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For local government purposes, Wales is divided into 22 unitary authorities. There are 9 counties, 3 cities, and 10 county boroughs, although all have equal
status. Collectively these are known as the principal areas of
Wales. They came into being on April 1, 1996.
See: List of
Welsh principal areas by population, List of Welsh principal areas by area, List of Welsh principal areas by percentage Welsh language
Map
Name changes
The current names of the counties and county boroughs are in some cases different from those specified in the Act. The following changes took place, all with effect from April 2, 1996.
History
1888
From 1889 to 1974, the administrative counties of Wales were used for local government. These were based on the traditional counties of Wales, but not entirely
identical.
There were also a number of independent county boroughs
1974
In 1974, eight new two-tier counties were created. These were all (apart from the Glamorgans) given names in Welsh.
The division into districts of these was as follows
- Clwyd - Alyn and
Deeside, Colwyn, Delyn, Glyndwr, Rhuddlan, Wrexham
- Dyfed - Carmarthen, Ceredigion, Dinefwr, Llanelli, Preseli, South Pembroke
- Gwent - Blaenau Gwent,
Islwyn, Monmouth, Newport, Torfaen
- Gwynedd - Aberconwy, Arfon, Dwyfor, Meirionnydd, Anglesey
- Mid Glamorgan - Cynon Valley, Ogwr, Merthyr Tydfil, Rhondda, Rhymney Valley, Taff-Ely
- Powys, Brecon, Montgomery, Radnor
- South Glamorgan - Cardiff, Vale of Glamorgan
- West Glamorgan - Lliw Valley, Neath, Port Talbot, Swansea
When these counties were abolished in 1996, they were retained with slight amendations
for some purposes such as Lieutenancy, and became known as the
preserved counties of Wales. These were
further amended in 2003 to ensure that each unitary area is wholly within one preserved
county.
1996
The redistribution of these districts into the current unitary authorities is as follows:
| Unitary authorities |
Previous districts |
| Anglesey |
Anglesey |
| Blaenau Gwent |
most of Blaenau Gwent |
| Bridgend |
most of Ogwr |
| Caerphilly |
Islwyn, Rhymney Valley |
| Carmarthenshire |
Carmarthen, Llanelli, Dinefwr |
| Cardiff |
Cardiff, part of Taff-Ely |
| Ceredigion |
Ceredigion |
| Conwy |
Aberconwy, most of Colwyn |
| Denbighshire |
Rhuddlan, parts of Glyndwyr and Colwyn |
| Flintshire |
Alyn and Deeside, Delyn |
| Gwynedd |
Arfon, Dwyfor, Meirionnydd |
| Merthyr Tydfil |
Merthyr Tydfil |
| Monmouthshire |
Monmouth, part of Blaenau Gwent |
| Neath Port Talbot |
Neath, Port Talbot, parts of Lliw Valley |
| Newport |
Newport |
| Pembrokeshire |
Preseli, South Pembrokeshire |
| Powys |
Montgomeryshire, Radnorshire, Brecknock, part of Glyndwyr |
| Rhondda Cynon Taf |
Rhondda, Cynon Valley, most of Taff-Ely |
| Swansea |
Swansea, parts of Lliw Valley |
| Torfaen |
Torfaen |
| Vale of Glamorgan |
most of Vale of Glamorgan |
| Wrexham |
most of Wrexham, parts of Glyndwyr |
See also: Subdivisions of the
United Kingdom, Counties of Wales
References
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