Aberystwyth in the context of Aberaeron

Aberystwyth University (Welsh: Prifysgol Aberystwyth) is a public research university in Aberystwyth, Wales. Aberystwyth was a founding member institution of the former federal University of Wales. The university has over 8,000 students studying across three academic faculties and 17 departments.

Founded in 1872 as University College Wales, Aberystwyth, it became a founder member of the University of Wales in 1894, and changed its name to the University College of Wales, Aberystwyth. In the mid-1990s, the university again changed its name to become the University of Wales, Aberystwyth. On 1 September 2007, the University of Wales ceased to be a federal university and Aberystwyth University became independent again. The annual income of the institution for 2022–2023 was £130.8 million of which £22.2 million was from research grants and contracts, with an expenditure of £127.8 million.

The Vaux Passional (Peniarth 482D) is an illuminated manuscript from the late fifteenth to early sixteenth century. With thirty-four large miniatures in the style of the Flemish School, it is one of the most elaborately decorated manuscripts in the collection of the National Library of Wales in Aberystwyth. It retains an original binding of wooden boards covered in velvet from the early sixteenth century. The volume contains the book plate of Watkin Williams of Penbedw.

Llandudno (/lænˈdɪdnoʊ/, Welsh: [ɬanˈdɨdnɔ] ) is a seaside resort, town and community in Conwy County Borough, Wales, located on the Creuddyn peninsula, which protrudes into the Irish Sea. In the 2021 UK census, the community – which includes Gogarth, Penrhyn Bay, Craigside, Glanwydden, Penrhynside, and Bryn Pydew – had a population of 19,700 (rounded to the nearest 100). The town's name means "Church of Saint Tudno".

Llandudno is a major seaside resort in Wales, and as early as 1861 was being called 'the Queen of the Welsh Watering Places' (a phrase later also used in connection with Tenby and Aberystwyth; the word 'resort' came a little later). Historically a part of Caernarfonshire, Llandudno was formerly in the district of Aberconwy within Gwynedd until 1996.

Ceredigion (Welsh: [kɛrɛˈdɪɡjɔn] ), historically Cardiganshire (/ˈkɑːrdɪɡənˌʃɪər, -ʃər/, Welsh: Sir Aberteifi), is a county in the west of Wales. It borders Gwynedd across the Dyfi estuary to the north, Powys to the east, Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire to the south, and the Irish Sea to the west. Aberystwyth is the largest settlement and, together with Aberaeron, is an administrative centre of Ceredigion County Council.

The county is the second most sparsely populated in Wales, with an area of 688 square miles (1,780 km) and a population of 71,500; the latter is a decline of 4,492 since the 2011 census. After Aberystwyth (15,935), the largest towns are Cardigan (4,184) and Lampeter (2,970). Ceredigion is considered a centre of Welsh culture, and as of the 2021 census, 45.3% of the population could speak the Welsh language.

Rhayader (/ˈreɪ.ədər/; Welsh: Rhaeadr Gwy; pronounced [ˈr̥əɪadar ˈɡʊi̯]) is a market town and community in Powys, Wales, within the historic county of Radnorshire. The town is 20 miles (32 km) from the source of the River Wye on Plynlimon, the highest point of the Cambrian Mountains, and is located at the junction of the A470 road and the A44 road 13 miles (21 km) north of Builth Wells and 30 miles (48 km) east of Aberystwyth.

The population was 2,088, with 55% of the community having some form of Welsh identity, according to the 2011 census. The community is the largest in Wales by area, with 137.31 km (53.02 sq mi). It includes the Elan Valley.

The National Library of Wales (Welsh: Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru, pronounced [ˈɬəvrɡɛɬ ɡɛnɛdˈleɨθɔl ˈkəmrɨ]) in Aberystwyth is the national legal deposit library of Wales and is one of the Welsh Government sponsored bodies. It is the biggest library in Wales, holding over 6.5 million books and periodicals, and the largest collections of archives, portraits, maps, and photographic images in Wales. The Library is also home to the national collection of Welsh manuscripts, the National Screen and Sound Archive of Wales, and the most comprehensive collection of paintings and topographical prints in Wales. As the primary research library and archive in Wales and one of the largest research libraries in the United Kingdom, the National Library is a member of Research Libraries UK (RLUK) and the Consortium of European Research Libraries (CERL).

At the very core of the National Library of Wales is the mission to collect and preserve materials related to Wales and Welsh life and those which can be utilised by the people of Wales for study and research. Welsh is the Library's main medium of communication, but it does aim to deliver all public services in Welsh and English.

The Peniarth Manuscripts, also known as the Hengwrt–Peniarth Manuscripts, are a collection of medieval Welsh manuscripts now held by the National Library of Wales in Aberystwyth. The collection was originally assembled by Robert Vaughan (c. 1592–1667) of Hengwrt, Merionethshire. During the 19th century it was held in Peniarth Mansion, Llanegryn.

In 1859 William Watkin Edward Wynne inherited the collection. In 1898 it was sold to Sir John Williams, who had himself acquired a large private library. Subsequently a plan to establish a National Library of Wales emerged. When it did so, Williams promised that he would donate the collection to the library on condition that it would be based in Aberystwyth. This condition was met, and Sir John duly donated the collection to the National Library.

Cardigan (Welsh: Aberteifi, pronounced [abɛrˈtei̯vi] ) is a town and community in the county of Ceredigion, Wales. Positioned on the tidal reach of the River Teifi at the point where Ceredigion meets Pembrokeshire, Cardigan was the county town of the historic county of Cardiganshire. Cardigan is the second-largest town in Ceredigion. The largest town, Aberystwyth, is one of the two administrative centres; the other is Aberaeron. The town is bypassed by the A487 road along the coast, whose junction with the A478 road to Tenby lies to the south of the town.

The settlement at Cardigan was developed around the Norman castle built in the late 11th or early 12th century. The castle was the location of the 1176 Cardigan eisteddfod, precursor of the present-day National Eisteddfod. The town became an important port in the 18th century, but had declined by the early 20th century owing to reduced navigability of the river, and transfer of trade elsewhere. The castle underwent restoration in 2014.