Llangadog () is a village and

community A community is a social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic, such as place, set of norms, culture, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given g ...

Carmarthenshire Carmarthenshire (; or informally ') is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the county town and administrative centre. ...

, Wales, which also includes the villages of

Bethlehem Bethlehem is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, located about south of Jerusalem, and the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate. It had a population of people, as of . The city's economy is strongly linked to Tourism in the State of Palesti ...

and Capel Gwynfe. A notable local landscape feature is Y Garn Goch with two

Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...

hill forts.The Welsh Academy Encyclopedia of Wales. Cardiff: University of Wales Press 2008. Llangadog was the administrative centre of the

commote A commote (, sometimes spelt in older documents as , plural , less frequently )'' Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru'' (University of Wales Dictionary), p. 643 was a secular division of land in Medieval Wales. The word derives from the prefix ("together" ...

of Perfedd and had a castle, destroyed in 1204. Although the borough declined in the Middle Ages, Llangadog retained its market, which was frequented by drovers into the 19th century. Llangadog Creamery - geograph

The

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

on the Heart of Wales Line provides regular train services via

Transport for Wales Rail Transport for Wales Rail Limited, branded as Transport for Wales and TfW Rail ( and ), is a Welsh State-owned enterprises of the United Kingdom, publicly owned train operating company, a subsidiary of Transport for Wales (TfW), a Welsh Governme ...

. The station had a siding for accessing the Co-op Wholesale Society

creamery A creamery or cheese factory is a place where milk and cream are processed and where butter and cheese is produced. Cream is separated from whole milk; pasteurization is done to the skimmed milk and cream separately. Whole milk for sale has ...

, allowing milk trains to access the site. After railway access was ceased in the late 1970s, the creamery continued to operate until 2005, when it closed with the loss of 200 jobs. The site has since been redeveloped as a pet food factory.

St Cadog's Church

The

Church in Wales The Church in Wales () is an Anglican church in Wales, composed of six dioceses. The Archbishop of Wales does not have a fixed archiepiscopal see, but serves concurrently as one of the six diocesan bishops. The position is currently held b ...

parish church of

Saint Cadoc Saint Cadoc or Cadog (; also Modern Welsh: Catawg or Catwg; born or before) was a 5th–6th-century Abbot of Llancarfan, near Cowbridge in Glamorgan, Wales, a monastery famous from the era of the Celtic church as a centre of learning, where I ...

(from whom the name of the village derives) is of medieval origin and was extensively restored in 1889. The tower is fourteenth 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 t ...

with the same name exists. This ward stretches beyond the confines of Llangadog community. The total ward population taken at the 2011 census was 1,929. The community is bordered by the communities of:

Myddfai Myddfai () is a small village and community in Carmarthenshire, Wales. It is situated south of Llandovery in the Brecon Beacons, and has a population of 415, decreasing to 398 at the 2011 census. The village is a popular tourist destination on ...

; Llanddeusant;

Quarter Bach Quarter Bach () is a community located in the east of Carmarthenshire, Wales. Description It is at the foot of the Black Mountain, in the far east of the county. The main settlement here is Upper Brynamman, though it also includes Cefnbrynb ...

;

Dyffryn Cennen Dyffryn Cennen is a Community (Wales), community located in Carmarthenshire, Wales. The population of the community taken at the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 census was 1,176. The community is bordered by the communities of: Manordeilo and ...

;

Manordeilo and Salem Manordeilo and Salem () is a community located in Carmarthenshire, Wales. The population taken at the 2011 census was 1,754. The community is bordered by the communities of: Talley; Llansadwrn; Llangadog; Dyffryn Cennen; Llandeilo; Llangathe ...

; and

Llansadwrn Llansadwrn is a small village and Community (Wales), community in Carmarthenshire, Wales. It is located in the countryside above the valley of the River Tywi, about halfway between Llandovery (Welsh: Llanymddyfri) to the north-east, and Lla ...

, all being in Carmarthenshire.

Welsh language

According to the 2011 Census, 58.1% of the community's residents aged three and above can speak Welsh, with 86.3% of 3-15 year olds being able to speak the language. According to the latest

Estyn Estyn is the education and training inspectorate for Wales. Its name comes from the Welsh language verb meaning 'to reach (out), stretch or extend'. Its function is to provide an independent inspection and advice service on quality and stand ...

inspection report of the local primary school, ''Ysgol Gynradd Llangadog'', 42% of statutory school ages pupils came from Welsh-speaking households.

References

External links

Llangadog, Capel Gwynfe and Bethlehem community websitewww.geograph.co.uk : photos of Llangadog and surrounding area
Communities in Carmarthenshire Villages in Carmarthenshire {{Carmarthenshire-geo-stub