Pencoed | |
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Pencoed shown within Bridgend
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Population | 9,166 |
OS grid reference | SS957815 |
Principal area | |
Ceremonial county | |
Country | Wales |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | BRIDGEND |
Postcode district | CF35 |
Dialling code | 01656 |
Police | South Wales |
Fire | South Wales |
Ambulance | Welsh |
EU Parliament | Wales |
UK Parliament | |
Pencoed is a heavily urbanised community and town in the county borough of Bridgend, Wales. It straddles the M4 motorway north east of Bridgend and is situated on the Ewenny River. As of the 2011 census it had a population of around 9,170.
The earliest evidence of habitation in the area is the nearby Ogof y Pebyll ("Tents Cave") or Ogof Coed-y-Mwstwr ("Hubbub Wood Cave")),(51°30′57″N 3°30′47″W / 51.5159°N 3.5131°W, Grid Ref: SS951807) which is a scheduled monument and appears to have been inhabited during Neolithic or Bronze Age periods. Worked flint flakes have been found, along with the teeth of numerous mammals of many different species.
According to Morgan Thomas, writing in 1887, the name Pencoed in its simplest terms means head (pen) of the woods (coed); top of the woods.
The correct pronunciation of the name Pencoed is a cause of some argument within the town. The English approximation of the standard Welsh pronunciation of the name is /ˈpɛnkɔɪd/ PEN-koyd, though many locals pronounce it /ˈpɛnkɔːd/ PEN-kawd or /ˈpɛnkoʊd/ PEN-kohd, reflecting the usual pronunciation of the digraph oe in the southern dialects of Welsh.