| Canolfan Uwchefrydiau Cymreig a Cheltaidd Prifysgol Cymru (Welsh) | |
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| Type | Research institute |
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| Headquarters | Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, Wales |
| Coordinates | 52°24′55″N4°04′08″W / 52.41517°N 4.06885°W /52.41517; -4.06885 |
Director | Elin Haf Gruffydd Jones[1] |
Parent organization | University of Wales Trinity Saint David (formerlyUniversity of Wales) |
| Website | Wales.ac.uk |
TheCentre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies (CAWCS;Welsh:Canolfan Uwchefrydiau Cymreig a Cheltaidd) is aresearch institute located inAberystwyth, Wales. The centre was established by theUniversity of Wales in 1985, and works under theUniversity of Wales Trinity Saint David.
The centre holds responsibility on managing theUniversity of Wales Dictionary, one of the main dictionaries of theWelsh language. It also manages theDictionary of Welsh Biography with theNational Library of Wales, as well as various projects, such as those relating to thepoets ormanuscripts of Wales, and collaborating with institutions in otherCeltic nations.
The centre was established in 1985 by theUniversity of Wales, and focuses on the studies of languages, literatures, theculture andhistory of Wales, and of the otherCeltic nations. It has been based inAberystwyth, next to theNational Library of Wales since 1993.[2][3][4] The centre's first director wasR. Geraint Gruffydd, and it has 30 staff as of 2023.[4]
The University of Wales and theHigher Education Funding Council for Wales are the main sources of funding for the centre. Although additional project funding has been provided byUK Research Councils and charities, theBritish Academy, as well as public and private donors. The centre received funding from theArts and Humanities Research Council by 2023.[4]
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 poetGuto'r Glyn. The grant was believed to be the largest of its kind awarded to a university in Wales, at the time.[5]
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.[6]
In June 2011, the centre and theWelsh School of Architectural Glass atSwansea Metropolitan University launched on online catalogue of 5,000 images of stained glass windows in Wales.[7] 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.[8][9]
In October 2011, the centre, withCymdeithas Edward Llwyd, assisted in the establishment of theWelsh Place-Name Society.[10]
In 2012, the centre, with Aberystwyth University and theMet Office's International Atmospheric Circulation Reconstructions over the Earth (ACRE), collected experiences of unusual weather events in Wales as part of "Snows of Yesteryear".[11]
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.[12] Later in the same month, the centre was awarded £689,167 to investigate the "archaeological background of the emergence of the Celtic languages inwestern Europe", in collaboration withBangor University,Oxford University,King's College London, and the National Library of Wales.[13][14][15]
In October 2013, the centre, alongside the universities ofAberdeen, Bangor,Cambridge,Edinburgh,Glasgow, Oxford,Swansea,Queen's University Belfast,Ulster, theUniversity of the Highlands and Islands, and theUniversity of Wales, Trinity Saint David, 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 theCeltic languages, over the course of five years.[16]
In 2020, the centre announced it would be integrated with the Institute of Education and Humanities at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David.[17]
In June 2022, the centre andthe National Library publishedA Repertory of Welsh Manuscripts and Scribes, c.800–c.1800, described as the "most thorough and scholarly study ofWelsh manuscripts".[18][19] The publication was launched byFirst Minister of Wales,Mark Drakeford.[20]
In December 2022, the centre announced a partnership with Brest-basedCentre de Recherche Bretonne et Celtique on researching the historical links between Wales andBrittany.[21]
One of the main projects of the centre is maintaining theUniversity of Wales Dictionary,[4] which is acknowledged as the authority onWelsh spelling,meaning andderivation, comparable to theOxford English Dictionary.[22] The centre adds and updates the dictionary's entries.[23] The centre also shares responsibility for theDictionary of Welsh Biography with the National Library of Wales.[20][24][25] The centre also conducts work on thePoets of the Princes andPoets of the Nobility.[17]
Some notable past projects of the centre include the following:
