Llanfihangel-ar-Arth is a village 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 ...

in the county of Carmarthenshire, Wales. The area includes six villages:

Alltwalis Alltwalis is a village in Carmarthen, Carmarthenshire Carmarthenshire ( cy, Sir Gaerfyrddin; or informally ') is a county in the south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the count ...

, Dolgran,

Gwyddgrug Gwyddgrug is a small village in Carmarthenshire, West Wales. It is located on the main A485 road south of New Inn New Inn - ( cy, Y Dafarn Newydd) - is a village and community directly south east of Pontypool, within the County Borough of Torfa ...

, Llanfihangel-Ar-Arth,

New Inn New Inn - ( cy, Y Dafarn Newydd) - is a village and community directly south east of Pontypool, within the County Borough of Torfaen in Wales, within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire. It had a population of 5,986 at the 2011 Census. L ...

and Pencader. The population of the community taken at the 2011 census was 2,213.

Location

The village is located around the B4336 between

Llanllwni Llanllwni is a village and community in Carmarthenshire, Wales, on the A485 road south-west of Llanybydder. To the south lies the mountain, Mynydd Llanllwni. The population of 638 recorded in the 2011 Census was estimated to be 692 in 2019. Th ...

and Llandysul from the east to west and the B4459 between Capel Dewi and Pencader from the north to south.

Etymology

Llanfihangel ar Arth is the most northerly village in the community, nearest the river Teifi. It is believed that the village's name derives from the name of the

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

, Sant Mihangel, which was established in the 6th century.

Governance

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 the same name exists. This ward stretches beyond the community. The total population of this ward taken at the 2011 census was 2,851. The community is bordered by the communities of

Llanfihangel Rhos-y-Corn Llanfihangel Rhos-y-Corn is a sparsely populated community of Carmarthenshire, Wales. The population of the community taken at the 2011 census was 468. The community is bordered by the communities of: Llanybydder; Llansawel; Llanfynydd; Llaneg ...

, Llanllawddog, Llanpumsaint, Cynwyl Elfed and

Llangeler Llangeler () is a hamlet and community located in north Carmarthenshire, Wales. The name is believed to refer to St. Gelert. Llangeler parish covers a wide area including to the west, the textile village of Drefach Felindre, Waungilwen, Cwmpengr ...

, all in Carmarthenshire, and by Llandysul in Ceredigion.

History

There was a toll house in the village during 1840–1850 to collect tolls from travellers, and one of the Rebecca Riots occurred here when the gate was destroyed by 150 people in June 1843. It was a one level building and now it is a residential bungalow. The railway from Carmarthen and

Lampeter Lampeter (; cy, Llanbedr Pont Steffan (formal); ''Llambed'' (colloquial)) is a town, community and electoral ward in Ceredigion, Wales, at the confluence of the Afon Dulas with the River Teifi. It is the third largest urban area in Ceredigion, ...

travelled through Llanfihangel ar Arth, which later had its own station. But the station was closed for travellers in the 1960s, and only part of the track remains. From the 1840s to 1920s many of the village houses were used as woollen workshops when the

wool industry Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool. As an ...

was important in the area. The resident population of the parish of Llanfihangel-ar-Arth, in the

United Kingdom Census 2001 A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194. The 2001 UK census was organised by the Office for National ...

was 2,727 of which 50% were male and 50% were female. As well as the church, the village has two

pub A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

s and a school that opened in 1864 but was closed in 2003. The school now acts as a community centre or village hall. There are quite a few small businesses and the electricity board store. Agriculture also supplies employment in the area. The village has an annual carnival.

References

External links

www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Llanvihangel-ar-Arth and surrounding area
{{coord, 52.035770, -4.252389, region:GB_type:city, display=title Communities in Carmarthenshire Villages in Carmarthenshire