Wales


Wales, as well as England and Scotland, is a part of the Island Great Britain. Located on the westen coast it borders the Irish Sea. This part of the country speaks its own language Welsh as well as English, both are official languages. In other words, although it is part of the United Kingdom, it also has some independency. It is a generally mountainous part of the island, although only five hills are over 1,000 m asl. The landscape is a result of the geology and the last Ice Age, the Devensian glaciation.

The rocks of Wales are quite old, they are from the Palaeozoic era, the Cambrian. Actually Wales is the type locale, the era was named after the Cambrian Mountains, as well as the Ordovician and Silurian, which were named after ancient Celtic tribes from this area. In other words, the rocks are quite old, typically crystalline or metamorphic, and folded by ancient orogenies. As a result there are various mines and slate quarries. But there are also younger rocks on top, which includes karstified limestone areas and even coal seams.


Index Counties England Scotland Wales Maps Geology Map Limestone Map