In October 2022, Snowdonia National Park officially changed its English name to Eryri National Park — formalising the use of the Welsh name that had been in everyday use among Welsh speakers for centuries. The name change was more than a rebranding exercise. It was an acknowledgement that the landscape has a name, in the language of the people who have lived in it longest, that deserves to be the primary designation.
The Name
The most common translation of Eryri is "place of eagles" — from the Welsh word eryr, meaning eagle. This connects the name to the white-tailed eagles that once nested on the crags of the national park and are now, tentatively, returning. Some scholars argue for an alternative derivation from eryr in the sense of "highlands," but the eagle connection informs the park's current identity.
The name Snowdonia derives from Snowdon — the English name for Yr Wyddfa — which comes from the Old English snaewdun, "snow hill." The transition from Snowdonia to Eryri as the primary English-language name represents a recognition that a Welsh name rooted in the specific ecology of the landscape is more appropriate than an English description derived from a single mountain.
Key Facts
| Established | 1951 (second national park in the UK, after the Peak District) |
| Area | 823 square miles (2,130 km²) |
| Resident population | approximately 26,000 |
| Annual visitors | approximately 4 million |
| Highest point | Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon), 1,085m |
| UNESCO designation | Biosphere Reserve (2024) |
| Welsh-speaking residents | approximately 62% |
| Park authority | Awdurdod Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri |
What the Park Includes
The national park boundary takes in the mountain core of northwest Wales — the Snowdon massif, the Glyderau, the Carneddau — as well as the lowland areas of the Conwy valley, the Mawddach Estuary, the Rhinogydd range, and the coastal strip from Aberdyfi in the south to Conwy Bay in the north. It does not include Anglesey, the Llŷn Peninsula (an AONB), or the town of Blaenau Ffestiniog (specifically excluded from the park boundary in 1951 because of its industrial character — a decision that has been debated ever since).
Who Lives Here
Around 26,000 people make their lives within the park boundary. The majority speak Welsh as their everyday language. The park authority has explicit duties to protect and promote the Welsh language and culture alongside the natural environment — an unusual mandate for a national park in the UK. The tension between the needs of residents (affordable housing, economic opportunity) and the interests of 4 million annual visitors is a persistent theme in park politics. Second-home ownership and short-term holiday lets have driven up house prices, hollowing out some Welsh-speaking communities.
UNESCO Biosphere Reserve
In 2024, Eryri was designated a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve — recognising the park's significance as a place where human communities and natural systems are interdependent in ways that are scientifically and culturally valuable. The designation covers the landscape and the cultural practices that have shaped it, including the Welsh language, traditional farming, and the slate industry heritage.
Independently written — Snowdon.com