 1999 British-Irish-Welsh independent coming of age comedy drama film written and directed by Justin Kerrigan. It is a cult film of the Cool Cymru era of arts in Wales. The film explores themes of coming of age, drug and ...
,
Justin Kerrigan Justin Kerrigan (born 1973) is a British writer and film director from Cardiff, Wales, best known for the 1999 film ''Human Traffic''. About Born in Cardiff, Kerrigan attended Cantonian High School and then Newport Film School (formerly part of ...
. Fairwater Brook was a childhood haunt of
Roald Dahl Roald Dahl (13 September 1916 – 23 November 1990) was a British novelist, short-story writer, poet, screenwriter, and wartime fighter ace of Norwegian descent. His books have sold more than 250 million copies worldwide. Dahl has be ...
, who lived in
Radyr Radyr ( cy, Radur) is an outer suburb of Cardiff, about northwest of Cardiff city centre. Radyr is part of Radyr and Morganstown Community, for which the 2011 Census recorded a population of 6,417. Morganstown is north of Radyr, on the othe ...
and studied in nearby
Llandaff Llandaff (; cy, Llandaf ; from 'church' and '' Taf'') is a district, community and coterminous electoral ward in the north of Cardiff, capital of Wales. It was incorporated into the city in 1922. It is the seat of the Bishop of Llandaff, whose ...
. Fairwater Park, known locally as "The Dell" is the site of one of Britain's first
artificial ski slopes A dry ski slope or artificial ski slope is a ski slope that mimics the attributes of snow using materials that are stable at room temperature, to enable people to ski, snowboard or snow tube in places where natural, snow-covered slopes are inc ...
, built in 1969. Fairwater Green is a local area of shops, supposedly named for the area of grass nearby. Fairwater Library opened in 1960, is a small branch library with a small book collection, public access computers and study space is open five days a week.


Electoral ward

Fairwater is both an
electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to t ...
, and a
community A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a country, village, tow ...
of the
City of Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the List of ci ...
. There is no
community council A community council is a public representative body in Great Britain. In England they may be statutory parish councils by another name, under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007, or they may be non-statutory bodies. In ...
for the area. The
electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to t ...
of Fairwater falls within the parliamentary constituency of Cardiff West. It is bounded by Creigiau & St. Fagans to the west;
Llandaff Llandaff (; cy, Llandaf ; from 'church' and '' Taf'') is a district, community and coterminous electoral ward in the north of Cardiff, capital of Wales. It was incorporated into the city in 1922. It is the seat of the Bishop of Llandaff, whose ...
to the east; Canton to the southeast;
Ely Ely or ELY may refer to: Places Ireland * Éile, a medieval kingdom commonly anglicised Ely * Ely Place, Dublin, a street United Kingdom * Ely, Cambridgeshire, a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, England ** Ely Cathedral Ely Cathedral, formal ...
to the south; and
Radyr Radyr ( cy, Radur) is an outer suburb of Cardiff, about northwest of Cardiff city centre. Radyr is part of Radyr and Morganstown Community, for which the 2011 Census recorded a population of 6,417. Morganstown is north of Radyr, on the othe ...
to the north. Previously represented by the Labour Party it has since May 2008 been represented on
Cardiff Council Cardiff Council, formally the County Council of the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Cyngor Sir Dinas a Sir Caerdydd) is the governing body for Cardiff, one of the Principal Areas of Wales. The principal area and its council were established ...
by
Plaid Cymru Plaid Cymru ( ; ; officially Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales, often referred to simply as Plaid) is a centre-left to left-wing, Welsh nationalist political party in Wales, committed to Welsh independence from the United Kingdom. Plaid wa ...
councillors.


Transport

Fairwater is well served by public transport with three
railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
s - Fairwater in the heart of the area,
Danescourt Danescourt is an outer suburb of western Cardiff, just over northwest of Cardiff city centre. Danescourt is part of the Llandaff Community. History Danescourt is built around Radyr's Church in Wales parish church of St John the Baptist and th ...
in the north and Waun-Gron Park in the south. All 3 stations are on the
Cardiff City Line The Cardiff City Line is a commuter railway line in Cardiff that runs between and via . History The line was opened by the Taff Vale Railway in 1859, as part of its route from to the docks at Penarth. Subsequent construction by the TV ...
with services northbound to
Radyr Radyr ( cy, Radur) is an outer suburb of Cardiff, about northwest of Cardiff city centre. Radyr is part of Radyr and Morganstown Community, for which the 2011 Census recorded a population of 6,417. Morganstown is north of Radyr, on the othe ...
and southbound to Cardiff Central via
Ninian Park Ninian Park was a football stadium in the Leckwith area of Cardiff, Wales, that was the home of Cardiff City F.C. for 99 years. Opened in 1910 with a single wooden stand, it underwent numerous renovations during its lifespan and hosted fixture ...
. Fairwater has bus services provided by
Cardiff Bus Cardiff Bus ( cy, Bws Caerdydd) is the dominant operator of bus services in Cardiff, Wales and the surrounding area, including Barry and Penarth. The company is wholly owned by Cardiff Council and is one of the few municipal bus companies to r ...
operating
bus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...
service 61 through the area to
Pentrebane Pentrebane ( cy, Pentre-Baen) is a district in the west of Cardiff, capital of Wales. It is part of the Fairwater community. Description Pentrebane was built in the 1960s on agricultural land to the northwest of Fairwater. The newer estate si ...
, while route 64 runs through to Heath Hospital and route 66 serves Keyston Road. Easyway run an infrequest bus service through Fairwater to
St Fagans St Fagans ( ; cy, Sain Ffagan) is a village and community in the west of the city of Cardiff, capital of Wales. It is home to the St Fagans National History Museum. History The name of the area invokes Saint Fagan, according to William of Malm ...
. The main road running through the east of the area is Western Avenue ( A48) linking it to Ely Bridge,
Ely Ely or ELY may refer to: Places Ireland * Éile, a medieval kingdom commonly anglicised Ely * Ely Place, Dublin, a street United Kingdom * Ely, Cambridgeshire, a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, England ** Ely Cathedral Ely Cathedral, formal ...
, Canton and the
city centre A city centre is the commercial, cultural and often the historical, political, and geographic heart of a city. The term "city centre" is primarily used in British English, and closely equivalent terms exist in other languages, such as "" in Fren ...
to the south and
Gabalfa Gabalfa (, ) is a district and community in the north of the city of Cardiff, capital of Wales. It is characterised by a four-lane fly over road at the Gabalfa Interchange, where the A48 road meets the A470 road (North Road) which leads from Car ...
, eastern districts and the M4 J30 Cardiff East to the north. St Fagans Road is a country road leading west out of Fairwater to
St. Fagans St Fagans ( ; cy, Sain Ffagan) is a village and community in the west of the city of Cardiff, capital of Wales. It is home to the St Fagans National History Museum. History The name of the area invokes Saint Fagan, according to William of Malme ...
, Ely,
Culverhouse Cross Culverhouse Cross ( cy, Croes Cwrlwys) is a district straddling the boundary between Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, in the community of Wenvoe. The district is centred on a major traffic roundabout that links West Cardiff to the M4 mo ...
and M4 J33 Cardiff West


Notable people from Fairwater

*
John Toshack John Benjamin Toshack (born 22 March 1949) is a Welsh former professional football player and manager. He began his playing career as a teenager with his hometown club Cardiff City, becoming the youngest player to make an appearance for th ...
football player, former Welsh football manager, attended Cantonian High School. *
Patti Flynn Patti Flynn (born Patricia Maude Young, 1937 – 10 September 2020) was a jazz singer, author, model and social activist. She was a founder and patron of Black History Wales. In 2019 she was honoured with the Ethnic Minority Welsh Women Ach ...
jazz singer, author and founder of Black History Wales lived in Fairwater in later life. *
Terry Holmes Terence David "Terry" Holmes (born 10 March 1957) is a Welsh former rugby union, and professional rugby league footballer who won 25 caps for as a scrum-half, and later played rugby league for Bradford Northern. Holmes was a highly physical ...
Wales and British Lions international
rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
player *
Joe Ledley Joseph Christopher Ledley (born 23 January 1987) is a Welsh former professional footballer who played as a central midfielder. He started his career with then Championship side Cardiff City where he spent six years. He helped the club to the F ...
Wales
football (soccer) Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
international, who attended Cantonian High School. *
Martyn Woodroffe Martyn John Woodroffe (born 8 September 1950) is a Welsh swimmer. Swimming career He won a silver medal at the 1968 Olympic Games. Woodroffe was born in Cardiff, Wales. He represented Wales at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Game ...
Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...
swimming silver medalist at the
Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
1968 Summer Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1968), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XIX Olimpiada) and commonly known as Mexico 1968 ( es, México 1968), were an international multi-sport eve ...
*
Justin Kerrigan Justin Kerrigan (born 1973) is a British writer and film director from Cardiff, Wales, best known for the 1999 film ''Human Traffic''. About Born in Cardiff, Kerrigan attended Cantonian High School and then Newport Film School (formerly part of ...
, Welsh film maker who wrote and directed
Human Traffic ''Human Traffic'' is a 1999 British-Irish-Welsh independent coming of age comedy drama film written and directed by Justin Kerrigan. It is a cult film of the Cool Cymru era of arts in Wales. The film explores themes of coming of age, drug and ...
, attended Cantonian High School. *
Neil McEvoy Neil John McEvoy (born 1970) is a Welsh politician who represented the South Wales Central region in the Senedd from 2016 until 2021. He was elected as Member of the Senedd, then known as the Welsh Assembly, on the Plaid Cymru regional li ...
Political Party Leader, founding father of Wales' Propel Party.


References


External links


www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Fairwater and surrounding area
{{coord, 51, 29, 24, N, 3, 14, 36, W, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Communities in Cardiff