The Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies (CAWCS; ) is a

research institute A research institute, research centre, or research organization is an establishment founded for doing research. Research institutes may specialize in basic research or may be oriented to applied research. Although the term often implies natural ...

located in

Aberystwyth Aberystwyth (; ) is a University town, university and seaside town and a community (Wales), community in Ceredigion, Wales. It is the largest town in Ceredigion and from Aberaeron, the county's other administrative centre. In 2021, the popula ...

, Wales. The centre was established by the

University of Wales The University of Wales () is a confederal university based in Cardiff, Wales. Founded by royal charter in 1893 as a federal university with three constituent colleges – Aberystwyth, Bangor and Cardiff – the university was the first universit ...

in 1985, and works under the

University of Wales Trinity Saint David The University of Wales Trinity Saint David () is a public university with three main campuses in South West Wales, in Carmarthen, Lampeter and Swansea, a fourth campus in London, and learning centres in Cardiff, and Birmingham. The university ...

. The centre holds responsibility on managing the University of Wales Dictionary, one of the main dictionaries of the

Welsh language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic languages, Celtic language of the Brittonic languages, Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales by about 18% of the population, by some in England, and in (the Welsh c ...

. It also manages the

Dictionary of Welsh Biography The ''Dictionary of Welsh Biography'' (DWB) (also ''The Dictionary of Welsh Biography Down to 1940'' and ''The Dictionary of Welsh Biography, 1941 to 1970'') is a biographical dictionary of Welsh people who have made a significant contribution to ...

with the

National Library of Wales The National Library of Wales (, ) in 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 books and periodicals, and the l ...

, as well as various projects, such as those relating to the

poets A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

or manuscripts of Wales, and collaborating with institutions in other

Celtic nations The Celtic nations or Celtic countries are a cultural area and collection of geographical regions in Northwestern Europe where the Celtic languages and cultural traits have survived. The term ''nation'' is used in its original sense to mean a ...

History and background

The centre was established in 1985 by the

, and focuses on the studies of languages, literatures, the

culture Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...

and

history of Wales The history of what is now Wales () begins with evidence of a Neanderthal presence from at least 230,000 years ago, while ''Homo sapiens'' arrived by about 31,000 BC. However, continuous habitation by modern humans dates from the period after ...

, and of the other

. It has been based in

, next to the

since 1993. The centre's first director was

R. Geraint Gruffydd Robert Geraint Gruffydd Fellow of the Learned Society of Wales, FLSW Fellow of the British Academy, FBA (9 June 1928 – 24 March 2015) was a scholar of Welsh language and literature. From 1970 to 1979, he was Professor of Welsh Language and Litera ...

, and it has 30 staff as of 2023. The University of Wales and the

Higher Education Funding Council for Wales The Higher Education Funding Council for Wales (HEFCW) was the Welsh Government Sponsored Body responsible for funding the higher education sector. It was replaced by Medr, the Commission for Tertiary Education and Research from August 2024. ...

are the main sources of funding for the centre. Although additional project funding has been provided by

UK Research Councils Research Councils UK, sometimes known as RCUK, was a non-departmental public body that coordinated science policy in the United Kingdom from 2002 to 2018. It was an umbrella organisation that coordinated the seven separate research councils ...

and charities, the

British Academy The British Academy for the Promotion of Historical, Philosophical and Philological Studies is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the sa ...

, as well as public and private donors. The centre received funding from the

Arts and Humanities Research Council The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), formerly Arts and Humanities Research Board (AHRB), is a British research council, established in 1998, supporting research and postgraduate study in the arts and humanities. History The Arts a ...

by 2023. In 2007, the centre was awarded a £879,383 grant, from the Arts and Humanities Research Council to look into the work of 15th century poet

Guto'r Glyn Guto'r Glyn (c. 1412 – c. 1493) was a Welsh language poet and soldier of the era of the ''Beirdd yr Uchelwyr'' ("Poets of the Nobility") or ''Cywyddwyr'' ("cywydd-men"), the itinerant professional poets of the later Middle Ages. He is consid ...

. The grant was believed to be the largest of its kind awarded to a university in Wales, at the time. Between the academic years of 2008/2009 to 2009/2010, the centre's funding was increased by 47.5%, although other institutions in Wales received a cut in funding. In June 2011, the centre and the Welsh School of Architectural Glass at

Swansea Metropolitan University Swansea Metropolitan University () is a former university based in Swansea, Wales, UK. The university merged with, and became a constituent campus of, the University of Wales Trinity Saint David on 1 August 2013. Employing more than 500 staff ...

launched on online catalogue of 5,000 images of stained glass windows in Wales. In the same year, during discussions over the state of the University of Wales (UoW) and its eventual merger into UoW Trinity St Davids, the centre's future, as one of four UoW institutions, was questioned prior to the merger. In October 2011, the centre, with Cymdeithas Edward Llwyd, assisted in the establishment of the Welsh Place-Name Society. In 2012, the centre, with Aberystwyth University and the

Met Office The Met Office, until November 2000 officially the Meteorological Office, is the United Kingdom's national weather and climate service. It is an executive agency and trading fund of the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and ...

's International Atmospheric Circulation Reconstructions over the Earth (ACRE), collected experiences of unusual weather events in Wales as part of "Snows of Yesteryear". In March 2013, the centre was awarded a grant of £750,000 to edit medieval manuscripts, and to resources online that can be accessed by the public. Later in the same month, the centre was awarded £689,167 to investigate the "archaeological background of the emergence of the Celtic languages in

western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's extent varies depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the Western half of the ancient Mediterranean ...

", in collaboration with

Bangor University Bangor University () is a Public university, public Research university, research university in Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales. It was established by Royal charter, Royal Charter in 1885 as the University College of North Wales (UCNW; ), and in 1893 ...

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...

, and the National Library of Wales. In October 2013, the centre, alongside the universities of

Aberdeen Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...

, Bangor,

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

, Oxford,

Swansea Swansea ( ; ) is a coastal City status in the United Kingdom, city and the List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, second-largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of ...

Queen's University Belfast The Queen's University of Belfast, commonly known as Queen's University Belfast (; abbreviated Queen's or QUB), is a public research university in Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom. The university received its charter in 1845 as part of ...

Ulster Ulster (; or ; or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional or historic provinces of Ireland, Irish provinces. It is made up of nine Counties of Ireland, counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kingdom); t ...

, the

University of the Highlands and Islands The University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) () is an integrated, tertiary institution encompassing both further and higher education. It is composed of 10 colleges and research institutions spread around Inverness, the Highlands and Isl ...

, and the

University of Wales, Trinity Saint David The University of Wales Trinity Saint David () is a public university with three main campuses in South West Wales, in Carmarthen, Lampeter and Swansea, a fourth campus in London, and learning centres in Cardiff, and Birmingham. The universit ...

, and organised by the University of Glasgow, established the Doctoral Training Centre in the Celtic Languages, with Arts and Humanities Research Council funding. The training centre provided doctoral studentships and support to the training of students in the

Celtic languages The Celtic languages ( ) are a branch of the Indo-European language family, descended from the hypothetical Proto-Celtic language. The term "Celtic" was first used to describe this language group by Edward Lhuyd in 1707, following Paul-Yve ...

, over the course of five years. In 2020, the centre announced it would be integrated with the Institute of Education and Humanities at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David. In June 2022, the centre and the National Library published ''A Repertory of Welsh Manuscripts and Scribes, c.800–c.1800'', described as the "most thorough and scholarly study of

Welsh manuscripts Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, of or about Wales * Welsh language, spoken in Wales * Welsh people, an ethnic group native to Wales Places * Welsh, Arkansas, U.S. * Welsh, Louisiana, U.S. * Welsh, Ohio, U.S. * Welsh Basin, during t ...

". The publication was launched by

First Minister of Wales The first minister of Wales () is the leader of the Welsh Government and keeper of the Welsh Seal. The first minister chairs the Welsh Cabinet and is primarily responsible for the formulation, development and presentation of Welsh Government po ...

Mark Drakeford Mark Drakeford (born 19 September 1954) is a Welsh politician who has served as Cabinet Secretary for Finance since September 2024, having previously held the position from 2016 to 2018. He previously served as First Minister of Wales and L ...

. In December 2022, the centre announced a partnership with Brest-based Centre de Recherche Bretonne et Celtique on researching the historical links between Wales and

Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...

Projects

One of the main projects of the centre is maintaining the University of Wales Dictionary, which is acknowledged as the authority on Welsh spelling, meaning and

derivation Derivation may refer to: Language * Morphological derivation, a word-formation process * Parse tree or concrete syntax tree, representing a string's syntax in formal grammars Law * Derivative work, in copyright law * Derivation proceeding, a ...

, comparable to the

Oxford English Dictionary The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the principal historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP), a University of Oxford publishing house. The dictionary, which published its first editio ...

. The centre adds and updates the dictionary's entries. The centre also shares responsibility for the

with the National Library of Wales. The centre also conducts work on the

Poets of the Princes Medieval Welsh literature is the literature written in the Welsh language during the Middle Ages. This includes material starting from the 5th century AD, when Welsh was in the process of becoming distinct from Common Brittonic, and continuing t ...

and Poets of the Nobility. Some notable past projects of the centre include the following: * 2007 Guto'r Glyn * 2011 Stained glass online catalogue * 2012 "Snows of Yesteryear" * 2013 Celtic language emergence in western Europe * 2013 Doctoral Training Centre in the Celtic Languages * 2022 ''A Repertory of Welsh Manuscripts and Scribes, c.800–c.1800'' * 2022 Historic links with Brittany

References

{{Celts Organisations based in Aberystwyth Celtic studies University of Wales University of Wales Trinity Saint David 1985 establishments in Wales Research institutes in Wales