Welsh place name history questions

We received your request on 2 August 2024.

We have handled your request under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 2000.

A copy of your request is set out in the extract below:

“Your Welsh Language Policy asserts that: "Our names archive has been built up over a long period of time using manually collected visual and authoritative evidence."

Please provide information demonstrating the "manually collected visual and authoritative evidence" in respect of the following names at the specified locations, together with the date(s) of assignation and what information sources in fact these were.

I have provided as accurate a grid reference as reasonably possible as to the location of the sites in question and you should undertake a view that is not so restrictive as to be limited to that specific reference alone and thus improperly frustrate the enquiry; the features are all expected to be and can be demonstrated to be within a short distance of the grid reference provided.

1. 'Ladder Buttress' and 'South Buttress', Moel Hebog (Gwynedd), at or near SH 56478 46907 and appearing on the specific product of the current edition OS mobile app and presumably others.
2. 'Far South Peak', at or near SH 66341 59126 (Tryfan, Gwynedd), also appearing on the same OS-issue product.
3. I understand on good authority that the names 'North Top' and 'South Top' appeared on OS mapping of the summit area of Cnicht (Gwynedd), at or near SH 64517 46602, but were removed by OS following representations from a member of the public with the last few years.

 Please provide information demonstrating

•  the full narrative (i.e. the full evidence) of how these names were assigned onto your mapping,
• what class-type of body advanced the names and when they were submitted to OS and
• how many representations were received in respect of these two specific locations before OS yielded to their removal?
• what process was followed and which authorities did OS rely upon in agreeing that removal was justified or otherwise proper? Where any person, organisation or other legal entity suggested or otherwise put forward the names in question and where they can reasonably expect not to be identified, you should indicate the broad class-type ('member of public', 'company', 'business', 'organisation', etc) that did so, without explicit identification."

I confirm that Ordnance Survey does hold some information in relation to the information that you have requested. Where the information is not held this is stated. Taking each request in turn, I confirm the following:

Please provide information demonstrating the "manually collected visual and authoritative evidence" in respect of the following names at the specified locations, together with the date(s) of assignation and what information sources in fact these were.

1. 'Ladder Buttress' and 'South Buttress', Moel Hebog (Gwynedd), at or near SH 56478 46907 and appearing on the specific product of the current edition OS mobile app and presumably others.

I confirm the names ‘Ladder Buttress’ and ‘South Buttress’ first appeared on OS mapping at some point between 1963 and 1995, however, we do not hold information to confirm the exact date.

I confirm that Ordnance Survey does not hold any other information that you have requested.

2. 'Far South Peak', at or near SH 66341 59126 (Tryfan, Gwynedd), also appearing on the same OS-issue product.

I confirm the name ‘South Peak’ first appeared on OS mapping at some point between 1963 and 1995, however, we do not hold information to confirm the exact date.

I confirm that Ordnance Survey does not hold any other information that you have requested.

3. I understand on good authority that the names 'North Top' and 'South Top' appeared on OS mapping of the summit area of Cnicht (Gwynedd), at or near SH 64517 46602, but were removed by OS following representations from a member of the public with the last few years

Please provide information demonstrating

• the full narrative (i.e. the full evidence) of how these names were assigned onto your mapping, 

• what class-type of body advanced the names and when they were submitted to OS and

• how many representations were received in respect of these two specific locations before OS yielded to their removal?

• what process was followed and which authorities did OS rely upon in agreeing that removal was justified or otherwise proper? Where any person, organisation or other legal entity suggested or otherwise put forward the names in question and where they can reasonably expect not to be identified, you should indicate the broad class-type ('member of public', 'company', 'business', 'organisation', etc) that did so, without explicit identification.”

We can confirm that Cnicht North Top (not just North Top) is shown in the OS Maps App on the Standard and Aerial Map layers. The OS Maps App contains some data from external sources and the source of this particular data is Mapbox Streets. This data is not imported into any other OS mapping / data products. We do not hold information to confirm when Cnicht North Top was included in OS Maps App however, Mapbox Streets data has been included in OS Maps App for at least the last 3 years. We do not hold any record of being asked to remove any data connected with Cnicht from Mapbox Streets. 

We can find no evidence of either ‘North Top’ and ‘South Top’ in relation to Cnicht having ever appeared in any other OS mapping / data products (other than as detailed above in OS Maps App) or any evidence these names were removed in the last few years.

I confirm therefore that we do not hold any further information on:

• the full narrative (i.e. the full evidence) of how these names were assigned onto your mapping,
• what process was followed and which authorities did OS rely upon in agreeing that removal was justified or otherwise proper? Where any person, organisation or other legal entity suggested or otherwise put forward the names in question and where they can reasonably expect not to be identified, you should indicate the broad class-type ('member of public', 'company', 'business', 'organisation', etc) that did so, without explicit identification."