Talk:River Adda (Wales)

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Name[edit]

The name of this waterway is disputed. The native Welsh name is Afon Adda, but English Wikipedia guidelines call for the use of the common English name, which is River Adda. The question then becomes, is "River Adda" commonly used enough to be considered a "common English name" for this waterway. The sources I've found are as follows:

Afon Ador Bangor Refurbishment: Archaeological Assessment: This report, prepared by a local archaeologist and commissioned by the local Environmental Agency, uses the term Afon Adda in the title, but then refers to the waterway interchangeably as Afon Adda or River Adda throughout.
Looking back at Bangor's Hirael, an article from the BBC that refers to it exclusively as River Adda
History of Bangor at TheosophyWales.org, which refers to the waterway as River Adda
Bangor Around and Through Time, a history of Bangor that refers to the waterway as River Adda* You are here sign which, despite providing bilingual place names for many landmarks, gives only Afon Adda for the waterway
£8.3m anti-flood scheme revealed, a BBC article that refers to the waterway exclusively as the Afon Adda
Major flood scheme completed in Bangor, a report from waterbriefing.org, written in English but referring to the waterway as Afon Adda throughout
Bangor Township, Site of, Bangor, a report from the Gwynedd Archaeological Trust that refers to the waterway exclusively as Afon Adda

More examples can be found, but it appears that sources are fairly well split on the topic. It appears to be the fashion in the British press to respect the native Welsh language and to use native Welsh place names when possible. But it is the policy at Wikipedia to use the common English name where one exists. I would argue that the existence of multiple sources that reference River Adda would indicate that a common English name does exist, and that we should use it.

I invite @Epa Cymraeg: to weigh in on this discussion, as well as any other users. Please remember to limit your comments to Wikipedia policy, and not personal preference. WikiDan61^ChatMe!_ReadMe!! 15:00, 11 December 2017 (UTC)[reply]