On a bright spring day, the Welsh market town of Brecon bustled with life. Visitors browsed the shops, admired the cathedral or grabbed supplies before heading for the hills; farmers stocked up with supplies; residents got on with chores.
But one topic of conversation dominated: the whys and wherefores of a controversial rebranding exercise for the mountainous park in which the town sits.
The decision by the national park to drop the English name – the Brecon Beacons – in favour of the Welsh one – Bannau Brycheiniog – and ditch its burning brazier emblem is causing a huge debate, not just in rural Wales, but in the corridors of power in Cardiff and Westminster, where Tories have attacked it and No 10 even got stuck in, suggesting the park leaders should be focusing on taking “tangible action” rather than rebranding.
“I personally think the Welsh name is lovely,” said Sue Phair, a co-owner of the Ty Cariad (House of Love) home store in Brecon. “It’s the original name and the better one.”
Phair, a Welsh learner, had been chatting with her classmates about the change. “There were nine of us and we were unanimous. That’s its proper name and should be used. One of the ladies pointed out that when you go to the Alps, you don’t look for the White Mountain. You look for Mont Blanc. I don’t get why there’s such a fuss,” she said.
Park officials say the name change is partly to show a commitment to the Welsh language, while the old fiery logo did not fit with its determination to tackle the climate and biodiversity emergencies. The new logo is more muted and features nods to starry skies, hills and watercourses.
Punch Maughan, the owner of the Found Gallery, said she had been surprised at the scale of the reaction. “But at least it’s got people commenting, thinking about Wales,” she added.
Bannau is the plural of “ban”, which means peak in Welsh, while Brycheiniog refers to the kingdom of the fifth-century king Brychan, so the name translates into English as the peaks of Brychan’s kingdom.
At the cathedral, the volunteer guide Wynn Davies pointed out a stained-glass window depicting Brychan. “I’m a Welsh speaker and have always known the park as Bannau Brycheiniog,” he said. “I’d much rather the Welsh name was used. After all, we are in Wales.”
The topic was being discussed – heatedly – in the backroom of Morgans Family Butchers. “It’s disgusting,” said Steve Morgans, a butcher and town councillor. “My parents, grandparents, great-grandparents all knew it as the Brecon Beacons and the brazier is synonymous with the park. For me, it’s a symbol of love and passion for Wales. Nobody has consulted us about this. Shocking.”
A few miles south, at the national park centre, the Brecon Beacons name is still everywhere – on signs, on fridge magnets in the gift shop, even on play equipment. It will be some time before the English name vanishes from its sites.
Staff have been taken aback at the vitriol in emails and phone calls, with some people claiming the name change is anti-English and climate science deniers complaining about the scrapping of the brazier symbol.
“There’s no climate crisis, but there is a woke agenda crisis,” was one of the more repeatable messages. “You are bed-wetting virtue seekers,” wrote another.
Staff are dismayed that the aims of its management plan, including reaching net zero greenhouse gas emissions across the park by 2035, have been missed in the row.
Countryside Alliance Wales was among naysayers jumping in on Tuesday, claiming that the park wanted to restrict sheep grazing in favour of windfarming – though within the plan, an artist’s impression of the park in 2048 shows sheep and cattle, as well as a small wind turbine.
Liz Hutchins, a senior policy adviser for the park, stressed that sheep had a future there and said there seemed to be a lot of fear about the changes. “Change is difficult,” she said. “I don’t think voices that say we need to continue with how things have been run over the last 30 or 40 years are helping farmers, residents and people who live in the national park. I don’t think the status quo is an option.”
On the language issue, Aled Edwards, the chair of the park authority, said: “How you approach the Welsh language is a fair weathervane of how you approach difference. It’s not about the language, it’s about the people who speak it and take delight in it.”
He said the management plan had substance and ambition. “It’s about living a life that is prosperous and good but doesn’t burn everything around it.”
Tourists at the centre were relaxed about the name change. Caroline and Katie Sadler, sisters visiting from the east of England, admitted that they might struggle to use it. “But we’ll try,” said Katie. “You attempt to speak French or Spanish when you go there. Why not Welsh here?”
