Y Lolfa (

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...

for ''The Lounge'', ) is a Welsh printing and

publishing Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...

company based in

Tal-y-bont, Ceredigion Tal-y-bont (also known as Talybont) is a village in Ceredigion, Wales, located on the A487 road about halfway between Aberystwyth and Machynlleth. At the 2011 census the population was 662 with 63% born in Wales. Tal-y-bont is in the community ...

, in

Mid-Wales Mid Wales ( cy, Canolbarth Cymru or simply ''Y Canolbarth'', meaning "the midlands") or Central Wales refers to a region of Wales, encompassing its midlands, in-between North Wales and South Wales. The Mid Wales Regional Committee of the Se ...

. It publishes a wide variety of books in Welsh and English. It also provides a commercial print service. Y Lolfa was established in 1967 by Robat Gruffudd. It is now an independent, limited company run by the founder's sons, Garmon Gruffudd (managing director) and Lefi Gruffudd (general editor), with Paul Williams as production manager. Using the new small

offset printing Offset printing is a common printing technique in which the inked image is transferred (or "offset") from a plate to a rubber blanket and then to the printing surface. When used in combination with the lithographic process, which is based on ...

method, it started producing material both for the activist '' Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg'' (The Welsh Language Society), with which it was loosely associated, and for its own publications which included ''

Lol LOL, or lol, is an initialism for laughing out loud and a popular element of Internet slang. It was first used almost exclusively on Usenet, but has since become widespread in other forms of computer-mediated communication and even face-to ...

'', the satirical magazine from which the company's name was derived. The company gradually expanded the variety of its publications to include popular series for children, contemporary

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itself ...

diaries Diaries may refer to: * the plural of diary *''Diaries: 1971-1976'', a 1981 documentary by Ed Pincus *'' Diaries 1969–1979: The Python Years'', a 2006 book by Michael Palin *''OFW Diaries ''OFW Diaries'' is a Philippine television documentary ...

, humorous tutors for Welsh learners, a range for tourists to Wales and a Welsh sports title. It has adopted a deliberate policy of not adapting books from other languages in order to support Welsh artists and authors. It was involved with the publication of ''Papur Pawb'', one of the first Welsh community papers, in 1974. Y Lolfa published ''Llyfr y Ganrif'' (''The Book of the Century'') in association with the

National Library of Wales The National Library of Wales ( cy, Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru), Aberystwyth, is the national legal deposit library of Wales and is one of the Welsh Government sponsored bodies. It is the biggest library in Wales, holding over 6.5 million ...

in 1999. It celebrated 50 years in business in 2017 and in 2017 employed twenty-two full-time staff, publishing around 80 titles annually.''The Bookseller'', 5 May 2017, p.11: Regional Focus, Wales

References

External links

Official website
Welsh-language literature Publishing companies of Wales Publishing companies established in 1967 1967 establishments in Wales Companies based in Ceredigion {{Wales-company-stub