Ponthir () 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 ...

at the south-west of the county borough of

Torfaen Torfaen (; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county borough in the South East Wales, south-east of Wales. Torfaen is bordered by the county of Monmouthshire to the east, the City status in the United Kingdom, city of Newport, Wales, Newport to t ...

on the boundary of the counties of

Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South East Wales, south east of Wales. It borders Powys to the north; the English counties of Herefordshire and Gloucestershire to the north and east; the Severn Estuary to the s ...

and Newport. It is approximately six miles from Newport city centre and 3½ miles from

Cwmbran Cwmbran ( ; , also in use as an alternative spelling in English) is a town in the county borough of Torfaen in South Wales. Lying within the Historic counties of Wales, historic boundaries of Monmouthshire (historic), Monmouthshire, Cwmbran was ...

, lying between the settlements of

Caerleon Caerleon ( ; ) is a town and Community (Wales), community in Newport, Wales. Situated on the River Usk, it lies northeast of Newport city centre, and southeast of Cwmbran. Caerleon is of archaeological importance, being the site of a notable ...

and Llanfrechfa.

Etymology

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 ...

placename Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of '' toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage, and types. ''Toponym'' is the general term for a proper nam ...

indicates the correct pronunciation; i.e. saying the 't' and 'h' separately. The name first appeared in print as ''Pontheere'' in 1605 and again as ''Pont hir'' in 1677. The name means 'long (''hir'') bridge (''pont'')' and refers to a previous bridge over the

Afon Lwyd The Afon Lwyd or Afon Llwyd () is a long river in south-east Wales which flows from its source northwest of Blaenavon, through Abersychan, Pontnewynydd, Pontypool, Llanfrechfa and Cwmbran before flowing, at Caerleon, into the River Usk, which ...

, the present one having been built in 1800.

History and amenities

Ponthir is primarily a residential area, with several new housing estates around the older village. It has a

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

, (Ponthir

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 ...

Primary School) which was for some time under threat of closure but was reprieved, and it now has the best SATs results in Torfaen. It also changed its category to a

Voluntary aided school A voluntary aided school (VA school) is a state-funded school in England and Wales in which a foundation or trust (usually a religious organisation) contributes to building costs and has a substantial influence in the running of the school. In m ...

( church) school. Ponthir has many amenities such as two nurseries, two children's playgrounds, two churches, a

village hall A village hall is a public building in a rural or suburban community which functions as a community centre without a religious affiliation. United Kingdom In the United Kingdom, a village hall is a building which is owned by a local gover ...

, a

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

club, a

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

club (Ponthir AFC), 2

pub A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the late 17th century, to differentiate private ho ...

s - The Ponthir House and The Star, a fish and chip shop, a doctor and a dentist. There used to be a

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 ...

but it closed in 1962. The

railway 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 ...

is still in use. It is surrounded by the rolling

hill A hill is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain. It often has a distinct summit, and is usually applied to peaks which are above elevation compared to the relative landmass, though not as prominent as Mountain, mountains. Hills ...

s of

, many farms, and a few rivers, streams and brooks that surround or run through the village, such as; The

Afon Llwyd The Afon Lwyd or Afon Llwyd () is a long river in south-east Wales which flows from its source northwest of Blaenavon, through Abersychan, Pontnewynydd, Pontypool, Llanfrechfa and Cwmbran before flowing, at Caerleon, into the River Usk, which ...

(meaning "grey river") as well as The

Sôr Brook The Sôr Brook is a right bank tributary of the River Usk running largely in Monmouthshire in south Wales, though the watercourse forms the boundary with neighbouring Torfaen in places. Its uppermost reaches were inundated by the construction o ...

, Cwm-ffrwd Brook and Candwr Brook A

Welsh Water 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 ...

sewage and water treatment plant for the surrounding area is located here, and this was where bacteria were first used to treat sewage sludge using an electrically powered aerator to circulate the sludge and ensure good microbial digestion. This process saved the local authority money as well as reducing noxious odours.

Notable people

Notable people who were born, resided or were schooled in Ponthir, include the following: *

James Ball (cyclist) James Ball (born 24 June 1991) is a Welsh Paralympic cyclist who competes in tandem races as an athlete with a visual impairment. A multiple world champion across the tandem sprint events, Ball's latest title came in 2021, further cementing his ...

, Great Britain Para-cyclist *

James Botham James Ian Botham (born 22 February 1998) is a Welsh professional rugby union player who plays as a flanker for United Rugby Championship club Cardiff and the Wales national team. Early life The grandson of all-round cricketer Ian Botham, Ja ...

, Welsh international rugby union player, who currently plays for the

Cardiff Rugby Cardiff Rugby () are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams. Based in Cardiff, the team play at Cardiff Arms Park. Originally formed in 1876, from 2003 to 2021 the first team was known as the Cardiff Blues before rebranding back ...

. Grandson of England cricketer

Sir Ian Botham Ian Terence Botham, Baron Botham (born 24 November 1955) is an English cricket commentator, member of the House of Lords, a former cricketer who has been chairman of Durham County Cricket Club since 2017 and charity fundraiser. Hailed as one of ...

, and son of former

Cardiff RFC Cardiff Rugby Football Club () is a rugby union club based in Cardiff, the capital city of Wales. The club was founded in 1876Parry-Jones (1989), pg 59 and played their first few matches at Sophia Gardens, shortly after which relocating to Ca ...

player

Liam Botham Liam James Botham (born 26 August 1977) is an English former professional sportsman who played both codes of rugby football and cricket. He is the son of former England cricketer Ian Botham. Career Cricket Botham was born in Doncaster and initi ...

, Professional sportsman in Rugby Union, Rugby League and Cricket. Son of England cricket legend

* Natasha Cockram, Great Britain Marathon runner and 2020 British Marathon Champion. Selected to compete for Great Britain at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest. * Maggot (rapper), (real name Andrew Major) is a Welsh

rapper Rapping (also rhyming, flowing, spitting, emceeing, or MCing) is an artistic form of vocal delivery and emotive expression that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and ommonlystreet vernacular". It is usually performed over a backing ...

, formerly of the

Goldie Lookin Chain Goldie Lookin Chain are a Welsh comedy hip hop group from Newport, Wales, Newport, Wales. The group produces humorous, and often explicit songs that satirise hip hop music, hip hop, today's consumer society, the "chav" culture and life in Newpo ...

. *

Percy Montgomery Percival Colin Montgomery (born 15 March 1974) is a Namibian-born South African former professional rugby union player. When he ended his international career in August 2008, he held the all-time records for both cap (sport), caps and points fo ...

, Former South African international rugby union player * Callum Taylor (Welsh cricketer), Former professional cricketer with Glamorgan

References

{{authority control Communities in Torfaen Villages in Torfaen