Place-Names in Wales.
Nodyn: Llyfr ag esboniadau nad oes yr un coel i roi arnynt – ond diddorol am ei fod yn dangos yr awydd i ddeall ystyr enwau lleoedd Cymru; mae rhai o’r sylwadau yn werthfawr hefyd o safbwynt hanesyddol. Dyma’r ail argraffiad; cyhoeddwyd y llyfr am y tro cyntaf chwarter canrif cyn hynny, yn 1887, pan oedd yr awdur yn 36/37 oed).
Yr awdur: Thomas Morgan (ffugenw: Afanwyson) (1850 – 1939). Gweinidog gyda’r Bedyddwyr fu Afanwyson, ac hefyd yn eisteddfodwr, llenor, bywgraffiadurwr a hanesydd. Daw’r enw o’r ffaith iddo gael ei eni yng Nghwmafan. Yn 1900, yn 49/50 oed, aeth i gymryd gofal ar eglwys Horeb yn Sgiwen, sydd yn esbonio ei steil yn awdur ar glawr yr ail argraffiad: Thomas Morgan (Skiwen).
Rhagor o fanylion am Afanwyson i’w weld yn y fan hon:
http://yba.llgc.org.uk/cy/c-MORG-THO-1850.html
Argraffiad 1912: Mae’r fersiwn o’r llyfr gwreiddiol ar ffurf lluniau i’w gweld yma: http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924028086621
Newidiadau: Fe’i gwnaethpwyd newidiadau bach i’r atalnodiad (gwallau’r wasg – coma yn lle atalnod, atalnod yn lle coma, ayyb. Hefyd, ceir y sylw [sic] ar ôl ambell gamgymeriad, a chywiriad ar ei ôl. Ni ddefnyddiwyd llythrennau eitalig yn y testun hwn fel yn y llyfr gwreiddiol. Ambell ffurf dalfyredig wedi ei hymestyn – er enghraifft, Thos. > Tho[ma]s.
(English) Note: The interpretations of many of the place-names are generally wildly inaccurate and indicate an attempt to explain them with insufficient knowledge of earlier forms.
The book is interesting as a historical document from over a century ago but the meanings given, even though the work of a native Welsh-speaker, should be regarded with scepticism. The two links above are to a biography of the author, and to the text of the book in image format.
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PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. i.
The Place-Names of Wales.
Tho[ma]s. Morgan (Skewen).
Second and Revised Edition. 1912.
“Happy Is He Who Knows The Origin Of Things.”
Newport, Mon[mouthshire].
John E. Southall, 149, Dock Street.
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. ii.
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. iii.
PREFACE TO THE REVISED AND SECOND EDITION.
The first edition of this work was published in 1887, and was sold out in a very short time. Orders were continually sent for copies, but none could be found in the market. Eventually, J. E, Southall, Newport, who has taken deep interest in Welsh literature, wrote to ask the author for permission to publish a second edition of it. Arrangements were made to revise the work carefully and to bring it up to date. The omission of Monmouthshire Place-Names is due to the following fact: The author won a £10: l0s. prize in the Newport National Eisteddfod, 1897, for “A Dictionary of Welsh Names of Places and Rivers in Monmouthshire,” and it is intended to publish a separate edition of this in due course. The author gratefully acknowledges the service rendered by S. J. Evans, Esq., M. A., Llangefni, in revising this work. His suggestions were useful and destined to enhance the value of the work.
In conclusion, the author repeats what he said in the first edition: “In writing upon a subject so full of intricacies and difficulties the author is far from satisfied with his etymological attempts in many instances.”
T. MORGAN. January, l0th, 1912.
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. CONTENTS. iv.
CONTENTS.
PAGE
Introduction … 1
Prefixes and Suffixes … 12
Wales and Sub-Divisions … 41
Anglesey … 45
Breconshire … 61
Cardiganshire … 80
Carmarthenshire … 98
Carnarvonshire … 118
Denbighshire … 136
Flintshire … 149
Glamorganshire … 161
Merioneth … 213
Montgomeryshire … 224
Pembrokeshire … 235
Radnorshire … 255
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. INTRODUCTION. 1.
INTRODUCTION.
It is surprising that a subject so deeply interesting, and so full of historical value, should not have induced some competent Welsh scholar to explore every possible field of research, and give the results of his etymological investigations to the public in a permanent form.
Welsh nomenclature has not had the attention it deserves. This interesting field has been sadly neglected. Very few have made it the ambition of their life to enter therein, and glean every possible information necessary to throw light upon our Welsh place-names. The renowned Lewis Morris was deeply engrossed in this branch of literature, and the publication of his Celtic Remains would, assuredly, be an invaluable boon to Welsh literati. Iago Emlyn’s Essay which gained the prize at Carmarthen Eisteddfod, September, 1867, is eminently calculated to be an admirable quota rendered by the Eisteddfod to the elucidation of this subject. Most of our Eisteddfodic productions are locked up in impenetrable secrecy, but this, fortunately, has seen the light of day.
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. INTRODUCTION. 2.
With the exception of the above-mentioned essay our national institution has done but very little to fill this gap in Welsh literature. Worthy attempts have been made by some Welsh topographists to clear up the etymology of a moiety of our place-names. Others have endeavoured to explain their origin and meaning, but owing to their imperfect acquaintance with the vernacular, many of their attempts have been futile and unsatisfactory: as Caermarthen, the county of Merlin, a Welsh enchanter; Denbigh, a dwelling in the vale; Pembroke, the hill over the brook; Douglas is given to mean black-water; Pontypridd, bridge of beauty; Tyr Escop, Bishop’s tower; Llanfawr, the church of four saints, &c., &c. We might quote a large number of similar misleading explanations of Welsh words and names that are found in English books written evidently by other than Welsh etymologists. The attempts made by Englishmen and others ignorant of the language of dear old Cambria to explain Celtic names are often failures and something more. Alt maen, high rock, in the Lake district has been transformed into the Old Man of Coniston; Bryn Huel or Hual, hill of shackles, is now spelt Brown Willy, a Cornish ridge, and Pensant has been designated Penzance.
Tourists’ Guides to Wales may be quite safe and trustworthy in their geographical information, but the majority of them are woefully misleading in their etymological peregrinations. Some of their derivations really deserve to be remitted to the cabinet of philological
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. INTRODUCTION. 3.
curiosities. Out of many hundred place-names in Wales very few of them are explained satisfactorily by gazetteers, and the most abstruse of them are left intact.
It is needless to say that Welsh philologists only can deal satisfactorily with purely Welsh names, and even they find it no easy task to investigate and ascertain the origin of many of them, especially those that have undergone so many processes of corruption and mutation. “Many Welsh appellations and local names,” writes one eminent Welsh historian, “have been so long corrupted that it would be affectation to attempt to reform them.” We may be allowed to give a few instances of names that have already been grossly mutilated: Llechwedd has been dislocated at Leckwith; Llys y Fro Nudd has been cruelly distorted into Lisworney; Caerau has been pulled down to Carew; Magwyr has been almost ruined in Magor; Cnwc-glas has been twisted into the form of Knucklas; Merthyr has been brutally martyred at Marthrey; Tafarn Yspytty (hospitium) has been long converted into Spite Tavern; Meinciau has been minced into Minke; Gwentllwg has been changed into Wentlooge; Myddfai has been muffled in Mothvey; Sarnau has been beaten down into Sarney, &c., &c.
Considering the rapid strides of English education in the Principality, we fear the time is not far distant when a moiety of our mutilated Welsh place-names will be nothing less than a series of enigmatical problems
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. INTRODUCTION. 4.
even to children of Welsh parentage. Many of them already seem to them as a meaningless and unpronounceable jumble of letters. This process of mutilation appears to be getting more prevalent. Our English friends not only do not exhibit any sign of bringing forth fruit worthy of repentance, but they seem to persist in the error of their way in dealing with Welsh names. Brynmawr, big hill, is pronounced with stentorian voice Brynmôr, which signifies the hill by the sea. A complete stranger to the place, yet conversant with the Welsh tongue, on hearing the latter pronunciation of the name, would naturally expect he was going to inhale the salubrious sea-air; whereas, after little enquiry, he would find himself in a tantalized mood distantly situated from the sea. A few miles distant, at Nantybwch, the buck’s brook, he might be pardoned if he concluded from the pitiful cries of the railway officials that there were none-to-book at that station. If he pursued his journey to Llwydcoed, grey wood, which is pronounced by the railway men Lycod, he would naturally conclude that the place must have been sometime noted for rats, because Llygod is the Welsh for rats.
In going through Loughor, provided his geographical knowledge were deficient, he would imagine himself to have reached Lloegr, which is the Welsh name for England. And a few miles lower down he would find himself at Llanelly, which is pronounced by certain parties Lan-healthy, where he would be induced to call his inhaling powers into full play, positively
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. INTRODUCTION. 5.
thinking he was landed in a place famous for its salubriousness. In North Wales he would discover the same aptitude in the art of mispronunciation. Amid the din of the “fiery horse” he might hear a name pronounced Aber-jeel, the suffix of which would remind him at once of the Hindostanee for a morass, or a shallow lake; but a few minutes’ talk with a villager would soon relieve him from the nightmare of this confusion of tongues by furnishing him with the right pronunciation, Aber-gele, an out-and-out Welsh name. At Dolgellau, which is pronounced Dol-jelly, he might almost imagine the name to imply a doll made of jelly; and at Llangollen, pronounced Lan-jolen, he would, both from a geographical and etymological point of view, indulge himself in little self-congratulation on being conveyed to a jolly place.
Now he has travelled far enough to be thoroughly convinced of the necessity of making an effort to save our local names from the relentless hands of the foreigner before they become so distorted as to be difficult of recognition even by Welsh etymologists.
Pure Welsh names should be left intact — those that have undergone any changes should, if possible, be restored to their primitive form, and English equivalents or names should be given to each and every one of them.
In pursuing the study of Welsh place-names, we were forcibly reminded of Home Tooke’s observation,
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. INTRODUCTION. 6.
as to “letters, like soldiers, being very apt to desert and drop off in a long march.” Contraction increases our difficulties in endeavouring to get at the full and correct import of words. If the American tendency — to pronounce words exactly as they are spelt and written — were a universal principle, the burdens of philologists would be considerably lessened. Such is not the case in Welsh nomenclature. Although every Welsh letter is supposed to have its own distinct sound, wherever placed, many of them have dropped off in long marches, and some indeed in exceedingly short marches, and it is with great difficulty we have induced some of them to return to their proper places in the etymological army — some, probably, never to return; hence the primary form of many a name cannot be obtained nor the true meaning ascertained.
Latinized and Anglicized forms of Welsh names considerably enhance our difficulties. Mon was transmuted to Mona, Aberconwy to Aberconovium, Gobannium to Abergavenny, Aberogwr to Ogmore, Nedd to Nidium, Coed-dy to Coyty, Talyfan to Talavan, Sili to Sully, Llys-y-Fro-Nudd to Lisworney, Llanyffydd to Lamphey, Llandeg to Lanteague, Gwynfa to Wenvoe, &c. Our names, like our fathers, were mercilessly treated by our foreign invaders.
Hybridism is another element that renders Welsh nomenclature exceedingly difficult and perplexing. Different nations visited our shores, and played sad havoc with our local names, especially those having gutterals in them. “We have names of such barbarous origin,”
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. INTRODUCTION. 7.
writes one, “compounded one-half of one language and the other of another, that it is impossible to fix a criterion how they ought to be spelt.” The Flemish colony in Pembrokeshire, in the reign of Henry I., and the Norman settlement in the south of Glamorgan, in the 11th century, are chiefly responsible for this etymological jumble. The Norman Conquest affected the English language more than anything that happened either before or after it, but very little of its effect is found in the Welsh, except in place-names. These hybrid names, albeit, are full of historical value, because they give us geographical clues to the inroads and settlements of these foreign invaders.
Alluding to the desirability of getting a correct definition of an effete nomenclature, one writer remarks, “It must be borne in mind that the nomenclature of our country greatly explains the early history of Britain from the time of the first colonists, the settlement of the Druids, and their subsequent power both in civil and religious matters, and its continuance down to the age of Suetonius, and later still, as the old superstition was not quite eradicated for many ages afterwards. Their mythology has left its marks on numerous places, even where their lithonic structures have been demolished.” After all it is, as Defoe ironically remarks in his “True-born Englishmen,”
With easy pains you may distinguish
Your Roman-Saxon-Danish-Norman-English.
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. INTRODUCTION. 8.
Personal names enter very largely into Welsh names of places. The first place-name we have on record was formed after this fashion, “And he (Cain) builded a city, and called the name of the city after the name of his son, Enoch.” Gen. iv., 17.
These personal names are invariably in the vernacular affixed to words, more or less, of a descriptive character, as Trelales; tre, the descriptive first, then comes the personal, Lales; Porthmadog, porth, the descriptive, then follows the name Madog. The majority of names beginning with Llan belong to this section. In Saxon and Norse names the reverse of this is the general rule. The descriptive part of the name comes last, preceded by a personal or common name, such as Tenby; Ten, a mutation of Dane, and by, the Norse for a dwelling, hence the dwelling-place of the Danes. Walton, Walter’s town; Williamston, William’s town; Gomfreston, Gomfre’s town; &c.
It was customary in olden times in Wales for men to take their names from the places where they were born or resided, as Pennant, Mostyn, &c., and oftentimes the case was reversed. Brecon was called after Brychan; Cardigan after Ceredig; Merioneth after Meirion; Edeyrnion after Edeyrn; Dogfeilir after Dogfael; Merthyr Tydfil after Tydfil, Brychan’s daughter, &c. The names of popular Welsh saints have been bestowed so liberally on the Llanau as to occasion no little confusion. A similar practise prevails in the United States from respect to their popular Presidents. The
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. INTRODUCTION. 9.
Rev. Isaac Taylor tells us that no less than 169 places bear the name of Washington, 86 that of Jefferson, 132 that of Jackson, 71 that of Munroe, and 62 that of Harrison. Hagiology has left a deep and wide impress upon our nomenclature. St. Mary’s name has been bestowed upon upwards of 150 churches and chapels in the Welsh sees, that of St. Michael upon about 100, and that of St. David upon 60 or 70.
A great number of our place-names describe graphically the physical features of the country. Mountains, hills, and mounds, rocks and cliffs, glens and combes, moors and woods, rivers and brooks, all contribute their quota to the treasury of our nomenclature.
Many of them are traced to local traditions, which rarely command more than a local circulation. In making enquiries at different localities we were more than amused to observe the prevalent tendency of the inhabitants to trace the origin of their local names to traditionary sources. The philologist is often superseded by the traditionist. Graphic and descriptive names are frequently explained from a traditional stand-point. Machynllaith — a name descriptive of the geographical position of the place — was very dogmatically referred by one to an ancient legend concerning some “mochyn-yn-y-llaeth,” the pig in the milk. Troedrhiwfuwch, explained another, means Troed-rhyw-fuwch, the foot of some cow, in allusion to a local tradition about a cow that had gone astray. Manorbier, the third
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. INTRODUCTION. 10.
opines, has reference to a severe conflict between a man and a bear in times gone by. Wrexham, says the fourth, is obviously a corruption of Gwraig Sam, Sam’s wife. Crymmych, the fifth avers, is a transposition of “Ych yn crymu,” the ox stooping, &c., &c. The reader may take these fanciful and untenable derivations for their worth, as evidences of the tenacity with which some people hold to their folk-lore.
The majority of our place-names, as might have been expected, have been derived from purely Celtic sources.
Bishop Percy says that “in England, although the names of the towns and villages are almost universally of Anglo-Saxon derivation, yet hills, forests, rivers, &c., have generally preserved their old Celtic names.” In illustrating the prevalence of Celtic names in Britain, the Rev. Isaac Taylor writes: “Throughout the whole island almost every river-name is Celtic, most of the shire-names contain Celtic roots, and a fair sprinkling of names of hills, valleys, and fortresses, bear witness that the Celt was the aboriginal possessor of the soil; while in the border counties of Salop, Hereford, Gloucester, Dorset, Somerset, and Devon, and in the mountain fastnesses of Derbyshire and Cumberland, not only are the names of the great natural features of the country derived from the Celtic speech, but we find occasional village-names, with the prefixes lan and tre, interspersed among the Saxon patronymics.”
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. INTRODUCTION. 11.
What is true of England is pre-eminently true of Wales, where the great bulk of place-names are distinctly Cymric, everywhere thrusting themselves upon our notice as standing proofs of the vitality of the language of our progenitors. Many are the false prophets that have sarcastically declared, from time to time, that the days of the Welsh language have been numbered. We might observe, en passant, that it contains more vitality than the Gaelic. The latter is only spoken in some parts of Scotland, but the Cymric is the domestic language of a large number of the Welsh people, wheresoever situated. It is calculated that nearly a million of the inhabitants of Wales and Monmouthshire use the vernacular in domestic conversation, in literary and newspaper reading, or in religious exercises. What with the continuation of the Cymric in the curriculum of our Universities and Theological Colleges, its introduction as a compulsory subject into many of our public elementary schools, the ardency and faithfulness with which it is taught in our Sunday-schools from Caergybi to Caerdydd, the ever-increasing attention paid and the new life infused into it by various institutions, as the Eisteddfod, the Honourable Society of Cymrodorion, the Society for Utilising the Welsh language, and the proverbial clannishness of the Cymry; looking retrospectively and prospectively our conviction is that the dear old language contains germs of a long and healthy life, and when it shall cease to be a vernacular, much of its intrinsic value and glory will be preserved in its local names.
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES. 12.
We shall now deal briefly with the chief prefixes and suffixes that occur so frequently as components in names of places in Wales, in order to avoid entering largely into details in tracing their origin in the subsequent pages. Many of them contain the geographical and historical clues to a large number of names, and since they enter so extensively into Welsh nomenclature, we think it essential to offer a few explanatory notes thereon.
ABER means the mouth of a river, a particular point at which the lesser water discharges itself into the greater. In the old Welsh it is spelt aper, and Professor Rhys, Oxford, derives it from the root ber, the Celtic equivalent of fer, in Lat. fer-o, Greek phero, English bear. It originally meant a volume of water which a river bears or brings into the sea, or into another river; but it is now generally used to denote an estuary, the mouth of a river. Some think it is cognate with the Irish inver: Inverary, mouth of the Airy; and that inver and aber are suitable test-words in discriminating between the two chief branches of the Celts. Mr Taylor says that “if we draw a line across the map
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES. 13.
from a point a little south of Inverary to one a little north of Aberdeen we shall find (with very few exceptions) the invers lie to the north-west of the line, and the abers to the south-east of it.” The Welsh form occurs repeatedly in Brittany: Abervrack, Avranches. The Norman French haver is identified with the Welsh aber. In the lowlands of Scotland we find it in Aberdeen, Abernethy, Abercorn, Abertay, &c., and in England we find it in Aberford, Berwick, &c. Wherever found in Welsh place-names it is almost invariably followed by a proper or common name, indicating a brook or river flowing into another river, or the sea.
NOTE — The reader should always pronounce Cymry and Celt as if spelt with a K.
ACH is a Celtic derivative particle denoting water. Agh in Ireland means a ford, och signifies the same in Scotland, and the Latin aqua has the same meaning. The Sanscrit ux, uks, means to water. We find many brooks and rivers called Clydach, sheltering water; Achddu means black water, and gwyach is a general term for several species of water-fowl.
AFON, a river, comes probably from the Celtic awon, the moving water. In the Manx language it is written Aon, in the Gaelic abhainn (pronounced avain), and in the Itinerary of Antonius it is Abona. It is found in English in the form of Avon, which, in the opinion of Professor Rhys, appears to have been entitled to a v as early as the time of Tacitus. This form occasions
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES. 14.
redundancy in the English language. To say “Bristol is on the river Avon” is tantamount to saying “Bristol is on the river river.” Afon, a common name, has become a proper name in England, but in Wales it is the generic term for a river.
AR signifies “ploughed land.” Arddu, to plough The Greek word for a plough is arotron, the Latin is aratrum, the Norse is ardr, the Irish is arathar, and the Welsh is aradr. The English “harrow” was originally a rude instrument drawn over ploughed land to level it and break the clods, and to cover seed when sown. Ploughing and reaping are called “earing and harvest.” Compare Gen. xlv., 6.; Ex. xxxiv., 21.
When ar is used as a suffix it generally has an agricultural signification, but when used as a prefix it is a preposition, meaning on, upon: Arddwr, on the water; Argoed, on or above a wood. Ar, signifies a plain surface, level ground, a plot of land taken in from the mountain.
BETTWS. — This is one of the most popular,
and yet one of the most difficult, to explain. We shall give a few of the many derivations given. 1. Byd-bod, a dwelling-place, and tws, an extremity, either of a valley or a glen, or a copse of wood. 2. A corrupted form of peat-house, a house constructed of peat or turf. 3. Bait-house, a house for refreshment by men, or food by beasts, on a journey. 4. Bed-bedd, a grave; ws, a place; signifying a burial
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES. 15.
place. 5. Some derive the name from the Latin Hospitium, or the Welsh Yspytty, hospital; and maintain that they became very prevalent at the time of the Crusade. 6. Some think it is a Welsh form of the Latin beatus, blessed, and that it refers to the religious institution of St. Beuno. 7. Bedw-as, a birch-grove situate between hill and vale. 8. Bod, dwelling-place; gwys signifies low and deep, what lies low. Bettws would then signify a low or sheltered place. The proverb O fryn i fettws (from hill to dale) accords with this signification. 9. Some refer it to abbatis, an appendage to a monastery or an abbey, taking it as one of the few Latin words which found a permanent place in the Welsh language. 10. The most popular derivation is bead-house, an ecclesiastical term signifying a hospital or alms-house, erected for poor religious persons near the church in which the founder was interred, and for whose soul they were required to pray.
An eminent Welsh antiquarian writes that “Bettws was never an institution properly speaking, and it never existed as a distinct religious house, but undoubtedly it did exist in some instances as a cell in connection with large abbeys. Soon after the principal abbeys had been founded in this country, and their fame as seats of piety and learning had spread far and wide, pilgrims began to flock to them, many of whom had long distances to travel, on account of which houses of prayer, called bead-houses, were erected at long intervals along their course, into which the wearied
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES. 16.
pilgrims entered to offer prayers on their way to and from the abbey. I believe we never have a head-house (Bettws) but on the way to an abbey. When the abbeys were suppressed, most of these bead-houses fell into ruin, as a matter of course, while a few of them may have been developed into parish churches and chapels of ease, after the Reformation. I do not think it has a Welsh origin, for the reason that the thing itself was imported from Normandy, and I am of opinion that Bettws as a place-name was not in existence prior to the Norman survey.”
Some aver that the application of the term Bettws to parochial churches first occurs in the Taxation of Benefices by order of Pope Nicholas IV, about the year 1292. The name probably originated between the early part of the 12th and the latter part of the 13th centuries. The best way to ascertain the etymology and signification of the word is by investigating the history and topography of each place bearing that name. If the word is to be derived from English or Latin words, how are we to account for the fact that it is exclusively used in Wales and Monmouthshire, while there is not a single instance of it in the whole of England? Professor Rhys says, “Bettws would be phonologically accounted for exactly by supposing it to be the English bed-hus, or home of prayer, but if that origin be the correct one to assume, there is the historical difficulty: where is there any account of this institution bearing an English name?” Just so. If the name had been perpetuated
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES. 17.
in English as it has been in Wales, bead-house would be the most plausible of all the derivations. There were no religious houses peculiar to Wales, and if there had been such, the Cymry, assuredly, would not have given them foreign names but their own. When the thing is peculiarly and exclusively Welsh, the people always give it their own, and not a borrowed name. Eisteddfod, for example, is a purely Welsh institution, hence the name. We offer the 11th explanation. Bedw, birch trees; ws, a term appended to places with undulating grounds, precipitous. If the word was applied in olden times to chapels in Wales which were subject to other churches in the neighbourhood, they were probably so called because they were built in birch groves.
BLAEN means extremity, the top of anything, a beginning or source. It is frequently used as a prefix in the names of places that are situated at the extreme end of a valley or near the sources of brooks and rivers. Blaenau afonydd, the sources of rivers. Dwfr y blaenau, water or stream from the height.
BOD originally meant a lord’s residence. Having fixed upon a certain spot of land, he would build a dwelling-house thereon, which was called bod, and the name of the builder or owner was added to distinguish it from other dwelling-houses, hence we have Bodowain, Bodedeyrn, &c. He had two residences — yr Hafod, the summer residence, and Gaeafod, the winter residence. But in course of time bod was used to designate any house or dwelling-place. Compare the English “abode.”
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES. 18.
BRON means a round protuberance, and is equivalent to the English breast. In place-names it signifies the breast of a hill. Ar frest y mynydd, is a very common expression, meaning on the breast of the mountain.
BRYN seems to be a compound of bre, a mountain, and the diminutive yn; hence breyn, afterwards contracted into bryn, a small mountain, a hill. It enters largely into Welsh place-names, and we find it also Anglicized in Breandown, a high ridge near Weston-super-Mare; Brendon, a part of the great ridge of Exmoor; Brinsop, near Hereford, &c.
BWLCH signifies a break or breach. It is generally found in names of places where there is a narrow pass in the mountains.
CAER is one of our enchorial names for a wall or mound for defence, the wall of a city or castle, a fortress Perhaps the root is cau, to shut up, to fence, to enclose with a hedge. Cae means a field enclosed with hedges. Caerau were the most ancient military earthworks in the Principality, and when the Britons began to build cities they surrounded them by a fortified wall called caer.
The city of Chester is still popularly called Caer, from the ancient wall that has encircled it for ages. Chester — a Saxonized form of the Latin castrum, a fort, and one of the few words recognised as directly inherited from the Roman invaders — is a common prefix and suffix in English place-names; as Colchester, Manchester, Chesterford, Chesterton. In the Anglian and
PLACE-NAMES IN WALES. PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES. 19.
Danish districts we find “Chester” is replaced by “caster”; as Doncaster, Lancaster, &c., but both forms are allied to castrum, which is a Latinization of the Celtic caer. As the Latin castrum will always be an etymological souvenir to future generations of the Roman incursions, and the havoc they committed here ere “Britannia ruled the waves,” even so the Celtic word caer, which is found in so many Welsh and a few English place-names, will ever be an historical fingerpost, pointing to the necessity which was laid upon our forefathers to defend themselves against foreign bands of invaders. The word is also a standing proof in England that the dominion of the ancient Cymry was erstwhile considerably more extensive than that of little Wales. If the reader will be so fortunate as to find a map of England which was published in the time of Ella, the first Bretwalda of the Saxon race, the recurrent caer would make him almost imagine he was perusing the map of Wales. There he would find Caer-legion, Chester, which is still called Caerlleon; Caer-Badon, Bath; Caer-Glou, Gloucester; Caer-Ebrawc, Eboracum of the Romans, and the Saxon York; and Caer-Lundene or Caerludd, London, &c. In course of time the vowel e was elided, hence we have such examples as Carmarthen, Cardiff, Carlisle, Carsey, Carsop, Pencarrow (Pencaerau), Carew, &c.
CARN, Carnedd, or Cairn, means a heap of stones. These cairns or tumuli are found in large numbers in Wales. They were, according to some, either family
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cemeteries or monuments raised to commemorate the relics of a number of heroes who fell in defence of their country. But others are inclined to think they were thrown, as tokens of disgrace, over executed malefactors. Dr. Owen Pugh says — “The carneddau and the tumuli of earth were the common monuments that the ancient Britons erected in honour of their great men. Which of the two kinds was probably determined by the circumstance of the country being stony or otherwise. These modes of interment continued in use many years after the introduction of Christianity; but when the custom of burying in churches became general, the former ways were not only disused, but condemned as fit only for the great criminals. When the carnedd was considered as the honourable tomb of a warrior, every passenger threw his additional stone out of reverence to his memory. When this heap came to be disgraced by being the mark where the guilty was laid, the custom for everyone that passed to fling his stone still continued, but nowise as a token of detestation.”
Professor Rhys, in his “Celtic Britain,” gives a graphic description of the removal of one of these cairns in the Vicinity of Mold, in 1832. “It was believed,” he writes, “in the country around to be haunted by a spectre in gold armour, and when more than 300 loads of stones had been carted away the workman came to the skeleton of a tall and powerful man placed at full length. He had been laid there clad in a finely-wrought corslet of gold, with a lining of
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bronze: the former was found to be a thin plate of the precious metal, measuring three feet seven inches long by eight inches wide. Near at hand were discovered 300 amber beads and traces of something made of iron, together with an urn full of ashes, and standing about three yards from the skeleton. The work on the corslet is believed to have been foreign, and is termed Etruscan by Prof. Boyd Dawkins. The burial belongs to an age when cremation was not entirely obsolete in this country, and we should probably not be wrong in attributing it to the time of the Roman occupation. On the whole, the duty of commemorating the dead among the Celts may be supposed to have devolved on the bards, to whom we are probably indebted for the seventy or more triplets devoted to this object and preserved in a Welsh manuscript of the twelfth century. The last of them, which, remarkably enough, has to do with a grave in this same district of Mold, runs as follows, when freely rendered into English:—
Whose is the grave in the great glade? Proud was his hand on his blade — There Bali the giant is laid.”
CASTELL, frequently contracted into cas, is the Welsh for a castle, a fortified residence.
The Latin ‘castellum’ a diminutive of castrum meaning a bastion tower or small fortification, was adopted by the Welsh in the form of castell. The word was originally applied to a smaller type of stronghold than the primitive ‘caer’ or ‘din,’ and more especially to
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denote the fortified residence of the tribal chieftains, who aspired to be the political successors of the Romans in this country. Compare the Breton Kastel, the Irish caisel, the Gaelic caisteal, and the Manx cashtal.
It is difficult to ascertain the exact time when castles were first introduced into Wales.
The Romans probably began to erect fortresses in the territories conquered by them, and the Saxons followed their example; but strong castles of defence were comparatively few here ere the commencement of the Norman Conquest. Feudalism gave rise to castles in the sense of fortified residences, and it is from the advent of the Normans to our land we must date the castle as an institution. A large number was also erected during the reign of Edward III. and his immediate successors. “That old fortress,” said Mr. Gladstone, pointing with his stick to the remains of Hawarden Castle, “is one of the emblems of the difficulty the English had in governing the Welsh in former times. They had to plant their strongholds all along the Welsh border.”
CEFN, in names of places, means a high ridge. It is but natural that this prefix should be applied to so many places in mountainous Wales. The Chevin Hills in Yorkshire, and Cevennes in France, derive their names from the same root.
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CIL implies a sequestered place, a place of retreat. Cil haul means the shade or where the sun does not shine. Cil y llygad, the corner of the eye. In Ireland it is spelt kil (the c being changed to k) signifying a church, and is found in no less than 1,400 names, and in many in Scotland. Kilkenny, church of Kenny; Kilpatrick, church of Patrick; Kilmore (Cilmawr), the great church. Gilmour is still a surname in the Scottish lowlands, and we find Gilmorton in Leicester. We find the root in cilio, to retreat, to go away. Cilfach, a place to retreat to, a creek, a nook. Some Welsh historians think that cil is a local memorial of those Irish missionaries, who, about the 5th century, visited the shores of Wales for evangelistic purposes, and founded churches in the most quiet and sequestered spots they could find.
CLYD means sheltering, warm, comfortable. Lle clyd, a warm, comfortable place. We have it in different forms in Clydach, Clydlyn, Clyder, Clyde, Strathclud, Clodock.
CLYN signifies a place covered with brakes, Clyn o eithin, a furze brake.
CNWC literally means a bump, a swelling: Cnwc y gwegil, the back part of the skull; but its geographical signification is a knoll or mound. We find it corrupted in a few Welsh names, Knucklas (Cnwc-glas), &c., and in Irish names, Knockglass (Cnwc-glas), Knockmoy
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(Cnwc-mai), Knockaderry (Cnwc-y-deri), &c., and in England we have Nocton, Knockin, Knook, &c.
COED is the Welsh for wood, trees. In remote times the summits of Cambria’s hills were covered with wood, which accounts for the word coed being still applied to barren and hilly districts.
CRAIG, a high rock or craig, and sometimes it is applied to a steep, woody eminence. It takes the form of carraig or carrick in Ireland; Carrigafoyle (Craigyfoel), the barren rock; Carrickfergus, the rock where Fergus was drowned; and in England we find it in Crick, Cricklade, &c.
CROES means a cross. Croes-ffordd, a cross-way. The word evidently points to the Roman epoch, and also to the ancient Welsh custom of burying malefactors near the cross roads. Croes-feini, stone-crosses, in the time of Howell the Good, were used principally to mark land property, and sometimes, when placed in hedges, to caution travellers not to cross the fields. Some of them, with the names of the primitive British saints inscribed upon them, were placed by the roadside in commemoration of the blessed fact that the Gospel had been preached there.
CRUG means a heap, a mound. Crug o gerryg, a heap of stones. It appears that the Britons held their bardic and judicial gorseddau or assemblies on these mounds, and hence “crug” and “gorsedd,” according to Dr. Owen Pughe, are sometimes used as synonymous
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terms. “Crug” is a frequent component in Welsh names, and we find it Anglicized in Crich (Derby), Creach (Somerset), &c.
CWM denotes a low place enclosed with hills. It has a large place in Welsh nomenclature, and it often occurs in English local names, especially in the western counties. In Devonshire the Saxonized form comb or combe meet us frequently: Wide-comb, Wel-comb, Ilfra-combe, Babba-comb, Burles-comb, Challa-comb, Hac-comb, Para-comb, Yarns-comb, &c. In Somerset it is more plentiful than in any other English county: we have Nettle-comb, Od-comb, Timber-comb, Charlscomb, Wid-comb, Moncton-comb, Comb-hay, Cros-comb, Wins-combe, &c. We find King-combe, Rat-combe, Bos-comb, &c., in Dorset. Cumberland, a Celtic county, abounds with combes. So writes Anderson, a Cumberland poet, of his native county: —
There’s Cumwhitton, Cumwhinton, Cumranton, Cumrangan, Cumrew, and Cumcatch,
And many mair Cums i’ the county,
But none with Cumdivook can match.
CWRT, probably from the Latin cortis, which means a closed place, or a court where the law is administered. In olden times when the king or a chieftain was on his military or sporting tour through the country, it was necessary to provide accommodation for him and his party during their stay in the district, and that place was designated “y Cwrt,” the Court. Those that lived in the villein townships were expected to build or provide
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the Court, “nine buildings which the villeins of the king are to erect for him, a hall, a chamber, a buttery, a stable, a doghouse, a barn, a kilyn, a privy, and a dormitory.”
CYMMER means a junction or confluence, and is frequently applied to places situated near the junction of two or more rivers. The root is related to aber (vide aber).
DIN is an ancient Welsh word for a fortified hill, a camp, from which we have our dinas, a fortified town or city, and probably the English denizen. Our cities were once surrounded by fortified walls, like Chester, on account of which every one of them was denominated dinas. Professor Rhys groups the Welsh din with the Irish dun, the Anglo-Saxon tun, and the English town. The dunum, dinum, and dinium of the Romans are probably allied with it.
The English suffix bury is closely related to it in meaning. Very few Welsh place-names have the termination burgh, bury, or borough. The root is almost an English monopoly. Home Took says that “a burgh or borough formerly meant a fortified town.” In the “Encyclopaedia Britannica” we find the following exposition of the word: — “Bourgignons or Burgundians, one of the nations who over-ran the Roman Empire, and settled in Gaul. They were of great stature and very warlike, for which reason the Emperor Valentinian the Great engaged them against the Germans. They lived in tents, which were close to each
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other, that they might the more readily unite in arms on any unforeseen attack. These conjunctions of tents they called burghs, and they were to them what towns are to us.” It is supposed that the Burgundians introduced the word to the Germans, and they, again, left it in England as a trace of their settlement here.
DOL signifies a meadow. Dol-dir, meadow-land. We find it in many of our place-names, and also in various forms in Arundel, Kendal (Pen-ddol), Annandale, Dalkeith, Dalrymple, Dovedale, &c. The word is found in names of places situate in valleys all over Wales, Cornwall, and Brittany.
DWFR is the modern Welsh for water. It is frequently spelt dwr: Cwmdwr, the water-vale. In English it has suffered much from phonetic decay: Derwent, Dover, Appledore, Durham, Dore, Thur. Durra, &c. It is also found in European names: Dordogne, Adour, Durbian, Durbach, Douron, Dwerna, Oder, &c. (“Words and Places,” p. 200). It may be compared with the Cornish dour, the Gaelic and Irish dur, and dohhar, pronounced doar, and the Greek udor, all probably cognate with the Celtic dubr.
DYFFRYN is popularly derived from dwfr, water, and hynt, a way, a course; literally a water-course, or a vale through which a river takes its course. In the ancient Welsh laws the word dyffrynt is used to denote a river. “Ynysoedd yn nyffrynt,” islands in a river. It may be a compound of dwfr-bryn, signifying a hilly place through which water flows.
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GALLT means an ascent, a slope. Gallt o goed, a woody slope or eminence. In North Wales it signifies “a steep hill,” and in South Wales “a coppice of wood.”
GARTH originally meant a buttress, an inclosure. The Norse garth, the Persian gird, and the Anglo-Saxon yard, denote a place girded round, or guarded. Garden is a place fenced round for special cultivation. Buarth, from bu, kine, and garth, a small inclosure, was situated on a hill in perilous times. Lluarth from llu, a legion, and garth, inclosure, means an entrenchment on a hill. In course of time the word became to signify a ridge a hill, a rising eminence, a promontory. Compare the Breton li-orz, and the Irish lub-ghort, an enclosure for vegetables.
GELLI – Celli means a wood, a copse. The simpler form cell meant a grove, and the Irish coill bears an identical meaning. Cell ysgaw, an elder grove. The aborigines of Scotland were called Caeoill daoin, which meant “the people of the wood,” which name was changed by the Romans to Caledonia. A great number of places have received their names from species of trees, as Clynog, Pantycelyn, Clyn eiddw, &c.
GLAN means brink, side, shore. Glan yr afon, the river side, or the bank of the river. Glan y mor, the sea shore. The word is generally prefixed to river-names, as Glan- Conwy, Glan Taf, &c.
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GLAS is used to denote blue, azure, green. When applied to water it signifies blue — Dulas, black-blue; but when applied to land it means green; Caeglas, green field. The word is supposed by some Cymric scholars to be allied to the Greek glaukos, both expressing the same colours — those of the sea. Glaucus was a sea deity. Glas is also a derivation of Clais a stream. Du + clais = Douglas.
GLYN implies a vale narrower but deeper than a dyffryn, through which a river flows. It generally precedes the name of a river that flows through a vale, as Glyn Ceiriog, Glyn Dyfrdwy, &c. From the same root we have the Gaelic “gleann” and the Anglo-Saxon “glen,” both expressing a small valley.
GWYDD signifies wood, from which we have gwyddel, which means a brake or bush. Tir gwyddelawg, land overrun with brambles. Gwyddel is also the Welsh for Irishman, and some view the few place-names that contain the word only as ethnological evidences of the temporary sojourn of the Gaels in Wales. Some, evidently, have the latter signification, but the majority of them have no reference to Irishmen, as Gwyddelwern, &c.
HAFOD is a compound of haf and bod, signifying a summer house. The ancient farmers had their summer dairy-houses, and in that season they resorted thither, as the farmers in the Swiss Alps do to their Sennes. The hafod consisted of a long, low room, with a hole at
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one end to emit the smoke from the fire which was made beneath. Its stools were stones, and beds were made of hay ranged along the sides.
LLAN is identified with nearly all the names of parish churches in Wales, from which an exceedingly large number of places take their names. It has been said that “England is pre-eminently the land of hedges and inclosures.” The terminations, ton, ham, worth, stoke, fold, garth, park, burgh, bury, brough, burrow, almost invariably convey the notion of inclosure and protection. The Welsh prefix Llan, which originally signified an inclosure, probably suggested the idea to the Saxon colonists. We find the word in perllan, orchard; gwinllan, vineyard; corlan, sheep-yard, in Welsh place-names it is now generally taken to mean a church, probably including the church-yard, though originally applied to an inclosure with or without a building. Myned i’r llan means “going to church.”
The British saints, having been deprived of their possessions by the powerful and ever-increasing foreigners and invaders, retired to the most solitary places in the country to live a wholly religious life, and founded churches which will bear their names as long as hagiology remains a part of Welsh history. Judging from the number of churches dedicated to the saints, it appears that the most popular among them were St. Mary, St. Michael, and St. David the patron saint of Wales. It is needless to say that the first two never founded churches, although we find that
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28 churches* in the see of Bangor; 27 in the see of St. Asaph; 59 in the see of St. David’s; and a few in the see of Llandaff; in all about 150 churches and chapels have been dedicated to St. Mary, and to St. Michael: 48 in the see of St. David’s; 8 in the see of St. Asaph; 16 in the see of Bangor; 20 in the see of Llandaff; and a few in the see of Hereford, making a total of nearly 100. Next comes St. David. We find that 42 so-called sacred edifices bear his name in the see of St. David’s; 8 in the see of Llandaff; and a few in the see of Hereford; such as Dewstow.
Many churches were also named from their contiguity to water, as well as to other objects: Llanwrtyd (Llan wrth-y-rhyd), the church by the ford; Llandaf, the church on the Taff, &c. The llan, a public house, and a few cottages, formed the nucleus of the majority of our rural villages and parishes, and when the village or parish became worthy of an appellation, the name of the llan was almost invariably applied to them. The word sant, saint, never became a popular term in Wales as it did in Cornwall. We have simply the llan and the unadorned name of the saint who founded it, or was dedicated, not Llansantddewi, St. David’s church, but Llanddewi, David’s church.
When several churches are dedicated to the same saint some differential words are added, and so we have those long names which arouse the curiosity of our English friends, and often supply a healthy exercise
(* Probably more now).
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to their risible faculties, such as Llanfair-Mathafarneithaf, &c.
For the sake of euphony and brevity we have, in many of our English equivalents, omitted the word llan, and have given the names of the saints only, except when they are translatable. When differential words are added to the hagiological names, as Penybryn, Helygen, &c., we have thought it advisable to omit the ecclesiastical term, and give the mundane portion of the name only as an English quasi-equivalent. For instance, Llandewi-Aberarth, omitting St. David’s, and render Aberarth into an intelligible English name. We find the word llan in many place-names in England, in the Cymric part of Scotland, i.e. between the Clyde and the Solway, e.g. Lanark, Lanrick, &c., and in Brittany, as Langeac, Lannion, Lanoe, &c. The word eglwys, church, is now used for a modern ecclesiastical building in most parts of the Principality.
LLECH, a flat stone, a flag, refers probably to the Druidical circle stones. Notice should be made of the difference between Cromlech and Cistfaen. The former was a sepulchral monument and always above ground, and the latter was the coffin, concealed by a tumulus either of earth or of stones. The cromlech generally had a cistfaen under it. The English league is probably derived from this word, a “league” was a measure of distance marked by a stone standing on end.
LLWCH is the ancient Welsh for an inlet of water, a lake, c.f., Maesllwch, nr. Three Cocks Station. It
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corresponds to the Scotch loch, the Irish lough, and the English lake. Loch Leven — smooth lake.
LLWYN in its primary sense means a bush, but it is frequently used to denote a grove.
LLYS originally meant a royal court, a palace. Llysdin, a city where a prince’s court was kept, but it is now the common appellation for a court.
MAENOR originally meant a division of land marked by stones, from maen, a stone; hence it became to signify a district, a manor. The maen-hir, long-stone monument, is considered by Professor Rhys to be as old as the cromlech, but not so imposing and costly. Croes-faen. (See Croes).
MAES, an open field, in contradistinction to cae, an enclosed field. It is sometimes used as a military term signifying a battle-field. Cad ar faes is a pitched battle, and colli y maes is to lose the battle. In the majority of names where this component occurs we may fairly infer that a battle has been fought there.
MAI means an open, beautiful plain. It is also the Welsh for May, the month when nature induces one to go out to the open fields to view her gems of beauty.
MOEL when used as a substantive signifies a bald, conical hill. Dyn penfoel, a bald-headed man. In olden times it was used as a surname. Hywel Foel, Howell, the bald-headed. It is derived by some from the Celtic root mull, a bald head. Moylisker (Westmoreland) is a
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corrupted form of Moel-esgair, bare ridge. Malvern is supposed to be a contraction of Moel-y-fam, the hill of judgment. In Ireland we find it corrupted to moyle: Kilmoyle, bald church; Dinmoyle, bald fort.
MYNYDD is the popular Welsh word for mountain, from mwn, what rises considerably above the surface of the surrounding land. Myn’d i fynydd or fyny means going upwards. In Shropshire this word appears in Longmynd; in Gloucestershire, nr. Mitcheldean, as the Meend.
NANT in its primary sense signified a ravine, a dingle; but now it is mostly used in South Wales to denote a brook, a streamlet. The root enters largely into Welsh nomenclature, and it is also found in many place-names in the region of the High Alps. Nannau and Nanney are plural forms of it, omitting t, and adding the plural termination au.
PANT means a low place, a hollow. It is considerably less than a cwm or dyffryn, combe or valley, being somewhat similar to a glen.
PARC, from the Norman-French, is an inclosure, equivalent to cae, a piece of land enclosed with hedges. It is used in the latter sense in the south-west counties. Parth comes from the same root, which means a division of land. Parthau Cymru, the divisions of Wales. The English “park” is a derivative, which has a more extensive meaning.
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PEN in geographical names means the highest part or the extreme end, as of a mountain or a field, or a meadow. We find it intact in names of places in Cornwall, as Penzance, Penrhyn (headland), and in the north of England we have Penrith; but in its native country the consonant n has been omitted in many instances, and m substituted, as in Pembroke, Pembrey, &c. Ben, a mountain, enters largely into the composition of place-names in Scotland, especially in the Highlands, as Ben-more, (Penmawr), great mountain, &c. Cen or cenn is another Gaelic form, signifying the same as pen and ben. Can tyre (Pentir), headland; Kenmore (Penmawr), great mountain; Kinloch (Penllwch), head of the lake. In South Scotland hen is replaced by pen, the Cymric form, as Pencraig, the top of the rock; Penpont, the end of the bridge, &c. We find it also in European names pointing out the earlier settlements of the Celtic race, as Pennine, Apennines, Penne, Penmark, &c.
Pont is generally derived from the Latin pontem, (acc.) a bridge. The monks were great bridge-builders, and it is supposed that they introduced the word to us. Pontage is a duty paid for repairing bridges. The Roman pontiff was so called because the first bridge over the Tiber was constructed and consecrated by the high priest. Pontefract is a pure Latin name, from pons, a bridge, and frangere, to break, signifying a broken bridge, so called from the bridge breaking down when William, Archbishop of York, was passing over.
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PORTH is referred by some to the Latin -porta, a passage-way, a gate, an opening.
RHIW is the Welsh for ascent, acclivity, slope. It has an analogous meaning to Eppynt, the name of a chain of mountains in Breconshire, probably from eb, an issuing out, and hynt, a way, a course, signifying a way rising abruptly. Hyntio means to set off abruptly.
RHOS means a moor. Some think the Latin rus is a cognate word, signifying undrained moorland. The Cymric rhos is of the same origin as the Gaelic ros, which signifies a promontory. Ross, the name of a town in Herefordshire, is probably a corruption of the former.
RHYD in its primary sense means a ford, but its secondary meaning — a stream, is frequently given to it. Rhyd-erwin means the rough, dangerous ford, whereas Rhydfelin designates a stream of water that turns a mill.
SANT: The title sant was very sparingly used in Mediaeval Welsh, and then mostly in the case of saints other than Welsh. Some historians maintain that churches were dedicated to Welsh and Irish saints from 500 to 800, to St. Michael and some of the Apostles from 800 to -1000, and to St. Mary and others in the 12th century.
The earliest use of the word Mabsant, the typical holy man of the parish, appears to be in a eulogy of the Welsh patron saint (“Canu y Dewi “), by Gwynfardd Brycheiniog (1160 – 1220).
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Every parish had its patron saint. The various trades and guilds also had their patron saints or advocates.
There are between 600 and 700 saints genuine and otherwise, known to Welsh Hagiology, and only about 200 of these have found a place in the calendars.
Peter, Paul, and Laurentius were made patrons of Rome, James, the patron of Spain, Andrew of Greece, and David, the patron saint of Wales.
SARN is the Welsh for the old Roman paved road, and wherever it occurs one may almost certainly find traces of a Roman road. Unlike almost every other road the Roman strata was distinguished for its straightness. It ran from fortress to fortress, as straight as an arrow course, in order to facilitate communications between those who were stationed in the chief strategic positions of Britain. It was generally about 15 feet wide, the sides being fenced by huge stones, and the middle well paved. Remains of it are still discernible in many parts of the Principality, such as the neighbourhood of Caersws, Montgomery; Gaer, Brecon; Neath, Glamorgan; and many other places.
Tal when applied to places means end, but when applied to persons it denotes front. Taliesin means radiant front or luminous head, but Talybont signifies the end of the bridge.
TON originally meant a piece of unploughed or uncultivated land, perhaps from twn, which implies a
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piece of land taken for the purpose of cultivation. It is used in Glamorgan to denote a green sward.
Tref was the primitive Welsh appellative for a homestead, a dwelling-house. Myned tua thref, going home, is still a common expression in South Wales. In course of time the term was extended to indicate a group of homesteads. Having built a house for himself the lord would proceed to build dwellings for his people and his cattle, and these formed what was called tref. The word gradually became to be applied to an aggregate of houses, hence the reason why it is used so frequently in village as well as in town-names.
The root is widely distributed over Britain and Europe. The Norse by, the Danish thorpe, the German dorf, and the English ham and ton may be considered as its equivalents. It is spelt treu in Domesday Book, hence we have Treuddyn for Treddyn.
Hendref forms the names of many old mansions, and is synonymous with the English Aldham and Oldham. Hyd y dref (October), was the harvest season — the time to gather the produce of the fields to the barns, and leave the hafod, summer-house, to spend the winter months in the hendref, the older establishment. The original meaning of cantref (canton or hundred) is supposed to have been a hundred homesteads.
TROED is the Welsh for foot, base. The Irish traig signifies the same, both of which. Professor Rhys thinks,
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are of the same origin as the Greek trecho, “I run.”- The English tread means to set the foot. The word is frequently applied to places situated at the foot of a mountain. The Welsh Troedyrhiw and the Italian pie di monte are synonymous terms.
TY generally means a house, a dwelling-place, but in Welsh nomenclature it is occasionally used to denote a church or place of worship, as Ty Ddewi, St. David’s. The house of God is considered by many as equivalent to the church of God. Ty has an inferior meaning to bod; the latter was the residence of a superior, and the former is of a later date, signifying an ordinary house, a cottage.
WY — Gwy is an obsolete Celtic word for water, mostly used as a suffix in river-names, as Elwy, Tawy; and sometimes as a prefix, as gwyach, a water-fowl; gwylan, sea-gull; gwydd, goose. Gwysg is related to it, which means a tendency to a level, as of a fluid or stream. We find the root in various forms, as Wysg, cask, uisge, usk, esk, is-ca, &c.
YNYS anciently signified an island, and also a quasi-island answering to inch in Scotland, Inch Keith; and inis or ennis is Ireland, Ennis Killen, Ennis Corthy, Inniskea, &c. The word is applied to some places with no river or water near them, nor anything suggesting the probability that they had, in remote times, been islands.
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YSTRAD is a general term for a low or flat valley through which a river flows. The Latin strata, the Scotch strath, and the English street are supposed to be of the same origin. The term ystrad was used sometimes to denote a paved road.
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WALES. — The real and correct name is Cymru, or as the late Mr. T. Stephens invariably spelt it, Kymru, from cym-bro, the compatriot, the native of the country, in contradistinction to all-fro, the foreign invader who came to dispossess him of his native land.
Professor Silvan Evans derives it from cy, the d being changed to m for assimilation with the following b; and bro, a vale, a country. Some think it is a compound of cyn, first, prior; and bru, matrix, hence implying Primitive Mother, an expression signifying that the aboriginal Brythons, to sustain their inalienable claim to the country, considered themselves as descended from the direct offspring of their native soil. According to some the name is synonymous with the Cimmerii and Gomari.
A few derive the name from Camber, the son of Brutus, whilst others insist upon a remoter origin, and trace it back to Gomer, the eldest son of Japhet. In the laws of Hywel Dda the name is spelt Cybru, and in G. ap Arthur’s Chronicle the names Kymry and Kymraec are respectively given to the nation and the language.
Mr. Stephens derives Kymry from Homer’s Kimmeroi and Germania’s Cimbri. These people gave
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their name to Cumberland, and subsequently they settled in their present country, and called themselves and the country Kymry or Cymry, the form Cymru for Wales being a modern variant.
Professor Rhys thinks the ties of union between the Brythons of Upper Britain proved so strong and close that the word Cymry, which meant merely fellow-countrymen, acquired the force and charm of a national name, which it still retains among the natives of the Principality. It is also popularly called —
GWALIA, of which Wales is a Saxonized form. Very many favour the German derivation wal, foreign; waller, foreigner. The general name given by the Teutonic races to their neighbours is Walsch, foreigners or strangers. “The word Dutch is an adjective signifying national, and was the name by which the old Teutons called themselves in contradistinction to other people, whose language they were unable to understand. They styled themselves the (intelligible) people, but called others, as the Romans, and the Kelts in Britain, Walsch and Welsh.” (Morris’ Hist. Gram.).
Walsch-land is the German name of Italy, and Weal-land is the name given by the Saxon Chronicle to Brittany. Cornwales was the original form of Cornwall, which signifies the country inhabited by the Welsh of the Horn. Some derive the name from Gal, the ancient Gal, whilst others give the preference to gal, an open, cultivated country. “Le Prince de Galles” is the name:
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given to the Prince of Wales in France. The people of Galatia in the time of St. Paul possessed some characteristic features of the Celtic race. Jacob Grimm traces the name back to Galli (Gaules, Fr.), which was taken by the Germans from the neighbouring Gauls. It is generally supposed that when the Saxons settled among the Britannic Loegrians (the Cymry of England) they called them Veales, Weala, or Wealhas, from which the name Wales probably originated.
CAMBRIA. — Some derive it from Camber of fabulous record, but we rather think it is a distorted Latinized form of Cymru.
We shall now proceed to deal with the names of the ancient territories of Wales, namely, Gwynedd, Powys, Dyfed, and Gwent.
GWYNEDD, or VENEDOCIA. — This territory comprised the counties of Anglesey, Carnarfon, and Denbigh, or Gwynedd is Gonwy, Venedocia below Conway, and Gwynedd uch Gonwy, Venedocia above Conway. It was sometimes applied to all North Wales.
Professor Rhys thinks “the word Veneti is most likely of the same origin as the Anglo-Saxon wine, a friend, and meant allies; the Irish fine, a tribe or sept, is most likely related, and so may be the Welsh Gwynedd. The Veneti have left their name to the part of Brittany called by the Bretons Guened, Vannes, and it is this name probably that laid the foundation for the tales which trace an army of Cymry from Gwynedd to Guened.” (Celtic Britain, p. 307.)
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POWYS. — This included the counties of Merioneth; FHnt, and Montgomery. The word, according to some, means a state of rest. Pwyso means to lean; gorphwyso, to rest. It is said that Ceridwen placed Gwion, the son of Gwreang, the herald of Llanfair, the fane of the lady, in Caer Einiawn, the city of the just in Powys, the land of rest. (Davies’ Myth., p. 213.) Powys Fadog may mean Madoc’s settlement or rest.
DYFED, or DEMETIA. — This province embraced the counties of Pembroke, Carmarthen, and Cardigan; the former constituted the principal part, and is called Dyfed even to-day by the old inhabitants. In the seventh century Dyfed consisted only of Pembrokeshire. Some derive the name from Deheuharth, which is rather far-fetched. We are induced to think the root is dwfn, deep or low, indicating the geographical position of Dyfed, which is the lowest part of the Principality. Devon is probably of the same origin. Demetia is Dyfed Latinized.
GWENT. — This territory comprises part of Glamorgan, also Monmouthshire, and part of Herefordshire, the latter districts are to be dealt with in a subsequent work.
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ANGLESEY.
ANGLESEY. — The Welsh name is Ynys Mon or Ynys Fon, the Isle of Mona. Mon is variously derived. Philotechnus derives it from the Greek monos, alone, left alone, standing alone, from its being separated by sea from the counties of North Wales. Dr. Owen Pughe seems to endorse the above: “Mon, what is isolated, an isolated one, or that is separate.” The author of Mona Antiqua derives it from bôn, a stem, a base, a foundation, same as Monau, Enotodin, from its situation at the extreme point of the Principality, or, perhaps, from its being called “Mon, mam Cymru,” Mona, the mother of Wales. The Manau Guotodin of South Scotland illustrates another application of the word Mon.
We are induced to think that the Isle of Mona and the Isle of Man derive their names from mon, which means what is isolated, separate. The English name was bestowed upon it after the battle of Llanvaes, in which Egbert proved himself victor over Merddyn. In 818 or 819 the Saxon king subdued Mona, and called it Anglesey or the Isle of the Angles, or English. The terminal syllable, ey, is the Norse for island. It assumed the title of “Mon, mam Cymru,” in the 12th century. Another view but perhaps less probable is Norse Angul’s ey, the isle of the strait.
ABERFFRAW. — This Seaport village is situate at the mouth of the river Ffraw. Aber, estuary; ffraw means agitation, activity, swiftness. Effraw, awake, vigilant.
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The Romans called it Gadavia; gada, to fall or run down; via, way, signifying the swift or running water. This place was one of the 3 Royal residences of Wales, and a seat of their chief courts of justice.
AMLWCH. — This name has elicited various conjectures. Some think it is a compound of aml-llwch, signifying a dusty place. Others derive it thus: am, round, about; llwch, a lake, an inlet of water, signifying a circular inlet of water. Llwch is cognate with the Scotch loch. Many places in Wales take their names from this word, as Penllwch, Talyllychau, Llanllwch, and perhaps, Amlwch. In an ancient book, “The Record of Carnarvon,” supposed to be written about 1451, the name is spelt Amlogh. The harbour at Amlwch is a sort of llwch.
BEAUMARIS. — Various names are given to this town — Bumaris, Bimaris, Beumarish, Bello-Mariseum, and Beaumaris. In the Myvyrian list of the parishes of Wales it is spelt Bywmares. Edmunds derives it from buw, a cow; mor, the sea; and is, low; signifying the low place of cows by the sea. Some think the name is a compounded form of bis, twice; and maris, the sea, founding their reason upon the position of the town as lying between two seas, the Irish Sea and St. George’s Channel. Others think the radices are beau, beautiful, fine, and maree, sea; signifying a place near the beautiful sea. Many will have the suffix to be the French marais, marsh, a tract of low land occasionally covered with water, hence the name signifies the beautiful marsh.
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The town was anciently called Forth Wygyr; forth, port; wygyr, which may be a corruption of Wig-ir; gwig, an opening in the wood, a wood; ir, fresh, florid. Pren ir a green tree. The new name, Beaumaris, it is said, was given to the town by Edward I. He built the castle about the year 1285, and changed the name of the place to Beaumaris, descriptive of its pleasant situation in low ground.
BELAN. — An abbreviation of Llanbeulan, the church dedicated to Beulan, son of Paulinus.
BETHEL. — So called after a Nonconformist chapel in the village. The edifices of the Established Church are generally dedicated to eminent Welsh saints; but the Nonconformist sanctuaries are generally denominated after Scriptural place-names.
BODEDERN. — Bod, a dwelling-place, an abode; Edern, or Edeyrn, the son of Nudd, the son of Beli. He was a warrior and a poet, and before the end of his earthly career became very devoted to religion, and built a church in this place, which was dedicated to him, hence the name.
BODEWRYD. — This place is situated about four miles west of Amlwch. Bod, a dwelling; ewryd, a contraction, perhaps, of ewiar, smooth, clear, and rhyd, a ford; the name, therefore, signifies a mansion at the clear ford.
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BODFFORDD. — Bod, a dwelling; ffordd, a way, a road; the name, therefore, signifies a residence by the way or road.
BODOWYR. — The habitation of the priests. A hamlet situated near Tre’r Dryw, the seat of the chief Druid.
BODWROG. — Bod, a dwelling; Twrog, supposed to be the son of Ithel Wael, of Brittany, to whom the church is dedicated. The name signifies a fortified dwelling.
BRYNSIENCYN. — Bryn, a hill; Siencyn, a Welshified form of Jenkin, which means little and pretty John.
CAERCEILIOG.— From a farm so named. Some think the right wording is Caergeilyg — Caer, a fortified wall; Geilyg, clear, prominent: others think the name is a slight corruption of Cae’r ceiliog, the cock’s field, from the tradition that a certain field belonging to the farmstead was sometime noted for cockfighting.
CAPEL GWYN. — Capel, chapel; Gwyn, a contracted form, probably, of Gwyngenau, the son of Pawl, the elder; or, perhaps, gwyn here has an ecclesiastical meaning, signifying blessed. “Gwyn ei fyd y gwr,” blessed is the man.
CAPEL MEUGAN. — Capel, chapel; Meugan, son of Gwyndaf Hen, the son of Emyr Llydaw. Meugan is an old personal name which may have come through the Irish, c.f. Fegan.
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CEIRCHIOG. — This name means “abounding with oats.” The soil of the district is remarkable for yielding large crops of oats.
CEMAES. — This name is very common in Wales. It is a compound word, made up of cefn, back ridge; and maes, a field, signifying a high field. Some think the name denotes ridged or arable land, from the fertility of the soil in the district. Others think it a compounded form of camp, a feat, a game; and maes, a field. The Welsh had 24 games, or qualifications, that may be called their course of education. We rather think the word must be understood here in a martial sense, signifying a field on a high place, forming a vantage-ground for military operations. The name indicates signs of the defensive conflict of the Kymry from the time of Cadwaladr down to the fall of Llewelyn, with whom the independence of Cambria terminated.
CERRYG CEINWEN. — Cerryg stones; Ceinwen, the daughter of Brychan Brycheiniog, to whom the church is dedicated.
CERRYG Y GWYDDYL. — Cerryg, stones; Gwyddyl, Irishmen. Caswallon Law-Hir (Long Hand), about the year 500, fought valiantly against the Irish invaders in North Wales. Having achieved such a noble victory at a certain place in Mona, he built a church thereon, and called it Llan y Gwyddyl, but now it is known by the name of Cerryg y Gwyddyl.
CLEGYROG.— The root, probably, is clegr, which means a rock, a cliff. Clegyrog, rocky, rugged; the name is quite descriptive of this craggy district.
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COEDANA. — Coed, wood; Ana Anne, supposed to be a Welsh lady to. whom the parish church is dedicated. Anne or Ann is a contraction of Hannah.
DWYRAN. — Dwy, two; ran, part or portion. This hamlet was divided into two by Idwal, the Prince of Wales, and he gave one to St. Beuno, and the other to the Bishop of Bangor, hence the names Dwyran Beuno, and Dwyran Esgob. The place is also called Aberbraint.
GAERWEN. — A compound of caer, a fortified wall, a fortress; and wen, the feminine form of gwyn, white, fair, blessed, what is desirable or affords happiness.
GWREDOG. — The root may be gwar (gwareddawg), tame, mild, gentle; some think the correct wording is Gwaredog, what is being protected or saved. Perhaps it is derived from gwaered, a declivity. We adopt the latter. The right wording, therefore, is Gwaeredog, a flat or bottom at the foot of high ground. It is the name of several farms in Anglesey; as Gwaeredog, Amlwch, and Gwaeredog Uchaf, and Gwaeredog Isaf, near Llanerchymedd.
GWYNDY. — Gwyn, white, blessed; dy = ty, house; the name signifies a blessed house. The name was once used to denote an episcopal residence. In the time of St. Germanus, gwyndai — episcopal residences or houses were first alloted to the bishops. It was supposed that a cloister was once in the place where a large number of virgins devoted themselves entirely to holy service.
HOLYHEAD. — The Welsh name is Caergybi or according to some. Cor Cybi. Cybi, the son of the King of Cornwall, flourished about the latter half of the fourth
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century. Having spent some time with Bishop Hilary, in Gaul, he returned and took up his abode here. It is said that the Prince of Mona took compassion upon him in his great poverty, and presented him with a castle in the place, wherein he established a small monastery, from which circumstance the castle was called Cor Cybi — Cybi’s Choir. Pennant thinks the right wording is Caergybi, from the afore-mentioned castle, ruins of which are discernible now. The saint also is memorable for his connection with the Roman pharos or lighthouse on a hill adjacent to the town. At the north end of the parish church the following inscription may be seen: — Sancte Kybi, ora pro nobis, i.e., “Oh! Saint Cybi, pray for us.” Opinions differ as to the origin of Holyhead. Some think it was so named from the large number of sacred edifices in the place. Others think the English gave the appellation “Holyhead” to the place on account of the holy and sanctified life of the ever memorable Saint Kybi. Others maintain that the right wording is Hollyhead — a translation of Pencelyn, or more correctly, Pen Cyhelyn, Cyhelyn’s Head. Pen means head; and Cyhelyn was reduced to Celyn, which signifies holly-wood, hence Hollyhead, and then Holyhead.
LLANALLGO. — The church was dedicated to Gallgo, a son of Caw Cawlyd, and built in the 7th century. In this neighbourhood the Royal Charter was lost, October 26th, 1859, when upwards of 400 lives perished. In the parish there is also seen a large cromlech.
LLANBABO. — Pabo Post Prydain was an eminent warrior, and ere the close of his life he devoted himself unreservedly to religious matters. He founded
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the church of Llanbabo, where still remains a stone on which his image and the following inscription may be seen: — “Hic jacet Pabo Post Prud Corpors-te-Prima.”
LLANBADRIG. — The Iolo MSS. inform us that Padrig was a saint of the seventh century, a contemporary of Elford, and a fellow of Kybi’s seminary. He built the above church, which still bears his name. This is St. Patrick, the great apostle of Ireland. (The name Patrick means a senator, a nobleman).
LLANDEGFAN. — Some think the church was built by Tydecha and his sister Tegfedd, and that it was dedicated to the latter in the sixth century; but we rather think that Tegfan, uncle of Elian, and a saint and confessor in Kybi’s seminary, gave his name to it. (Williams’ “Eminent Welshmen.”) Tegfan may mean a fair spot, or a fine place.
LLANDYSSILIO. — The church is dedicated to Tyssilio, a celebrated saint of the sixth century.
LLAN DDANIEL FAB. — Mr. Rowlands writes: — “Daniel, who had a church near that of Llan Aiden, was son of Daniel, first Bishop of Bangor; and therefore, the church is commonly called Llan Ddaniel Fab.”
LLANDDEUSANT. — The church is dedicated to dau sant, two saints — Marcellus and Marcellinus.
LLANDDWYN. — The church is dedicated to St. Deuwen or Dwynwen daughter of Brychan, one of the primitive Christians of Britain. This parish was, in the reign of Henry VIII, one of the richest prebends in the cathedral of Bangor. The common people were superstitious enough to make pilgrimages here to crosses, reliques, holy wells, ordeals, and fish divination.
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LLANDDYFNAN. — The church was dedicated to Dyfnan, son of Brychan, in the fifth century. He is recorded to have come here from Rome in 180 to convert the Britons to the Christian faith. Dyfnan may signify a deep brook.
LLANDYFRYDOG. — Tyfrydog, the son of Arwystl Gloff, was a member of the Enlli seminary, and the founder of this church, which was dedicated to him in the sixth century. Dyfrydog means full of thought, musing, pensive.
LLANEDWEN. — The church is supposed to have been built by Edwen, niece or daughter of King Edwin, and a Saxon saintess of the sixth or seventh century. Edwen is probably a feminine form of Edwin.
LLANEILIAN. — Eilian Geimiad, the pilgrim son of Cellan Ruddawg, was a saint of a very early date. Some think he was a contemporary of St. Kybi. A few churches in Wales bear his name. Near this place Caswallon Law Hir kept his court.
LLANERCHYMEDD. — This town was anciently called Clochran, clock, bell; ran, part, portion. It is supposed that the steeple of the church stood on portions of three, if not four parishes, hence the name. Various conjectures are propounded on the origin of the present name. An impossible tradition says that a man named Tegerin was preparing a family grave on the spot where the old church stands, and, when he was building the vault, someone asked him — “What do you raise on this spot?” His rejoinder was, “Llanerch fy medd,” the place of my sepulchre. Some derive the name from Tafarn y medd, a mead tavern. Medd, mead, a drink
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made of honey and water; that ancient beverage was probably prepared and consumed at the above tavern, hence the name.
LLANEUGRAD. — The church was dedicated to Eugrad, son of Caw Cawlwyd, a fellow of Illtyd’s seminary, and a saint of the sixth century. It is said that a very great battle was fought here in 873 between Rhodri Mawr and the Danes, and that the latter had to retreat.
LLANFACHRETH. — The church was dedicated to St. Machraith, who flourished in the seventh century, and founded churches in Merioneth and Anglesey.
LLANFAELOG. — The church was dedicated about the seventh century to Maelog, son of Caw Cawlwyd. Hard by there is a lake called “Llyn Maelog,” Maelog’s pool.
LLANFAES. — Maes, a field. The name denotes a church built on the spot where a memorable battle was fought in the year 819 between Egbert and the Welsh. The remains of the immortal John Elias o Fon, were interred here in June, 1841.
LLANFAETHLU. — The church was dedicated to Maethlu, son of Caradog Freichfras, in the sixth century. Maethlu or Maethle means a nursing place.
LLANFAIR-MATHAFARN-EITHAF. — The names of this and the adjoining parish must be compared here in order that they may throw light on each other. Llanbedr-goch, or Llanbedr-Mathafarn-Gwion-Goch, the contiguous parish is called Llanbedr, the church dedicated to St. Peter; Mathafarn, the place (man) of a tavern; Gwion Goch, the name of the owner. Now take the next. Llanfair, St. Mary’s Church; Mathafarn,
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tavern; eithaf, extreme, furthest; the suffix eithaf was added to the latter tavern to distinguish it from the other.
This parish is famous for being the birthplace of Goronwy Owen, one of the greatest poets of Wales. He was born here, January 7th, 1722.
LLANFAIR-PWLL-GWYNGYLL. — Llanfair, St. Mary’s Church; pwll, pool; gwyn, white; cyll, hazel wood. Ceris Pool, Menai Straits, is contiguous to this place, and the banks of the straits were sometime covered with white hazel wood. The full name is sometimes playfully given as Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwlltysiliogogogogoch — a rather pretty and inviting word to a Saxon tourist. The railway station is called Llanfair P.G.
LLANFAIR-YN-NGHORNWY. — Llanfair — a church dedicated to St. Mary; yn, the; corn-wy, land projecting out to the water, which is very descriptive of this part of the parish.
LLANFAIR-YN-NEUBWLL. — Llanfair — St. Mary’s church; yn, in; neubwll dau bwll, two pools, which are visible from the church.
Llanfechell. — Mechell or Mechyll, the son of Echwydd, was a Welsh bishop, and the church was dedicated to him in the seventh century. He was buried in Penrhos Llugwy, and Mr. Rowlands (Mona Antiqua) says that an old stone was found there in the eighteenth century bearing his name.
LLANFIHANGEL DIN SYLWY. — Llanfihangel, St. Michael’s Church. Din Sylwy, according to some, is a contraction of Dinas Sylwi, the gazing city; others
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trace it to Din Sol, the city of the sun. It is generally believed that an old British stronghold stood here, and was taken by the Romans during the subjugation of Mona. We offer the following derivation: Din, a hill; syl-sylli, to gaze; the name, therefore, signifies a church on a hill which commands a view of the river or water.
LLANFIHANGEL TRE’R BEIRDD. — Llanfihangel, St. Michael’s Church. Tre’r Beirdd, the bards’ dwelling-place. It is supposed that a Druidic station and a bard’s seminary existed here in remote times, from which circumstance the village and parish derive the name.
LLANGADWALADR. — The Church is said to have been founded by Cadwaladr, last king of the Britons, and made one of the sanctuaries of Mona.
LLANGEFNI. — The name signifies a church on the river Cefni, which runs through the place.
LLANGOED. — The name signifies a church in the wood, so called from the woody nature of the neighbourhood. The church was dedicated to Cawrdaf in the sixth century, and the parish is sometimes called Llangawrdaf.
LLANGRISTIOLUS. — Cristiolus, a descendant of Einyr Llydaw, flourished in the seventh century, and built the church which commemorated his name.
LLANIESTYN.— The titular saint of this church was St. Iestyn, son of Geraint, one of Arthur’s knights.
LLANRHYDDLAD.— Rhuddlad, a daughter of the King of Leinster, Ireland, was a saintess of the seventh century, and the supposed founder of the above church. One
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author thinks the right wording is Rhyddlad; rhydd, at liberty, free; lad = gwlad, country. Perhaps the prefix is rhudd, red; the name, therefore, means red soil or country.
LLANTRISANT. — The church is dedicated to tri sant, three saints: Afren, Ieuan, and Savan, who, it is supposed, founded it in the year 570.
A monument is seen here in memory of Rev. Hugh Williams, D.D., father of Sir Wm. Williams, speaker of the House of Commons and Solicitor General in 1687.
LLECHYLCHED. — Some think the church is dedicated to Ilched or Ylched. The name is, probably, a compound of llech, a flat stone; and cylched, a circumference, that which goes about or encloses. Cylchedu, to encircle, to include in a circle. Perhaps the name has reference to the Druidical circle stones.
MALLDRAETH. — Mall — sodden; traeth, beach or marsh. The place is sometimes called Cors Ddygai. The hundred of Malldraeth contains many parishes, and reaches from the sea near Aberffraw to the vicinity of Traethcoch.
MENAI BRIDGE. — The Welsh name is Porthaethwy, which is variously derived. The late Rev P. B. Williams writes: — “This ferry, probably, took its name from the hundred or division in which it is situated — Tindaethwy. Iago Emlyn derives aethwy thus: Aeth, terrible; wy-gwy, water; founding his reason on the perilousness of the passage across the straits. Another writer thinks it is Porth-y-caeth-wy, the port of the narrow water: The place has been popularly called Menai Bridge ever since the construction of the world-
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renowned bridge that spans the straits. Menai comes from Main-aw, which signifies the narrow water; or it might be Main-wy, which means the same.
MOELFRE. — A very common place-name in Wales. It is a compound of Moel, bare, bald; and bre, a hill, mountain. The name is generally applied to a treeless hill, but covered with short, smooth grass, sometimes interspersed with heath.
MYNYDD PARYS. — Parys mountain, probably from a Robert Parys, who was chamberlain of North Wales in the reign of Henry IV. This hill is noted for its copper ore.
NEBO. — This village takes its name from a Nonconformist chapel in the place.
NIWBWRCH, or Newborough. — Its ancient name, according to some was Rhosfair, from a small church dedicated to St. Mary. Mr. Rowlands thinks the name was Rhos Hir, long meadow, from its situation in an extensive marshy plain on the eastern side. The place was once the capital of Mona, and the residence of the princes of North Wales. Edward I. made it a free corporation, from which circumstance originated the present name of Newborough. Niwbwrch probably represents the older pronunciation of Newborough.
PENCARNEDDI. — Pen, head, top, end; Carneddi, a plural form of Carnedd, which denotes a sepulchral heap of stones. Carneddau were the common monuments erected by the ancient Britons in honour of their great men.
PENMYNYDD. — The name signifies mountain top, and was given to the village from respect to the mansion of the same name, which is famous for being the place where Owain Tudor was born in 1384.
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PENSARN. — Pen, head, end; Sarn, Roman paved road, a causeway. A name of frequent occurrence in Welsh topography.
PENTRAETH. —The parish is also called Llanfair Bettws-Geraint. The church was dedicated to St. Mary about the sixth century, and supposed to have been built by Ceraint or Gerimius, grandson of Constantine. The village is called Pentraeth from its being situated at the head or upper end of the sandy beach, or bay, which is called Traethcoch or Red Wharf Bay.
PONTRIPONT. — A corruption, probably, of Pontrhydy-bont. The ancient name was Rhydpont, or Rhyd-y-bont, the ford of the bridge. The prefix pont was probably added when another bridge was built across Rhydybont.
RHOSBEIRIO. — Rhos, a moor, a dry meadow; Peirio, the name of the son of Caw of Twrcelyn, to whom the church is dedicated. Peirio implies what causes or effects. “Abwy a bair wybod lle bo” — carrion will cause it to be known where it is.
RHOSCOLYN. — Rhos, a moor, a dry meadow; Colyn is perhaps allied with Colofn, a column, a pillar. It is said that the Romans erected a column here to perpetuate the memory of their conquests in Mona. The ancient name of the parish was Llanwenfaen, from respect to Gwenfaen, the daughter of Pawl Hen, who is supposed to have founded a religious institution here.
RHOSNEIGR. — Rhos, a moor; neigr is generally supposed to be a corruption of niger = black, in allusion to the black hue and peaty nature of the soil.
RHOSYBOL. — Bol is an etymological puzzle. It looks like a contraction of Paul-Paulinus. Edward Llwyd refers to a place called Pant-y-Polion, near which he
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found an inscription of the name Paulinus. Some think that Suetonius Paulinus once took up his abode in Talybolion. We are inclined to think bol is a corruption of moel, a coped hill. Moel Don is now commonly called Bol y Don. Talybolion was, probably, some time called Talymoelion. The name therefore, denotes a moor near a coped hill.
TRAETHCOCH. — Traeth — beach, sands; coch, probably from Gwion Goch.
TREGAIAN. — Caian, a saint who flourished about the middle of the fifth century, and founded the church of Tregaian.
TRE-WALCHMAI. — Tre, a dwelling-place; Gwalchmai, the son of Meilir. The name was bestowed upon the place about the twelfth century. Gwalchmai implies a hero in war.
VALLEY. — A gross mutilation of the Welsh Mael-dy, or Mael-le, a house of trade or traffic. Tacitus informs us that an extensive trade was carried on between this district and Ireland in the time of Julius Agricola. There is a homestead not far from the place called “Ty Milo,” which, evidently, is a corruption of “Ty Maelu,” a house of trade.
YNYS BRONWEN. — It is recorded in the “Mabinogion” that Bronwen, the daughter of Llyr, was buried here. “Bedd petryal a wnaed i Vronwen, verch Llyr, ar lan afon Alaw” — i.e., “A square grave was made for Bronwen, the daughter of Llyr, on the banks of the river Alaw (Cambro-Briton, vol. ii., p. 71.) Ynys means an island.
YNYS SEIRIOL. — It is also called Puffin Island. It is about one mile in length and half a mile in breadth. Seiriol, son of Owen Danwyn, erected his cell here in the sixth century.
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[BRYCHEINIOG.] The county was anciently called Garth Madryn; garth, that part of a mountain that terminates in a point, a promontory; Madryn, an old Welsh word for fox. It appears that madryn’s offspring, wolves, wild cats and beavers abounded in that part of the principality in time of yore.
Brychan ruled over that part of the country about A.D. 400-450, and gave the county its present name. The name has been variously spelt — Brechiniawg, Brechiniaug, Brechiniog, Brecheiniog and Brycheiniog. Leland spells it Brekenock, Brecknock, Brekenok, and Breknok. Brecknock is the English form of Brycheiniog, and Brecon probably a contraction thereof made by persons who were unable to pronounce Brych or Brech; or it may be an English form of the Latinised Brechinia. Brecknock was constituted a county by an act of Henry VIII in 1536. Before 1536, the English form was Brecknock, but afterwards it was known as Brecknock and Brecon. In 1606 the town was called Brecon and Brecknock. The official method of spelling the name has almost invariably been Brecknock.
Brychan is probably derived from brych, which signifies brindled, or spotted.
Dyn brych, a freckled man.
ABERBAIDON. — This place is situated at the confluence of the rivers Baidon and Usk. The radix is Baid, briskness, liveliness.
ABERCRAVE. — The old Welsh name was Abercrâf, from its situation at the confluence of the brook Craf or
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Crai, with the river Tawy. Cra-af, the issuing forth, the channel torn by the impulsive force of the stream, as well as the act of tearing or breaking up any substance. Crafu means to scratch; crafangu, to claw, to gripe.
ABERGWESYN. — The place is situated at the confluence of the rivers Gwesyn and Irvon. According to the Welsh Triads, Gwesyn is an old Welsh word for a shepherd, and he was so called after Gwesyn, the shepherd of Goronwy ab Ednyfain. The district is noted for rearing sheep, and some think that the name Gwesyn was given to the stream that runs through the place in honour of some popular shepherd.
ABERHONDDU. — Honddu, the name of the river that, on approaching the town, flows quietly into and joins the Usk to run to its destination. Hon represents or older Hodn, and ddu, black, seems to indicate the respective hue of the water. Many Welsh streams and lakes received their names from the peculiar hue of their respective waters, such as Gwenffrwd, white stream; Pwllglas, blue pool. Llewellyn uses the word Hoen in that sense: “Hoen blodau haf,” the colour of the summer flowers. Hoen also implies liveliness, gladness.
Perhaps hoen was used to denote the lively nature of the river, and ddu, black, to indicate the hue of its waters. Others seem to think that the name is a compound of hawn-heini, swift, wild, hasty; and dwy, which implies a sacred character. The term was applied by the Druids to their sacred stream, such as Dyfrdwy, &c.
We rather think the correct wording is Hawn-ddu, the rapid black stream, which is true description of
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its course from its rise on the Eppynt mountain to its junction with the Usk.
ABERLLYFNI. — Llyfni is a compound of llyfn, smooth; and wy, water. The place is delightfully situated at the junction of the Llyfni and Wye Rivers.
ABERYSCIR. — A corruption of Aberesgair, from its situation on the river Esgair, which discharges itself here into the river Usk. Esgair here implies a branch, or tributary.
BATTLE. — This small parish, according to tradition, received its name from a battle that was fought here, in which Bleddyn ab Maenyrch, the last of the Brychan princes was killed by Bernard de Newmarch. We find several names in the vicinity which favour the above derivation, such as Heol y Cymry, the Welshmen’s road; Cwm Gwyr y Gad, the vale of the battle men.
BEAUFORT. — The popular Welsh name of this place is Cendl, from Kendall, the name of the proprietor of the Ironworks that were once the mainstay of the place. The present name was given in honour of the Duke of Beaufort.
BEULAH. — This village takes its name from a chapel of that name which belongs to the Congregational body.
BRONLLYS. — Some spell it Brynllys, and others Brwynllys, but the former is the correct wording. A farmhouse in the parish is called Bryn y Groes, the hill of the cross. History points to the probability that wars were engaged in here, from which we may infer that a llys, a court, was held on a certain hill in the vicinity. The old castle is still called Bronllys.
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BRYNMAWR. — It was anciently called Waun Helygen willow-tree common, from a meadow in the place which, abounded with willow-trees, but when it became an important seat of the iron and coal trades, the old name was changed for the new and more dignified one of Brynmawr, the big hill.
BUILTH. — This name is a mutation of Buallt. Some are of opinion that Buallt is the Bulceum Silurum of the Romans, but others are induced to think the name is a derivative of Bual, the wild ox or buffalo. Llanfair-yn-Muallt, St. Mary’s Church in the wood of the wild ox. Historians believe that the wild ox ranged unmolested in the forests of this district. We offer the following derivation; Bu, an ox; allt, gallt, a wooded eminence.
CAPEL ISAF. — Isaf, lower, is a differentia added to distinguish it from Capel Uchaf.
CAPEL UCHAF. — The name means the higher chapel, and it was so called from the chapel of ease that was built in the place.
CAPELYFFIN. — The name signifies boundary chapel, and is derived by Mr. Jones (History of Brecknock) thus: “In 1708 there was a long dispute in the ecclesiastical court about this chapel (chapel of the boundary); Lewis Thomas, clerk, vicar of Llanigon, refused to do duty here as there was no salary annexed to the cure, whereupon he was cited to the bishop’s, court at the promotion of some of the parishioners, and in the articles filed against him it is stated that sometimes a corpse remained uninterred a whole night, and children died without being baptized in consequence of the vicar’s neglect, though he had theretofore regularly officiated there by himself or curate for ten or twelve
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years. In this cause many old witnesses were examined, two or three of them say the chapel is in the hamlet of Blaenhwch, in the parish of Glasbury, others that it is in Llanigon, but all agree that it is a chapel of ease to the latter.”
CATHEDIN. — Mr. Jones, in his “History of Brecknock,” states that this vicinity was given by Bernard de Newmarch towards the support of Gwrgan, who was to be kept confined in Brecon Castle. The origin of the word is uncertain.
CEFN-COED-Y-CYMMER. — Cefn, back, ridge; coed, wood; y, the; cymmer, confluence of waters. The village is situated on a rising, and (one time) very woody eminence, below which the Taf Fawr and Taf Fechan embrace each other.
CENOL. — Canol, middle, is the right wording. This picturesque neighbourhood forms the middle of Llanfihangel-Cwmdu; hence the name.
CIL-LE. — This name signifies a sequestered place.
CILMERY. — Some think the right wording is Cil Mieri cil, is spelt Kil in Ireland and signifies a church; mieri, plural of miaren, a bramble. We rather think the name is a corruption of Cil-Mary, St. Mary’s Church.
COLBREN. — Col, a sharp hillock; pren, a tree, a piece of wood. Some think the word is a corruption of coelbren, a piece of wood used in choosing or balloting.
CRAY. — This name is, probably, a corruption of crai, which, when used geographically, denotes a deep place in a valley. The word is used to signify a hole in the handle of a weapon. Crai’r nodwydd, the eye or hole of a needle.
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The Swansea reservoir is situated in this beautiful valley.
CRICKADARN. — Some are of opinion that Crug-cadarn is the true orthography. Crug, heap or bank; cadarn, strong. The church was built upon the top of a craggy hillock. We rather think it is a contraction of Cerrygcadarn, from the rocks and stones which appear frequently on the surface in different parts of the parish. The river Clettwr rushes over rocks and through craggy places until it falls into the Wye at Erwood. Clettwr is a contraction of caled-ddwr, hard water, or it might be Clyd-ddwr, sheltered water.
CRICKHOWEL. — A mutation of Crug Hywel, or Cerrig Hywel. Crug, a heap; hywel, conspicuous. Cerrig, stones; Howel, proper name. Historians differ as to the application of the word Hywel. Some apply it to the place from the conspicuity of the hill; others apply it to Howel, the prince of Glamorgan. The latter theory is supported by the fact that in this vicinity the territorial boundaries of Howel and the Lords of Brecknock were determined. After the battle Howel raised a huge heap of stones to define the boundary henceforth; hence the name Crug Hywel, Howel’s heap. Cerrig Hywel alludes to the same circumstance. Some derive the name from Crug Hywel, an ancient British fortress, surrounded by large heaps of stones, situated about two miles north-north-east of the town, the remains of which are still visible.
CWMIOY. — A corruption of Cwm Iau, the vale of yoke, so called, probably, from the resemblance of the vale to oxen’s yoke. “Cymerwch fy iau arnoch.” — “take My yoke upon you.”
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DEFYNOG. — Some derive this name from dyfnog, which signifies a place abounding with glens. Dyfn, deep. Devon comes from the same root. Others think the patron saint is Dyfnog, the son of Medrod, a grandson of Cradoc Freich-fras, who flourished in the sixth century. The right wording is Tref Cynog. Saint Cynog, son of Brychan, flourished in the fifth century, and founded a church here, which is dedicated to him. His name is preserved also in Merthyr Cynog, and Llangynog.
DOLYGAER. Dol, meadow; gaer — caer, a wall. This place took its name from a farmhouse of the same name.
DUKESTOWN. — In honour of the Duke of Beaufort.
DYFNANT. — A compound of dyfn, deep, and nant, a brook.
ERWOOD. — Some think this is an Anglicized form of the Welsh Erw-yd, which signifies the land of corn. It is, probably, a corruption of y rhyd, the ford, in allusion to a certain ford in the river Wye, where cattle were wont to cross in time of yore.
FELINFACH. — The name means the little mill probably derived from an old mill which formed the nucleus of the village.
GARTH. — From an old mansion of the name, whence the celebrated Charles Wesley had his “better half.” Garth has been explained in the introduction.
GLASBURY.— -This name is derived by some from glas, green, verdant, and bury, borough, probably from, the beauty and fertility of the valley. The ancient
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name of this place was Y Clas, the green or verdant inclosure. Clasdir means glebe land.
GWENDDWR. — A compound of gwen, feminine form of gwyn, white, clear, transparent, and dwr, water.
GWRAVOG. — This name has suffered a little from mutation. Gwar, a ridge; af from haf, summer; hafog; summer-like.
HALFWAY. — This village derives its name from an inn so called, which is situated half-way between Trecastell and Llandovery.
HAY. — The original name was Gelli, which signifies an enclosed park or forest, containing wood or boscage within a fence or pale; a grove; and the present name is supposed to have been derived from the Norman-French Haye or Haie, which originally meant the hedge or inclosure itself only, but in course of time its meaning was amplified, and the name was used to denote the wood and ground inclosed. Haier, to inclose. Here we perceive the Welsh name supplanted by that of the Norman Castle.
LIBANUS. — This place probably derives its name from a sacred edifice so called, which belongs to the Congregational body.
LLANAFAN FAWR. — The church was dedicated to bishop Ieuan or Ivan, whose name is found in the list of the prelates of St. David’s during the tenth century, and who is supposed to have been murdered by the Danes in a meadow on the Whefri side, a little below the vicarage house, where a maen hir was placed, obviously, in memory of the martyred bishop. On an altar-tomb in the churchyard the following inscription is discernible: “Hic jacet Sanctus Avanus Episcopus.”
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LLANAMLECH. — Aml, many; llech-lech, a stone. The church is built upon the strata of the rock, and the churchyard contains a great number of stones and fragments of slates. There is a village called Llechfaen in the same parish, which supports the given derivation.
LLANBEDR YSTRADYW. — Llanbedr, St. Peter’s church. Ystradyw, or more correctly Ystrad-wy, the vale of waters, was added to distinguish the parish from St. Peter’s at Painscastle, Glasbury, &c. Ystrad yw, also denotes the vale of EWIAS, Herefordshire.
LLANDEFAELOG FACH. — The old church was dedicated to St. Tyfaelog. It was rebuilt in 1831. The village is beautifully situated on the river Honddu.
LLANDEFALLEY. — Defalley may be a corruption of Tyvaelog, to whom this church was probably dedicated.
LLANDEILO ARFAN. — The church is dedicated to St. Teilo. Arfan is probably a contraction of Ar Mawen. The church is situated near the conflux of three brooks, the Mawen, the Ethryw, and Cilieni. This derivation is supported by the following fact: In the register book of Devynock the following may be seen, “Siwan Morgan de Nant y Sebon in Llandeilo ar Fawen, sepulta est aet. 96, octris. 1726.” Mawen signifies broad water.
LLANDDEW. — It is sometimes spelt Llanthew. — Some think the right wording is Llandduw, the church of God, or the church of the Holy Trinity. We have no instance of a church thus dedicated. The name is probably an abbreviation of Llanddewi, the church of St. David’s. It appears that Llanddew was at one time a seat and house of the bishop of St. David’s.
LLANELLI. — The church is supposed to have been
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dedicated to Ellyned or Eilineth, a daughter of Brychan. Some think it was anciently called Llanellyned, of which Llanelly is an abbreviation.
LLANFEUGAN. — Meugan, the son of Gwyndaf Hen, was a saint of the sixth century, and founded the church which bears his name.
LLANFIHANGEL CWMDU. — Llanfihangel, St. Michael’s church. Opinions differ as to Cwmdu, the black or gloomy vale. The old inhabitants very strongly objected to the name Cwmdu, as the following couplet shows;
Cam enwir ef Cwmdu,
Cwm gwyn yw’n cwm ni.
It is wrongly called the vale of gloom, Ours is a fair and bright coomb.
A glance at this cheerful vale would never suggest such a gloomy appellation. The ancient name of the parish was Llanfihangel tref Cerriau, or Caerau, from the numerous fortifications there are in it, and the present name is supposed to have taken its origin from the black moorstone rock, which is on the brow of an adjacent hill. Some derive it from Cwm De, the south vale, from its being situated in the southern part of the cantrev of Crickhowell. We have instances of du being changed, into de and dee, such as Tydu-Tydee, &c., and it might have undergone the same process here.
LLANFIHANGEL NANTBRAN. — The church was dedicated to St. Michael, and is situated on a tributary called Bran. Nant Bran, Bran brook.
LLANFILO. — The church is dedicated to Milburg, the eldest daughter of Merwald, King of Mercia, and a saint of the seventh century. Ffynon Vila, a well in the neighbourhood, also preserves her name.
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LLANFRYNACH. — Brynach, an abbot and confessor, married Corth, the daughter of Brychan. The church was dedicated to him.
LLANGAMMARCH. — Some think the name signifies the church upon the river Cammarch, but the general opinion is that the church is dedicated to Cammarch, a grandson of Brychan.
LLANGASTY-TALYLLYN. — Gastyn was an eminent religious teacher in Brychan’s family, and the above church was dedicated to him. Talyllyn, the end of the lake, in allusion to the situation of the church.
LLANGANTEN. — The church is dedicated to Canten, grandson of Brychan.
LLANGATTOCK. — The church is dedicated to Cattwg, grandson of Brychan.
LLANGORS. — A contraction of Llan-yn-y-gors, the church in the Fen or Marsh. The soil near the lake is very marshy. The correct name of the lake is Llynsafaddan, the standing water or lake. An old tradition says that the lake covers the remains of an ancient and populous city called Loventium.
LLANGYNIDR. — St. Cynidr, grandson of Brychan, founded the churches at Llangynidr and Aberyscir, which were subsequently dedicated to him and St. Mary.
LLANIGON. — The old church was dedicated either to Eigen, daughter of Cradoc ab Bran, or to Eigion or Eigron, son of Caw, a saint of the sixth century. The present church is dedicated to Nicholas.
LLANILID. — The church was dedicated to St. Ilid, and is situated on the banks of the river Crai.
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LLANLLEONFOEL. — Lleon might have reference to Sarn Lleon or Sarn Helen, Helen’s causeway, a branch of which, it is supposed, passed through the place. The suffix foel signifies a bare tract of land.
LLANSPYDDYD. — A corruption, according to some, of Llan-osbaidd-ty, a house of entertainment or refreshment for guests. In ancient times hospitable mansions were kept by the monks to entertain man and beast free of charge, and the chief officer therein was called Hostillarius, whose sole duty was “To welcome the coming, speed the going guest.” It is said that this hospitium was supported by the priory of Malvern.
LLANWRTYD. — The church, according to some, is dedicated to St. Wrtyd, but we cannot find the name in “Bonedd y Saint.” Its proximity to the river Irvon, where, in times of yore, there was a ford, which is now spanned by a stone bridge, induces us to think the right wording is Llan-wrth-y-rhyd, the church by the ford. A place in Herefordshire is called Byford from the situation of the church by a ford. The ancient name of the village was Pontrhydybere, which is a compound of pont, bridge; rhyd, ford; y, the; fferau, ankles; signifying a bridge spanning a ford which one could wade without going over one’s ankles. Irfon, or Irfawn, signifies the oozings from the turbary, which is very descriptive of the river.
LLANYWERN. — Gwern means a bog or swamp; gwernen, the alder tree; the alder grows in wet swampy places. The name signifies the church in the swamp or alderwood.
LLECHFAEN. — The ancient etymology of this name means the “upright or lofty stone.” There was a
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chapel of ease here sometime to the mother church of Llanamlech.
LLECHRYD. — From a farm of the name, but it is now called Rhymney Bridge from the railway station.
LLWYNEGROG. — The right wording is Llwyn-y-grog, which means the bush of the cross.
LLYSWEN. — The name signifies a white court. A Welsh prince resided in the parish at some period, and probably held a court here; hence the name. Some think it is Llys Owen, Owen’s court; but who this Owen was, we are not informed.
LLYWEL. — Sometimes spelt Lliwel, which, according to some is a mutation of Llu-lle, the residence of the army, in allusion to the soldiers of Rhys ab Tewdwr making this place one of their stations to resist the attacks of the Norman invaders. It is derived by some from Lle Wyllt, a nephew of Rhys ab Tewdwr. We offer the following: Lly, what is manifest; wel-gwel, see; signifying a conspicuous place. Trecastell mountain is 2,596 feet high.
MAESYGWARTHAF. — Maes, a field; gwarthaf, the upper part, the summit. The village lies in the upper part of the parish; hence its descriptive name. Some of the inhabitants think the name is a corruption of Maesygwartheg, cattle field.
MAESYMYNYS. — Ym, yn, in; ynys, island; therefore, it literally means a field in the island. This derivation is supported by the fact that Llanynys is the name of the contiguous parish.
MERTHYR CYNOG. — Merthyr, martyr; Cynog, the eldest son of Brychan. He was murdered by the Saxon
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pagans on a mountain called Y Fan, where a church was built on his grave in commemoration of his martyrdom, which was called Merthyr Cynog.
NANTYFFIN. — The name signifies the boundary brook. The bounds of a parish or county are frequently defined by certain marks or boundaries, such as heaps of stones, dikes, hedges, ditches, rivers, streams, rivulets, &c.
NANTYRARIAN. — It signifies the silver brook.
DEWCHURCH. — The ancient name of this church was. Llau-ddulas-tir-yr-Abbad. — It was presented by Rhys ab Gruffydd, to the monastery of Strata Florida, on account of which it was called Tir-yr-Abbad, abbot’s land. In 1716 a new church was built here; hence the new name.
ONLLWYN. — This appears like a transposition of Llwyn On, the ash grove.
PANTYCELYN. — Pant, a hollow, a low place; celyn, holly wood.
PATRISHOW. — The name is a corruption, either of Parthau yr Ishow, the territory of Ishow, the patron saint of the parish, or of Merthyr Ishow. It appears that Bishop Herewald, in the eleventh century, dedicated the church to Ishow, and named it Merthyr Yssui.
PENCELLI. — This is a compound of pen, head, and celli, grove.
PENDERYN. — A corruption probably of Penydaren, which is a very frequent term in South Wales, signifying a rocky cliff, a rocky tump. The church is situated on the very summit of a rock. Pen-mailard is close by, which is a corruption of Pen-moel-arth, the summit of the bare cliff.
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PENTRE BERW. — Pentre — village; Berw, perhaps refers to Plus Berw. Berw’rdwr means water cress, and berw’r gerddi — garden cress. Near Plas Berw there is a small waterfall. Berw means also a boiling, an ebullition.
PENTRE BWAAU. — Pentre — village; Bwaau — bows. Tradition has it that this place was noted sometime for being the armoury where our forefathers kept their bows in time of war.
PENTREFELIN. — Pentre, village; felin, mill.
PENTRE SOLERS. — From the Solers or de Solariis, Norman conquerors, who settled in the neighbourhood, and continued to be very wealthy and influential here until the middle of the seventeenth century. Another branch of the house of Solers settled at Pauntley and Shipton Solers, in Gloucestershire.
PENWYLLT. — -A corruption of Pen-wyll (gwyll), the gloomy place. Gwyll is an old Welsh word to denote a fairy, and perhaps this isolated spot was a fairy hill.
PONTBRENLLWYD. — Pont, bridge; pren, wood; llwyd grey, adorable. In olden times a very ancient oak-tree was thrown across the rivulet in the place, which was a very good specimen of the unadorned wooden bridges of our forefathers. In course of time this old much-worn oak became a kind of trough, for which it was called Pontbrenllwyd.
PONTNEDDFECHAN. — Nedd fechan, the lesser Neath, is a tributary emptying itself into the greater Neath river, and spanned by a bridge in the village, hence the name.
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PONTSARN. — Pont, bridge; sarn, Roman paved road. The name is an abbreviation of Pont-y-Sarn-hir, the bridge of the long Roman road. One branch of the Roman road called Sarn Hir went through the Rhymney Valley Gelligaer, Twynywaun, Penygarndu, Pantcadifor, Pontsarn and ascended the Brecon Beacons and terminated at Caerbannau near the town of Brecon. This road crossed the Taff a little below the present bridge, where the river could be forded.
PONTSENNY. — The name signifies a bridge across the Senny river. Senny is derived by some from san, a fishery, nets; and gwy, water; signifying a river abounding in fish. Mr. Jones (“ History of Brecknock “) derives it from the Celtic seanaidd, to drop or ooze forth, the name, accordingly, signifying the oozing or flowing water.
PONTSTICYLL. — A compound of pont, bridge; and ystigl, a stile, from the Anglo-Saxon stigel, a step. Stigan, to ascend. About the beginning of this century there was an old bridge, a little below the village, with a stile at each end of it, from which the place received its name.
PRINCETOWN. — From an old public house in the place called “Prince of Wales.”
PWLLGWRACH. — Pwll, a pool; gwrach, a hag; literally, the hag’s pool. The village lies in a deep valley at the base of Talgarth Hill.
RHOSFERRIG. — Rhos, moor, meadow; Ferrig from Ferreg, an extensive district situate between the rivers Wye and Severn. The suffix is probably a corruption of Meurig.
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SEVEN SISTERS. — Mr. Bevan, the brewer, when he opened his colliery in the place, called it Seven Sisters in honour of his Seven daughters.
TAFARNAU BACH. — The ancient name of this place was Twyn-aber-dwynant, a hillock where two brooks embrace each other. Some derive the present name from tafarn a bach, a public house with a hook attached to the outer wall, whereto the rider, having dismounted his steed, could fasten it. Others derive it from the great number of small taverns in the place.
TALACHDDU. — Achddu is the name of a small brook, Ack, a stem, a pedigree, a river; ddu, inflection of du, black. We find ach in Clydach, Mawddach, &c. The river Ach has its source in the Black Mountain; hence it is called Achddu.
TALGARTH. — Garth means a cape, a hill. Talgarth denotes the end or head of a cape, or the brow of a hill.
TALYBONT. — Tal, when applied to places, means end; but when applied to persons it denotes front. Taliesin means radiant front or luminous head. Talybont means Bridgend.
TALYLLYN. —Llyn, lake. The name signifies the end of a lake. Safaddan Lake is close by.
THREE COCKS. — From a public house of the name.
TORPANTAU. A compound of tor, a break, a rupture; and pantau, plural of pant, hollow: a name quite descriptive of this wild spot. A great number of brooks rush impetuously from the higher grounds, forming excavations in the hills, a glance at which immediately helps one to catch the meaning of the name.
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TRALLWNG. — Some think the name signifies “a soft place on the road or elsewhere that travellers may be apt to sink into; a dirty, boggy place.” Edward Llwyd derives it from Traeth-lyn, a quagmire. The distance of this place from the sea-shore dismisses the component traeth from the name altogether. Mr. Jones (History of Brecknock) thinks the name is a corruption of Tre’y lleng, oppidum legionis, the town of the legion, founding his reasons upon the supposition that a summer camp of the second legion of Augustus must have been at Twyn-y-gaer, a hill in the parish where an artificial mound is still seen.
TRECASTELL. — Tre, a place; castell, castle. A castle was built here by Bernard de Newmarch, some ruins of which are to be seen now; hence the name.
TREFECCA. — The name signifies Rebecca’s home, from an heiress of the name of Rebecca Prosser, who built it in the reign of Elizabeth.
TREFIL. — Some think the name is a mutation of Tir-foel, barren land, which is very descriptive of the place, but we rather think it is a compound of tre, a place, and mul, an animal, a beast. Stud farms were very numerous among the ancient Britons, and one might have been here.
TRENGARTH. Tre, a homestead, a village; n-yn, in, y, the, garth, promontory.
TRE’R ESGOB. — The tenants in this place owe suit, and service to the bishop’s courts leet and courts baron, and pay their chief rents at Llanddewi, St. David’s. Tre’r Esgob means Bishop’s place.
VAENOR. — This is derived by some from Maenawr, which signifies a district surrounded by a wall, a manor.
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According to the laws of Howell the Good, the Maenawr contained 1024 acres. This one was probably the demesne attached to Morlais castle. In ancient MSS. the parish is called Faenor Wen, signifying Gwen or Gwenffrewi’s demesne or manor. It survives in North Wales as Vaenol. Some think it is etymologically distinct from English manor, and seems to have meant a group of stone buildings. Others think that the root is ban, high or lofty; and ‘or’ added to denote a border or a boundary. The parish is situate near the base of Bannau Brycheiniog — Brecon Beacons.
VELINDRE. — The right wording is y felin-dre, the mill of the town, from an old mill, called the lord’s, mill, that stood here in ancient times.
YSTRADFELLTE. — Ystrad has already been explained. It means here a flat or low valley formed by the course of the river Mellte. Mellte — mellten, lightning. The river is so called because it runs very rapidly for some distance on the surface, and then it is suddenly lost underground.
YSTRADGYNLAIS. — It is supposed that this Ystrad, vale, was the marriage portion that Gunleus ap Glewisseg, prince of Gwent, and father of Saint Cattwg, received with his wife, Gwladys, daughter of Brychan. Others state that the church is dedicated to St. Mary, and not to St. Gunleus, and that the proper name of the parish is Ystrad Gwrlais, or Garwlais, signifying “the vale of the rough-sounding brook,” and is derived from a stream so called, which forms a boundary between the counties of Brecknock and Glamorgan. Iago Emlyn derives Cynlais from cyn, primeval; and clais, a trench through: which a stream flows.
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CARDIGAN is a corruption of Ceredigion, the original name, which was so called after Ceredig, the son of Cunedda Wledig, who became its king about the end of the fourth century. It is also called Aberteifi, from the situation of its county town at the estuary of the river Teivi. Taf is the radix which means spreading. Taf-gwy — Teifi, the spreading or extending water.
ABERAERON. — This place is situated at the mouth of the river Aeron, which is probably a compound of air and ain, signifying bright and clear water.
ABERARTH.— This village is situated at the mouth of the river Arth; hence the name. Arth is the Welsh for “bear,” and perhaps the river received its name on account of the noisy, blustering, bear-like character of its waters. Arthu means to growl, like a bear; to bark roughly or hoarsely. Arthog is the name of another brook in the county, which means bearish, gruff. Cyfarth, to bark, belongs to the same family of words.
ABERCERDIN. — A rivulet called Cerdin flows into the river Teivi about a mile above Llandyssul; hence the name of the place. The common opinion in the neighbourhood is that the rivulet was so called from the abundance of cerdin, ash trees, that once adorned its banks.
ABERGWROG. — Gwrog, the river’s name, is a corruption of gwyrog, crooked, devious. Another river in the same county is called Gwyre, which may have the same signification.
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ABERMAID. — Maid means a boundary, what separates, or limits. The name fitly describes the place, since it is a terminating point separating one valley from the other.
ABERPEITHNANT. — Paith, clear, open, transparent; nant, brook: signifying the mouth of the clear brook. Paith is the chief radix in the word gobaith, hope. One who possesses hope has a clear view of the future. Dyffryn Paith, the vale of prospect, is in the same county.
ABERPORTH. — Porth means a harbour. The place is a kind of a natural harbour, on account of which it was called Aber-y-Porth, the mouth of the harbour. ABERYSTWYTH. — This fashionable town and seaport is situated on the conflux of the rivers Ystwyth and Rheidiol, the former of which gives the town its name. Its ancient name was Llanbadarn Gaerog, but it has been known by its present name since the reign of Queen Elizabeth.
ARDUDWY. — Ar, upon or above; tud, soil, land; wy, water; literally, on the land or banks of the Wye.
ARGOED. — Ar-ard, signifying height; coed trees. The name signifies a place sheltered by woods.
ATPAR. — Probably an Anglicized form of At-bar, which means towards the top of the hill. The village is also called Trefhedyn, which is probably a corruption of Tref-y-din.
BETTWS-BLEDRWS. — Bettws has already been explained. The church is dedicated to St. Bledrws; hence the name.
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BETTWS IFAN. — The church is dedicated to St. John. Ifan or Ieuan is an old Welsh form of Ioan, John.
BLAENCARON. — This place is situated near the source of the river Caron; hence the name.
BLAENHOWNANT. — This rivulet is called Hownant, which is a corruption of hoyw, lively; and nant, brook; and the place was so called from its situation near the source of the Hownant.
BLAENPORTH. — Blaen, the extreme end; porth (portus) harbour. In 1114 Gruffydd ab Cynan, Prince of North Wales, came to Ceredigion Iscoed, and laid siege to a fort that Earl Gilbert and the Flemings had built at a place called Blaen Porth Gwythai.
BLAENYPORTH. — Blaen, the extreme end; y, the; porth, harbour. The parish lies on the extreme end of the huge rock which forms the southern side of the natural harbour called Aberporth.
BRECHFA. — A compound of brech, brindled, freckled, and man, a place. It is supposed that Brychan, who came originally from Ireland, and settled in Breconshire in the sixth century, was so called from his being freckled.
BRONGEST. — Bron, a slope, or side of a hill; literally, breast. Cest, a deep glen between two mountains. The name is quite descriptive of the situation of the place.
BRONGWYN.— A parish in Cardigan and Pembroke counties. Some are of opinion that this name is a relic of the Druids, to whose system belonged Ceryg y Bryn Gwyn, i.e., the stones of the hill of judicature. If so, the prefix bron here is a corruption of bryn, a hill.
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BWLCHCRWYS. — Bwlch, a break or breach, a gap, a defile; crwys, a variant form of croes, a cross. The name Bwlch-y-groes is of frequent occurrence in the Principality. We have many instances of croes being changed to crwys, Y Crwys, Pantycrwys and Bwlch-y-crwys, &c. “Dan ei grwys,” under the cross, is a phrase even now frequently used in Wales in reference to the posture of a dead body before it is put into the coffin. In Popish times it was customary to put a cross or a crucifix on a dead body lying in its shroud; but now, although the phrase is occasionally heard, the usage of this Popish relic has been entirely abandoned among the Welsh people. Many Welsh places still retain the name, among which is Bwlchcrwys. It was customary in olden times for pilgrims to prostrate themselves at certain passes to invoke the blessings of the Cross before going through; hence the name Bwlchcrwys or Bwlchygroes.
CAPEL Y DRINDOD. — This village probably derives its name from a Welsh Calvinistic Methodist chapel of the name.
CAPEL SION. — So called from the Calvinistic Methodist chapel in the place.
CAPEL GWNDWN. — Capel, chapel; cwn, an elevation, a rising; dwn, dusky, swarthy, dark.
CEINEWYDD. — A hybrid name made up of quay, from French quai, a mole or bank formed toward the sea or on the side of a river for the purpose of loading and unloading vessels; and newydd, new.
CELLAN. — The name of this parish is a compound of cell, a sheltering place, a grove; and llan, a church, signifying a church in a grove.
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CENARTH. — Some maintain that the right wording is Genarth, the bear’s jaw. Tradition has it that the jaw-bone of a bear was found in the place, and its head in Penarth. Penarth, as we show elsewhere, is Penygarth, and we are inclined to think that Cenarth is a compound of cefn, ridge, back; and garth, a fort, a hill, a cape. The name is a graphic description of the place, being perched on a high ridge, ever watching the graceful movements of the Teivi.
CEULAN. — This place derives its name from the river Ceclan that flows through it. Tradition points to this place as Taliesin’s place of sepulture.
CILCENIN. — Cil, a place of retreat; Cennin, a corrupted form of St. Cannen, to whose memory the parish church is dedicated.
CILCENNIN. — This place probably takes its name from. Cenwyn, a saint belonging to the congregation of Padarn, called Bangor Padarn in Llanbadam Fawr. The church is dedicated to St. Cenwyn.
CILIAU AERON. — The retreats on the Aeron.
CLARACH. — This place takes its name from the river Clarach, near which it is situated. Clar-claer, clear; ach, river.
CNWCH COCH. — -A corruption, probably of an Irish form of Cnwc Coch, the red knoll or mound.
CROES. — This place takes its name from the river Croes, which signifies cross.
CWM BARRE. — -A valley through which the river Barre flows. Bar, a limit; re, a corruption of rau, pluralising bar. The river is the boundary between
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some parts of the parishes of Troedyraur and Penbryn. Barry is supposed to have come from the same root.
CWM RHEIDIOL. — Cwm, a low place surrounded by hills; Rheidiol, the name of the river that flows through it, which is a contraction of rhyd-y-ddol, the stream of the meadow.
DIHEWYD. — A mutation of Dehau-wydd. Dehau, south; gwydd, the state of being in view. Gwyddfod means presence. There is a hill called Moel Dihewyd in the parish, so called from its southern aspect.
DOLBLODAU. — Dol, a meadow; Blodau, flowers.
DOTHI-CAMDDWR. — Dothi, a corrupted form of dowyddu, which implies swelling; Camddwr, the crooked water, the name of the river that flows through the place, so called from its meandering course.
FELINBEDAIR. — Felin, mill; bedair, four. So called from the fact that there are 4 wells contributing their quota to keep the mill going.
FERWIG. — Berw, a boiling, an ebullition; wig, inflection of gwig, a grove, a nook. The right orthography is Berwig, which, according to some, is cognate with Berwick and other places in England.
FFAIR RHOS. — Ffair, fair; rhos, meadow, moorland. In olden times five fairs were held annually in this village, but eventually they were moved to Pontrhydfendigaid.
GARTHELI. — A corrupted form of Gwrtheli, the name of the saint who founded a chapel in the place.
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GWENFYL. — The village takes its name from St. Gwenfyl, who flourished 433-464. The Calvinistic Methodists began to worship here in a barn owned by the Rev. Dl. Rowlands, Llangeitho, in 1757. The Post Office was opened here in July, 1853.
GWBERT. — Gwy — water; bert = pert, pretty.
HAWEN. — The village takes its name from the river Hawen. Hawen ist [sic; = is] a compound of aw, a moving agent, water, and an or ain, brook, signifying the running stream. Some think the name is an abbreviated form of hafod-wen, the white summer-house.
HENBELIN. — A corrupted form, probably, of Henfelin, old mill.
HENFYNYW. — The name signifies “Old Menevia.” Tradition has it that the cathedral of St. David’s was originally designed to have been erected here. This parish is famous for being the place where the patron saint of Wales spent his earlier days. A spring that is near the church is still called Ffynon Ddewi, St. David’s Well.
HENLLAN. — The name signifies old church, and it points out the great antiquity of the original edifice of this parish.
HENLLYS. — Hen, old; llys, court, hall, or seat, signifying the ancient hall. Henllys and Gadlys are found to be very numerous in Wales, as traces of the battles fought by the Welsh princes.
LLANANERCH. — A compound of Llan and llannerch, an enclosure, and sometimes the latter signifies a rising eminence.
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LLANARTH. — Arth here means a bear, according to some. The general opinion of the inhabitants is that bears existed here at some remote period. It is hardly credible that the saintly Cymry, would do the bear such an honour as to couple his name with the sacred edifice; We derive the name from Llan, church; and garth, a hill, and sometimes enclosure.
LLANBADARN. — The church is dedicated to Padarn, who, according to Usher, was an Armorican bishop, and came to Wales with his cousin Cadvan in 516. He left Illtyd’s seminary for Ceredigion, and gathered a congregation of 120 members at a place called afterwards Llanbadarn Fawr. The differentia fawr was added to mark its pre-eminence over the other parishes of the same name, and to distinguish it from the adjacent town of Aberystwyth, which was anciently called Llanbadarn Gaerog.
LLANBEDR-PONT-STEPHAN. — The popular English name is Lampeter, which is an Anglicized form of Llanbedr. We find many churches in Wales bearing the name Pedr, Peter, but who this Peter was is a matter of conjecture. Most writers point to Peter the Apostle. From a certain document the pont, bridge, appears to have been erected early in the fifteenth century. “Rhys, the son of David ap Rhys, of Pencarreg, married LIeuan, daughter of Ieuan David Llwyd ap David Ddu ap David Decka ap Steven, the man who erected Lampeter bridge at his own expense.”
LLANDAIN FACH. — Dain means beautiful, fine; fach little. The name signifies the beautiful little church.
LLANDEGWY. — Tegwy was a saint of the sixth
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century, and a descendant of Nudd Hael. The above church was dedicated to him.
LLANDYSILIOGOGO. — St. Tysilio, a bishop and an eminent author, who flourished about the middle of the seventh century. Brut Tysilio, a copy of which is in the Myv. Arch., is attributed to him. He was the patron saint of many churches in Wales. The differentia gogo is a mutation of gogofau, caves, which are very numerous in the parish.
LLANDYSSUL. — Tysul, a descendant of Cunedda Wledig, and a saint of the sixth century, to whom the above church was dedicated. At Esgair Wen, a small farm in this parish, the immortal Christmas Evans was born on Christmas Day, 1766.
LLANDDEINIOL. — Deiniol Wyn, or Daniel, assisted his father, Dunawd Fur, in founding the celebrated monastery at Bangor Iscoed, and he founded several churches, of which Llanddeiniol is reckoned to be one; hence the name.
LLANDDEWI-ABERARTH. — The church was dedicated to Dewi, the patron saint of Wales. Aber, estuary; Arth, the name of the river, near the mouth of which the village is situated. Arth signifies rough, harsh.
LLANDDEWI-BREFI. — Brefi means bellowing. The traditional ox overstrained himself in endeavouring to draw the avanc (beaver) from the lake, and suddenly expired. The other, having lost his yoke-fellow, would not be consoled, refused food, and wandered about until he died in a place called Brefi, so called from the dismal moans of the sacred animal. Dewi, the patron saint of Wales, founded a church and a religious
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seminary on the spot; hence Llanddewi-Brefi. A famous synod was held here in the 6th century with the view of suppressing the Pelagian heresy.
LLANDDYFRIOG. — Tyfriog, a saint who flourished about the close of the sixth century, founded the church.
LLANFAIR. — The church was dedicated to St. Mary; hence the name of the little village would be Mary’s Church.
LLANFIHANGEL CASTELL GWALLTER. — The church was dedicated to St. Michael. Walter l’Espec built a castle on a hill near the church during the Norman conquest; hence the additional name.
LLANFIHANGEL LLEDROD. — The church is dedicated to St. Michael. Lledrod is a compound of llethr, a slope, and troed, a foot, base; the church being built at the base of the slope.
LLANFIHANGEL-Y-CREUDDYN. — The church is dedicated to St. Michael. Lewis Morris derives Creuddyn from creu, blood; and dun, a fort, signifying a bloody fort. There is a commot of the same name near Conway, in which the castle of Dyganwy was situated, where the English kings, John and Henry III., had their camps in their fruitless expeditions against the Welsh.
LLANGEITHO. — St. Ceitho, son of Cynyr Tarfdrwch, who flourished in the sixth century, founded the church, which was dedicated to him.
LLANGOEDMOR. — Coed, wood; mor-mawr, great. The spot where the church is built abounds with timber of ancient and luxuriant growth.
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LLANGRANNOG. — Some trace the name to St. Cranog, the son of Corun, the son of Ceredig; whilst others derive it from Gwyddno Garanhir (long-shanked), which means the crane, reckoned to be a representative of the priest of the ark, who safely landed the vessel upon the reef of Sarn Badrig, Patrick’s Causeway. We adopt the former derivation.
LLANGUNLLO. — Cunllo, once a prince, became the patron saint of several churches in Wales. He is recorded in Rees’s Welsh Saints as Cynllo, the king.
LLANGWYRYFON. — Gwyryfon, virgins. Tradition says that this church was dedicated to Ursula and 1100 blessed virgins, who fled with St. Padarn from Armorica to avoid the persecution that raged there in the sixth century, and settled in this parish, leading a pure and holy life.
LLANILAR. — The church was dedicated to St. Hilary, who flourished in the 6th century. The parish contains two hamlets, bearing the names Llanilar Uchaf (higher), and Llanilar Isaf (lower).
LLANINA. — The church was dedicated to Ina, King of the West Saxons.
LLANLLWCHAIARN. — Llwchhaiarn was a saint of the 7th century. Iolo MSS give him the honour of having founded many churches, among which the above is named.
LLANLLYR. — Llyr Merini flourished about the end of the 5th century, and founded a church and nunnery at the above place.
LLANRHYSTYD. — The church was dedicated to Rhystyd a descendant of Hywel ap Emyr Llydaw, who flourished in the 6th century.
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LLANSANTFFRAID. — The common opinion is that the church was dedicated to Sanffraid, but we are inclined to think it was dedicated to St. Ffraid, who was called Bridget or Bride, a celebrated Irish saint.
LLANWENOG. — St. Gwenog, son of Gildas, is recorded to have founded the church.
LLANWNDWS. — St. Gwynws founded the church in the 6th century.
LLANWNEN. — The church is supposed to have been dedicated to St. Gwnen.
LLECHRYD. — Llech, a stone; rhyd, a ford, a stream. This place is generally pointed out as the scene of a terrible engagement that took place between Rhys ap Tewdwr and the three sons of Bleddyn ap Cynfyn, in 1087, in which the sons of Bleddyn were defeated and two of them slain on the field. In course of time it is thought a stone was raised here in memory of Rhiryd, one of Bleddyn’s sons. Some think the name is derived from the river being seamed with ledges of rock.
LLWYNDAFYDD. — Llwyn, bush; Dafydd, David; from an ancient house in the place, which belonged to Dafydd ab Ieuan, and where he entertained the Earl of Richmond or his way to Bosworth field.
MERTHYR CYFLEFYR. — Merthyr, martyr; Cyflefyr, name of a descendant of Brychan, who is supposed to have been murdered at a place ever since called after his name.
MOCHROS. — Moch, pigs; rhos, a meadow, a moor. Tradition says that St. Dyfrig was warned in this place by an angel to build a church in the name of the Trinity, where he would see a white sow lying with her sucklings; hence the name.
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MORFA. — The name signifies a marsh, a sea-coast.
MYDYREILIN. — The name, probably, means the eilin (arm) of the river Mudyr. Penelin is the Welsh for elbow. The crooked course of the river here reminds the observer very vividly of a man holding his arm in a sling. Mydyr is a corrupt form of Mudyr, the silent water. Mydroilyn is the official spelling.
NANTCWNLLE. — Nant, brook; Cwnlle is probably a corruption of Cunllo, an eminent British saint of the 5th century. The parish is intersected by the brook, and the church is dedicated to Cunllo.
NANTEIRW. — Nant, brook, a glen; eirw-eirwy, a foaming cataract. Some think that eirw is a corrupt form of aeron, summer fruits, so called on account of the abundance of these fruits on the banks of the rivulet. Perhaps eirw is a mutated form of garw, c.f. Nant Garw.
NEWCHURCH. — It was anciently called Llanfihangel-y-Creuddyn-Uchaf. The present name was derived from the fact that Col. Thos. Johns, Hafod Uchtryd, built a new church here in 1803.
PENDDOL. — Pen, top; dol, meadow, signifying a place at the top or head of a meadow.
PENLLWYN. — Pen, head, top; llwyn, bush, grove.
PENRHIWBAL. — Pen, top; rhiw, slope; bal, prominence. Bal is a general term applied to those mountains that terminate in a peak.
PENRHYLOG. — Pen, head top; rhylog, according to some, is a contraction of yr-haleg, salty place. We rather think it to be rhyllog, the name in full signifying a high place full of clefts.
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PENRHYNCOCH. — Penrhyn, headland; coch, red, so called from the hue of the soil of the land. Coch in many place-names means sun-parched.
PENTREF TALIESIN. — Pentref, a village; Taliesin, the name of the chief of the Welsh bards. His sepulture took place near the village.
PENYBRYN. — The name, which signifies the head or top of the hill, is derived from the situation of the church on the summit of a hill overlooking the sea. Sometimes the parish is called Llanfihangel Penybryn from the dedication of the church to St. Michael.
PENYPARC. — Parc means an enclosed piece of land. In the southern counties it is synonymous with cae, a field. Penyparc, therefore, means the end of a field. Parc is a word of Norman origin.
PONTARFYNACH. — The name signifies the bridge over the river Mynach, which it is supposed was named after one of the monks of the Strata Florida Abbey. It is said that the under arch was thrown across by the monks of Strata Florida about the year 1087, but tradition insists upon ascribing the feat to his satanic majesty, hence the name — The Devil’s Bridge. The tradition runs thus — “An old woman in search of her strayed cow saw her on the opposite side of the cleft rock, and in this lamentable case the devil appeared, sympathised with her deeply, and offered to accommodate her with a bridge over the chasm, if she would suffer him to take the first who passed over it. Reflecting that as she must be ruined in one case, she could not be ruined in the other, she desperately complied. A bridge instantly arose. What a situation! Her cow was dear to her and valuable; but self-preservation
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was an impulse superior to every other consideration. Fortunately, however, she had a dog, and in her pocket a piece of bread. A glorious thought occurred of saving herself and cow by the sacrifice of her cur. She took the piece of bread from her pocket and threw it on the other side. Her dog started over the bridge to seize it. Satan looked peevishly askance, galled at the thought of being outwitted by an old woman, hung his tail and walked off.”
PONTERWYD. —Pont, bridge; Erwyd, a pole, a handrail.
PONTRHYDFENDIGAID. — Pont, bridge, rhyd, ford, bendigaid, blessed. Meyrick calls it Pentre Rhydfendigaid. The name, evidently, is a relic of monastic times. The blessed celebrities of the monastery at Strata Florida were wont to cross a certain ford in the river, where they invoked the blessings of the blessed virgin. We have no historical proof that the monks built the bridge that spans the ford. It appears that it was built in the days of Edward Richard, the founder of Ystrad Meurig school. The bridge caused a great dispute between the parishes of Gwnws and Caron, which is depicted in two humorous poems composed by Edward Richards.
PONTRHYDYGROES. — Pont, bridge; rhyd, ford; y, the; groes, cross.
RHIWARTHEN. — Rhiw, slope, declivity; Arthen, according to some, is the name of a king or lord of Ceredigion, who died in 804, but we rather think it is a clipped form of garthen, a camp or battle.
RHUDDLAN. — A compound of rhudd, red; and glan, a bank, a sacred enclosure, church.
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RHYDMANTEG. — Rhyd, ford; man, place, spot; teg, fair.
RHYD-PENNANT. — Pennant means the end of the brook.
SARNAU. — This name is the plural form of sarn, paved road, causeway, so called from the remains of several paved roads across a bog in the district.
STRATA FLORIDA. — Strata, paved road. The Roman strata became the Saxon street. Florida, abounding with flowers. Some maintain that the abbey was dedicated to Fflur, the daughter of Mygnach Gorr, but the supposition is unsupported by historical fact. An eyewitness wrote, a few years ago, anent the famous place — “even now the adjacent peat land is covered with heath flowers. As we were travelling over it, reaching Tregaron about sunset, we gazed on the scene, and the whole extensive plain blushed as it bathed in a sea of purple.” This is the Westminster Abbey of Mediaeval Wales. The Abbey was built circa 1184, and founded by Rhys ab Gruffydd. The remains of a number of Welsh princes are supposed to lie here.
SWYDDFFYNON. — Swydd here means jurisdiction. In ancient times the law court of the commot of Mefenydd was held here, perhaps near a celebrated well, called Ffynnon oer, cold well.
TALSARN. — Tal, end; sarn, road; from a branch of a Roman road which terminated here.
TRAETH SAITH. — Traeth, sands, seashore; Saith is erronerously referred by some to Seithynyn, famous in Welsh mythology. Saith here is from L. sanctus, and means the sacred shore.
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TREFILAN. — The church was dedicated to Elen the mother of Constantine the Great; therefore, Ilan is a mutation of Elen. Eglwys Ilan, Glamorgan, bears her name.
TREFLYN. — A compound of tref, a place, a town; and llyn, a lake. The place takes its name from a beautiful lake called Llyn y maes, the lake of the field, which, according to tradition, covers the original site of Tregaron.
TREGARON. — The church was dedicated to Bishop Caron, and the place is named in honour of him.
TREMAEN. — Tre, place; maen, stone; its literal signification being “the town of the stone,” so called from the noted stone, Llech yr ast, and the adjacent cistfaens near the village.
TROEDYRAUR. — Troed, foot, base, lower part. Troedybryn, the lowest part of the hill. Piedmont has the same signification, from It, pie di monte, foot of the mountain, so called from its situation. Yr, the; aur, probably wrongly-spelt for air, bright, clear. If we adopt the termination air, the name means the basement of a hill, from which a clear view may be had of the surrounding district. Some derive the name from the tradition that aur gold was discovered at the foot of the hill. It appears that the ancient name of the church was Tredeyrn, the king’s town, from the supposition that Owain ab Hywel Dda, the king of Ceredigion, some time took up his abode in the vicinity. Llys Owain, Owen’s court, the ruins of which are still discernible, about a quarter of a mile from the church, inclines us to think that Tredeyrn is the correct name of this place.
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TYNYSWYDD. — Ty, house; yn, in; y, the; swydd, jurisdiction. The house, from which the village takes its name, was probably situated at the extreme end of the Mefenydd judicature.
YSBYTTY YSTWYTH. — Ysbytty, is a hybrid from Latin hospitum hospitality, and Welsh ty, a house. This Roman Catholic Alms-house was built on the banks of the river Ystwyth, and so called in order to distinguish it from ysbytty Cynfyn, and ysbytty ystrad Meurig.
YSTRAD MEURIG. — Ystrad, a low, flat valley. Meurig is recorded to have been killed at a place where a church was dedicated to him. “Meyryg, son of Meirchion was a brave, far-famed king. In his time the Irish Picts came to Cambria; he, however, marched against them, drove them away, or slew them; but was killed by an Irishman concealed in a wood, since called Ystrad Meyryg.” Iolo MSS., p. 352.
YSTUMTUEN. — Ystum, a bend, a shape, a form; from the name of the river that flows through the place.
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CARMARTHEN is an Anglicised form of Caerfyrddin. The Welsh Chronicle derives the name from Myrdin, the pseudo-prophet and bard, and many are the traditions that boldly but absurdly support the derivation. History rejects the popular etymology by stating that the town was called “Maridunum” by the Romans, during and after the Roman subjugation, long ere the prophet was born. The Kaervyrddin of the Britons is the “Maridunum,” the city by the sea of Ptolemy, and the “Maridunum,” the walled city of Antonius. Some think that the Latin name is a translation of the Welsh one, and derive the latter thus: Caer, fortress, wall; fyr, a mutation of mor-myr, the sea; din-ddin, a hill, signifying a fortified hill upon or near the sea. Others maintain that Caermyrdin, the ruinous city is the true derivation, some write thus — Caer-fyrd-dyn, the citadel of ten thousand. We are inclined to think that “Maridunum” is the correct etymology, and that the Welsh caer was prefixed to it, and hence transmuted to its present form — Caerfyrddin.
ABERARAD. — Aber, estuary; arad, the name of the river on which the village is situated, so called, perhaps, from its resemblance to an aradr, plough. Arad is the popular pronunciation of aradr.
ABERBRAN. — This place takes its name from the river Bran.
Abercouyn. — Cowyn or Cywyn, the river-name, means a rising or swelling up; the popular word cwnu, rising, comes from the verb cywynu, to rise, mount up. Cognate with Latin scando, I mount.
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ABERDUAR. — Aberdyar is the right wording, probably from its situation on the river Dyar, which means a noise, a sound, a din.
Du-ar may signify water running over black soil.
ABERGORLECH. — Gorlech, the river-name, probably, is a mutation of Garw-lech, garw, rough; lech = llech, stone, or from cor, small, and llwch, water, lake.
ABERGWILI. — Gwili, the river-name, is a derivative of Gwyllt, wild; and lli, a flux, signifying wild water. Some derive it from gwy, water, and lli, a flux. This village retains the honour of being the residence of the Bishop of St. David’s.
ABOVE-SAWDDWY. — The village derives its name from the river Sawddwy, on which it is situate. Sawd implies depth, a sinking; gwy is water but more probably wy is here an adjectival termination, and the meaning water is fanciful.
AMMANFORD. — The ancient name of the place was Cross Inn, from a public house of that name, which is situated at the junction of four roads. Some think that Amman, the river-name, is a compound of aml, many, and an or ain, water, signifying a river of many tributaries or sources. Others think the root is ban, height. Perhaps it is derived from Amon, Amnis. The word for river in Gaelic, is abhainn, and amhain is an ancient form of afon, a river.
BANCYFELIN. — Bank, any steep acclivity, as one rising from a river, a lake, or the sea; y, the; felin-melin, mill.
BRECHFA. — A hilly place. Brech is fem. of brych, mottled, a doublet of brith c.f. Cefnbrith.
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BRYNAMMAN. — It was sometime called Gwter Fawr the big ditch. In 1838, a house in the place was called Brynamman, and in 1864, when the railway came into the place, the station was called Brynamman, hence the name of the village. For Aman see Ammanford.
BRYN GWYNE. — Bryn, hill; Gwinnau, intensified form of gwyn, white, blessed. Gwyndud, a happy land, or perhaps for gwinau — reddish colour of bracken.
BRYNHAFOD. — Hafod, means a summer-house, which was generally built on a hill.
BRYNYBEIRDD. — This place derives its name from an ancient farmhouse in the vicinity called Cwrt-bryn-y-beirdd from the supposition that it was once the residence of the bards.
BURRY PORT. — The place adjoins the ancient village of Pembre or Pen-bre. Pen, head, top, bre, mountain, high place.
Some think Burry is a compound of bur, wild, frothy; and gwy, water. Burym, barm is derived from the same root. The river Berem is not far from the place. Another attempt is bre, hill; porth, port. Burry is probably from burgh, a hill, compare Burythorpe in Yorkshire.
The seaport is situated at the entrance of the river Burry.
BWLCHGWYNT. — Bwlch, an opening, a pass; gwynt, wind; signifying a pass where the wind occasionally asserts its power very vehemently.
CALEDFWLCH. — Caled, hard, severe; bwlch, an opening, a pass. Tradition has it that bloody wars were fought in the vicinity, and that the distress and calamity was so great at a certain spot, that it was henceforth called Caledfwlch.
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A brook in the place is called Nantgoch red brook, irom the traditional belief that it was sometime red with blood.
CAPEL ISAAC. — A noted place in connection with the Congregational body, since the year 1650, when the Rev. Stephen Hughes, formerly the vicar of Meidrym, left the Church of England and founded a Nonconformist church. Suffering from persecution they took refuge in a cave for a short time, and afterwards built a chapel in 1672 on the land of Isaac Thomas, hence the name, Capel Isaac.
CAPEL IWAN. — Capel, chapel; Iwan, Ivan, Ioan, John, meaning John the Baptist.
CAPEL PAULIN. — Capel, chapel; Paulin, a mutation of Pawl Hen, St. Paulinus, who flourished in the 5th century.
CEFNCETHIN. — A village in the parish of Llandilo. The common opinion of the inhabitants is that the place took its name from an eminent poet, named Cethin, who lived in the neighbourhood in the 16th century. Cefn, a high ridge; cethin, dark, frightful, terrible.
CENARTH. — Cen, low Celtic for pen, head or top; arth-garth, a. ridge, a hill.
CENOL. — The name, which signifies “middle” was given to this hamlet because it comprises the middle part of the parish of Llanscuyl [sic; = Llansawyl?].
CERRYG SAWDDE. — The place derives its name from the river Sawdde that flows through it. Sawdde is a corrupt form of sawdd-wy, the deep or plunging water: One of the old inhabitants assured us that the first row of houses in the village were built of stones conveyed from the river Sawdde, hence the name.
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CILCARW. — Cil, a place of retreat; carw, stag. In time of yore stags resorted to this sequestered vicinity as a place of refuge.
CILCWM. — The name signifies a sequestered vale: the upper reaches of the valley, or the ridge overlooking the valley.
CILMAENLLWYD. — Cil, a place of retreat; maen, stone; llwyd, grey, blessed; so called from the relics of druidical stones in the place.
CLOYGYN. — The right wording, probably, is clogwyn, a precipice.
CROSS HANDS. — From a public house so called in the place.
CRUGYBAR. — Crug, heap; bar, affliction, fury, wrath. The place derives its names from the supposition that the Romans buried their fallen soldiers in the vicinity, where they suffered heavily at the hands of the wrathful and formidable Britons, led by the immortal Buddug.
CWMAMAN. — Cwm, narrow vale; Aman vide Ammanford.
CWMCOTHI. — The river-name Cothi means to eject or evacuate; ysgothi, to babble. The Greek Kathariso has a similar meaning. Dolaucothi is the seat of the Johnses, a well-known family in the county of Carmarthen and close by was the residence of the celebrated bard, Llywelyn (Lewis) Glyn Cothi, who flourished in the 15th century.
CWMCUCH. — A village situate on the banks of the river Cuch. Cuch means what is contracted or drawn, together. Cuchio, to frown.
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CWMDUAD. — Duad implies blackness. The river Drmd flows through the vale.
CWM GWENDRAETH. — Cwm, vale; Gwendraeth, the name of the river that runs through the vale. Gwen, white; traeth, a tract, a beach.
CWMHWPLIN. — Hwplin is an etymological puzzle. The name is probably from Cwm, vale, and hwplin, representing the English word — goblin.
CWMSARNDDU. — Cwm, vale; sarn, paved road; ddu, black, from a farm so named.
CYNWIL CAIO. Cyn, prior, first; wil-gwyl, (vigilia) watches; Caio, Caius, the name of a Roman personage. The Rev. Elieser Williams, in the “Cambrian Register,” thinks that the place was taken possession of by Caius’ advanced guards.
DAFEN. — From the river Dafen, which flows through the place. The name may be a corrupt form of taf-ain, the spreading water. Tafwys, the Thames, has the same signification.
DRAFACH. — Tref, a homestead, town; fach-bach, little.
DREFELIN. — Some think the name is a compound of tref, a homestead, and melin, a mill. In spite of the fact that there is a mill in the village some are inclined to think that the name is a transposition of fileindref, the villeins’ village, or a place under villein soccage tenure. In the old Welsh Laws we find taeogdref and fileindref.
DYFFRYN CEIDRYCH. — Dyffryn, a valley; cei-cain, clear, fair, beautiful; drych, aspect, sight; the name signifies a valley of beautiful sceneries. Some think the valley was named after Ceindrych, a daughter of Brychan.
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FELINDRE. — A mill residence.
FELINCWM. — A compound of melin, mill; and cwm, vale.
FELINWEN. — This village takes its name from an old mill called Felinwen, the white mill, which is still in the place.
FERRY SIDE. — A pretty village near the mouth of the river Towy, where passengers ferry over in boats to the opposite village, Llanstephan.
FFAIRFACH. — A very popular fair was wont to be held here on November 22nd, hence its name, which signifies the little fair, to distinguish it from the fairs held at Llandilo.
GARWAY. — It may be a corruption of garw-wy, a river making its way through rough places.
GELLICEIDRYM. — The name signifies a brush or grove on mountain top with a chasm below.
GOYTREY. — Coed, wood; tre, a homestead, a place, signifying either a dwelling in a wood, or a house built of wood.
GWYNFE. — Gwyn, white, blessed, holy; fe-fai, an inflection of mai, a plain. Gwynfa is the Welsh for Paradise.
HENGOED. — Hen, old, aged; and coed, wood, so called from the abundance of ancient and large forests of wood that once adorned the district.
HENLLAN AMGOED. — The old church surrounded by woods.
HOREB. — The village takes its name from Horeb, the Baptist chapel in the place.
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HYRETH. — A corruption of Hiraeth, longing earnest desire or perhaps a mutation of hyriaeth, a shock, a concussion.
JOHNSTOWN. — A small village near Carmarthen town named in honour of Mr. John Jones, Ystrad.
KIDWELLY. — We have various forms of this ancient name. Nennius gives the name as Cetqueli, and this form is found also in “Liber Landavensis.” The following forms are found in ancient documents — Kedewelli, Cedewely, Kadewely, Keddewelly, Kedwelli, Kydewelly. Dr. Henry Owen says that the place was in Welsh called Cedweli, or Cadweli, and that the name is a tribal, one derived from the personal name Cadwal. Some derive it thus — cyd, con; wy-gwy, water; and li-lli, a stream, the name signifying the confluence of streams, or two streams of water joining to run on the same bed. The rivers Gwendraeth Fach and Gwendraeth Fawr, mingle their waters in an estuary about a mile from the town. One author states that the Gwendraeth originally bore the name of Gwely, which is, perhaps, a corrupt form of Gwili, gwy, water; and lli, a flux, the name therefore signifying the junction of the two flowing streams.
LAUGHARNE. — The old Welsh names are Talycoran, Abercoran, Tal-llacharn, Tal, end; y, the; Goran, the name of the river that flows into the river Taf. Some derive the present name from Field-Marshal, W. Laugharne, but we rather think it is an Anglicised form of Llacharn or Talycoran. Goran may be an abbreviation of corafon, a rivulet.
LOGIN. — Some think the name is a contracted form of Halogyn, the polluted or turbid. Others derive the name from clogwyn, precipice, steep. Glogwynog,
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craggy, rocky. Perhaps the right wording is Llogyn, a diminutive of Llog, a compact, a hire. Llog o dir, twenty yards of land. We find the name Loggin in Breconshire.
LLAN. — This hamlet takes its name from the parochial church being situate within its limits, near the right bank of the Gwendraeth Fechan river.
LLANARTHNEY. — Arthney is probably a corruption of garthen, a camp. Some think Arthney is a corrupt form of Arthen, the name of the fourth son of Brychan Brycheiniog There are several objects of antiquarian interest in this district, such as the ruins of Dryslwyn castle, and Grongar hill, which has been immortalised by the famous poet, Dyer. Grongar is a compound of gron, fem. of crwn, round, circular, and caer, a fortress.
LLANBOIDY. — Some think the name is a corruption of Llan-bod-Dewi, the church in which (St.) David dwelt. The church is only three miles north of Ty Gwyn Abbey, near which place St. David spent ten years. Others say it is Llan-meudwy, a church, dedicated to a hermit. We are inclined to think that boidy is a corruption of beudy, an ox house. The church might have been built in conjunction with the ox-house; or perhaps, the oxen had to perform the same duties there as their kindred at Brevi.
LLANDEFEISENT. — Tyfei Sant, a nephew of St. Teilo, lived in an early period of the 6th century, and to him the church was dedicated.
LLANDEILO.— The church was dedicated to St. Teilo, a descendant of Cunedda Wledig and one of the most popular saints in the ancient British church. He was St. Teliaus, the patron saint of Llandaff. He departed this life at Llandeilo Fawr, and was interred at Llandaff in 566.
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LLANDOVERY. — An Anglicised form of Llanymddyfri, which means a church between waters, or Llanamddyfri; am, in its sense of beyond, and therefore the church beyond the river. The “Myvyrian” calls it Llanymddywy. The town is situate on the river Towy, at the confluence of the rivers Gwytherig and Bran, the latter joning the Towy a little distance below the town. This town is famous as the birth-place and residence of Vicar Pritchard, author of “Canwyll y Cymry.”
LLANDYBIE. — Tybie was a daughter of Brychan, and a saint of the 5th century. She was murdered at a place where a church was afterwards built and consecrated to her memory.
LLANDYFAELOG. — The church was dedicated to Maelog one of Catwg’s disciples. The proper name is Llanmaelog.
LLANDYFAEN. — Some derive the name from St. Dyfan who came here from Rome about 186, to preach the Gospel to the Kymry. It is believed he was martyred at Merthyr Dyfan. We rather think the place takes its name from Dyfnan, one of the sons of Brychan.
LLANDYSILIO. — The church was dedicated to St. Tyssilio.
LLANDDAROG. — The church was dedicated to St. Twrog.
LLANDOWROR. — A corruption of Llandyfrgwyr, the church of the water-men, so called on account of the seven sons of Mainaur Mathru, who were called Dyfrgwyr, water-men, because they were found in the water, escaped from the water and were maintained by fishes of the water. They devoted themselves to religious life; hence the above church was dedicated to them.
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Llanedi. — The church was dedicated to Edytih a Saxon saint. There were five Saxon saints bearing the name.
LLANEGWAD. — The church was dedicated to Egwad, a saint of the 7th century. He was son of Cynddelig, son of Cenydd, son of Gildas.
LLANELLI. — The church was dedicated to Ellyw, a descendant of Brychan, and a saint of the fifth century. Llanelliw is the proper name. On a map published in 1788 by a Mr. Wm. Owen, it is spelt Llanelliw.
LLANFAIR-AR-Y-BRYN. — St. Mary’s church on the hill It was a site of a Roman station.
LLANFIHANGEL ABERBYTHYCH. — St. Michael’s church at the influx of the river Bythich. The river-name means the constantly flowing water.
LLANFIHANGEL-AR-ARTH. — Ar-Arth, or ar-y-garth means on the hill. The church was dedicated to St. Michael, and built on a hill above the Teivi.
LLANFIHANGEL RHOSYCORN. — St. Michael’s church on the berry-moor-land. It appears that the place produces hurtle and billberries [sic; = bilberries].
LLANFRYNACH.— The church was dedicated to St. Brynach, whose history, according to some is marked by somewhat remarkable incidents.
LLANFYNYDD. — The name signifies a church on the mountain.
LLANGADOG.— The church was dedicated to St. Cadoc, a martyr who flourished in the 5th century, and died in Brittany, in 490.
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LLANGAIN. — Cain was a saint of the early part of the 6th century, to whom the church was dedicated.
LLANGAN. — The church was dedicated to Cana, the daughter of Tewdwr Mawr, and the wife of Sadwrn.
LLANGATHEN. — The church was dedicated to Cathen, a Welsh saint who flourished early in the 7th century. He was a grandson to Caradog Freichfras.
LLANGELER. — The church was dedicated to St. Celert, who flourished in the 7th century. Beddgelert bears his name.
In a cottage, called Tybedw, in this parish, two of the most celebrated preachers of Wales commenced to preach, viz., Revs. Dd. Davies, Swansea, and Christmas Evans.
LLANGENNECH — The church was dedicated to St. Cenych.
LLANGYNDEYRN. — The church was dedicated to St. Cyndeyrn, one of the most popular of the Welsh saints of the 7th century.
LLANGYNIN. — The church was dedicated to Cynin, a saint of the 5th century.
LLANGYNOG. — The church was founded by Cynog, who was bishop of St. David’s in the sixth century.
LLANLLIAN. — The correct wording is Llanlleian, the Nun’s church. It is said that she was the daughter of Brychan, and had been wife to Gafran ab Dyfnwal Hen, by whom she had Aeddan, the traitor.
LLANLLWCH. — Llwch, an inlet of water, a lake. The church is situated in a low place, which is frequently covered by floods and the tide, leaving many pools and lakes behind them. Tradition has it that a town once stood here, which was submerged.
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LLANLLWNI. — Llwni is a corruption of lloni, to gladden. Llonio Llawhir (long hand) was a descendant of Emyr Llydaw, and is supposed to have founded the churches of Llandinam and Llanllwni.
LLANNEWYDD. — The old parish church was pulled down, and the foundation stone of Llannewydd, the new church, was laid, July 5th, 1870.
LLANON. — The church was dedicated to Nonn, the pious mother of St. David, the patron saint of Wales.
LLANPUMSAINT. — Pum saint = five saints. The church was dedicated to five brothers, Ceitho, Gwyn, Gwynro, Gwynoro, and Celynin, who were born at the same time and devoted themselves to religious life.
LLANSADWRN. — The church was dedicated to Sadwrn, the brother of Illtud.
LLANSADYRNYN. — The church was dedicated to Sadyrnyn, the Bishop of St. David’s in the early part of the 9th century.
LLANSAWYL. — The church was dedicated to Sawyl, a saint of the 8th century.
LLANSTEPHAN. — The church was founded by Ystyffan, a saint and bard of the 6th century. Some derive the name from the supposition that the church was dedicated to Stephen, the first martyr.
LLANWRDA. — Opinions differ as to whom the church was dedicated. One suggests St. Cawrdaf, a son of Caradog Freichfras; another, gwr-da, the holy man. Some think gwr-da is a corrupt form of gwr-daf, the man of the Taf, refering [sic; = referring] to St. Teilo who lived on the banks of the river Taf for many years, and believed to have performed many miracles.
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LLANWYNIO. — The church is supposed to have been dedicated to Gwynio, a Welsh saint.
LLANYBRI. — Bri, is, according to one writer, a corruption of beyr, the Norse for farmstead. Some think the name is derived from one Awbrey, who resided there. We rather think that bri is a mutation of bre, up high.
LLANYBYDDER. — Some think the right wording is Llanybyddair, the church of the Ambuscade. The name may be a corruption of Llanbedr, from the church being dedicated to St. Peter.
LLANYCRWYS. — The name signifies the Rood church.
LLWYNHENDY. — Llwyn, bush; hendy, old house. There was a bush near an old homestead called Hendy, concerning which a local dispute arose, and in order to distinguish it from other bushes it was called Llwyn-hendy.
MACHYNYS. — An islet at the estuary of the Loughor river. Some think the name is a mutation of bach-ynys, the little island, but in view of the fact that a mynach-dy, a monastery was established here in 513 by St. Piro, we are inclined to think the name might be an abbreviation of mynach-ynys, the monk’s island. Or, perhaps, it is a compound of mach, a bail, a surety; and ynys, an island. Some think it was sometime held as a surety for debt.
MANORFABON. — Some think the original form is Man-ar-afon, a spot or a residence on or near the river. We rather think the name is a compound of maenor, manor, and Mabon, proper name. Mabon is sometimes used to denote a young hero.
MARROS. — Some think it is mawr-rhos, the great moorland or common. The name signifies a wild, mountainous
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region, which was undoubtedly suggested by the physical aspect of the district.
MEINCIAU. — A corruption, probably of min-y-cae, edge of the field. Some think it is the plural of mainc, a bench, implying elevated pieces of land.
MOELFRE. — Moel, bare; and bre, hill.
MYDRIM. — A compound of mei-mai, a plain or open field; drum, a ridge, a back, a hill.
A Roman road ran through the place from Carmarthen to St. David’s.
MYDDFAI. — Myd-med, meadow; fai-mai, a plain, or open field. The place is noted for its celebrated physicians in the 12th century. Meddygon Myddfai the physicians of Myddfai is a proverbial phrase. The first batch of these were Rhiwallon, and his sons, Cadwgan, Gruffydd, and Einion.
MYNACHDY. — A monastery. It is supposed that a cell to some ancient abbey was situated here sometime; hence the name.
NANTGAREDIG.- Nant, brook; Caredig, a man’s name.
NANTYCAIN. — Nant, brook; cain, clear, fair.
NANTYMWYN. — Mwyn, mine, ore. Lead mines abound in this district.
NEWCASTLE-EMLYN. — Opinions differ as to the origin of this name. It is a translation of the Welsh Castell-newydd-Emlyn. The present castle was built on the site of the old one by Sir Rhys ap Thomas, in the reign of Henry VIII., hence the appellation Newcastle. Emlyn is variously derived. Some derive it from Emilianus, the name of a Roman nobleman that
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took up his abode here. Others derive it from the shape (llun) of the letter M formed by the winding course of the Teivi in the vicinity of Newcastle, thus M lun, shape of the letter M. The most plausible are the following derivations: — Em, am, round about; lyn glynu, to adhere, to cleave. The river encompasses the town, and its slowness indicates, as it were, for preference to adhere to the town than make for its salty home. Another attempt: Emyl, border or edge add the particle yn to it, and then we have Emylyn, omit the first y, and we have Emlyn, a borderer. Or Em, round, lyn, llyn, a lake or a body of water, signifying watercircled.
PANTYFFYNON. — Pant, a low place; y, the; ffynnon, well; from a farm so called which is situated in a low place.
PEDAIR HEOL. — Pedair, four; heol, road, so called from the junction of four roads in the place.
PENBEYR or PENBOYR. — Opinions differ as to derivation of this name. Some think it is a mutilation of pen-y-beirdd, the chief of the bards from the supposition of some chief bard held his gorsedd here.
Others derive it thus: — pen, top, end; beyr and boyr are Norse for farmstead; signifying the highest point in a certain farm.
The name was written Penbeyr in 1487, Penbeir and Penbeyer in 1668, and Penbeyre in 1788.
Ey would easily become oy, in that district, as oulun from eulun.
The church is called Penboyr in Valor Ecclesiasticus. Beyr or Boyr, is probably a personal name. A farmstead I
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near Penboyr is called Llwyn Pyr. The name is also found in the parish of Llanllwni.
Pyr succeeded Sawyl Ben Uchel on the throne of Britain.
PENCADER. — Some think it was originally called Pencadlys; pen, head; cad, battle, battlefield; lys, court. Near the church there is a cairn called “The Castle,” and from that the common inference is that some battles were fought in the vicinity. Others think the name signifies the chief chair, possibly of the bards — Druidic order. There is an immense tumulus here. Cader also means a stronghold. Many fortified hills and mountains still retain the name as Cader Idris, Cader Dinmael. Cadernid is the Welsh for strength or fortitude.
PENDINE. — Some think the right wording is Pen-dani, the beautiful summit. It may be a corrupt form of Pendin, the top of the fortified hill.
Penrhiwgoch. — Pen, top; rhiw, slope; goch = coch, red, sun-parched. The attribute coch forms a part of many names in the district, as Garreg-goch, red stone; Ffynnongoch, ruddy well, &c.
PENRHOS. — The top of a meadow or plain.
PENYGROES. — Pen, head, end; y, the; groes, cross.
PONTAMAN. — Pont, bridge; aman, the name of the river that flows through the place (vide Ammanford). The village takes its name from a mansion so called, which is situate on the river Aman.
PONTARGOTHI.— Pont, bridge; ar, on, across; Gothi-cothi, the name of the river (vide Cwmcothi).
PONTBRENARAETH. — Pontbren, a wooden bridge; araeth, the name of the river.
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PONTHENRY. — Pont, bridge; Henry, probably the name of the builder of the bridge.
PONTNEWYDD. — Pont, bridge; newydd, new.
PONTTWELI. — The latter portion of the name is variously written, viz., Twelly, Tyweli, Tywely, Taf-gurli, and Taf-wely. The name seems to be a contraction of the latter form, which is the name of the river that runs under the bridge.
PONTYATES. — The village was originally called Trewiail, the place of rods. Opinions differ as to Pontyates. Pont, means a bridge, which, according to some, was built by a Mr. Yates; hence the name.
In olden times there was a toll-gate near the bridge, and some think the name is derived from that.
PONTYBEREM. — Pont, bridge; Berem, river-name. The general opinion is that a wooden bridge crossed the Berem river before the Gwendraeth bridge was built; hence the name.
Berem comes from berw, a boiling, an ebullition. Sion Lam Roger, about 190 years ago, called the place Pontyberw.
PORTHYRHYD. — Porth, (porta), a gate; y, the; rhyd, a ford.
PUMP HEOL. — Pump, five; heol, road; so called from the junction of five roads in the place.
RHANDIRMWYN. — Rhandir, a portion of land, a district; mwyn, a mine, ore. There are ancient lead mines in the district called Nantymwyn, which are noted for pottery ore.
RHYDARGAEAU. — The right wording seems to be Rhydargaerau, the ford near the fortified walls.
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ST. CLEARS. — The Normans, immediately after the conquest, built a castle and a church here, the latter of which was dedicated to one of their own clan named St. Clar. Hence the name of the place. In the “Myvyrian” she is called Sain Cler and St. Clares. She died a martyr in Normandy, November 4th, 894.
TALOG. — The name signifies high-fronted, bold-faced. Talwg means a high house with stone roof, in contra-distinction to the low cot with thatched roof.
TALYLLYCHAU, or TALLEY. — Tal, front or end; y, the; Llychau, plural of llwch, lake or pool. There are two large pools near the church. Talley is an abbreviation of the Welsh name.
TERRA-COED. — It is, probably, a corruption of Tir-y-coed, which implies woody land.
TIR ESGOB. — Tir, land; esgob, bishop.
TIR ROSIER. — Tir, land; Rosier, Roger. Rogersland.
TRECLAS. — Clas means a green covering or surface. “Clas Alerddin,” the green space of smooth hills, the old name of the Isle of Britain. — Trioedd.
TRELECH. — Some think the name signifies “the concealed dwelling.” We rather think the name signifies “the town of stones.” Not far from the village there is an immense carnedd called Crug y Deyni, or Crug Edeyrn, The place derives its name, probably, from this and other relics of Druidism in the district. Some antiquarians believe that Edeyrn was buried here. Nathan Dyfed, and another gentleman opened a cistfaen here in 1830, and found therein calcined bones and charcoal.
TRERHOS. — Tre, place, town; rhos, meadow. The village is situated on a marshy plain.
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TRIMSARAN. — A compound of trum, ridge, and sarn, road, way. The village took its name from an old mansion bearing the name, which is supposed to have been built in the 11th century. Gruffydd ap Llewelyn resided here. He was related to Einion ap Collwyn.
TUMBLE. — From a public house in the place called Tumble Inn. “Tumble Down Dick” has reference to Richard, the Protector’s son, who was a very unstable character.
VELINFOEL. — It signifies the bald or bare mill. The old mill near the river Lliedi was designated Felinfoel in order to distinguish it from Felinyrafr, or Felingyrnig, which was higher up on the side of the same river. The latter was remarkable for its cornig — cross [sic; = crenellated?] appearance, whereas the former was a bare building, and, therefore, entitled to the appellation Felinfoel. When the village grew sufficiently to claim a share in nomenclature it was decided to perpetuate the name of the old mill.
WHITLAND. — A semi-translation of “Hen dy Gwyn ar Daf,” old white house on Taf. This was the hunting-house of Hywel Dda, built by him in 914. In order to distinguish it from common houses it was built of white perches, supposed to be 18ft. in length. Here Hywel and six of the wisest men in his dominion met in 927, to revise and amend the laws of the Kymry. A religious community was founded in the place as early as the 5th century. Paulinus (Pawl Hen) enlarged the institution circa 480, and was elected the first abbot. St. David and St. Teilo were among his students.
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[CARNARVON.] An Anglicized form of Caer-yn-Arfon, the fortified town opposite to Mona. After the subjugation of Wales under Edward I. the name of the town was applied to the newly-formed county.
LLEYN. — A region, according to some, that derived its name from Lleyn, the son of Baran. He conquered this portion of the territory of the King of Gwynedd, and called it the country of Lleyn (Iolo MSS., 346). The late celebrated antiquarian, Mr. Owen Williams, of Waenfawr, derives it from lleuyn, which is synonymous, with llenar, lleuad, goleuad, goleuni, signifying light, splendour. Lleuar haul, the light of the sun. He founds his reasons upon the fact that Lleyn is an even country, enjoying the light of the sun from morning till dusk; hence it was called Lleyn, the land of the light. Dr. Owen Pughe translated Lleyn thus — lleyn, a strip, a tongue of land, which corresponds with the physical aspect of this part of the Principality. It is cognate with Irish Lein in Leinster, from an Irish word meaning a lance head, so called from the outline of the land.
EIFIONYDD. — Eifion means the land of rivers. Afon, a river, eifion, an old plural form of afon, as meibion becomes the plural of mab, a son. Ap, a Sanskrit root signifying water, is seen in the names of the Punjab, the land of the five rivers; Do-ab, a district between the two rivers Ganges and Jumna. We find it also in the river-names of the L-ab and Dan-ub-ue, or Danube.
ABER, or ABERGWYNGREGYN. — From the quantity of cockles found there. The river Gwyngregyn, white
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shells, discharges itself into the sea about half-a-mile below the village.
ABERDARON. — The village is situate at the mouth of the river Daron. Although an insignificant place, it is famous for being the birth-place of Richard Robert Jones, alias Dic Aberdaron, the celebrated linguist. He was born in 1778, and died at St. Asaph in 1843. It is said that he was familiarly conversant with thirteen languages. The name Daron was anciently applied to the Deity, signifying “Thunderer.” Daron implies noisy water.
ABERCEGID. — Near Llandegai. Cegid is the Welsh for hemlock.
ABERERCH. — The river Erch flows into the sea a little below the village; hence the name. Erch means dark, frightful.
ABERSOCH. — The village lies at the mouth of the river Soch. Soch means a sink, a drain, a ditch, so called from the slow course and muddy hue of the liver.
AFON WEN. — This name was taken from the river, which has its source near Mynachdy gwyn, the white monastery. Wen is the feminine form of gwyn, white, and in place-names signifies fair or beautiful.
BANGOR. — Ban, high, superior; gor-cor, a circle, a stall, a choir. Cor is now used in many parts of the Principality to denote a pew or seat. The term cor has also been rendered “college.” Bangor means the chief enclosure or circle, and when applied to any particular establishment, it signifies, a “high choir, or chief college.” The common churches were called corau, but the chief or superior churches bangorau, because they were
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the chief theological seminaries of the period, the centres from which the Christian religion extended over the country. It is supposed that this Bangor was established as early as the year 525 by Deiniol ab Dunawd, which shows that a University College is not a new boon to this city.
BEDDGELERT. — Various derivations are assigned to this popular name. It is said that a hermit erected a booth in the place, and, in the course of time, a church was built on the same site, and was called Bwth Cilfach Garth, which was corrupted into Bwth Cilarth, and then Bethcelert. Some trace it to the name of Celer, the patron saint of Llangeler. Tradition says the name is derived from the following circumstance: — At a remote period, when wolves were numerous, and consequently formidable in Wales, Llewelyn the Great came to reside here for the hunting season, with his princes and children; but while the family were absent one day, a wolf entered the house, and attempted to kill an infant that was enjoying his sleep in the cradle. The prince’s faithful greyhound named Gelert, in whose care the child doubtless was entrusted, seized the rapacious animal, and, after a severe struggle, killed it. In the struggle the cradle was overturned, and lay upon the wolf and child. On the prince’s return, missing the infant, and observing the dog’s mouth stained with blood, he rashly jumped to the conclusion that Gelert had killed the child, and, in a paroxysm of rage, drew his sword, and buried it in the heart of the faithful animal; but how great was his astonishment, when, on replacing the cradle, he found the wolf dead and the child alive. He, however, caused the faithful Gelert to be honourably interred, and, as a monument to his memory, erected a church on this
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spot as a grateful offering to God for the preservation of his child. In a field contiguous to the churchyard are two grey stones, overhung with bushes, which point out the grave of Gelert, and a rustic seat is placed near, where visitors may recline and meditate the legend. Others think the name means the “grave of Celert ap Math,” a descendant of one of the Irish princes that visited this country about the beginning of the fourth century.
BETHESDA. — Its ancient name was Cilfoden. Its present name is derived from Bethesda, the name of a Congregational chapel built in the place in 1819. An attempt was recently made to abandon the Scriptural name, and call it “Glan Ogwen,” after the new church built by Lord Penrhyn, but it proved unsuccessful.
BETTWS-Y-COED. — Bettws is a Welshified form of bead-house, a house of prayer, a monkish institution of mediaeval times, built, perhaps, on or near the site of those churches that perpetuate the name of Bettws. This place derives its name from an ancient religious institution called Bettws Wyrion Iddon, the bead house of the children of Iddon. Bettws in Welsh means a place of shelter and comfort. William Llyn writes: — “Ni a ddaethom yr owan i Fettws, hyny yw, lle cynhes tymoraidd;” i.e., “We came now to Bettws, that is, a warm comfortable place.” It is worthy of notice that many churches bearing the name of Bettws are situated in sheltered and comfortable places. The above Bettws is situated yn y coed in the wood; hence the name of the picturesque place.
BETTWS GARMON. — The church is dedicated to Garmon, and about a mile distant is Garmon’s Well.
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BODFUAN. — Bod, a dwelling; Buan, a saint of the seventh century, and a descendant of Llywarch Hen. He founded a church in this place.
BODFERIN. — This was the dwelling-place of Merin, a descendant of Seithenin, and a saint of the sixth century.
BORTH-Y-GEST, or more correctly, Porth-y-gest;, porth, harbour, port; y, the,; gest-cest, a deep glen between two mountains having but one opening. This isolated village is situated near Moel-y-gest.
BOTTWNOG. — A corruption of Bodwynog, the dwelling-place of Gwynog.
BRYNCROES. — Bryn, a hill; croes, a cross.
BRYNKIR. — Some think the place was named in honour of a family bearing the name, who were descendants of Owain Gwyedd. Others think the name is a contraction of Bryn cae hir, signifying a long field at the foot of the hill. It is, perhaps, a compound of bryn a hill, and carw, a stag.
CAE LLWYN GRYDD. — Probably a corruption of cae llwyn y gaer rudd. Cae, a field; llwyn, a bush; y, the; gaer rudd, red wall. The village is situated near an old fortress, which is now in ruins, and supposed to have been built of red stones; hence the name.
CAER RHUN. — Rhun, the son of Maelgwyn Gwynedd and a prince of the sixth century, who took up his abode in the Roman Conovium; hence the name.
CAPEL CURIG. — Capel, chapel; Curig, the name of the son of Ilid or Julitta, who flourished in the seventh century. The church was dedicated to Curig and his mother.
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CARN GIWCH. — Carn, a heap. On the summit of a hill close by, called Moel Carn Ciwch, there is a large heap of loose stones, supposed to have been raised to Ciwch, a British saint of an early period.
CLWTYBONT. — Clwt, a portion; “clwt o dir,” a piece of land; y, the; bont-pont, bridge; signifying a piece of land near a bridge.
CLYNOG. — A corruption of Celynog, a place overrun with hollywood. It is situated in a small grove near the shore, on a plain near the base of the hill.
COLWYN. — Some derive the name from Colwyn, the name of the chief shepherd of Bran ab Llyr Llediaith. Others think it is a compound of cau, hollow, enclosed; and llwyn, a grove, a bush, from the deep brooks and encircling groves in the district.
CONWAY. — The town of Conway was built on the north side of the liver by Maelgwyn Gwynedd, in 581, and was called Caer Gyffin, which signifies the border fortress. Conwy is the present Welsh name, taken from the name of the river, which signifies the chief water. Some philologists derive the name from cain, fair, fine,, beautiful; and wy, water. Conwy and Cainwy are equally applicable to this beautiful river. From gwy or wy, water, most of the Welsh rivers derive their names. For instance, Llugwy, clear water; Elwy, gliding water; and the above, Conwy, chief water, or Cainwy, fair or fine water. The site of Conway Castle was anciently called Cannock, from cann, white, fair, clear, and oich, water.
CRICCIETH. — Pennant spells it Crickaeth, “The Myvyrian” Cruciaith, and others Crug-caeth. Some
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think it is a compound of crug, a heap, a hillock, and aeth, sorrow, pain; signifying a frightful or formidable promontory. Others say it is Crug-caeth, the narrow hill. Perhaps it is a compound of craig aeth, signifying the awful rock.
CROESOR. — A narrow comb in Blaenau Nanmor. Tradition says that Elen Lueddog was on her journey homewards when, on hearing the sad news of her son’s death, she sorrowfully exclaimed, “Croesawr i mi” — i.e., “an hour of adversity to me,” and the place was called Croesawr or Croesor from that sorrowful circumstance.
CRYNANT. — Cry, a corruption of crai, a word implying a narrow place; crai’r nodwydd, the eye of the needle; nant, a brook. The old inhabitants spell it Crainant, and a bridge that spans Nant-y-Bettws is called Pont-y-Crainant, because under the bridge the brook is very narrow.
CWMEIGIAU. — Cwm, valley; eigiau, the plural form of aig, which signifies what brings forth, anything that is prolific. Month (mynydd, mountain) Eigie, in Scotland, implies a hill covered with luxuriant grass. Eigion is from Latin oceanus, the ocean, and aig is a modern back formation from it. There are several lakes in the valley, and the natural inference is that it was so called from its bifurcated aspect.
CWMYGLO. — Cwm, valley; glo, a corruption probably of goleu, goleuni, light; signifying a valley remarkable for enjoying the sunny beams.
CYMYDMAEN. — Cymyd-Cwmwd, a vicinity; maen, a stone. On the sands, opposite Bardsey Island, there is a stone called Maen Melyn Lleyn, from which the vicinity took its name.
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DINAS EMRYS. — Dinas, a fortified city; Emrys, the surname of a celebrated bard of the fifth century, who was known by the name of Merddin Emrys, or Ambrosius. King Gwrtheyrn presented the place to Emrys, and hence it is called after his name.
DOLBADARN. — The church was dedicated to Padarn; hence the name.
DOLGARROG. — A compound of dol, a meadow, and carog, a torrent, a brook. The place is remarkable for its deep hollows and beautiful waterfalls.
DOLWYDDELEN. — Some say that the right wording is Dolyddelen, Elen’s meadow, from the supposition that Elen Lwyddog, daughter of Coel Codebog, took up her abode here. Others think it is Dol, meadow; gwydd, wood, and Elen. We rather think the name signifies the meadow of Gwythelan, or Gwyddelan, to whom the church of the parish was dedicated.
DWYGYFYLCHI. Dwy, a corruption of dy, on, upon; gy-cyd, with, united; fylchi, plural of bwlch, a gap, a breach, a pass. The name signifies the joint passes. Some think the right wording is Rhiwfylchi, which signifies a slope with passes. The village is perched on the mountain side, between Penmaen Mawr, and Penmaen Bach.
EBENEZER. — The village derives its name from the Congregational Chapel called Ebenezer, which was built when the place was developing into a populous village.
EDEYRN. — Probably called in honour of Edeyrn ab Nudd. The church is dedicated to St. Edeyrn.
EFAIL NEWYDD. — The name signifies a new smithy.
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FOUR CROSSES. Near the village there are two roads intersecting each other: hence the name.
GARNDOLBENMAEN. — Garn, a heap, a cairn; dol, mountain meadow; pen, top, head; maen, stone. In the vicinity there is a large mount, on which might have been a watch-tower. About the beginning of the 19th century some cairns and urns were discovered here.
GARSWYLLT. — Probably a corruption of corswyllt, which signifies a wild bog.
GLAN ADDA. — A corruption, probably, of Clyn Eiddw; clyn, a place covered with brakes; eiddw, ivy,
GLANWYDDEN. — The village takes its name from a farm of the name in the vicinity. The name, probably, is a compound of glan, brink, side, shore, bank; and gwydden, a standing tree; or gwydd-din, woody hill.
GROESLON. — Groes-croes, cross; lon, a narrow road; signifying the cross road. Lon is from the English word lane.
GWIBERNANT. — This name is variously spelt, namely, Ewybr Nant, a fleet, swift brook; Gwyber Nant, a brook of sweet water; and Gwiber Nant, the Viper’s brook. The last is the proper name.
GWYDIR. — Prima facie one may take it to be a compound of gwy, water, and tir, land. Some derive it from gwydir, glass, upon the supposition that the mansion of Gwydir was the first house in Wales to have glass windows. Sir John Wynn mentions a date of 1512 on a window at Dolwyddelen, which is long before the building of Gwydir. Cynddelw Brydydd Mawr, who flourished about the year 1250, mused the following line: —
“Trwy ffenestri Gwydir yd ym gwelant”
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that is, “They see me through the glass windows.” The name probably is a corruption of gwaed, blood, and tir, land, signifying the bloody land. Bloody battles were fought here between Llywarch Hen and his foes about the year 610, and also between Gruffydd ab Cynan and Traehaearn ab Caradog, and others.
GYFFIN. — An inflection of cyffin, a confine, a limit, a border. The village is situated on the rivulet Gyffin, about three-quarters of a mile from Conway, which was anciently called Caer Gyffin.
HIRAEL. — Hir, long; ael, brow; ael bryn, the brow of a hill. The name is quite descriptive of the situation of the village.
HEBRON. — The village took its name from the Congregational Chapel that was built in the place.
LLANAELHAIARN. — The church is dedicated to Aelhaiarn, a brother of Llwchhaiarn, and a saint of the sixth century.
LLANDRILLO. — The church is dedicated to St. Trillo.
LLANDDYNIOL. — The church is dedicated to Deiniolen, a descendant of Dunawd, the founder of Bangor Iscoed.
LLANLLECHID. — The church is dedicated to Llechid, daughter of Ithel Hael, and a saint of the sixth century.
LLANEUGAN, or LLANEINON. — The church is dedicated to Einion, a royal saint of the sixth century. The following inscription was in the belfry of the church some time ago: “Eneanus Rex Wallia Fabricavit.”
LLANDEGWYNIN. — The fair church of Gwynin, a saint of the seventh century, to whose memory it was dedicated.
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LLANGWNADLE. — The church is dedicated to Gwynodl, son of Seithenyn, and a celebrated saint of the sixth century.
LLANRHYCHWYN. — According to the “Myvyrian,” the church was dedicated to Rhychwyn, son of Ithel Hael.
LLANDWROG. — The church is dedicated to Twrog, son of Ithel Hael.
LLANFOR. — The church is dedicated to Alor ab Ceneu ab Coel, a saint of the fifth century.
LLANIESTYN. — The church is dedicated to Iestyn ab Geraint, the founder of it. He flourished about the end of the sixth century.
LLANDUDWEN. — The church was dedicated to Tudwen, a Welsh saint.
LLANDUDNO. — The church is dedicated to Tudno, son of Seithenyn, and a saint of the sixth century. A curious rocking stone, called Cryd Tudno, Tudno’s cradle, is seen on the Great Orme’s Head.
LLANBERIS. — The church was dedicated to Peris, a saint of the sixth century, and a cardinal missioned from Rome, took up his abode and died here.
LLANARMON. — The church is dedicated to Garmon,or Germanus, a saint and bishop of the fifth centuiy.
LLANGYSTENYN. — The church was probably dedicated to Cystenyn Gerneu, and not to Constantine the Great, as some believe.
LLANFAELRYS. — The church was dedicated to Maelfrys, a descendant of Emyr Llydaw, and a saint of the sixth century.
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LLANYSTUMDWY. — Ystum, a bend, a turn, a curve, a form; dwy, two; signifying the form of two rivers.
LLANBEBLIG. — The church is dedicated to Peblic, (Publicus), son of Macsen Wledig, and a saint of the fifth century.
LLANLLYFNI. — Llyfni, the name of the river that flows through the village. The name signifies a church on or near the smooth water.
LLANDEGAI. — Tegai, son of Ithel Hael, and a popular saint of the sixth century, founded the church In “Achau y Saint,” he is Tegai Glasog o Maelan. This beautiful little place is called a “model village.”
LLANBEDROG. — The church is dedicated to Pedrog, son of Clement, who is supposed to have founded it in the seventh century.
LLANRHOS. — Rhos, a dry meadow, a plain; the name signifies a church on the meadow. The church is celebrated for the death of Maelgwyn Gwynedd, who had taken shelter here to avoid the fad felen, yellow plague, which at that time raged through Europe. However, he fell a victim to the plague, and was buried in this church; hence the adage — “Hun Maelgwyn yn Eglwys y Rhos” — i.e., the sleep of Maelgwyn in Llanrhos.
LLANFAGLAN.— The church is dedicated to Baglan, son of Dingad.
LLANFIHANGEL-Y-PENNANT.— The church is dedicated to St. Michael, and is situated near the river Pennant.
LLANGYBI.— The church is dedicated to Cybi, a popular British saint of the sixth century.
LLANFAIR FECHAN.— The church is dedicated to
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St. Mary, and the adjective fechan, small, little, was added probably to distinguish it from other and larger churches dedicated to the same saint.
LLITHFAEN. — Llith implies attraction; maen, stone. There is a stone in the vicinity that partakes of the nature of a loadstone, from which, probably, the place derives its name.
MEINI HIRION. — Meini, plural of maen, stone; hirion, plural of hir, long. Druidic monuments, such as cromlechs and other large stones, are still visible in this vicinity. The place took its name from the long stones that were seen above the Bwlch, which, according to tradition, were conveyed there by a giant.
MOEL TRYFAN. — Moel, bare, bald; tryfan, high place, upland.
MYNYTHO. — A corrupted form of mynyddoedd, mountains. The name is quite descriptive of the place, which is situated on a rugged eminence.
NAZARETH. — This village takes its name from Nazareth, the Congregational Chapel.
NANNAU. — Plural form of nant, a brook.
NANTFFRANCON. — Nant, a brook; ffrancon, a beaver; the name signifies the beaver’s hollow.
NANTLLE.— A compound of nant, a brook, and llef, a cry, a voice, so called from the traditional belief that some sorrowful cries were heard near the brook at some remote period.
NEFYN. — The church was probably dedicated to Nefyn, daughter of Brychan Brycheiniog, and a saint of the fifth century; hence the name of the place.
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PORTMADOC. — In 1813, Mr. Maddock, Tan-yr-Allt, made an embankment to save the site of the present town from the incursions of the sea; and in 1821, he obtained an Act of Parliament for opening a port in the place, so he is naturally called the founder of the town, and his name was deservedly bestowed upon it.
PONTNEWYDD. — Pont, bridge; newydd, new; so called from a certain bridge, that was built over the river Gwyrfai.
PWLLHELI. — Pwll, pool; heli, salt water; the seaport is situated on the edge of Cardigan Bay. The “Myvyrian” derives heli from Heli, the son of Glanog.
PORTDINORWIG. — Din, a hill fort; The Rev. Isaac Taylor derives it thus: Port Dyn Norwig, the “Port of the Norway men,” founding his reasons upon the probability that the Normans frequently visited that haven. His derivation in our opinion, is rather far-fetched and misleading. Dinorwig probably means “fort of the Ordovices.”
PENYGROES. — So called after an insignificant cottage of the name, which stood near a crossway.
PENMAENMAWR. — Pen, head; maen, stone, rock; mawr, great. The prefix pen is frequently found in the names of mountains, such as Ben Nevis, Appennines, Pennignant; La Penne, Penard, &c. Penmaenmawr is a huge mountain, 1545 feet perpendicular from its base, being the terminating point of the Snowdonian range of mountains. The beautiful watering-place, which shelters at its base, takes its name from it. Some think the right wording is Penmonmawr. The adjacent, promontory is now frequently called —
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PENMACHNO. — Machno, a mutation of Machnawf; mach-moch, ready, quick, swift; nawf, swim. “Moch dysg nawf mab hwyad” — i.e., the young of the duck soon learn to swim. Machno is the name of the river near which the village is situated. Some are of opinion, that the name signifies the head of Machno, a descendant of one of the Irish princes that visited these shores about the fourth century. The common opinion of the inhabitants is that machno is a corruption of mynachlog monastery, founding their reason upon the supposition that a monastery stood here in time of yore.
PENTIR. — The name means headland. Centire has the same signification. Pen in Gaelic is cen. The place is also called Llangedol, from the dedication of its church to Cedol, a Welsh saint.
PENRHYN. — Rhyn means a promontory. Rhe, run, rain, and rhyn, are derivatives of the Sanscrit ri. Rhedeg, running; reindeer, the running deer; rhe, swift. Penrhyn, a point of land that runs into the sea. Rhine, a rapid river. The Rhyns are numerous in our island. Rindow Point near Wigton; Penrhyn in Cornwall; Rhynd in Perth; the Rins of Galloway, &c.
PEN ISA’R WAUN.— The name signifies a place situated at the lower end of the meadow.
PENLLECH. — This name signifies “the head of the rock,” from the situation of the place at the extremity of some rocks on the coast of St. George’s Channel.
PORT PENRHYN.— The late Lord Penrhyn made this a shipping-place for the slates that were conveyed from his quarries in the Vale of Nant Ffrancon; hence the name.
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PISGAH. — So called from Pisgah, the Congregational Chapel that was built in the place.
PENCARTH. — A compound of pen, head or end, and garth, a promontory, a ridge.
PEN MORFA. — The name signifies the head or end of the marsh. The village is situated between some high rocks at the end of a tract of meadows on the western bank of Traeth Mawr, the great beach. It was anciently called Y Wern, and supposed to be a seaport before Mr. Maddock raised the embankment at Port Madoc.
RHIW. — The name means a slope, which is in correspondence with the physical aspect of the village, being situated on a rising eminence.
RHIWAEDOG. — Rhiw, slope, brow of a hill; gwaedog, bloody; signifying the bloody brow. The place is noted for a battle fought between Llywarch Hen and the Saxons, in which Cynddelw, his last son, fell.
ROEWEN. — Probably a corruption of yr wy wen, the white river. A place called Gorswen is contiguous to it.
RHYDGOCH. — The name signifies the red ford,
RHYDYCLAFDY. — Rhyd, a ford; clafdy, hospital; signifying a ford near the hospital. Several names in this neighbourhood point to the probability that it was once a scene of war.
RHOSFAWR. — Rhos, a moor; fawr-mawr, great.
RHOSLAN. — Rhos, a moor; lan-llan, a sacred inclosure, a church.
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RHOSTRYFAN. — Rhos, a moor; tryfan, high place. The village is situated on a high elevated place.
SARN. — The name generally means a road. Six roads meet at a certain point in the village; hence the name.
TREFOR. — A compound of tref, place, town, and fawr, large, great.
TY’NLON. — Ty, a house; yn, in; y, the; lon Northwalian word for a narrow road. The name signifies a house in or near the road, and the village probably derived it from a farm-house of the name.
TALSARN. — Tal, end; sarn, road; the name signifies the end of the Roman road. Sarn y Cyfiawn, the highway of the righteous. Sarn Helen occurs frequently in Welsh history. Helen was a Welsh princess, the daughter of Euddaf, that is, Octavius, a Cambrian prince, and the wife of Macsen Wledig, or Maximus, the emperor. Sarn Helen is an old Roman road, so called by the emperor in honour of his wife.
TYDWAELIOG. — Some are of opinion that the church was originally dedicated to Tydwal, a Welsh saint.
TREMADOG. — The derivation of Portmadoc is almost equally applicable to this name. The only difference lies in the prefix. Tre means an abode, a town.
TALYCAFN. — Tal, front, end; y, the; cafn, a tray or trough; signifying the head or end of the trough. The name faithfully represents this isolated and encircled spot of the parish.
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TREFRIW. — Tref, a place, a town; rhiw, a slope, a brow of a hill. This pretty little village is situated on a small eminence, commanding an extensive view of the beautiful Vale of Llanrwst.
TY’NDONEN. — The correct wording probably is Tyddyn yr Onnen, the ash tenement. This is one of the many place names in Wales where tyddyn is reduced to tyn.
WAENFAWR.— Waen or Waun, a meadow, a common; fawr-mawr, great; the great meadow. The site of the present straggling village was once a large meadow, covering one square mile, where the neighbouring farmers were wont to turn their cattle in the summer to graze, and quench their thirst in the river Gwyrfai.
YNYS ENLLI. — From Ynys Fenlli, i.e., Benlli Gawr, or Benlli the Giant.
The English called it Bardsey Island, the isle of the bards. It is said that the bards resorted there, preferring solitude to the intrusion of foreign invaders.
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[DENBIGH]. Anglicized form of Dinbych, which is variously derived. A variety of very forceful derivations have been suggested, such as Dimbach, which means “no hook,” in allusion to the time when fishing hooks were obtainable in the place. Is it not Dinbach? Din, a hill; bach, little or small. The last derivation is amply supported by the geographical position of the place, being a small hill in comparison with the loftier eminences that tower above it. The county derives its name from the town.
ABERGELE. — This pleasant market town is so called from its situation near the mouth of the river Gele. The river, according to some, derives its name from gele, leech. A considerable number of leeches were seen at the estuary in olden times.
ACTYN. — A corrupt form of ac-tun-oaktown.
BANGOR ISCOED. — The word Bangor here means the superior or principal church or college. Iscoed, under the wood. This place is famous for being the site of the most ancient monastery or rather seminary in Britain. It was founded according to the old writers by Lucius, the son of Coel, and first Christian king of Britain, prior to the year 180. Pelagius was here about the year 400. The institution sometime contained 2,400 monks. It was also the site of the supposed Bonium or Borium, a Roman station.
BERSHAM. Bers is supposed to be an English personal name. It occurs in the Cheshire Doomsday Book. The name, probably, signifies Bers’ ham, settlement, or manor.
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BONTNEWYDD. — A compound of pont, a bridge, and newydd, new.
BRYMBO. — Brym is a corruption of bryn, hill. Bo, according to some is an abbreviation of the word boda, the kite, which is supposed to have made this place a favourite place of refuge at times of peril. Some say it is a corruption of Brynbaw, hill of dirt. It was spelt Brinbaw in 1339, and also the forms Brenbowe and Brimbo are found in the same year.
BRYNKINALT. — A compound of bryn, a hill; cyn, prior; gallt, a woody slope. The name implies that a mountain existed before the trees that grew on it.
BODRHYCHWYN. — Bod, a dwelling; Rhychwyn, the name of the son of Ithel Hael, who is supposed to have taken up his abode here.
BWLCHCYNBRYD. — Bwlch, a gap, breach, pass; Cynbryd, the name of a saint of the fifth century, supposed to have been killed by the Saxons at the place which bears his name.
CEFN MAWR. — The name signifies a high- ridge, so called to distinguish it from Cefnbychan, which is in close proximity.
CRISTIONYDD. — The name means a worshipper of Christ, a Christian.
CHIRK. — In Welsh the place is called Eglwys y Waen, the church of the moor. Pennant is of opinion that Chirk is a dialectic variety of the word whence church is derived. Compare the Scotch kirk. Some think the name is a mutilation of Ceiriog, its ancient name. The place is in close proximity to the river Ceiriog.
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CLOG CAENOG. — Clog, a detached rock; caenog, having a cover enclosed. Caenen, a covering. There are some excellent quarries of stone in this mountainous district, and some parts of it abound with heaths.
CERYG-Y-DRUDION. — A corruption of Ceryg-y-Dewrion, the stones of the champions or warriors, so called from a large heap of stones that stood a century or two ago, near the church in memory of some celebrated warriors. Some think drudion is a corruption of druydion, or derwyddon, druids; hence the interpretation would be “stones of the Druids.”
DERWEN. — The name means an oak, so called, probably, from the abundance of oaks in the district.
DOLWEN. — Dol, a meadow; wen, feminine form of gwyn, white.
EGLWYS BACH. — Eglwys, church; Bach, the name of the son of Corwel, who took refuge in North Wales in the seventh century, devoted himself to religious life, and founded a church on the banks of the Conwy; hence the name of the place.
ESGAIR EBRILL. — Esgair, & shank, a long ridge, that which stretches out; Ebrill, April.
EFENECHTYD. — A corruption of y fyneichdyd, the monk’s land; mynach, monk; dyd, or dud, land.
ESCLUSHAM. — Esglyw, protection, defence, and ham, a place, but much more probably from Eglwys = Ecclesia, a church. The place is in close proximity to Offa’s Dyke.
FRON. — An inflection of bron, a pointed or breast-shaped hill.
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FFRWD. — The name means a stream, a torrent. “Ffrwd yr afon,” the stream of the river.
GLYNCEIRIOG. — Glyn, a narrow vale; Ceiriog, the name of the river that flows through the valley.
GARTHEN. — From gaerddin, fortified hill, so called from an old British camp in the place. In this place Owain Gyfeiliog vanquished the Saxons in 1161.
GRESFORD. — A corruption of Groesffordd, so called from its close proximity to an old cross.
GWERSYLLT. — The name signifies a camp or encampment.
GWYTHERIN. — From Sant Gwytherin, to whom the church was dedicated. He flourished about the end of the sixth century. Gwyth, vein; erin, gold.
GEFAILRHYD. — Gefail, smithy; rhyd, ford.
HENLLAN. — Hen, old; llan, church. A name of frequent occurrence in Wales. The old church, dedicated to St. Sadwrn, was demolished, and re-built in 1806.
HOLT. — The Norse for wood, or hold of wild animals. We find Berg-holt in Essex, which means the fortress in the wood. According to Lewis’s “Topographical Dictionary,” the ancient name was Castell Lleon, the “castle of the legions,” and the present name was probably derived from a family of the name of Holt, who are said to have held the castle in remote times.
LLANRHAIADR-YN-MOCHNANT. — Rhaiadr, waterfall; yn, the; mochnant, quick, swift-brook. According to this interpretation, the name signifies a church built near the swift water. Others say that moch means
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swine, and that the word nant is applied to the whole valley, inclusive of the brook that flows through it, on the traditional belief that the place was some time abounding with wild hogs. The latter is the more plausible and acceptable. Dr. Wm. Morgan, the first translator of the Bible into Welsh, was vicar of the place.
LLANELIAN. — From Elian Geimiad, a saint of the sixth century, to whom the church was dedicated. Elian’s “Well is near the village.
LLANEGWESTL. — From Egwestl, to whom the old church was dedicated. Einion Waun alludes to him in the following couplet: —
“Gwr a wnair fel Gwair fab Gwestl,
Gwyr wawr yn llawr Llanegwestl.”
i.e. — Like Gwestyl’s son, he lies in gloom profound
In Valle Crucis Abbey’s holy ground.
LLANELIDAN. — The church is dedicated to St. Elidan.
LLANGOLLEN. — From Collen, a saint of the seventh century. A Welsh legend recounts his martial deeds when he was in the Roman army, and shows how he became Abbot of Glastonbury, and spent the latter end of his life in that delightful vale which still bears his name.
LLANFAIR DYFFRYN CLWYD. — Llanfair, St. Mary’s church; dyffryn, vale; Clwyd, the name of the picturesque and fertile vale in which the church is situated. Clwyd is probably a mutation of llwyd, venerable, adorable. “Duw lwyd,” the adorable God.
LLANRHAIADR DYFFRYN CLWYD. — Rhaiadr means cataract, waterfall. Rhaiadru, to spout out. “Ffynnon Ddyfrog,” Dyvrog’s well, a short distance from the
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church, suddenly disappears in the fissures of the rock. Dyffryn Clwyd has been explained already.
LLANRHUDD. — A corruption of Llanrhyd, the church by the ford.
LLANSANTFFRAID-GLAN-CONWY. The church was
dedicated to St. Ffraid, and the village stands on the banks of the river Conway. The name of the railway-station is Carog, to distinguish it from the other Llansantffraid.
LLANDYRNOG. — From Dyrnog, a descendant of Seithenin, to whom the church is dedicated.
LLANSILIN. — The church is dedicated to Silin, a descendant of Emyr Llydaw, and a saint of the sixth century. Eglwys Sulien, Cardigan, also bears his name.
LLANGWYFEN. — From Cwyfen, a descendant of Caradog Breichfras.
LLANDRILLO. — From Trillo, son of Ithel Hael, and a saint of the sixth century. He was a member of the Enlli seminary. This village is famous for being the residence of Maelgwyn Gwynedd in the fifth century,, and afterwards of Ednyfed Fychan, chief of one of the royal tribes of Wales.
LLANHYCHAN. — From Hychan, a descendant of Brychan, and a saint of the fifth century.
LLANGYNHAFAL. — The church is dedicated to Cynhafal, a descendant of Caradog Freichfras, and a saint of the seventh century.
LLANGERNYW. — The church was founded by St. Digain in the fifth century, and probably dedicated it to his father, Cystenyn Gemeu, a British king, and son
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of Cadwr, the prince of Cernyw (Cornwall); hence the name Llangernyw.
LLANRWST. The old church was built in 1170, and dedicated to Crwst, a descendant of Urien Rheged, and a saint of the seventh century. Lord Herbert burned the church in 1468, and the present one was built in 1470. Pennant says the church was dedicated to St. Rhystid, or Restitutus, Archbishop of London, in 361.
LLANGADWALADR. — The church is dedicated to Cadwaladr, the Blessed, who succeeded his father, Cadwallawn, to the throne of Britain in 634. He was the last of the Welsh princes who assumed the title of King of Britain.
LLANGEDWYN. — From Cedwyn, a descendant of Gwrthefyr, the king, and a saint of the sixth century. It is supposed he was buried in the church.
LLANSANT SIOR. — The church, probably, is dedicated to St. George, hence the name. Kinmel Park is close by, where, according to tradition, Oliver Cromwell was concealed when Carter, his general lived there. A very big spur was seen in St. George’s church, called Oliver Cromwell’s spur.
LLANSANTFFRAID GLYNDYFRDWY. — The church was dedicated to St. Ffraid. Glyn, glen, a narrow, deep valley; Dyfrdwy, Dee. The Dee valley extends about seven miles in length, and lies in the parishes of Llangollen, Llandysilio, Corwen, and Llansantffraid. In this parish was the prison where Owen Glyndwr confined his captives, and the place was called Carchardy Owen Glyndwr, Owen Glyndwr’s prison.
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LLANDEGLA. — The church was probably dedicated to Tegla, who, according to tradition, was converted to Christianity by the Apostle Paul, and suffered martyrdom under Nero at Iconium. The celebrated Tegla’s Well is about 200 yards from the Church.
LLANDDULAIS. — From Dulais — du, black; glais, a brook — the river on which the church is situated. Here the unfortunate Richard the Second was betrayed into the hands of his formidable rival to the throne. The cantrev is called Is-Dulais.
LLANFERRES. The church was probably dedicated, about the latter end of the fourth century, to Berres, a disciple of St. Martin, the Hungarian. Dr. John Davies, the eminent antiquarian, and the author of the Welsh-Latin Dictionary, was a native of this parish.
LLANGWM. — The name signifies a church in the vale or dingle.
LLANDDOGED. — The church was dedicated to Doged a descendant of Cunedda, and a saint of the sixth century. “Bonedd y Saint” calls him Doged the King.
LLANEFYDD. — Nefydd, a descendant of Brychan, and a saint of the fifth century, founded the church.
LLANSANNAN. — Senau, or Senanus, was a saint and an Irish bishop of the sixth century, and it is inferred that he lived in Wales from the fact that this church was dedicated to him.
LLANFAIR-TALHAIARN. — The church is dedicated to St. Mary. Talhaiarn was a celebrated bard and saint of the sixth century. He was also a chaplain to Emrys
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Wledig; but after the latter was killed, he became a hermit, and founded the church which bears his Name.
LLANARMON-YN-IAL. — The church was dedicated to St. Garmon, bishop of Auxerre. Ial, the name of the cantrev, means an open space or region. Tir ial, open land. Yale, Derbyshire, is derived from the same root. Ial is the differentia, added to distinguish the place from the other Llanarmon. The “Topographical Dictionary of Wales” says that “within a niche in the outer wall of the church is the figure of a bishop, six feet four inches in height, which is said to be that of St. Germanus, Bishop of Auxerre, who, with St. Lupus, gained over the Picts and Saxons at Maesgarmon, near Mold, in the year 420, the celebrated victory called by historians Victoria Alleluiatica.”
LLANARMON DYFFRYN CEIRIOG. — The village is situated on the river Ceiriog; hence the differentia. The parish is supposed to have been the burial-place of St. Germanus.
LLYSFAEN. — The name signifies the stone court or palace.
LODGE. — The village is situate on the Lodge Estate. In 1844 there was only one house in the place, which is now so densely populated.
MARCHWIAIL. — March, perhaps, is the same as marc, a mark, and wiail is the plural of gwialen, a rod. Viewing the geographical position of this place, being in close proximity to Wat’s Dyke, we are of opinion that the line of demarcation was made of- rods or poles; hence the origin of the name.
MINERA. — The name of this place was Mwyn-y-
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Clawdd, the mine-ditch, in allusion to Offa’s Dyke, which passes through it; and the present name is probably derived from the abundance of minerals it contains. It is supposed that the Welsh name was not mentioned until 1685, whereas the name Minera can be traced back to 1339.
MOCHDRE. — Moch, quick, swift; or, perhaps, it is the plural for pigs; dre-tref, a dwelling-place.
MOELFRE. — Moel, bare, bald; fre-fryn, hill.
MOSS. — A corruption, perhaps, of ffos, a ditch, or trench. Ffos is cognate with the Latin fossa, a ditch. Moss is the Norse for bog.
NANTGLYN. — Nant, brook; glyn, glen, vale.
OERNANT. — Oer, cold; nant, brook.
PONTYGLYN. — The bridge of the glen. This bridge stands at the head of a woody glen.
PENTRE’R BAIS. — The village of the petticoat. The name is supposed to be a nickname. It appears that Mary Bartley’s cottage was the first to form the nucleus of the village, hence the name.
RHOSTYLLEN. — The modern village has grown up between two farmhouses: the first of them was called ‘y Rhos,’ and the other ‘Bryn y pentre.’ Perhaps the correct form is ‘Rhos Astyllen,’ the Ribwort moor.
PENRHOS. — A compound of pen, head, end; and rhos, a meadow, a moor.
PENSARN. — The name signifies the end of the Roman road. Castell-y-cawr, the giant’s castle, which is considered to be one of the most complete Roman camps in the kingdom, is in this vicinity.
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PENTRE CELYN (CUHELYN). — The village of Cuhelyn.
PENTREFOELAS. — Pentre, village; moel, a pile, a conical hill; las-glas, blue. Many of our mountains and hills bear the name moel, such as Moel Siabod, Y Foel (Cwmavon), Moelyfamau, Moelwyn, Y Foel Goch, and the Foel Las. Some think the correct wording is Pentre-foel-aes, the village of the Bald Shield.
PONTLLOGELL. — Pont, bridge; llogell, pocket, so called, probably, from the pedestrians being obliged to put their hands into their pockets to pay a certain fee before crossing the bridge.
PONKEY. — A corruption of Poncyn, a small hillock, or it may be a contraction of the plural ponciau.
PANTYGROES. — Pant, small dingle; y, the; croes-groes, cross. It is said that the form of a cross which was once visible on a certain spot in the neighbourhood, was destroyed by Cromwell’s soldiers, but from which circumstance the place was called Pantygroes.
RHYDONEN. — Rhyd, ford; onen, the ash tree. One writer thinks it is a corruption of Rhyd Hen, the old ford; but this is rather far-fetched. Hewers of wood in olden times might have conveyed the ash trees over the ford, near which a bridge now stands.
RHOSHOBYN. — Rhos, meadow; hobyn, pig; Yr Hob was in ancient times the popular word for swine. “Hob y deri dan do,” i.e. — The boar of the wood safely lodged under roof. Having captured the boar in the woods and brought him safely to the house, the popular Welsh song “Hob y deri dan do” was sung with rapture and joy.
RHOSLLANERCHRUGOG. — Rhos, meadow; llanerch, glade; crugog, abounding with tumps.
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RHOSYMEDRE. — A compound of Rhos and yn, the, a corruption of mhen-pen, and dre-tre, a dwelling place, signifying a meadow at the end of the town. Some say, that medre is a mutation of mydreu, measures or circles. The former derivation is supported by the geographical position of the village.
ROSSET. — A corruption of rhosydd, the plural of rhos.
RUABON. An Anglicized form of Rhiw Fabon. Rhiw, slope, ascending path; Mabon, the name of a Welsh saint who lived here, and founded a church about the time of Llewelyn ab Iorwerth. Some think the place took its name from its physical aspect, being situate on a rhiw, a slope, near a streamlet called Afon; hence Rhiwafon. The former is the more popular view.
RUTHIN. — This name is variously derived. Some say that a woman named Ruth once kept a large inn near the (then) village, and, when the place began to develop into a town, the people began to call it Ruth Inn. Red is the prevailing colour of the soil in the district. The principal parts of the town are situated on red sands or ashes; hence the name was taken from the ruddy hue of the soil. Rhuth-rhudd, ruddy, crimson, red; in an abbreviation of din; signifying a ruddy town. The town was burnt by Owen Glyndwr, September 20th, 1400.
RHUFONIOG. — This place was given to Rhufawn, son of Cunedda Wledig, for the gallantry shown by him in driving the Picts from North Wales; hence the name.
THREAPWOOD. — Some think threap, is derived from Throp, the meeting of cross roads. Pennant derives it from Threapian, an Anglo-Saxon word signifying to persist in a fact or argument, be it right or wrong.
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TREFNANT. — A compound of tref, place, a town, and nant, brook.
TREFOR. — Tref, town; for-fawr, great; in contradistinction to trefan, a small hamlet or city.
TRE’R YNYS. — Ynys Cyrys, to whom is generally dedicated the honour of having been the first to collect the Welsh proverbs. The collection is called “Madwaith hen Gyrys o Ial,” the good work of old Cyrys of Ial.
WIG FAWR, or WICWER. — Wig-gwig, a wood or forest; Mair, St. Mary, signifying Mary’s wood. There is also a well in the place dedicated to St. Mary.
WREXHAM. — Someone, more wittily than correctly, said that Gwrecsam means Gwraig Sam, Sam’s wife.
“Such short-lived wits do wither as they grow.”
The most ancient forms of the name are Wrighesham and Wrightesham. Old form, Wrightes ham, i.e., Wright’s ham. Churchyard, the Elizabethan bard, described it as “trim Wricksam town, a pearl in Denbighshire.” The name, we think, is a compound of rex, king, and ham, signifying the king’s hamlet. A few Latin words were introduced into the speech of the Cymry in the middle ages. In the elegy of Meilyr on “Gruffydd ab Cynan” (twelfth century) we find the epithet “rex radau,” king of gifts, or graces.
WYNSTAY. — It was once called Wat-stay from its situation on the famous dyke. The present name was given to it by Sir John Wynn.
YSBYTTY IFAN. — This village, situated on the banks of the Conwy, took its name from an ysbytty, hospital, that was founded here in 1189, by Ifan ab Rhys. Tir Ifan is another place in the parish.
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[FLINT.] The name probably arose from that of the Castle, Castellum-super-Fluentum, i.e., the castle near the sea. The county is exceedingly rich in minerals, especially lead and coal; but flintstones have not as yet been discovered there; so that we must seek elsewhere for the origin of the name. Some think the name refers to the oblong form of the county, which, when looking on the map, reminds one of the ancient Celtic knives which were made of flint.
ADWY’R CLAWDD. — Adwy, gap, breach; Clawdd, dyke. The place is in close proximity to Offa’s Dyke; hence the name.
ST. ASAPH. — The Welsh name is Llanelwy, from its situation on the banks of the liver Elwy. The English name was bestowed upon it in honour of St. Asaph, who became the second bishop of the see in 560, died in 596, and was interred in his own cathedral. The township in which it stands is called Bryn Paulin, in honour of Paulinus, a Roman general, who made the hill a place of encampment on his way to Mona. Some think the right wording is Bryn Polyn, the hill of the pole.
ARGOED. — The name signifies a place on or above the wood, and is cognate with Arghait in Scotland.
BODIDRIS. — From Idris, the son of Llewelyn Aur dorchog (the golden -torqued), one of the lords of Ial.
BODFARI. — The common opinion is that the Roman station called Varis was here, and recent discoveries corroborate the theory; hence the name.
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BETTESFIELD. — The general opinion is that the field belonged to a woman called Betty. A field below the Baily hill, called Cae Owain, Owen’s field, is supposed to be the place where Owen and his men encamped when they stormed the Baily castle. There are several fields in this district either suffixed or prefixed by proper names. The right wording would be Bettysfield.
BAGILLT. — This name is a perversion of Bugeillt, which is a compound of bu, a cow, an ox, and geillt, the plural form of gallt, a cliff, an ascent.
BROUGHTON. — In Doomsday Survey and other old records, the name is spelt as Broctune, and that in modern English is Brook-town. The Broughton family took their name from this place in the reign of Henry VIII.
BRYNTEG. — From an old farm-house so called. The name signifies ‘fair-hill.’
BWLCHGWYN. — The name signifies ‘white gap or pass.’ The earliest mention of the name is in a document dated 1649, wherein Bwlchgwyn is described as a Common. It takes its name, probably, from the white limestone cliffs which lined the old road from Wrexham to Ruthin.
CAERGWRLE. — Caer, fortress; gwr-aer, boundary; le-lle, a place, signifying the border fortress. An old castle bearing the name is situate about a mile from the village called Hope. It is supposed to have been an outpost to Deva. On the supposition that it was once a Roman station, some think the full wording is Caer-gawr-lleng, the camp of the great legion; cawr-lleng was the name given by the Britons to the twentieth legion.
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CILOWEN. — Cil, a hidden place. This name was given in honour of Owen Gwynedd, who camped there in order to avoid the intrigues of Henry II.
CAERWYS. — Caer, a fortress, a city, from Latin castrensis; wys-gwys, summons. Some think that the Romans had a station here, where they held their judicial courts. The bards, in time of yore, frequently held their sessions here. An eisteddfod was held here by royal commission on the 2nd of July, in the 15th year of Henry VIII. The last royal summers for holding these national festivals was issued in the ninth year of the reign of Elizabeth.
CAERFALLWCH. — A corruption probably of Caer, stronghold; Afallach, proper name. In the pedigree of Sir Owain Tudor we find the name of “Afallech ap Afflech, ap Beli Mawr.” This Afallech is supposed to be a nephew of the renowned Caswallawn. On an adjacent hill called “Moel-y-gaer” their are some remains of a British stronghold, which is supposed to have been under the command of Afallech during the Roman incursions.
CEFN. — The name signifies a ridge, which is quite descriptive of the place, being situated on a high eminence on the left bank of the river Alun.
COEDMYNYDD. — A compound of coed, wood; and mynydd, mountain.
COEDPOETH. — The name signifies “Burnt wood.” In Norden’s Survey of A.D., 1620, it is described as a “Common.” It was at one time the resort of charcoal burners, but it is doubtful whether that sufficiently explains the name. The probability is that the Common
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was sometime covered with trees which were burnt down. Poeth-offrwm means “burnt-offering.”
COED TALON. — Coed, wood, trees; talon, plural form of tal, towering, high, tall.
COLESHILL. — Literally, hill of coal. The Welsh name is Cwnsyllt, which means the anvil of a smith, and the other English name, Englefield, means the field of the English, which was given to it, perhaps, because the Earl of Chester, and his followers were encamping there when Owain Gwynedd marched to meet him and impede his progress through his territory.
CILCAIN. — Cil, a place of retreat; cain = fair, beautiful. Eurgain was the name of St. Asaph’s niece. Pending the religious persecution that raged at the time, Eurgain repaired to a sequestered spot in this vicinity, built a cell there, and became a religious devotee. Shortly afterwards, she built a church near the cell, which was dedicated to her memory.
COEDLLAI. — Coed, wood; llai, less. It is generally called in English Leeswood, taking llai to mean less; but the proper English name is Lesswood. Owing to the abundance of wood in the district, Edward, before his conquest of Wales, was obliged to cut a passage through them; hence there were less trees than before.
DOLFFIN. — A compound of dol, a dale, a meadow; and ffin, boundary, limit.
DYSERTH. — Dyserth or diserth from latin [sic; = Latin] desertus, a desert. The village probably takes its name from the ancient castle which occupied the summit of the rock. In time of yore, it was known by the names of Dincolyn, Castell-y-Ffaidon, and Castell Ceri, and
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is supposed to have been the last of the chain of British posts on the Clwydian hills. Pennant calls it Dissarch. We have Dysart on the Firth of Forth, and Dyzard in Cornwall.
FFRITH. — The right wording, probably, is ffridd, a forest, a plantation. Ffridd Celyddon, the forest of Caledonia. The old Welsh fruith, and the modern Welsh ffrwyth from Latin fruit, fructus, belong to the same family of words.
Garneddwen. — Carnedd, heap of stones, cairn; wen, white.
GELLI. — Celli, a grove, a bowei.
GLANYRAFON. — Glan, brink, side, bank; yr, the; afon, river. Glanymor, the sea-shore. Glanydwr, the water-side. Glanyrafon, the river-side.
GOP. — So called from its close proximity to Gop-ar-leni. — It means the top, the summit. Copa’r pen, the crown of the head.
GWAENYSCOR. — A corruption of gwaen, meadow; is below; caer, wall, fortress.
GWESPYR. — Has nothing to do with gwesty, an inn, and pyr, lords, but is a corruption of Eng. Westbury.
GWERNAFIELD. — A compound of gwern, a swamp, a bog; and field. Perhaps gwern here means the common alder trees.
GRONANT. — Probably a compound of croyw, clear, sweet, fresh, and nant, a brook; or gro-nant, sandbrook.
HANMER. — A mutation of Handmere, with the d and the final e omitted. Hand requires no comment;
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mere, cognate with the Latin mare, sea, lake, or pool. The village is situated near a lake, which lies between its banks in the form of a man’s hand. The celebrated bard Dafydd ab Edmunt was born in this parish.
HAWARDEN. — A corruption of Haordine, which is really a Welsh name; haw, fixed; ar, upon; den-din, hill; signifying a castle built on a hill. In “Doomsday” it is Harodin. The “Brut” calls it Penharddlech. Penard or Penarth Halawg is the Welsh name, which means the headland above the lake. Garth, hill, is forcibly expressed in the word lluarth, an entrenchment on the hill. Halawg comes from hal, salt marsh, referring to the Saltney and other marshes, which were formerly covered by the sea. The modern Welsh name is Pennar Lag. Penard, high enclosure. Leg, lake. This place is world-renowned for having been the residence of the late Right Hon. W. E. Gladstone, M.P.
HALKIN. — A corruption of the Welsh name Helygen, which means a willow, a willow tree. At the time of the Norman Conquest, the district was called Alchene, a contraction, probably, of Helygen. The village lies at the base of a mountain called Helygen.
HOLYWELL. — A free translation of Treffynnon, so called from St. Winifred’s Well, of legendary renown. The original meaning of holy is healing. The water of this well was believed to be efficacious in the cure of all corporeal infirmities. It discharges 21 tons of water in a minute. It is covered by a beautiful Gothic building, supposed to have been erected by Margaret, Countess of Richmond, mother of Henry VI.
HOPE. — The old name was Caergwrle, previously
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explained. Edward I. took possession of Castle Estyn June 1282, and bestowed it upon Queen Eleanor when on her journey to Carnarvon, where she gave birth to Edward II., the first Englishman that was titled Prince of Wales, from which circumstance the place was called Queen’s Hope, and sometimes East Hope to distinguish it from North Hope.
LICSWM. — A compound of llug, from Greek, lychos, and Latin lux, a light, a gleam; and cwm, a dingle, a vale, signifying a luminous vale.
LLANASA. — Asa is an abbreviation of Asaph, a popular saint of the sixth century, who succeeded St. Cyndeyrn in the see of Llanelwy in 560. The church, and hence the village, were named in honour of him. Pantasaph took its name from him.
LLANGYNFARCH. — Cynfarch, a prince of the North Britons, and a saint of the sixth century, founded the church, which was afterwards destroyed by the Saxons in the battle of Bangor Orchard, 607.
LLANCILCEN. — Cil, a hidden place; Cen-cain, an abbreviation of Eurgain, niece to St. Asaph. She was the founder of the Church. Vide Cilcain.
LLANERCH-Y-MOR. — Llanerch, a glade; y, the; mor, sea. This town, as its name signifies, is situate near the sea.
LLOC. — The word means a mound, a dam, a fold. Lloc rhag y Llifeiriant, a dam against the flood. Llochi, to protect. Lloches, a covert, a refuge. Lock-gates are employed on rivers and canals for penning back
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the water and forming locks. The word here probably implies a sheepfold.
LLONG. — Llong, a ship. The village derives its name from a small inn which had the figure of a ship in full sail on its sign-board.
MELIDEN. — This place is supposed to derive its name from the dedication of the church to St. Meliden or Melid.
MANCOT. — A compound of man, a place, a spot; and coed, wood.
MOSTYN. — A corruption, probably, of maes-ddin, which signifies the fortress field. Thomas ap Richard ap Hywel ap Ithel Fychan, at the suggestion of Rowland Lee, Bishop of Lichfield, was the first to adopt the place-name, as a personal name.
MOLD. — Gwyddgrug is the Welsh name, which means “the conspicuous mount or hill,” so called from the great heap (now known by the name Bryn Beili, Bailey hill, from the word ballium, castle-yard), which is near the principal road. The prevalent opinion is, that this heap was once a tower of defence, which stood so conspicuously in the Vale of Alun, that it was called Y Wyddgrug. The Normans partially translated it Mont Haut, or Monthault, the high mount, and some think it may be a corruption of moel iad, bald pate. The name is obviously one of the few memorials left us of the Norman Conquest.
MAESGARMON. — Named in honour of St. Garmon, who, with Bishop Lupus, led the Britons against, and obtained a glorious victory over the Pagan Saxons and Picts. This took place in Easter week, 440, and
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is to this day called the “Hallelujah victory”. Nehemiah Griffiths, Esq, of Rhual, erected an obelisk in 1736, with an inscription to commemorate the event.
MAELOR. A corruption of mael, mart, and llawr, ground, signifying a place where trade could be carried on unmolested, or it may be a variant form of maenor.
NEWMARKET. — The old Welsh name was Rhiwlyfnwyd, but Pennant calls it Treflawnyd, which signifies “a place full of corn.” About the beginning of the 18th century, John Wynn, Esq., of Gop, the then owner of the estate succeeded in getting a market here, which had been a long-felt desideratum, and, probably, from that circumstance, the place was henceforth called Newmarket.
NANNERCH. — A compound of nant, a brook, and erch a dark colour,
NERQUIS. — A corruption of Nercwys; ner, a sovereign; cwys, a furrow. Cwys dir, a furrow of land.
NORTHOP. — In ancient records the name is Northorpe, from North and Thorpe, the latter word is the Saxon for village or town. The appellation North was given to it in order to distinguish it from East Hope and East Thorp.
Llaneurgain is the Welsh name, given from the church having been dedicated to Eurgain, the daughter of Maelgwn Gwynedd, and a saint of the 6th century. She died in 586.
OVERTON. — A corruption of Owrtyn. It was anciently called Owrtyn Fadoc from Madoc ab Meredydd, the prince of Powys, who is supposed to have built a castle here. The town is situated on a rising eminence near the river Dee.
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PENTRE HOBYN. — Pentre, a village; hobyn, a pig. Hanerhob, a flitch or side of a hog. This place in ancient times was famous for its abundance of wild boars. Vide Rhos-hobyn, Denbigh.
PENYGELLI. — Pen, head, end; y, the; gelli, grove.
PENYMYNYDD. — The name signifies a place situated on a mountain.
PONTBLEIDDYN. — Pont, a bridge; bleiddyn, a wolf’s cub.
PRESTATYN. — A corruption of Prysgoed-ddin. In ancient times there was a castle here called Prysgoed-ddin, evidently built by the Kymry, a few ruins of which still remain. Prys, a covert; coed, wood; din, fortress; the name signifies a place of resort. Some say it is a corruption of Prys Tydain, Tydain’s place of resort. Prys form [sic] a part of many names, Prysaddfed, Pryseddfod, Prystalyn, &c.
RHUDDLAN. — This name is variously derived. Some derive it from Robert de Rothelan, a military chief, who visited the place. Others derive it from rhudd, red; and glan, bank, from the town being situated on the red banks of the river Clwyd. The castle was anciently called Castell Coch yn Ngwernfor, i.e., the red castle on the great plain. The most natural explanation is Rhyd-y-llan, the ford by the church. The name is written even now by the oldest inhabitants Rhydlan. There are three fords in the district; Rhyd-y-ddau-ddwfr, the ford of the two waters, which is fordable to this day; For-ryd, the ford by the sea; and Rhyd-y-llan, the ford by the church. To the north of this ford, on an eminence, there is a church dating back many centuries;
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and the ford is spanned by a bridge which dates back to 1595. Ere the building of this bridge, the church-goers, undoubtedly, were wont to cross the river by means of this ford, hence it was called Rhyd-y-llan. It is spelt by some Rhyddlan, perhaps from its having been made a free borough by Edward I., whose son was proclaimed here the Prince of Wales, the first English Prince of Wales, 1283. In 1288, Edward I. held a parliament or a council here to divide his new conquests into counties and to give laws to the Welsh. Morfa Rhuddlan is the celebrated marsh where that memorable battle was fought in 795 between the Saxons under Offa and and the Welsh under the valiant Caradog, when the last fell in the conflict. Many names in the vicinity point to the sad catastrophe, such as Bryn y saethau, hill of arrows; Bryn y lladdfa, hill of slaughter; Pant y gwae, the vale of woe; Cae yr orsedd, field of the throne or tribunal.
RHYL. — This beautiful watering-place is situated at the extremity of Saltney marsh, which is called in Welsh Morfa yr Hal, or Yr Haleg. We find the names Penarleg near Chester, and Plas-yr-hal near Ruthin, and an old mansion in the vicinity is called Ty’n y-Rhyl, which means a house in the salt marsh. Another suggestion is that the form Yr hel from hela, the hunting ground of Rhuddlan Castle, gave rise to the name.
SALTNEY. — An abbreviation of Salteney, which is a translation of the Welsh halenog, abounding with salt. The site of the present village was nothing better than a marsh until the year 1778.
SEALAND. — Soon after the incorporation of “The River Dee Company,” in 1740, six hundred acres of
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the waste marsh land of this district were purchased from the lord and freeholders of the manor of Hawarden, through which a new channel was cut for the Dee, and soon afterwards some thousands of acres of the sands were redeemed, which are now covered with good crops of corn, &c.; hence the name Sealand.
TRALLON. — A compound of tra-llwng, beyond the marsh, adjoining the marsh, a sinking place, a quagmire.
TRELAN. — A compound of tref, a place, and llan, a church. The parish church is in Trelan.
TREMEIRCHION. — Tref, place; meirchion, a plural form of march; a word denoting a line of demarcation, made of rods or poles. Compare Marchwiail, Denbighshire.
TREUDDYN. — The name is variously spelt. Treuddyn Tryddyn, and Treddyn. The latter is the most acceptable. Tre, a dwelling; dyn, a man.
TALAR. — The name means a headland in a field. Tal, head or end; ar, land, ploughed land.
TRE’R ABBOT. — The abbot’s habitation.
WEPRE. — A corruption of Gwybre, its ancient name. Gwy, water; bre-bryn, a hill. The place is situated on the river Dee.
YSCEIFIOG. — A corruption of Yscawog, abounding with ysgaw, the elder wood. The correct name of the parish is Llanfair Ysceifiog, so called, it is supposed, from its abundance of elder wood.
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ABERAVON. — Aber means the mouth of a river, a particular point at which the lesser water discharges itself into the greater. Professor Rhys derives it from ber, the Celtic equivalent of fer, in Latin fer-o, Greek phero, English bear. Its pristine meaning was a volume of water which a river bears or brings into the sea, or into another river, but the general meaning assigned to it now is an estuary, a confluence, the mouth of a river. It is cognate with the Norman French haver, and the Irish inver.
This ancient town was originally called Aber-Afan, from its situation at the mouth of the river Afan. Some derive Afan from Ban, height; but we are inclined to think the word is related to one of those many roots that contain the idea of motion. Compare the Sansc. a, ap; obs. Gael, abb; Irish Abhaim [sic; = Abhainn], Celtic Awon; Anton, Afan, and Aman.
ABERAMAN. — This place takes its name from the junction of the river Aman with that of the Cynon. For Aman see Aberavon.
ABERBARRI. — A small parish in the Cantrev of Dinas Powys. Some think the postfix comes from Baruch, a disciple of Gilsach, who was buried in Barry Island in 700.
Abercanaid. — The rivulet Canaid discharges itself here into the river Taff, hence the name. Canaid means white, pure, bright.
ABERCENFFIG. — Cenffig is a corruption of CEFN-Y-FIGEN, the ridge, or elevated ground above the bog.
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ABERCWMBOY. — Some say that boy is a corrupted form of bwci, bugbear, hobgoblin, from a tradition that a hobgoblin once haunted the place. Bwci was in course of time reduced to bo, and ultimately y was added. We rather think the right wording is ABER-CWMBWAAU. Bwa is the Welsh for bow.
The place is also called CAP COCH, red cap. There was a public house here as early as 1650, and tradition has it that the eccentric landlord who was also a cock-fighter, was wont to wear a red cap on a cock-fighting day, hence the name.
ABERCYNON. — CYNON means the chief brook or water.
ABERDAR. — Some think that the river Dâr takes its name from the abundance of oak trees (coed dar neu derw) that grew upon its banks. Others derive it from DU-AR; du, black; ar, arable ground. The right wording probably is dyar, which signifies sound, noise, or din, so called perhaps from its noisy waterfalls in the upper part of the valley. In ABERDYAR we have the name in its pristine form.
ABERDULAIS. — From its situation at the junction of the rivers Nedd and Dulais Du, black, and clais a brook, river. A little distance from the village the ruin of one of the most ancient tinworks in the county still remains. It is called YNYSYGERWYN. Ynys anciently signified a quasi-island in the marshes. Bonedd y Saint says that Gerwyn, son of Brychan, was killed in YNYSGERWYN.
ABERDDAWEN. — Ddawen signifies the silent river.
ABERFAN. — Ban, high; alban, the upper part. The brook FAN discharges itself here into the river Taff. The
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village is also called Ynys Owen, Owen’s island, from a farm of that name.
ABERGWYNFI. — From a farm so called which is situated at the mouth of the brook GWYNFY. Gwynfai, blessed plain.
ABERNANT. — The full name is ABERNANT-Y-WENALLT: nant, brook; y, the; wen, feminine of gwyn, white; allt = gallt, a woody slope or eminence. Nant originally meant a very narrow deep ravine or valley, but it now refers in South Welsh only to the stream that flows through it.
ABERTRIDWR. — Tri-dwr, three waters, so called from the situation of the place at the junction of three brooks.
Sion Cent, the famous bard and classical divine was born here about the year 1350.
ABWRTHIN. — A corruption, probably, of ABERTHIN, which signifies a place of sacrifices. It is supposed that Druidical sacrifices were offered here.
ALLTWEN. — Allt, a cliff; gallt goed, a woody slope or eminence; wen, feminine of gwyn, white.
BAGLAN. — An abbreviation of Llanfaglan. The church was dedicated to Baglan, a Welsh saint of the 6th century, and son of Dingad, the son of Nudd Hael.
BARGOD. — The full name is PONT-ABER-BARGOD, signifying the bridge near where the river Bargod flows into the river Rhymney. Originally the river-name means a boundary or march. BARGODION means the marches of Wales. Comp. the Latin margo, ‘margin.’
Barry. — The island belonged to the family of Giraldus de Barry, who were lords of the island, and gave their name to it. A person of that name was one of the
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inquisitors in the survey of the Lordship of Glamorgan in 1262.
BEDLINOG. — Some think it is a corruption either of BEDD LLWYNOG, fox’s grave, or BOD-LLWYNOG, fox’s house. There is a farm adjoining called BLAENLLWYNOG. We rather think the right wording is Bedw, birch trees; and llwynog having a grove. The old house, from which the village is named, is almost surrounded by birch trees.
The village is also called Cwmfelin, from an old mill in the place.
BERTHLWYD. — From a farm so named. Berth = perth, bush; llwyd, venerable, blessed; the name signifying the sacred bush. We are told that the Baptists were wont to preach the Gospel and administer the Lord’s Supper in this house as early as 1610.
BISHOPSTON. — The Welsh name is LLANDEILO FERWALLT. The church is dedicated to Bishop Teilo. BERWALLT is a compound of berw, the water-cress, and gallt, a wooded declivity. In the “Liber Landavensis” it is spelt Lanberugall.
BLACKMILL. — This is a semi-translation of the Welsh name MELIN IFAN DDU. Melin, mill; Ifan, Evan, the owner of the mill, who lived in a farm called DÔL IFAN DDU; hence the name.
BLACK PILL. — Pill is a corruption of the Welsh pil, a creek, a small islet of the sea. The hamlet probably took its name from the blackened stumps of a submerged forest which are to be seen all along the shore.
BLAENGWRACH. — The place lies near the source (blaen) of the rivulet GWRACH, cwr, extremity, and ach.
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water (?); the word signifying a river flowing at the extreme end of a vale.
BLAENLLECHAU. — Blaen is frequently used as a prefix in the names of places that are situated at the extreme end of a valley or near the sources of brooks and rivers. The river LLECHAU was so called probably from the rocky or slaty nature of its channel.
BLAENYCWM. — Cwm, a low place enclosed with hills. The Saxonised forms are comb, combe, and cum. This village is situate at the extreme end of the Rhondda Valley, hence the name.
BODRINGALLT. Bod, a dwelling place. It originally meant a lord’s residence, and in course of time the word was used to denote any house, or residence, or abode. RINGALLT is variously derived. Some think it is a corrupt form of rhyngyll, a summoner, from the supposition that Cadwgan y Fwyall, the summoner, took up his abode here. Some think the right wording is dringallt dring, to climb; and gallt, an ascent, a slope.
BONVILSTONE. — The Welsh name, TRESIMWN, and the English name, Bonvilstone, were bestowed upon the place in honour of Simon Bonville, the chief steward of Sir Robert Fitzhamon. The Normans gave their own names to many villages in the vale of Glamorgan for the simple reason that they could not enunciate the Welsh names.
BRIDGEND. — The Welsh name in full is PENYBONT-AR-OGWY, Bridgend on the Ogmore. The two townships, into which the town is divided take their names from the Oldcastle and Newcastle, built by the Normans.
BRITON FERRY. — The Welsh name in the sixteenth century was LLAN-IS-AWEL, the sheltered church, but the
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most popular form is LLANSAWEL, from the church being dedicated to Sawyl Benuchel. In ancient M.S.S. the place is called Berton Ferry, and Brittone Ferry. Some say that Morgan ab Caradog ab Iestyn erected a wooden tower on the river-side to stop the Normans from crossing the Ferry on their way from Aberogwr to Cydwell.
BRITHDIR. — This word means land or soil of medium quality. Briton is derived by some from brith, spotted, or parti-coloured.
BROUGHTON. — From an old form of brook. The root is Barrow, a sepulchral mound formed of earth or stones. Several tumuli or barrows were found on each side of the road from Llantwit Major to Ewenny, hence the name.
BRYNCETHIN. — Some say it is so called after a man named Gethin, but we offer the following derivation, bryn, a hill; cethin, dark, terrible.
BRYNCOCH. — From a farm so called. Bryn, a hill; coch, red, is frequently applied to a sun-parched field or hill.
BRYNNA. — A village perched on the hills near Pencoed, hence Brynna-bryniau, hills.
BRYNSADLER. — An old thatched house on the site of the present Calvinistic Methodist chapel was called TY’R SADLER, the sadler’s house. In the deeds of the above chapel TY’R SADLER is the description given of the site whereon the edifice is built. Tradition has it that a saddler occupied the house about 200 years ago. The saddler’s house, in course of time, developed into BRYNSADLER, the Sadler’s hill.
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BRYNTROEDGAM. Some think the right wording is Bryntroedygarn, but we rather take it with its troedgam, crooked foot, the word signifying a place at the crooked foot of a hill, which is in full correspondence with the physical aspect of the place.
BUTETOWN. — The village takes its name in honour of the father of the late Marquis of Bute.
CABALFA. — Some spell it Cae-balfa, ferry or ford fields. There are several fords and ferries over the river both in upper and lower Cabalfa. Some think it is a corrupt form of ceu-bawlfa, a scooped out trunk of a tree, the old Kimmric name for a canoe. It is probably a corrupt form, of CEUBALFA, which signifies a ferrying-place. The village with all its lands and commonage was given by Gwyddgen, son of Brochwael, to Bishop Oudoceus, “in exchange for the heavenly kingdom.” (Liber Landavensis, p. 394).
CADLE. — Câd, battle, a field of battle; CAD AR FAES, a pitched battle; le-lle, place; signifying a place of battle. Cad is derived from the Sanscrit Kad, to hurt or kill.
CADOXTON. — The church was dedicated to Catwg, Sant, ap Gwynlliw ap Glywys ap Tegid ap Cadell Deyrnllwg, hence the Welsh name LLANGATTWG. The Saint was called Catwg the wise, from his superior wisdom in all councils.
CAERAU. — CAER is an enchorial name for a wall or mound for defence, such as the wall of a city or castle. The root is cau, to shut up, to fence, to enclose with a hedge. Cae is a field enclosed with hedges. CAERAU is the plural of caer. This place derives its name from an old Roman fortress or encampment, called “TIBIA AMNE.”
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CAERPHILI. — Opinions differ as to the origin of the postfix PHILI or FFILI. The original name of the place was Senghenydd (Saint Cenydd) who founded a seminary here. When the saint moved to Gower he left the seminary under the care of his son Ffili, who built a caer, fortress or defensive wall round it, hence it was called CAER FFILI, according to some, but we rather think the right wording is Caer Philip. The castle was in the possession of Philip de Braose, in the 12th century. Having enlarged it, his name was probably conferred upon it.
CARDIFF. — Many forms of the name have been found. The first was probably “CAIRTI.” In 1126 it was spelt Kardi, but later on the form was Kaerdiv, when it began to be modified in two directions, one towards Kaerdeethe, and the other towards Kaerdeef. The former is the Welsh modification, and the latter the English modification, hence CAERDYDD and Cardiff. In a grant by King John in 1205 it is spelt Kaerdif. In MSS. that range from the thirteenth to the sixteenth centuries the form is Kaer Dyf. Iolo Morganwg gives Caer Dyf and the mabinogion Kaer diff. The DD in CAERDYDD may be accounted for by the common colloquial change of F to DD, as goDDerbyn for gyFerbyn. The correct wording, probably, is Caerdaf, a fortress on the Taff.
CAERSALEM NEWYDD. — A straggling village between Swansea and Llangyfelach. It was known by the name TIRDEUNAW until the Baptists erected a splendid chapel in the place and called it CAERSALEM NEWYDD, which is by interpretation, New Jerusalem.
CASLLWCHWR. The full name is CASTELL LLWCHWR, the castle of Loughor. The castle was built on a hillock above the estuary of the river Llwchwr, hence the name.
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Llwch, an inlet of water, a lake, a lough; wr — dwr, water. It corresponds to the Irish LOUGH, the guttural ch changed into gh; the Scotch LOCH, and the English LAKE. The expanse of the water at the place resembles a lake. The place was anciently called TREAFANC, from the great number of beavers abounding in the contiguous waters, AFANC being the old Welsh for beaver. The Romans had a station here called LEUCARUM, which was the fifth on the road known as VIA JULIA.
CASTELLA. — A corrupt form of CASTELLAU, plural form of CASTELL, castle. The place was probably an outpost to the Llantrisant castle.
CEFNPENNAR. — CEFN in place-names means a high ridge. The Chevin Hills in Yorkshire, and Cevennes in France, derive their names from the same root. Some think PENNAR is a mutation of penor, bright, fair; but we rather think it is a corruption of Pen-ar, the end of the arable land.
CELLYWION. Some think the correct wording is CELLI GWION, Gwion’s grove, whilst others incline to think it is a mutilated form of CELLIWYN, the white grove.
CERRYG LIWYDION. — Cerryg, stones, llwydion, plural of llwyd, grey; so called from a number of grey stones in the place.
CHERITON. A parish in Gower, originally, called Cherry Town, from its abundance of cherries in, olden times.
CILFYNYDD. — Cil, a sequestered place, a place of retreat. Cil-y-llygad, the corner of the eye. We find the root in cilio, to retreat, to go away; and in Cilfach,
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a place to retreat to, a creek, a nook. In early times churches were built in sequestered places, but in Scotland and Ireland kil, signifying a church, is not the same word. Mynydd, mountain; the name signifies a mountain recess,
CILYPEBYLL. — Cil, a Sequestered place; y, the; pebyll, tents; the name signifies the retreat of the tents. It was customary in olden times to repair to temporary abodes in sequestered and quiet places in the summer. The ancient seat of the Herberts was situate in a sequestered glen in this parish, where they retired in the summer, in order to indulge in the rural enjoyment of the district.
CILFFRIW. — Cil, a place of retreat; ffriw, mien, countenance, visage. The name is applied to hill tops and eminences.
CIMLA. — A corruption probably of ceimle, a portion of land not owned by anybody, but used occasionally by everybody.
CLWYDYFAGWYR. — Clwyd, a hurdle, a wattled gate; y, the; fagwyr = magwyr, a structure, a wall, an enclosure. Magwyr is frequently used to signify the remains of a demolished or decayed building, fortress, &c. In the district of Gwent it means a house, a dwelling.
CLYDACH. — A few villages and rivers in the county bear the name. Some derive the name from cludo, to carry. Others trace it to the Gaelic clith, strong. We have the CLYDE in Scotland, the GLYDE in Ireland, and the CLWYD in Wales. We offer the following derivation: clyd, sheltering, warm, comfortable. Lle clyd, a cosy, comfortable place. Ach, a river; the name signifying a river flowing through a sheltering place.
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COEDFFRANC. — The name signifies “the Norman’s wood.” The parish takes its name from a farm so named.
CLYNE. — A corrupt form of clun, a meadow or field, or it may be a corruption of clyn, a place covered with brakes.
COGAN. — A corruption of Gwgan, the name of a Welsh personage, according to some. We rather think the place takes its name from Cogan, one of the leading Norman settlers, who held lands at Huntspill. Sir Milo de Cogan was one of the conquerors and settlers in the South of Ireland, and the same family probably gave their name to this place.
CORLANAU. — A small village between Aberavon and Cwmavon. The name is the plural form of corlan, a sheepfold. The place is conveniently situated for folding the flock.
CORNELLY. — A manor near Cenffig, which gave or received its name to or from some early Norman settlers. Thomas de Cornell gave ten acres of arable land in his fee of Cornelly to Neath before the 9 John. (Arch. Camb. XIV. 195).
CORNTWN. — Corntown, a down or hilly tract of land where corn was grown.
CORSEINION. — Cors, a bog; Einion, the name of a descendant of Howel the Good. He led an army twice to Gower, and probably encamped here before he reached his destination. Port Eynon also preserves his name. Einion means “our leader.”
COYCHURCH. — The prefix is a contraction of coed, wood, the name signifying the church in the wood. Pencoed
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and Coetty are not far distant. The Welsh name is LLANGRALLO. Llan, church; Crallo, the name of the founder and patron saint of the church, and a nephew to Illtyd. MYNYDD Y GAER, the fortress on the mountain, is in this parish, where the remains of an old Roman camp are supposed to be seen.
COETTY. — Coed, wood; ty, house; signifying a woodhouse, or a house in the wood, Bod, was the residence of a superior, but; ty is of a later date, signifying an ordinary house, a cottage. The two d’s as in COED-DY, are generally hardened in pronunciation into t. Diotty comes from diod-dy.
CRAIGCEFNPARC. — Craig, a high rock, or crag; cefn, ridge, back; parc, a field, an enclosure. Craig takes the form of carraig, carrick, carrig, crick, &c. Parc is equivalent to cae, a piece of land enclosed with hedges, and is used in that sense in the south-west counties. Compare the English ‘park’ which has a more extensive meaning.
CROSSVANE. — Croesfaen is the correct wording, which signifies the cross stone. In the time of Howel the Good, stone crosses were used chiefly to mark land property, and sometimes they were set up to caution pedestrians not to cross the fields. Those with the names of British saints inscribed upon them were placed on the roadside to commemorate the blessed fact that the glad tidings had been preached there.
CRWYS. — A corrupt form of croes, a cross. When a corpse is lying in its shroud, it is said to be ‘dan ei grwys,’ ‘under the cross,’ from the Popish custom of putting a cross on the bosom of the dead. We find the word in BWLCHYCRWYS, PANTYCRWYS, &c.
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CRYNANT. — Some think the prefix is crai, implying a narrow place; crai y nodwydd, the eye of the needle; nant, a brook; the name signifying a brook that has to make its way through an extremely narrow place. We rather think it is a contraction of CROYW-NANT, the clear brook.
CWMAFON. — The place was originally called CWMBYCHAN, the little vale, from a place which is situate near Woodland Row, and in order to distinguish it from CWMMAWR, the large comb, hard by. The right wording is CWM AFAN. Cwm, a low place, enclosed with hills; Afan, the name of the river that flows through it. For Afan see Aberavon.
CWMAMAN.- Cwm, a low place enclosed with hills. For Aman see Aberavon.
CWMBACH. — The name signifies a small vale, from an old cottage bearing the name.
CWMBWRLA. — In old documents the name is spelt ‘CWM-BWRLAIS.’ Cwm, vale; burr, ebullition; clais, a little rivulet; the name, therefore, signifies the bubbling rivulet running through the combe. Some think the true orthography is CWM-BWRLE; bwr, a place of defence; le-lle, a place. “Ni sefis na thwr na bur” — “there stood nor town nor wall!”
CWM GARW. — GARW, rough. The river Llyfnwy, smooth water, is not far distant, and in order to introduce a little variety in nature, the river Garw rushes very hurriedly and noisily through a wild and rugged valley. The Gaelic garble, perhaps, belongs to the same class of roots. We find GARRY in Perth and Inverness, YARROW in Selkirk, GARONNE in France, and GUER in Brittany.
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CWMGIEDD. — GIEDD is the name of the rivulet that runs through the vale. Some have derived it from Gwy-eidden, noisy water, in contradistinction from its neighbour LLYFNELL, the smooth or silent water. Gwy-ydd literally means waterer or aquatic. Gwyach, gwylan, gwydd, hwyad, are all aquatic birds.
CWMGWRACH. — Cwm, a narrow vale; gwrach, a fairy or witch.
CWMLLYNFELL. — LLYFNELL is the right wording, which means the smooth or silent river.
CWM OGWY. — The valley of the Ogwy river. Og, apt to move, and gwy, water.
CWMRHYDYCEIRW. — Rhyd, ford; y, the; Ceirw, stags.
CWMTWRCH. — The river Twrch rushes furiously through the place and empties itself into the river Tawy. Tyrchu, to turn up, to burrow. The mole is called in Welsh twrch daear, from its burrowing nature.
CWMYGORS. — Cwm, combe; y, the; gors-cors, a bog, a fen.
CYMMER. — The word means the junction of two rivers or brooks bearing the same name, such as CYMMER CEFN-COED, where the Tâf fawr and the Tâf fechan join; and CYMMER GLYN RHONDDA, where the Rhondda fach empties itself into Rhondda Fawr; and CYMMER GLYN CORRWG, where the Corrwg fach loses itself in Corrwg fawr.
DERI. — DERI means oaks, and is cognate with Derry and Kildare. The village takes its name from a farm so called, which is situate in a place abounding with oaks.
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The place is also called DARRAN, from Darren ysgwydd-gwyn, which overlooks the valley in a very majestic manner. Darren — rocky hill.
DINAS. — The place was originally called DINAS Y GLO, the coal city, on account of its being so abundantly blessed with the black diamond. The word is derived from din, a fortified hill, a camp. Compare the Irish dún, the Anglo-Saxon tún, the Roman dinium, and the English town.
DINAS POWIS. — The most popular opinion is that DENIS is the correct wording here. When Iestyn ab Gwrgant married Denis, the daughter of Bleddyn ab Cynfyn, Prince of Powys, he built a magnificent mansion for her about 1043, and called it Denis Powys, in honour of his wife.
DOWLAIS. — Opinions differ widely as to the derivation of this name. Some derive it from du, black; and clais, a little trench or rivulet. Others say it is a corruption of DWYLAIS, from the confluence of the two brooks in the place. We offer the following: du, black; glas, blue, signifying the livid water. River-names are frequently derived from the respective hue of their waters. DULAIS is of frequent occurrence in Welsh topography. We have five Dulas, at least, in Wales; three in Scotland; and one in Dorset. It has different forms: Douglas in the Isle of Man, in Scotland, in Ireland, and in Lancashire; Doulas in Radnor; Dowles in Salop; Dawlish in Devon; and Dowlais in Glamorgan
DYFFRYN. — Dwfr, water; and hynt, a way, a course; the word signifying a vale through which a river takes its course. DYFFRYNT was anciently used to denote a river.
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The village is situate near DYFFRYN GOLUCH, the valley of worship or adoration. Golychwyd means worship or adoration. “Amser i fwyd, ac amser i olychwyd,” “There is time for meat and time for worship.” It is supposed that the ancient Druids met together in this vale to celebrate the mysterious rites of their religion.
EFAIL FACH — Gefail, a smithy; fach, bach, small, little; so called from a smithy in the place.
EGLWYS BREWIS. — Eglwys, church. The ancient llan has been superseded by the ecclesiastical term eglwys in many places in the Principality. Brewis is difficult to explain. The roots, perhaps, are bre, hill; and wys, rest, signifying the hill or place of rest; Or it may be a corrupt form of Breos, from William De Braeos, who was consecrated Bishop of Llandaff in 1265.
EGLWYS ILAN. — In Iolo MSS., p. 637, we are told that Elian founded the church. Others think it was dedicated to Elen Deg (the Fair) the sculptor of Morgan the Courteous. The derivation is supported by the fact that CWM ELEN DEG, the fair Elen’s vale, is in this parish.
Ely. — The Welsh name is Trelai, the river Llai, which, according to some, means a dun-coloured water, runs through the place. We rather think the correct wording is Elwy; el, active, swift; and wy-gwy, water; the name signifying the active or rushing river.
EWENNY. — Ewyn-wy, the frothy water, is the name of the river that flows through the place. Some think the correct wording is y-wen-wy, the white water.
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FELINDRE. — The word, perhaps, is a corrapt form of vileindref, or mileindref, a township under villain soccage tenure; a county farm.
FLATHOLM. — The Norse “holme” means an island, generally an island in a lake or river.
FOCHRIW. — The physical aspect of the place has induced some to derive the name from moch, ready, quick, swift; and rhiw, slope; signifying a steep hill-side. Moch-ddwyreog, quickly rising. Boch, cheek, and fach, little, have been suggested as the prefix. We rather derive the name from moch, pigs; and rhiw, slope. Rhiw’r Fuwch, the slope of the cow, on the other side of the mountain, induces us to think that this is the slope of the pigs.
FLEMINGSTOKE. — The ancient name was LLANFIHANGEL-Y-TWYN, St. Michael’s church on the hill. Some think the present name is derived from the fact that the Flemings settled in the parish of Llantwit Major in the time of Queen Elizabeth; but we are inclined to think the place was named in honour of Sir John Fleming, one of Sir Robert Fitzhamon’s knights, to whom he gave the manors of St. George, Llanfaes, &c.
FFORCHDWM. — Fforch, fforchi, to fork, to part into two; and twm, a round heap; the name signifying a hillock forming a divergent point between two vales, which is in full correspondence with the physical aspect of the place.
GADLYS. — The roots are câd, battle, battlefield; and llys, court. This name is a momento of that terrible battle fought in the upper part of the Aberdare Valley, between Rhys ab Tewdwr, and Iestyn ab Gwrgant.
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GARNANT. — The roots are garw, rough; and nant, a glen. The old name of the place was Cross Keys.
GELLIDEG. — Gelli, grove; deg, = teg, fair.
GELLIGAER. — The name signifies a military station in a woody place, and derived from Caer Castell, the remains of which are still to be seen. It was built by Iorwerth ab Owen in 1140 or 1240. In this parish we find traces of an old Roman road, named Strata Julia, from Maretima Julius Fontinus or Frontinus, which took its course from Caerleon to Brecon.
GELLIONEN. — Gelli, grove; onnen, ash tree; signifying the ash grove.
GELLY. — Gelli means a wood, a grove, a copse. Cell originally meant a grove, and the Irish coill has an identical meaning. The aborigines of Scotland were called Gaevill davin, “the people of the wood.”
GILESTON. — Llanfabon-y-Fro is the Welsh name, from the dedication of the church to St. Mabon, and its situation in the vale of Glamorgan. The English name was bestowed upon the place by the Giles famity, whose pedigree seems not to have been preserved.
GILFACH GOCH. — Cilfach, a place of retreat; coch, red. The place appears to have taken its name from a heap of red cinders, which still remains as a momento of the ironworks that stood there in time of yore. Ruins of old furnaces are still to be seen in the vicinity.
GLAIS. — Glais means a trench through which a stream of water flows. It is sometimes used to denote the stream itself, and not the trench through which it runs.
GLANYBAD.— Glan, bank, side, brink; y, the; bâd, boat.
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GLYNCORRWG. — Glyn, a vale narrower but deeper than a dyffryn, through which a river flows. Compare the Gaelic gleann, and the Anglo-Saxon glen, both signifying a small narrow valley. Two rivulets called Corrwg embrace each other in the glen. Corrwg is variously derived. Some have derived it from GORWG AB EIRCHION; others from carrog, an obsolete form for brook. Another explanation is: corr, a Celtic name for sheep; corlan, sheep-yard; and wg, implying a place or locality. It is said that a certain farmer here was wont to keep as many as two or three thousand sheep at the time.
GLYNNEDD. — Glyn, glen; Nedd, river-name. (See Neath).
GOWER. — The root is gwyr = gwyro, to deviate, to swerve, suggested probably by the deviation of the peninsula from the mainland, and its irregular character.
GOWERTON. — The old name was GOWER ROAD, from its physical connection with Gower, but at a vestry meeting of the ratepayers of the parish of Loughor, held October 15th, 1885, it was unanimously passed: “That the name of this village be changed from Gower Road to Gowerton.” The necessary arrangements were made for the new name to be adopted January 1st. 1886.
GOYTRE. — Coed, wood; and tre, a dwelling place, signifying either a dwelling in a wood, or a house built of wood.
GROESWEN. — Croes, cross; wen = gwyn, white; literally the word means ‘white cross,’ but figuratively ‘blessed cross.’ In olden times, white was an emblem of purity, and, therefore, a source of blessedness.
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GROVE’S END. — A village near Gorseinon. It takes its name from a farm so called.
GWAELODYGARTH. — Gwaelod, bottom, base; y, the; garth originally meant an entrenchment on a hill, but in course of time it came to signify a ridge, a hill, a rising eminence, a promontory. Compare the Norse garth, the Persian gird, the Anglo-Saxon yard, and the Welsh gardd. The mountain that towers above the place is called MYNYDD-Y-GARTH, and the village resting quietly at its base is called GWAELOD-Y-GARTH.
GWARYCAEAU. — Gwâr, the nape of the neck; y, the; caeau, fields. These fields belong to a farm called Ty draw, above which a few houses were built and called Gwarycaeau. The place has now developed into a straggling village.
GYFEILLION. — Some think the name is a mutilated form of GAFAELON. Gafael means the share which each brother held in their father’s land, however numerous the brothers were. Gafael cenedl the hold or tenure of a family. In an old document the name is YNYS GOFHOELION, the nailor’s island.
Hafod. — Haf-bod. summer residence. Hendref was a very common appellation in olden times for residence in the valley, and HAFOD or HAFOTTY was used to signify a residence in the hills. The hafod consisted of a long low room, with a hole at one end to emit the smoke from the fire which was made beneath. Its stools were stones, and beds were made of hay ranged along the sides.
HENDRE. — Hen, old; tref, homestead. Hydref (October), was the harvest season — the time to gather
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the produce of the fields to the barns, and leave the hafod, summer-house to spend the winter months in the hendref, the older establishment.
HENDREFADOG. — Hendre, already explained; madog = madoc, beneficial, goodly. Madog also is a rare name for a fox.
HENGOED. — Hen, old, aged; coed, wood.
HEOLYFELIN. — Mill Street is a translation of the name, so called from the old mill that stood on the river Cynon. It is also called TRECYNON from its situation on the banks of the Cynon. Cynon, Cyn, chief.
HIRWAUN. — Hir, long; waun, meadow. It was anciently called HIRWAUN GWRGANT, Gwrgant’s long meadow. In olden times it extended from Blaengwrach to Mountain Ash, a distance of ten miles.
HOPKINSTOWN. — The place was so called in honour of Henry Hopkin, a landowner, about 40 years ago.
ILSTON. — It is an abbreviated form of Illtyd, Iltutus, the name signifying Illtyd’s town. LLANILLTYD is the Welsh name, from the dedication of the church to Illtyd, a descendant of Emyr Llydaw, and a saint of the fifth century.
KENFFIG MILL. — Some spell it Cefn-y-figen, the ridge above the swamp. The spelling in the Abbey deeds is almost invariably Kenefeg. Cen and pen are synonymous, hence we are inclined to think the right wording is Cen-y-ffig, the head of the swamp.
KILLAY. — CILFAI is the right wording; oil, a sequestered place; fai = mai, a plain.
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LALESTON. — TRELALES is the Welsh name, which means the town of Lales. De Grenville went on a pilgrimage 1111 to the Holy Land, and brought back with him an architect named Lalys. He built Neath Abbey, Margam Abbey, and several castles and mansions in Wales.
LANDORE. — GLANDWR is the correct wording; glan, bank; dwr, water. The old farmstead, which gave the name to the place, was situate on the banks of the Tawy.
LANGLAND. — The right wording is LONGLAND, so called from the promontory that forms one of the horns of the bay.
LAVERNOCK. — This is probably a Norman corruption of LLANWERNOG, or LLYWERNOG, which signifies a church on a meadow.
LECKWITH. — This name is another instance of the sad havoc the Normans played with Welsh names when they settled in Glamorgan in the eleventh century. It is a corruption of LLECHWEDD, the steep or shelving of a hill.
LEWISTOWN. — So called in honour of W. Lewis, Esq., Bontnewydd House, because the village is situate on his estate.
LLANBEDR-AR-FYNYDD. — Llanbedr-ar-fynydd has been translated Peterstone-super-Montem. At the Norman Conquest Fitzhamon divided the country between his followers, when Sir Peter le Soore was rewarded with the lordship of Peterstown, which he called after his own Christian name.
LLANBEDR-Y-FRO. — The church was called LLANEINYDD until the Norman Conquest in 1091. It was built
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by Rhys ab Einydd, Prince of Glamorgan, hence the name. After the Conquest the parish fell into the hands of Sir Peter le Soore, hence the new name Llanbedr, Peter’s Church, which is situate on the river Ely in the beautiful vale of Glamorgan.
LLANBLETHIAN. — History tells us that BLEIDDIAN (Lupus) a contemporary of Garmon, founded the first church here in the sixth century. The root is blaidd, a translation from lupus, a wolf.
LLANCARFAN. — We are informed that in this place the first monastery was built in Britain by Germanus, from which circumstance Iolo Morganwg thinks that Llancarfan signifies the church of Germanus, Carfan being a corruption of the saint’s name. Others are of opinion that the monastery was founded by Cattwg Ddoeth, and that the name was Latinized into Carbani Vallis.
LLANDÂF. Llan, church; daf = Taf, the name of the river on which the ancient edifice was built, according to the ‘Welsh Chronicles,’ in 173 by Lleurwg (Lucius). This see is reckoned to be the most ancient in Britain. Dyfan is said to have been its first bishop, 173-180.
LLANDEILO-TALYBONT. — The church was founded by TEILO, Bishop of Llandaff, in the sixth century. TALYBONT literally means the end of the bridge. When applied to places tal means ‘end’ but when applied to persons it signifies ‘front,’ Tal-cen, front of the head; Taliesin, radiant front or luminous head.
LLANDOCHWY. — The church is dedicated to DOCHWY, an Armorican saint, as some assert, who founded a seminary here in the second century.
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LLANDYFODWG. — The church was founded by and dedicated to TYFODWG, a saint of the sixth century. Several cairns are to be seen on the mountains of this parish.
LLANDDEWI. — The Church is dedicated to Dewi, David, the patron saint of Wales, who it is said, was the rector before he was consecrated a bishop.
LLANEDEYRN. — The church, according to the ‘Welsh Records’ was founded by EDEYRN AB GWRTHEYRN, together with a seminary for 300 saints.
LLANFABON. — The patron saint is MABON, Teilo’s brother, who is said to have built the church in the sixth century. Mabon is derived from mapon, in old Welsh map, now mab, a boy, a youth, a son.
LLANFADOG. — The church is dedicated to MADOG, son of Gildas, y Coed aur, and a saint of Cenydd’s College.
LLANFAES. The original name of the church was LLAN FFAGAN FACH; for the reason that it was built by Ffagan. LLANFAES generally means a church built on a spot where a memorable battle was fought.
LLANFEDWY. — In Iolo MSS. it is recorded that Meudwy, the saint, built Llan FEDWY, which Church was burned during Iestyn’s war, and it was never renovated afterwards.
LLANFRYNACH. — The church, according to Bonedd y Saint, was founded by BRYNACH WYDDEL of the city of Ffaraon, in the fifth century.
LLANGENYDD. — CENYDD founded a seminary here in the sixth century, having committed that of Caerphili to the custody of his son Ffili.
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LLANGIWC. — CiwG ab Arawn ab Cynfarch built the first church here in the sixth century.
LLANGYFELACH. — The church is supposed to have been founded by CYFELACH, Bishop of Llandaff, in the sixth century. Cyfelach means one resembling his ancestors.
LLANGYNWYD. — The church is dedicated to CYNWYD, a saint of the sixth century. His sons were Cynan and Cadrod whose names are still preserved in the names of two of the largest farms in the neighbourhood, viz., Bryncynan, and Maescadrod. The parish is affectionately called ‘yr Hen Blwyf,’ ‘the old parish.’
LLANHARAN. — It is written LLANARON in some ancient MSS., from the church being dedicated to Julius and Aaron.
LLANHARRI. LLANARAI was the original name, bestowed in honour of GARAI, the founder of the church. He was the son of Cewydd, the son of Caw Cawlwyd.
LLANILID. — From the dedication of the church to ILID, who is supposed to have been the first to introduce Christianity to the Celts in the first century.
LLANILLTERN. — ELLDERYN [sic] = ILLTERN, the saint who founded the church here in the fifth century. Elldeyrn means a strange or foreign king.
LLANILLTYD FAERDREF. — ILLTYD = ILTUTUS is the patron saint of the church. Faerdref = maerdref, demesne land, dairy hamlet. The dairy-houses were kept at a little distance from the castles and courts of the noblemen. Two farm-houses in the neighbourhood still preserve the names of Faerdref Fawr and Faerdref Fach.
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LLANILLTYD FAWR. — One of the nurseries of early Christianity. It was originally called COR EUGAIN. Cor means a circle, a stall, and sometimes it is rendered ‘college.’ The common churches were called corau, and the chief or superior churches hangorau. This ancient institution is said to have been founded here by Eurgain, daughter of Caradog ab Bran, in the first century of the Christian era, hence Cor Eurgain. This institution appears to have flourished for about fifty years, when it was destroyed by Irish pirates, and Patrick, the Head Teacher and Superior of the seminary was taken prisoner to Ireland.
About the year 450 it was re-built by Garmon, who, together with Dyfrig, Bishop of Llandaff, dedicated ILLTYD, Garmon’s nephew, to be the head teacher thereof, in consequence of which it was called Cor Illtyd, Bangor Illtyd, and Llanilltyd.
LLANISAN. — The church is dedicated to ISAN, a disciple of Illtyd.
LLANRHIDIAN. — From RHIDIAN, a student in Cenydd’s seminary in Gower, and the founder of the church. The ruins of Weobly Castle are still overlooking Llanrhidian marsh.
LLANSAMLET. — The church, according to Bonedd y Saint, was founded by SAMLED, who flourished in the seventh century.
LLANTRISANT. — Anciently called LLANGAWRDAF, in honour of Cawr daf [sic; = Cawrdaf], who founded a seminary here, which is supposed to have taken fire, and levelled to the ground. After the destruction of the seminary, Einion ab Collwyn, as some assert, built a church here, which was dedicated to three saints, viz., Illtyd, Tyfodwg, and Gwynno, hence the present name.
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LLANTRYDDYD. — The church was originally built by TREIDDYD, of Illtyd’s seminary.
LLANWYNO. — From the dedication of the church to GWYNO, son of Caw, called Euryn y Coed aur, and a saint in the colleges of Illtyd and Cattwg.
LLWYDCOED. — Llwyd, grey; coed, wood. The forest of Llwydcoed, in the sixteenth century, was considered to be one of the finest in the Principality.
LLWYNBRWYDRAU. — Llwyn, bush, grove; brwydrau, battles. The name has reference to some battles fought here in olden times.
LLWYNPIA. — Llwyn, bush, grove; pia, magpie.
LLYSFAEN. — Llys, court, hall of judicature; maen, stone. It appears there was a large hall built of stone in the place, where the law court may have been held in time of yore.
LLYSWORNEY. — A gross mutilation of LLYS-BRO-NUDD. — Iolo Morganwg tells us that Nudd Hael, son of Senyll, a royal saint, of Illtyd’s seminary, built the place. Bro means a cultivated region, a vale; and Nudd, the royal saint, is supposed to have held a court (llys) here.
MAERDY. — Maer is synonymous with the English land agent, steward, and bailiff. There was an officer called Maer in every commot, who regulated the villeins and their concerns. He was the king’s land agent; but the word eventually came to signify any land steward. MAER-DY means a dairy-house.
MAESTEG. — Maes, a field; teg, fair; so called after a farmstead.
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MANSELFIELD. — So called in honour of the Mansel family. William Mansel, Esq., Penrice Castle, was the owner of the estate in the reign of Henry VI.
MARCROSS. — Many think the place derives its name from a large cross that is supposed to have been raised here in memory of St. Mark; but we rather think the name is an Anglicanism of the Welsh Mer-groes, the cross on the sea-shore. The place is situate on the Bristol Channel coast. A large cromlech, called “yr hen eglwys,” the old church is still visible, around which the ancient Christians are supposed to have assembled for worship, ere any sacred edifice was built here.
MARGAM. — Some maintain that the abbey was founded by Morgan the Courteous, which was known for some centuries by the name of Morgan, and ultimately it assumed the name of MARGAM. But there is a preponderance of opinion now that this ancient place derives its name from Morgan, the son of Caradoc, the son of Iestyn ab Gwrgant.
MAWDLAM. — The name is a corruption of MAGDALEN. In the Charter of Thomas le Despenser, which was granted in 1397, mention is made of St. Mary Magdalen’s chapel.
MELIN CRYTHAN. — So called from a mill situated on the brook Crythan. Crythan, a little crooth; or it may come from cryddu, to stretch or extend round: crythu implies swelling.
MELIN GRIFFITH. — Melin, mill, which was kept by a Mr. Griffith to grind corn for the farmers of the district, hence the name.
MERTHYR DYFAN. — MERTHYR, martyr; DYFAN, the first Bishop of Llandaff, and the son of Alwn Aflerw.
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He introduced Christianity to this neighbourhood in the second century, and is supposed to have fallen a martyr to his faith on the very spot where the church now stands.
MERTHYR TYDFIL. — MERTHYR, martyr; TYDFIL, the name of a daughter of Brychan Brycheiniog, the wife of Cyngen ab Cadell, and mother of Brochwel Ysgythrog. In the latter part of Brychan’s life it seems that he retired with some of his family to this neighbourhood. A marauding party of Pagan Saxons and Irish Picts attacked the family and murdered Brychan, the father, and also Tydfil, the daughter, and her husband. The parish church was probably erected on or near the scene of murder by St. Tewdrig, son of Teithfallt, and called after her Merthyr Tydfil. Her name is also retained in Tydfil’s well, and her brother Rhun in Pontrhun.
MISKIN. — In ancient literature the word is spelt MEISGUN. Meis = maes, field, land; cun. leader, chief, lord. MISKIN, near Llantrisant, formed a portion of the hereditary estates of Iestyn ab Gwrgant, Lord of Glamorgan, hence the name signifies ‘the lord’s land,’ or “the royal land.”
MONKNASH. — In 1091 this manor fell into the hands of Sir Richard Grenville, who is supposed to have conferred it, with the castle and the lordship of Neath, on the monks of Neath Abbey, hence the prefix Monk. Remains of monastic establishments are still to be seen here, whose names are still preserved in the parish: Monks’ Court, Monkton Tower, Clawdd y Mynach. The suffix seems to be a memento of the piratical incursions of the Vikings and Danes. Nash is cognate with ness or naze, and signifies a nose or promontory of land.
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MORRISTON. — Sir John Morris, Clasmont, built a large copper works here in 1876, around which a large village grew very rapidly, and took its name from its great benefactor. The English ham and ton, the Norse by, the Danish thorpe, the German dorf, and the Welsh tref, may be considered as equivalents.
MORGANSTOWN. — The place was sometime called PENTREPOETH, the warm village. The present name was conferred upon it in honour of Morgan Thomas, Tynyberllan, on whose land the village is built.
MOUNTAIN ASH. — The ancient name was ABERPENNAR, from a farm so named, and the new name was conferred upon it by John Bruce Pryce, Esq., the then owner of the estate. In a very short time after Mr. Pryce came to reside here, a man named Dafydd Shon Rhys went to him one day and asked if he would lease a certain piece of land for building a public house and a private house. Having measured the land, Mr. Pryce was asked to name the public house. Observing a cerdinen (mountain ash) close by, he turned to Mrs. Pryce, and said, “We shall call this place Mountain Ash.”
MUMBLES. — The name was given originally to designate the detached rocks at the end of the headland, but in course of time it was extended to the old village of Oystermouth. Col. Francis derives the name from mammals, which word gives a very fair description of the two rounded breast-like rocks in the place.
NANTGARW. — Garw, rough, rugged; nant originally signified a ravine, a dingle.
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NANTYMOEL. — Nant, brook; y, the; moel, bald, a conical hill; the name signifying a brook rushing from a high hill.
NEATH. — The Welsh name is CASTELL NEDD, the castle on the Nedd. This is the ancient Nidium of the ‘Itineraries,’ and probably it was an important station on the great Roman road, called ‘Julia Maritima.’ Nedd, of which Nidium is a Latinised form, means turning, whirling; the river was so called, perhaps, from its various meanderings. Or it may mean a dingle or glen, implying a place of rest, an abode. An-nedd, a dwelling; nyth, is the bird’s place of rest.
NEATH ABBEY. — Leland called this ‘the fairest in all Wales.’ The lordship of Neath was given by Fitzhamon to his younger brother Richard de Grenville. Being of a religious disposition, de Grenville went on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 1111, and brought back with him an eminent architect of the name of Lalys, whom he engaged to erect an abbey about a mile from the town of Neath. It was completed in eighteen years, i.e., in 1129, when it was consecrated to the Holy Trinity in the presence of de Grenville and Constance his wife. It is stated that the first Abbot of Neath was Richard, who died in 1145, and the last is said to have been a Welshman of the name of John Lleision. Lewis Morganwg, chief bard of the Principality, was domestic bard to Neath Abbey in 1510. Also in 1520 when Lleision was dedicated to his sacred office, a great Eisteddfod was held in the Abbey, when Lewis Morganwg took the laurels for the best Awdl to the Abbot and the Abbey. In the Annates de Margam it is stated that Morgan ab Owen
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burnt the Abbey, destroying also 400 sheep, killing four of the servants and a monk, and severely wounding another. At the dissolution the estate was granted to Sir Richard Williams, alias Cromwell, by Henry VIII.
NELSON. — This village was once called FFOS Y GERDINEN, the mountain ash bog, but when the collieries of Llancaiach were opened, a number of houses were built in the place, among which was a public house named ‘Lord Nelson,’ and in course of time the gallant admiral’s name minus Lord was conferred upon the village.
NEWTON NOTTAGE. — In an old deed it was said that William, Earl of Gloucester, gave to Richard de Kardif, for his service, the New-town in Margam with all its appurtenances.
NOTTAGE COURT was a grange belonging to Margam Abbey.
NOTTAGE is probably a corruption of Nutage. The place was once noted for nuts.
OVERTON. — OVER, when a suffix, means a hill site; when a prefix it indicates the higher of two places.
OXWICH. — The prefix seems to be of kindred origin and meaning with the Sans, ux, uks, to water; Welsh wysg, a current. We have Usk, Esk, Exe, Ock, elsewhere; and we find OXWICH in the peninsula of Gower.
WICK comes from the Norse wic, a bay, a creek. The Vikings were attracted to this coast, and indeed they derived their very name (Vik-ings) from the wics or creeks in which they anchored.
OYSTERMOUTH. — In the Welsh Bruts, the place is called YSTUMLLWYNARTH. Ystum, form, shape; llwyn,
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bush, or brushwood: arth, bear. The name is derived, according to one, “from the configuration of the site of the church, and its resemblance to the animal (bear).” We rather think the suffix is garth, which originally meant a buttress, an inclosure. Lluarth means an entrenchment on a hill. Ystumllwynarth Castle was built by Henry Beaumont, Earl of Warwick, immediately after the Norman Conquest, for the defence of the territory of Gower.
The present name Oystermouth has been popularly derived from its abundance of oysters. In old documents the name is written OSTREMUERE, which is, perhaps, a corruption of the original name, omitting llwyn. Col. Francis says “The origin of this name has generally been connected with the local staple in oysters; but as the word in early deeds is generally written Ostremuere, which is neither Roman nor Saxon, it seems to me to lead to the presumption that it will prove to be Danish.”
PANDY. — The name signifies a fulling house. There were several grinding mills in the Rhondda Valley called Cwmsaerbren Mill, Tyle coch Mill, &c., and PANDY was the fulling mill.
PANTCADIFOR. — Pant, a low place, a hollow, considerably less than a combe or valley. Some think CADIFOR is a corruption of Cawd Ifor, signifying the place where Ivor Bach was found dead after a terrible conflict with his enemies.
PANTDU. — From a farmstead so called. The word means a black hollow. The place is situate in a dreary dingle between Aberavon and Cwmavon.
PANTSCALLOG. — Pant, a hollow; scallog — ysgallog, abounding with thistles.
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PANTYRID. — The right wording is PANT-Y-RHYD, the hollow near the ford. Rhyd originally meant a ford, but it is now frequently used to designate a small stream.
PANTYWAUN. — Waun, meadow. The place is situated in a bowl-shaped hollow on a mountain meadow.
PANWAUNFAWR. — Panwaun, a wet meadow, peat moss; fawr — mawr, great, large.
PENARTH. — Pen in geographical names means the highest part or the extreme end, as of a mountain or a field. Penrhyn, headland. In the Highlands of Scotland we find it in many place-names, as Benmore (Penmawr), great mountain, &c. The Gaelic cen or cenn has the same signification as pen and ben. In European place-names it points out the earlier settlements of the Celtic race, as Pennine, Appenines, &c.
GARTH here signifies a promontory or mountain. The name means a headland, which is quite descriptive of the place. This lofty place was in ancient times chosen as vantage-ground for kindling the beacon fire to warn the county of invasion.
PENCLAWDD. — PEN-CAE-CLAWDD is the right wording, a name given to an old camp on the Gaer mountain, near an old Roman road. A dyke (clawdd) in olden time was considered as a sign of defence and safety. PEN-CLAWDD generally means the head or end of the embankment.
PENCOED. — Pen, head; coed, wood; the name signifies a place situate at the top of the wood.
PENDERRY. — Pen, head or top; derry — deri, oak grove.
PENDEULWYN. — It means ‘the top of two groves.’ The name was suggested probably by the physical aspect of the place, and is now spelt ‘PENDOYLAN.’
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PENGARNDDU. — Pen, top, summit; garn — carn, heap of stones; ddu, black. The village derives its name from a black heap of stones that was once in the place.
PENLLIN. — PEN-LLYN, the head of the lake.
PENMAEN. — The name signifies “the head of the rock or stone,” from the situation of the place at the head of a ridge of rocks, commanding magnificent views of the Oxwich Bay.
PENMARC. — The name is supposed to mean ‘the head of St. Mark.’
PENNARD. — Some say PEN-GARTH, the lofty hill; others give Penhardd, the fine or beautiful head. The right wording probably is PENARDD, a projection of a hill.
PENPRYSG. — Prysg, brushwood, or that which extends. The name signifies a place abounding with brushwood. Prysg mountain is hard by.
PENRHIWCEIBR. — The right wording is PEN-RHIW-CAE-BYR, signifying the top of the slope of the little field.
PENRHIWFER. — The name signifies the top of the short slope.
PENRICE. — A corruption of PEN RHYS, the head of Rhys. Rhys, the son of Caradog ab Iestyn, was beheaded here by the Normans in 1099.
PENTRE. — PEN-TREF, from a farm so called. The name was originally applied to a few scattered dwellings, forming a town end or otherwise, and finally it was applied to a village in contradistinction to a town of the modern type.
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PENTREBACH. — The name signifies a small village. It lies about a mile below the town of Merthyr Tydvil, and so called in order to distinguish it from the latter which was colloquially called by the old inhabitants, Y PENTREF, the village.
PENTYRCH. — The affix has been variously derived. The traditional origin of the name runs thus: In olden times a parish wake was frequently held in the neighbourhood during which some very questionable pastimes were indulged in. Previous to the festival a piece of wood was fixed in the ground. Every young woman that purposed being present in the wake was expected to make a torch (torque or wreath), bearing her name, and the colour she intended wearing on that day plaited therein. It was a foregone conclusion that one of the young women would produce a better torque than all her rivals, round which the people gathered and unanimously exclaimed ‘Wel, dyma ben y tyrch,’ ‘Well, this is the head of the torques.’
The right wording is PENTIR-YR-YCH, the headland of the ox. A combe hard by is called Cwm-y-fuwch, the cow’s vale, the extreme end of which bears striking resemblance to the form of an ox’s head. Some say it is PENTWRCH, boar’s head, from the resemblance of the brow of the Garth mountain to a boar’s head.
PENYDAREN. — Daren signifies a rocky hill. The old cottage that originally bore the name was situated on a rising eminence.
PENWAUN. — The head or end of the meadow, so called from its situation at the extreme end of Gwrgant’s meadow.
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PENYCAE. — The head or end of the field. In the year 1818 a Mr. Letsom built a few houses at the east end of a field belonging to Cefnydon farm, which from their geographical position, were called PENYCAE.
PENYFAI. — Fai — mai, a plain, a field. The name signifies the head or end of the plain. The Welsh for Militia is Meiwyr, signifying the men on the plain or open field.
PENYRHEOL. — A village in Loughor district. The name signifies the top or end of the road.
PENYRHEOLGERIG. — Pen, head, top; yr, the; heol, road; cerig, stones. The name signifies ‘the top of the stony road.’
PONTARDAWE. — Pont is derived from the Latin – pons, pontis, a bridge. The Roman Pontiff derives his name from the fact that the first bridge over the Tiber was constructed and consecrated by the high priest. This place takes its name from a bridge built by William Edwards about 1757, which connects the parishes of Llangiwc and Cilybebyll.
PONTARDDULAIS. — The bridge on the river Dulais or Dulas. For Dulais see Dowlais.
PONTYCLOWN. — Clown, the name of the rivulet over which the bridge is built. It is probably a contraction of clowyn, which implies a white swelling water. The present spelling is PONTYCLUN.
PONTFAEN. — A corrupt form of PONTYFON, Cowbridge. Fon — man, an old Welsh word for a cow. In an ancient MS., dated 1645, it is written PONTYFUWCH, the cow’s bridge. It was originally called y dref hir yn y Waun,
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the long town in the meadow. Its present name was derived thus: Some time after the stone bridge was built across the river Dawen, a cow ran under it, and the place being so narrow her horns stuck in the arch. She could neither move onwards or backwards, and ultimately the owner had no alternative but to kill her on the spot. The town’s coat of arms ever since is the figure of a cow standing on a bridge, hence PONTYFON, Cowbridge.
PONTLOTTYN. — The bridge that crosses the Rhymney river in the place was named, according to some, in honour of a man called Lot, colloquially Lottyn. Others think the right wording is PONTYPLOTTYN, which means a bridge erected on a dry spot between two streams of the river. It is spelt ‘Pont Lydan,’ on an old map, which means a wide bridge. Some say that in olden times the bridge was claimed by the inhabitants of Gwent and Morganwg, as one end stood in each county, and here they met to play games of chance-lotteries. In these games an umpire was chosen, who was called ‘Lottyn.’ He stood on the bridge to give his decision, hence Pontlottyn, the umpire’s bridge.
We think the name is a corruption of PANTYPLOTTYN, which was the name of a farm in that place long before any bridge was built there. Pant, hollow; y, the; plottyn, from the Anglo-Saxon plot, a spot of ground
PONTLLIW. — LLiw, the name of the river that runs under the bridge. Some think the root is lli, a flux, a stream; but we rather think it is derived from lug, which is a Romanised form of llwch, a lake or hollow. Llwchwr is close by.
PONTRHYDYCYFF. — Pont, bridge; rhyd, ford; y, the; cyff, a stump, a trunk.
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PONTRHYDYFEN. — Rhydyfen has given rise to many conjectures. Some say it is RHYDYWAUN, the meadow ford; others call it RHYD EFAN, Evan’s ford; others think it is RHYDYFON, the cow’s ford. We rather think the name is a corrupt form of PONT-AR-RHYD-AFAN, the bridge on the ford of Afan; and is derived from the small bridge that was built to cross the ford near Rhyslyn. Or fen may be the Welsh men, a cart or wagon, and the name would mean the bridge of the wagon ford.
PONTYCYMMER. — Pont, bridge; y, the; cymmer, the junction of two rivers or brooks bearing the same name.
PONTYGWAITH. — Gwaith, work or works. It is generally believed that an ironworks stood here at some remote period. A smelting furnace was standing here as late as 1850, but who built it is a matter of conjecture.
PONTYPRIDD. — In the reign of Henry VIII. Leland refers to this locality as Pont Rhehesk, which is a corruption of PONT-YR-HESG, the bridge of the rushes. CRAIG-YR-HESG, the rock of the rashes, is about half a mile to the north-east of the town. When Leland passed through the place, the only bridge crossing the Taff river in the locality was a footbridge over the rocks of the Taff waterfall, hence the name PONT-YR-HESG. The place afterwards took its name from PONT-YR-HEN-DY-PRIDD, the bridge near the old earthen house, which was erected by William Edwards in 1755.
PORT TALBOT. — In an Act of Parliament which received Royal assent July 4th, 1836, it was enacted “that from and immediately after the passing of this Act the said harbour shall cease to be called the ‘Aberavon Harbour’, but shall be called, known, and distinguished by the name of ‘PORT TALBOT’.” The foundation
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stone of the harbour was laid by one of the Talbot family, Margam Park, September, 1837. The name is extended now to the whole district.
PORTEYNON. — The name is derived from Einion, a descendant of Howel Dda. The wonderful cave called Twll yr afr, goat’s hole, is in this parish. In 1822-23 remains of elephants and mammoths were discovered here.
PORTKERRY. — The name is derived from CERI AB CAID, king of Essyllwg. Ancient history tells us that he was a remarkably wise man, and a ship-builder, and that he took up his abode here. FONT-DE-GERY, Ceri’s well, is not far distant. Here the Normans landed when they came to Glamorgan at the request of Einion ab Collwyn. (Iolo MSS., p. 345).
PORT TENNANT. — So called in honour of H. T. Tennant, Esq., Cadoxton Lodge, who built it at his own expense in 1826.
PORTHCAWL. — One writer thinks the right wording is PORTHCAWELL; porth, port; cawell, a weir, so named from two fishing weirs formerly placed here, we rather think that cawl is a corrupt form of Gaul. It is supposed that the Gauls or Gaels left their memorials here as well as in Galloway, Galway, Donegal, Portugal.
PWLLCWM. — Pwll, a pit, a small pool; cwm, a valley; so called from an old coal pit that was opened in the place.
PYLE. — From pil, which means a creek, a small inlet of the sea filled by the tide. It is supposed that the place was sometimes inundated by the sea, hence the name.
QUAKERS YARD. — The place derives its name from the following incident; Lydia Fell, who lived in Cefn Forest —
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a farmhouse in the parish of Merthyr Tydfil — was a wealthy member of the Quaker fraternity. In course of time a burial-place for the Quakers became a desideratum. She owned considerable land in the northern part of Llanfabon parish, and was charitable enough to give a portion of it to be made a suitable repository for the dead about the year 1670 or 1680. A wall was built around it, six feet high, which is still standing. Lydia Fell was buried here.
RADIR. — Some think the name is a contraction of yr âr dir, the arable land. Iago Emlyn thinks the original form was RHAIADR, cataract or waterfall. We are inclined to think the name is an abbreviated form of RHAD-DIR, cheap or free land, belonging to the diocese of Llandaff. Morgan Mwynfawr held his court here in preference to Caerleon-on-Usk.
RAVEN HILL. — A farm in the place is called PENLLE’R BRAIN, which signifies the chief rendezvous of the raven tribe in the district, and the present name may be a translation of the same. If we could satisfy ourselves that the Danes visited the place, we would be inclined to identify the place-name with praefn, a raven, the Danish standard. There are several Danish names in Gower and along its coast.
RESOLVEN. — The name, according to some, is a compound of rhiw, slope; and Solven, the name of the mountain at the base of which the village is situated. Sol — siol, head; and pen — maen, stone. Others think it is a contraction of BRYN SOFLEN, the hill of stubble. After the Norman Conquest the lands of Solven were allotted to Rhys ab Iestyn, and called, according to some, after his name, ‘REES-SOLVEN.’ Solven is doubtless a changed
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form of SYLFAN, a place to gaze, which fully corresponds with the physical aspect of the place, the Solven mountain commanding an extensive view of the Vale of Neath.
REYNOLDSTON. — So called in honour of Reginald de Breos, who was sometime lord of the manor, and is supposed to have been the founder of the church.
RHIGOS. — In ancient MSS., it is spelt RHYGOES, RHEGOES, and Y RYGOES. Some think it is a corruption of RHYDGROES, the ford of the cross. GRUG-RHOS, the meadow heath has been suggested. The physical aspect of the place suggests another derivation: rhug, what has breaks or points; rhos, meadow. The right wording,, others think, is Grugos, heath, heather; signifying a heathy place — a true description of this romantic spot, which is noted for its small batches of heath. Thomas Llewelyn, Rhigos, is a name that has not had the place it deserves in Welsh history. It is supposed that he was born in a farmhouse called Clyn-Eithinog, Eithen — a furse [sic; = furze] brake, in the earlier part of the sixteenth century.
RHONDDA. — In ancient documents it is spelt GLYN ROTHERE, GLYN RODNEU, GLYN ROTHENEY, and GLYN RHONDDA. Some have derived the name from the Latin unda. We rather think the name is a contracted form of YR HONDDU; yr, the; hoen, complexion, hue; ddu, black. Many Welsh rivers received their names from the peculiar hue of their respective waters.
RHOSSILI. — The word means a moorland near the sea. Rhos, moor; heli, brine. Reginald de Sully had nothing to do with this place.
Worm’s Head is in this parish, which is evidently
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another memorial of the Vikings. Worm is a Saxonized form of the Norse ormr, a serpent. This promontory has been compared to a huge sea serpent raising its head and half of its length above the waves.
RHWS. — The name signifies a cultivated region.
RHYDRI. — A contraction, say some, of YR-YW-DRE, the home of yew trees, from the abundance of yew trees in the neighbourhood. It may be a corruption of RHIW-Y-DERI, literally, the slope of the oaks, or it may be an Anglicised form of RHUDD-DRE, the hamlet of the red soil.
RHYDYBOITHAN. — Rhyd, a ford; y, the. Boithan may be a corruption of bwthyn, hut or cot.
RHYDYFELEN. — The true etymology is RHYD-Y-FELIN the ford or stream of the mill. The word signifies a stream of water that turns a mill.
RHYDYFRO. — The name signifies ‘the stream of the vale.’
SENGHENYDD. — (See Caerphili).
SIGGINGTON. — This place lies near Cowbridge, and seems to have belonged to a family named Syggin or Siggin, who, however, left no other record.
SKERRY. — From the Norse scar, a face of rock or cliff. Skeara, to shear, or cut asunder. The rocks of Sker Point run sheer down into the sea. It is cognate with the Gaelic and Erse sgeir, a cliff; the Welsh esgair, a shank, a long ridge; and the Anglo-Saxon sciran, to divide. A scar is the mark where the flesh has been divided; a share is a divided part and shire is a division of land.
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SKETTY. — The name is probably an abbreviated form of IS KETTI. The village lies at the base of the hill where Maen Ketti stands, hence the name is Ketti, which signifies a place below the stone of the Arkite power.
SKEWEN. — The right wording, say some, is IS-CAE-YWEN, a place below the field of the yew-tree, but we rather think it is a corruption of YSGAWEN, the Welsh for elderwood, so called from the abundance of that wood in the neighbourhood.
ST. ATHAN. — According to the Welsh Chronicles the church was built by St. Tathan, son of Annwn Ddu, and Anna, the daughter of Meurig ab Tewdrig, King of Essyllwg, in the sixth century. It is said that Tathan founded a monastic establishment here for 500 saints, and that his mortal remains were interred here.
ST. BRIDE. — The church was dedicated to St. Ffraid, according to some; but Iolo Morganwg thinks it was dedicated to St. Bride, the daughter of Dwpdagws, an Irish saint.
ST. DONNATT’S. DONNATT is an Anglicanism of the Welsh Dunawd, the name of the saint to whom the church was dedicated. Another village, Welsh St. Donnatt’s, was so called for the purpose of distinguishing it from ST. DONNATT’S proper, which was occupied by a portion of the Flemish colony.
ST. FFAGAN — The parish church is dedicated to ST. FFAGAN, who is said to have come to Britain with Dyfan and Medwy and Elfan in the year 180, at the solicitations of Lleurwg, to preach the Gospel to the people.
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ST. HILARY. — The church is dedicated to ST. ELARI. The remains of Beaupre Castle are in this parish.
ST. NICHOLAS. — The Welsh name is LLAN-EINYDD, from the church being built by Einydd, King of Morganwg, and grandson of Morgan Mwynfawr. The new name was probably conferred by the Normans.
ST. LYTHAN. — LYTHAN is probably a corruption of Bleddian. The Welsh name is Llanfleiddian Fach, so called in honour of Bleiddian, a contemporary of Garmon, the adjective bach, little, being added in order to distinguish it from Llanbleiddian Fawr.
SULLY. — The Welsh name is ABERSILI, from, its situation at the mouth of the rivulet Sili. SULLY is perhaps a corruption of SILI, hissing water; or of SYLWY: syl — syllu, to gaze; and wy, water. Some think the word is the Norse for ‘ploughed island,’ and others think it is a modified form of Sulwy or Sule, a woman’s name.
SWANSEA. — The original name of the town was CAER WYR, the fortress of Gower. It is called ABERTAWY, from its situation at the estuary of the river Tawy. The roots are taw, silent; and wy — gwy, water; signifying the silent river. Some think the root is ta or tam, which means what spreads or expands, and that it is found in the river-names Tay in Perth; Tan in Devon; Tame, Thames, Taf, Teifi, Tawy.
There are different views respecting the origin of SWANSEA. Col. Francis traces the name in Common Hall Books, Charters, and Chronicles, to the reign of Henry II (1188), and finds that it always points to the place which bears the name of SWEYN, the Danish hero. Hearne, in 1722, records: “King Swanus, his fleet,
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drowned at Swanawick, alias Swanasey, [i.e., Swanussea). Swanus’ fleet was destroyed in the Swansea Bay by a storm in 877. It is said that 120 ships were lost at the time, and that he himself perished.
TAIBACH. — The name signifies ‘small houses,’ so called from the four small thatched houses that once stood at the bottom of the road, which was afterwards called ‘Water Street.’
TALYGARN. — Tal, front, end; y, the; garn — carn, a heap, a cairn.
THREE CROSSES. — So called from the junction of the three roads in the hamlet.
TIRPHIL. — Tir, land; phil, a clipped form of Philip, the name of the then owner of the land on which the village was built.
TON. The name signifies unploughed land, a grassy plot of ground. The village derives its name from a farmstead so called.
TONNA. — Plural of ton. (See Ton).
TONDU. — Ton, a grassy plot of ground, a green sward. ITHEL DDU, grandson of Morgan Hen, kept a summer-house here, called Ton Ithel Ddu. He was called Ithel Ddu from his very black hair and beard. In course of time the appellation Ithel was omitted, and the name contracted to TONDDU and TONDU. Ithel is written in old Welsh Judhael, and on one of the Llantwit stones it it spelt Juthahelo. Professor Rhys thinks it is composed of jud, fight; and hael, generous, a generous man.
TONGWYNLAIS. — Ton, green sward; gwyn-las, white and green. Some call it TON-GWYRDD-LAS, a green, grassy
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plot of ground. A mansion near the village is called ‘Green Meadow,’ which is an approximate equivalent to the village name.
TONYREFAIL. — Yr-efail, the smithy. The name in full means a smithy built upon or near a green sward. A very old smithy is in the place.
TREALAW. — Tref, the primitive Welsh for homestead, a dwelling house. Having built a house for himself the lord of the manor would proceed to erect dwellings for his people and his cattle, and then formed what was called tref. The word, in course of time, became to be applied to an aggregate of houses. The Norse by, the Danish thorpe, the German dorf, and the English ham and ton may be considered as its equivalents. This place was called Trealaw in honour of D. Williams, Esq., father of Judge Williams, Miskin, whose nom-de-plume was Alaw Goch, and on whose land the village was built.
TREBANOG. — Tref, homestead, dwelling place; hanog, prominent, high, conspicuous, lofty. Banau, beacons.
TREBOETH. — The name signifies the dry parched hamlet.
TREBANOS. — Banos; ban, a general term for high places or mountains; os, a plural diminutive, as in plantos, children.
TREFORGAN. — A small village near Crynant, so called after John Morgan, who built the first two houses in the place in 1874.
TREFOREST.— So called from Craig-y-Fforest, the rock of the forest, near which the village is situate
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TREHARRIS. — So named in honour of Mr. Harris, who opened a very large colliery here in 1873, and called it Harris’ Navigation Colliery.
TREHERBERT. — The name was conferred on the place in 1851 by the Marquis of Bute, in honour of Herbert, a favourite name in the Bute family.
TREORKY. — The right wording, perhaps, is TREGORCHWY. — Gorchwy, river name, signifies encompassing or overflowing water. The root may be orch, a limit, a border.
TROEDYRHIWFUWCH. — It is vulgarly spelt by some Troed-rhyw-fuwch, the foot of some cow, in allusion to a local tradition about a cow that had gone astray. Some think it is a corruption of Troedrhiw-uchaf, a farm so named, in order to distinguish it from Troedrhiw-isaf. We take it to mean a place situate at the bottom of the cow’s slope.
TROEDYRHIW. — From a farmstead so called. Troed is the Welsh for foot, base. The Irish traig signifies the same both of which, according to some, are of the same origin as the Greek trecho, ‘I run.’ The English tread means to set the foot. Rhiw is the Welsh for ascent, acclivity, slope. The Welsh Troedyrhiw and the Italian pie di monte are almost synonymous.
TYLORSTOWN. — The village derives its name from Mr. Alfred Tylor, who opened the first colliery here about 1872.
TYTHEGSTON. — Llandudwg is the Welsh name. The church is dedicated to Tudwg, a saint of the sixth
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century. TYTHEG is a modification of Tudwg, probably a personal name.
TWYNRODYN. — Twyn is a smaller and flatter rising of the ground than bryn, and forms no part of a range. It would be equivalent to ‘knoll’ or ‘hillock;’ yr, the; odyn, lime-kiln.
TYLEGWYN. — Tyle originally meant a place where a house had been, but now it signifies a steep ascent, or rising of a hill. TYLE ISCOED is an old appellation for Ireland. Gwyn, white.
WALNUT TREE BRIDGE. — Three walnut trees had grown near each other on a well-known plot of ground in the place, and in order to proceed with the construction of the Taff Vale Railway in the place, it was necessary to uproot these trees and build a bridge on the spot, hence the name. The place is popularly called Taff’s Well, from the celebrated well that springs from the bed of the river Taff. It is 4 feet deep, and its waters are famous for curing rheumatism.
WALTERSTON. — The village bears the name of WALTER or GUALTIER de Mapes, Fitzhamon’s chaplain. His father came into this country with Fitzhamon, and received as his share of the plunder the estates of Gwenydd ab Seisyllt, lord of Llancarvan.
WATFORD. — In old records it is written as y FOT FFORDD, which is probably a corrupt form of BODFFORDD, a roadside residence. A very historic place in connection with Nonconformity.
WAUNARLWYDD. — Waun, meadow; arlwydd, modern Welsh; arglwydd, a superior, a lord, a proprietor. Mr.
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Griffiths, Bryn Dafydd, purchased a piece of land which belonged to the lord of the manor, from which circumstance the place was called WAUNARLWYDD, the lord’s manor.
WAUNTRODAU. — Waun, meadow; trodau is variously derived. Some derive it from trotian, to trot, to go on trot; trodi, to journey; from the supposition that the place was sometime noted for horse-racing. Others think the right worcling is TROED-Y-DA, signifying the meadow where traces of cows’ feet were visible. An old house, called Castell Rhoda, Rhode’s castle, once stood in the place. This may be the ancient TREODA, which was burnt by the Saxons in 831, and the waun, meadow, probably belonged to the same mansion.
WENVOE. — The roots are gwyn, white blessed; and fa — man, place. The name is a Norman transmutation of the original Gwynfa. Gwyn was a sacred appellation among the Celtic race. CYLCH Y GWYNFYD was the Druidical Elysium. GWYNFA is the popular Welsh for Paradise.
WICK. — Some think the name is indirectly derived from the Norse wic, a bay; but wic had a secondary meaning of hamlet, village. It was anciently called Y WIG FAWR, the great wood, suggesting that the locality was sometime thickly wooded, and the present name is an Anglicized form of the Welsh minus fawr, great, large.
YNYSBOETH. — A village near Penrhiwceibr. ynys, a quasi-island; poeth, scorching, sun-parched.
YNYSAWDRE. — Ynys, island (?); nawdd, refuge; and tre, homestead.
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YNYSHIR. — Ynys originally signified a quasi-island in the marshes. It is equivalent to inch in Scotland, Inch Keith; and inis or ennis in Ireland, Ennis Killen, Inniskia, &c. YNYS-HIR literally means long island, so named after a farmstead in the place. It is noteworthy that a very large number of villages in the mining districts take their names from farm-houses.
YNYSLWYD. — From an old cottage so called, on the river Cynon. Some say it is YNYS Y TYWOD LLWYD, a quasi-island of grey sands.
YNYSPENLLWCH. — Ynys, island; pen, head, end; llwch, lake, an inlet of water. The postfix corresponds with the Scotch loch, the Irish lough, and the English lake. Tradition has it that the vale of Tawy was once studded with many lakes or sheet of waters. Yslwch means a gutter, and slough is a mire.
YNYSTAWE. — Ynys, island; Tawe, the name of the river. The ancient farmstead, which gave the name to the place, was the residence of the celebrated bard, Hopkin ap Thomas ap Einion in 1380. He served as a mihtary officer in the reigns of Edward III. and Richard II.
YNYSYBWL. — Some think the affix is pwll, pit, hollow; the name, therefore, signifying the island in the hollow. The true rendering, probably, is YNYS-Y-BEL, which is by free interpretation, the ball-meadow. The place in olden times was a noted rendezvous for ball-players.
YSTALYFERA. — In some old documents the name is spelt ynys-tal-fera. In the adjoining places we find ynysmeudwy and ynyspenllwch. Some think the right wording is Ynys-tal-furiau, the meadow at the foot of the
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high walls (of Alltgrug and Tarren Gwyddon). Ystal, a stock or produce, a stall; y, the; fera = bera, a stack of corn or hay; the name colloquially meaning ‘the haystall.’ The place is also called Y CYFIN, which is a clipped form of CYFYNG, implying a narrow, deep gorge, in which anyone on viewing the mountains on either side might be inclined to exclaim like the apostle of old, “I am in a strait betwixt two.”
YSTRAD DYFODWG. — Ystrad is a general term for a low or flat valley through which a river flows. It is derived from the Latin strata, a paved way, from sterno, stratum, to spread out, to strew; and considered to be one of the words recognised as inherited directly from the Roman invaders. Compare the Scotch strath, and the English street. The parish church was dedicated to TYFODWG ab Gwilfyw, a saint of the sixth century.
YSTRAD MYNACH. — Mynach is the Welsh for monk. Some have been led by the name to think that some unknown monk must have lived here in time of yore. The right wording is MAENARCH. In the Iolo MSS. we are told that MAENARCH, Earl of Hereford, built the parish church of Llanfabon.
YSTRAD OWEN. — The parish derives its name from Prince OWEN, the son of Morgan Hen, King of Morgannwg, who took up his abode here. In a field adjoining the churchyard is a large tumulus supposed to indicate the site of his house, or as some say, the grave of Owen and his wife. Owen’s remains were buried here in 987.
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[MERIONETH]. The county takes its name from the old cantrev of Meirion, so called in honour of Meirion, grandson of Cunedda Wledig. The affix eth is a modification of the Welsh ydd, a particle denoting agency or personality. It is the only northern county that has kept its original name.
ABERDYFI. — So called from its situation at the mouth of the river Dyfi. Some think Dyfi means smooth water, and that the right wording is Dof-wy, the tame or smooth water. Others think it is Dyfn-wy, the deep water. Some are of opinion that it is a corrupt form of Deifr-dyfroedd, waters. But the most popular derivation is Dwyf-wy, the sacred water.
ABERDYSYNI. — Some think that Dysyni, the name of the rivulet, is a corruption of di-swn-wy, the noiseless water, which is a true description of this lethargic stream.
ABERCYWARCH. — The place is situated at the mouth of the river Cywarch. Perhaps cywarch is a mutation of cawerch; caw, moveable, swift, and erch, terrible, rushing; signifying a swift and terrible water.
ABERGWYNOLWYN. — Various forms are given of this name, as Abergynolgwyn, Abergwernolwyn, Abergwernolwy, Aber Cantolwyn, &c. Some think the place derives its name from Cynolwyn, an unknown personage referred to in the Black Book of Carmarthen. We find Cae Cynolwyn in the district of Aberdyfi. Others think the right wording is Abergwernol wy. The river is called, Gwernol, and has its source in Gwernol’s Well. Gwernol, swampy, boggy, and wy, water.
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ABERLLEFENI. — Some think the name is a clipped form of Aber-llech-feini, signifying a river making its way through and over slate-stones. Others think that Llefeni is a mutation of Llyfnwy, the smooth water. We have many rivers bearing the name Llyfnwy. We are inclined to think the correct wording is Aber-llwyfeni. In the works of Ifan Tew in the Library of the British Museum the name is given as Aber-llwyfeni. Llwyfeni means elm-trees, which adorn the banks of the river.
ABERTRINANT. — Nant primarily signified a ravine, a dingle, a commot.
ARDUDWY. — Ar, a height; dud-tud, a region, a district; wy-gwy, water; the name signifying a watery district. Some derive the name from ar, above; du, black; and dwy, or gwy, water; hence a place above the black waters.
ARGOED. — A contraction of ar-y-coed, a place situated on or above a wood. Camps in time of yore were fortified on emergencies, by felling trees to surround them, and one so constructed was called Argoed.
ARTHOG. — The older inhabitants call it Arthogof; Arth, bear; ogof, cave or lair. Tradition has it that bears sometime found a resting-place here. Some think it is a personal name. We find the forms Arthawc and Arthawg in Bonedd y Saint. We rather think the right word is Garthog, mountainous, hilly. Garth, a projecting ridge.
BALA.— Some think the word is Celtic, signifying a village. Others derive it from balu, to shoot, or issue forth. Bala coed, the budding or blossom of trees. Bala llyn, the outlet or efflux of a lake. It is cognate with Balloch in
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Scotland. The town is situate at the effluence of Llyn Tegid, the lake of Tegid. The lake was so called from the following circumstances.
“Tegid, the son of Baran, was a wise king, and a good bard. He enacted excellent regulations for literature; restored ancient learning, which had nearly become lost; and instituted a council of bards and Druids, as of old. He continued at war with his enemies, but they took him at last, through treachery, and drowned him in the great lake, called from that circumstance, Llyn Tegid (Tegid’s Lake) in Gwynedd. (Iolo MSS. p. 346).
CORRIS. — We find the forms Corys and Corus in the Cambrian Register for 1795. Some think the place takes its name from a saint called Corus. It is also said that Cunedda Wedig [sic; = Wledig] had a son called Corus. Others think that the river which gives the place its name, was called Corus from its making round excavations in the angles of its banks.
BARMOUTH. — An Anglicized form of the Welsh name, Abermaw, which signifies a place situated at the mouth of the river Maw. Bar is a modification of Aber, and mouth of Maw, or Mawddwy. Maw means broad, expanding. Mawddach, according to Dr. Owen Pughe, means overflowing water. “Oedd maw ei rhydau,” broad were its fords. The Anglicized name was adopted in 1768 by the seafaring fraternity in order to have an English name inscribed upon the vessels.
BRYN Y CRUG. — Bryn, a hill; y, the; crug, a heap; signifying a heap on a hill.
CARROG. — From carog, which signifies a torrent or brook.
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CWM PRYSOR. — Cwm, valley; Prysor seems to be derived from prysu, to form a resort or covert. The name is quite descriptive of this deep and solitary vale, in which the rains of Castle Prysor are still visible.
CEINOG. — The root is cain, clear, bright, fair. The name was given to the place, probably, on account of the beautiful views it commands.
CORWEN. — Some derive the name from Corwena, the name of the mother of Bran and Beli, twin brothers. Others derive it from Corvaen, which implies a stone in a circle. Others think it is a mutation of Caer Owain. History tells us that the place is famous for being the rendezvous where the Welsh assembled about the year 1163, under their valiant leader, Owen Gwynedd, against Henry II., and also for being the place of encampment of Owain Glyndwr when he defended his country against Henry IV. We incline to think the name retains its primitive form; hence it means the white choir or church.
CWMORTHIN. — A corruption probably of Cwm-certh-hin. Cwm, valley; certh, awful, dangerous; hin, the weather. The name is quite descriptive of the physical aspect of this deep valley.
CYMERAU. — The root is cymer, the juncture or union of two streams. The place is situated near the confluence of the rivers Erch and Heli.
CYNWYD. — The name, which signifies primary evil, or mischief, was probably derived from Cynwyd ab Cynwydion, once a very powerful prince in Edeyrnion, but who spent the latter end of his life in hermitage.
DOLDREWIN. — Some are of opinion that the name refers to the druidical circles, remains of which are
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now seen in the village. Dol, a meadow,; drewin, a corruption of derwydd, a druid.
DERWEN LAS. — Derwen, an oak; las-glas, green.
DOLGELLEY. — Dol, a meadow, a plain, dale; gelley is derived by some from celli, a grove. The name is quite in correspondence with the physical aspect of the town, which is situate in a fertile vale between the rivers Aran and Wnion, and surrounded on all sides by lofty and thickly-wooded mountains. We rather think that gelley is a corruption of collen, hazel-tree, from the abundance of hazel-wood in the district.
DINAS MAWDDWY. — Dinas, a hill fort. In olden times it was the capital of an extensive lordship, preserving the insignia of power, the stocks and whipping-post, the feg fawr, or great fetter, the mace, and standard measure. Mawddwy, broad water.
DUGOED. — Du, black; goed — coed, wood.
FFESTINIOG. — Edmunds derives the name from mesen, an acorn, and wg, a district. Others derive it from the Latin Festino, which, it is supposed, was bestowed upon it by the Romans when they took up their abode here. Dr. O. Pughe traces it to the Welsh ffestinio, to hasten. The pedestrian was obliged to hasten through the place if he destined to cross the mountains and reach Bala or Ysbytty ere being enveloped in darkness. We rather think the name is allied with penffestin, a helmet. Penffestiniog, wearing a helmet. The name, therefore, implies a district possessing fortified places.
GLYNDYFRDWY. — Glyn, glen; dyfrdwy, the name of the river that flows through it. Various explanations
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have been given of Dyfrdwy. Some derive it from dwfr-dwy-afon, the water of two rivers; others maintain it is a mutation of dwfr-du, black water; according to others it is a corruption of Dwrdd-gwy, the roaring water. The most popular derivation is dyfr-dwy (f), the goddess’ water, or the water of the divinity, from the supposition that its waters were held in superstitious veneration by the Kymry.
GWYDDELWERN. — Gwyddel, a man of the woods; gwern, alder trees. Alder wood, perchance, abounded, in the district, and the early inhabitants probably were obliged to build their hut-homes in the woods. Or perhaps, it means the alders of the Irish, indicating the place where a band of Irishmen were defeated. Dr. O. Pughe translates the word thus: “A moor or meadow overgrown with bushes,” which signification tallies well with the bushy aspect of the place. We also find Y Wern Ddu, black moor, and Ty’nywern, the house on the moor, in the district. The term gwyddel originally meant a brake, a bush, and the name probably means a meadow full of brambles.
HARLECH. — In ancient times the castle was known by the names of Twr Bronwen, Bronwen’s Tower, from Bronwen, the White-necked, or rather Branwen lit, the blessed crow, sister to Bran ap Llyr, king of Britain; and Caer Collwyn, from Collwyn ap Tango, head of one of the fifteen tribes of North Wales, and lord of Eifionydd, Ardudwy, and part of Lleyn.
When Edward I. built the present castle it was denominated, according to some, Harddlech, the fair or
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fine rock or stone. The county is exceedingly rich in cromlechs and tine stone monuments. A traveller, in climbing an adjacent hill, may observe several meini hirion, and circles formed of large common pebble-stones.
LLANDANWG. — From Tanwg, son of Ithel Hael, and a saint of the sixth century. Tanwg means lowland.
LLANDECWYN. — From Tecwyn, son of Ithel Hael, and a saint of the sixth century. Two lakes in the parish, Tecwyn Ucha and Tecwyn Isa, bear his name. Some derive tecwyn thus — teg, far; gwyn, white, lovely. Llyn Tecwyn is near the village, whose waters are of crystalline clearness.
LLANDRINIO. — Trinio, a descendant of Emyr Llydaw, is supposed to have been the founder of the church. Trinio probably comes from trin, which means a battle or combat; trinio, to meddle, to manage.
LLANDDWYWE. — From Dwywau, a descendant of Emyr Llydaw, and a saint of the sixth century.
LLANFIHANGEL-Y-TRAETHAU. — The Parish Church is dedicated to St. Michael, and is situated near the two beaches, called Y Traeth Bach and Traeth Mawr.
LLANFIHANGEL Y PENNANT. — The church is dedicated to St. Michael, hence Llanfihangel. Pennant, the extreme end of the dingle.
LLWYNGWRIL. — Llwyn, bush; gwril, the name of the river that runs through the place. Some think the right wording is Llwyn Cyril, from a tradition that a saint called Cyril walked over the sea from Bardsey Island to this.
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place, where he took up his residence. Probably the place takes its name from an unknown person called Gwril or Gwryl.
LLANFOR. — Some think the church is dedicated to Mor Meirion. The right wording, perhaps, is Llanfawr, ihe great church.
LLANGAR. — The right word probably is Llangaer, which means the fortress church. The church is built near an ancient fortress called Caerwern; hence the name.
LLANGOWER. — Gower is a corruption of Gwawr, the mother of Llywarch Hen, and a saint, to whom the church is dedicated.
LLANUWCHLLYN. — The name indicates a church above the lake. The village is situated on the Dee a short distance above Tegid lake.
LLANDDERFEL. — From Derfel Gadarn, a celebrated warrior in the sixth century. The church was remarkable for a vast wooden image of Derfel, which was the subject of much superstition in olden times.
LLANDRILLO. — From Trillo, son of Ithel Hael. Trilo’s well is near the village.
LLANFROTHEN. — From Brothen, son of Helig ab Glanawg, and a popular saint of the sixth century.
LLANGELYNIN. — From Celynin, son of Helig ab Glanawg.
LLANEGRYN. — Egyyn, a saint of the seventh century, is supposed to have founded the church.
LLANWRIN. — From Gwrhin, son of Cynddilig, a supposed saint of the sixth century.
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LLANELLTYD. — From Illtyd, one of the most celebrated of the Welsh saints.
LLANFERIN. — Merin, a descendant of Seithenyn, isrecorded to have been the founder of the church.
LLANBEDR. — The church is dedicated to St. Peter. This neighbourhood, according to some historians, forms a part of Cantref y Gwaelod, the lowland hundred.
LLANABER. — The church stands on the south extremity of the plain of Ardudwy, within about a furlong from the sea.
LLANYMAWDDWY. — The church and village are situated at the base of Aran Fawddwy.
LLANYCIL. — The name indicates a church built in a sequestered place.
LLANERCHFYDDA. — Fydda is probably a corruption of byda, a beehive. The name indicates a noted place for bees.
LLWYN. — A village in the parish of Llanegryn. The name means a bush.
MAENTWROG. — So called from the memorial stone of Twrog, a celebrated British saint of the fifth century, which still remains at one angle of the church.
MALLWYD. — Some say this place derives its name from maen, a stone, and llwyd, grey. A Druidic monument is supposed to have been here; whence came the name. The name is a compound of ma-llwyd, the grey district; so called probably from the appearance of the mountains.
NANNAU. — A compound of nant, a brook, and au, a
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plural termination. The t is dropped and n substituted for the sake of euphony.
PENRHYNDEUDRAETH. — Penrhyn, headland; dau, two; traeth, beach, seashore. The headland projects into the Tremadoc Bay, between the Traeth Mawr and the Traeth Bach.
PENIARTH. — The right wording is probably Penygarth, which means hill-top, from the village being situate on a part of the Cader Idris range.
PANDY’R CAPEL. — Pandy means a fulling-mill, which was situated near what is supposed to have been sometime a Roman Catholic Chapel.
PENNAL.— A compound of Pen, head, top, and tal, of the same meaning. The village lies on the old Roman road called “Sarn Helen,” Helen’s causeway, and it is supposed that the Romans had a station there.
RHYDERIN. — Rhyd, a ford; erin, a corruption of gerwin, rough. The name is derived from a rough and perilous ford across the Dysyni river. The etymology of Dysyni is di-swn-wy, noiseless water.
RHYDONEN. — Rhyd, a ford; onen, the ash tree.
RHYDUCHAF. — The name signifies the highest ford.
RHIWAEDOG.— Rhiw, slope, the brow of a hill; gwaedog, bloody; so called from a battle that was fought here between Llywarch Hen and the Saxons, in which he lost Cynddelw, the last of his sons. A small lake in the district is called Pwll y Gelanedd, the pool of slaughter.
SAETH MARCHOG. — In this place Owen Gwynedd is supposed to have surprised Reginald de Grey and
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seven knights (Saith Marchog) in his train; hence the right wording is Saith Marchog, and its English name is Seven Knights.
TOWYN.— Edmunds derives the name from twyn, a curved hillock or bank; but we think the right word is Tywyn, which is derived from tywodyn, sand; hence the name signifies a place of sands. The village is situate near the seashore, and is celebrated as a beautiful bathing-place. Some translate Tywyn as sea-shore or sea-land. Bronyclydwr is not far distant from here, where the immortal Hugh Owen was bom in 1637.
TANYBWLCH. — The name signifies below the pass. The place is situate at the brow of a hill overlooking the vale of Ffestiniog.
TRAWSFYNYDD. — Traws, across; mynydd, a mountain. The name indicates a place situate on the side of a mountain.
TALSARNAU. — Tal, front; sarnau, causeways, roads.
TALYLLYN. — The name signifies “the end or head of the lake,” from the situation of its church at the head of a beautiful lake called Llyn Mwyngil.
TANYGRISIAU. — Tan, under, below; y, the; grisiau, steps, stairs. In coming down from Cwmorthin to Dolredyn, the pedestrians used to descend over a series of steps made of stones, called Grisiau Mawr, great steps; and, on account of the village lying below these steps, it was called Tanygrisiau.
Y CWRT. — The Court. We find the names Top y Cwrt, and Tower Court in the locality, and a few Roman remains are visible at Cefncaer.
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[MONTGOMERY.] The Welsh name is Trefaldwyn, Baldwin’s town, so called in honour of Baldwin, a Norman general, who built a castle on the border of the county. In 1090 the castle was taken by Roger Montgomery, and the Saxons called the place afterwards Montgomery. Some seem to think the English name is a Norman corruption of Mynydd y Cymry, the mount of the Kymry.
ABERHAVESP. — The place is situate at the confluence of the rivers Havesp and Severn; hence the name. Havesp signifies a river whose channel is dry in the summer.
ABERRHOSAN. — Aber, estuary; rhosan, the name of the river, which signifies the meadow brook.
ABERMULE. — The village is situated near the point where the river Mule discharges itself into the Severn. Mule is probably a contraction of mudliw, changing colour, from which we have the English motley.
BERRIEW. — The correct etymology, doubtless, is Aber-rhiw. The river Rhiw flows through the parish and empties itself into the Severn. Rhiw, perhaps, from rhiw, what breaks out.
BLAENGLESYRCH. — A place situate on the rivulet Glesyrch. from which it takes its name. Glesyrch is a. corruption of glas-erch, dusky blue.
BUTTINGTON. — The Welsh name is Talybont, bridgend, from a bridge crossing the Severn near it. Offa’s Dyke passes through the parish, and here separates
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England from Wales. During the Saxon period it was called Butdigingtune; hence Buttington. The name signifies Archer’s town.
BWLCHYFFRIDD. — Bwlch, pass, breach; y, the; fridd, plantation, forest.
CARNO. — From carn, cairn, heap. Pennant says: “The mountains of Carno, like those of Gilboa, are celebrated for the fall of the mighty.” On a mountain called Mynydd y Gam, or Garnedd, a huge heap of stones was raised to commemorate the death of a celebrated warrior.
CANN OFFICE. — An abbreviation of Cannon Office, so called from the cannon used by Cromwell’s soldiers during their encampment in the place.
CERI. — A corruption of Caerau, fortresses or walls. according to some; but some derive it from Ceri Hir Lyngwyr, the name of Caradog’s grandfather, who was the owner of the estate, which, as it was customary then, was called after his name. Others derive it from ceri, the medlar tree, which, it is supposed, abounded in the district in time of yore. The place takes its name, probably, from the river Ceri, the swift water.
CERRIST. — From the river name, which means swift water.
CEMMAES. — A compound of cefn, back, ridge, and maes, a field, or better from cam and maes = land at the bend of the river.
CLITTERWOOD. — Perhaps from glitter and wood.
CRIGION. — A corruption of crugiau, heaps.
CHURCH STOKE. — From stoc, or stocce, the stem or main part of a tree. Woodstock, woody place. 2
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CWMBELAN. — Belan, signifies a woody ridge.
CYFEILIOG. — This pleasant vale is named in honour of Owen Cyfeiliog, who, in 1130, became the sole owner of the estate through the death of his grandfather, Meredyth, the prince. The name means “compact together.”
CAERSWS. — It appears, that, the Romans had a station and a road in this place. The latter was called Sarn Swsan, Susan’s road, portions of which are discernible to this day. The station was probably called after the same name, and the Britons decided to perpetuate it, reducing Swsan to Sws; hence Caersws.
CROESLLWYBIR. — Croes, cross, over; llwybir, a corruption of llwybr, a way, path.
CYFRONYDD. — A compound of cyd, with, united, and bronydd, sloping hills. Cyfronydd Hall is situated on a rising eminence, commanding the beautiful sceneries of the valley below, through which the river Manw flows.
DOLARDDIN. — Some are of opinion that this place was named in honour of Arddun, daughter of Pabo Post Prydain, and a saint of the sixth century. Arddun means sublime, grand, from dôl + ar + dinlas the meadow beyond the fort.
DAROWEN. — A corruption of dar or deri, oaks, and Owain, name of a man.
DERLLWYN. — From deri, oaks, and llwyn, bush, grove.
DOLFOR. — A compound of dol, a meadow or plain, and fawr, large, great.
DOLWEN. — A compound of dol, meadow, and wen, feminine form of gwyn, white.
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DOLL. — A corruption of dol, a meadow.
DWYRIW. — A compound of dwy, feminine of dau two; and rhiw, slope, ascending path.
DWYNANT. — Dwy, two; nant, brook; signifying a place situated between two brooks that flow into the river Bachog.
DYLIFAU. — Some think the name is the plural form of dylif, a warp. Dylif goton, a cotton warp. It is sometimes spelt Dylie, which is probably a contraction of dylif-le, which means a high place whence water flows to different directions.
DOLYFELIN. — Dol, meadow, dale; y, the; melin, mill. Near this place is the site of an ancient British smelting-hearth, where numerous pieces of lead-ore have been found.
DYFFRYN. — A village in the parish of Meifod.
ESGAIR-GEILIOG. — Esgair means a conspicuous promontory. Geiliog-geilig, hunting, exploring. The name signifies a hunting-ground.
ESGAIR MAEN. — Maen, a stone. The name signifies a stony or rocky ridge.
FORDEN. — Perhaps an Anglo-Saxon word, meaning a shallow part of a river where a road crosses. The use of the Anglo-Saxon verbal plural en is very common in some parts of this county.
GAER. — From caer, a fortress. This place is in the parish of Caereinion.
GARTH MILL. — Garth, an enclosure, a ness, a promontory.
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GARTHBEIBIO. — Peibio is a modification of Peibiaw, the name of a king recorded in many of the Welsh legends.
GARTH GELLIN. — Gellin, perhaps, is a corruption of collen, hazel-tree.
GLYN CLYWEDOG. — Glyn, a glen, a narrow vale; Clywedog, the ‘roaring river’ that runs through the glen.
GLANYNANT. — The name signifies the bank of the brook.
GLYN TREFNANT. — Glyn, a glen, a narrow vale; Trefnant is a corruption of tri-nant, three ravines (?)
GRIBBIN. — A compound of crib, crest, summit; y, the; bryn, hill; signifying a place situated high on the hill. Crib mynydd, the summit of a mountain.
GUILSFIELD. — The Welsh name is Cegidfa, signifying a place of hemlock, or, perhaps, it is a compound of cegid, the bird witwal; and fan-man, place. Some derive Guilsfield from St. Gulan’s field. Perhaps it is a compound of guild, an incorporation, and field.
GUNGROG. — A corruption of Gwaun-y-grog, the meadow of the cross, so called from the supposition that a cross was erected here in the middle ages in connection with the Ystrad Farchell monastery.
GWESTYDD. — From gwest-ty-ddin, the camp restingplace.
GWERN-Y-BWLCH. — Gwern, a swamp, a bog; y, the; bwlch, a pass, a gap. The name is derived from a mountain-pass in the district, from which a distant view of Cader Idris is obtained.
GWERN ESGOB. — Gwern, a swamp, a meadow; Esgob, a bishop.
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HIRNANT. — Hir, long; nant, a brook. The village is situated in a narrow valley, and watered by an inconsiderable stream, tributary to the Tanat.
LLANGADFAN. — The church was dedicated to St. Cadfan. The “Myvyrian” says: — “This Cadvan, being a nobleman and son-in-law of the king of Armorica, came over with Uthr Bendragon, or his son king Arthur, and a great number of pious and learned men in his retinue, and chose for his residence Ynys Enlli (that is the monastery in the Isle of Bardsey), where he was an abbot, and many of his followers had churches dedicated to them.” Some of his followers were Cynon, Padarn, Tydecho, Dochtwy, Mael, &c. Cadvan means the battle-place.
LLANGURIG. — A village near Plinlimmon. The church was dedicated to Curig, an eminent saint of the seventh century. Eisteddfa Curig, Moel Gurig, in the same vicinity, bear his name. Curig-curiog means bearing pain or affliction.
LLANFYLLIN. — From Myllin, to whom the church was dedicated. Myllin is an old Welsh word implying a violet.
LLANWYDDELEN. — From Gwyddelan, the patron saint of the church. Gwyddelan is probably a compound of gwydd, wood, and elain, a young hind, a fawn.
LLANIDLOES. — Idloes, a saint of the seventh century, is the patron saint of the church. Professor Rhys refers the prefix id to the Skr. yudh, “to fight;” and loes is probably a mutation of glwys, full of love, signifying one eager to fight; or perhaps the suffix is gloes, a pang, a pain. We adopt the former.
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LLANDINAM. — Dinam is referred by some to the Roman Dinum, a frequent termination in place-names in Gaul and Britain, equivalent to the English Tune, now ton, town, &c. Others take Dinam to be a proper name, hence the name signifies Dinam’s Church. Dinam was formerly Dinan = a httle hill fort.
LLANGYNOG. — The church is dedicated to Cynog, the eldest son of Brychan.
LLANGWYNOG. — Gwynog, son of Gildas, a saint of the sixth century, is the patron saint of the church.
LLANDYSILIO. — The church is dedicated to Tysilio, the son of Brochwel Ysgythrog.
LLANFAIR CAEREINION. — Llanfair, a church dedicated to St. Mary. Caer, fortress; Einion, the name of the river near which the town is situated. The latter part of the name is derived from an old British encampment, about three miles from the town, parts of which are discernible to this day.
LLANERFYL. — The church is dedicated to Erfyl, in memory of whom a large stone is erected in the churchyard.
LLANYMECHAIN. — Mechain is a compound of ma, a place; and cain, fair, the name of the river on which the church is situate. This parish is famous for being the birth-place of Gwallter Mechain, in 1761.
LLANFIHANGEL-YN-NGWYNFA. — The church is dedicated to St. Michael, and the village is situated in that part of Powys called Gwynfa, the blessed place; hence the name.
LLANYMYNACH. — Mynach here is probably a corruption of mwnau, mines. The ch is frequently added to
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plural nouns ending with au. Mwnau is the right word, but it is colloquially pronounced mwnach. The place probably derives its name from the mines in which the district formerly abounded, and which were worked so early as the Roman period. Some think the word is mynach, monk, from the supposition that a monk lived some time in the vicinity.
LLANSANTFFRAID. — From St. Ffraid, to whom the church is dedicated.
LLANWDDYN. — The church was probably dedicated to a monk named Wddyn, who, according to tradition, lived in a sequestered spot in the neighbourhood.
LLANWRIN. — From Gwrin, to whom the church is dedicated.
LLANDRINIO. — Trinio is the patron saint of the church.
LLANLLWCHHAIARN. — From Llwchhaiarn, to whom the church is dedicated.
LLANBRYNMAIR. — Bryn, a hill; Mair, the Virgin Mary. The church is dedicated to St. Mary, and pleasantly situated on an eminence; hence the name.
MACHYNLLETH. — Some derive the name thus: Ma, a place; chyn, from cain, fair, beautiful; lleth, an abbreviation of llethr, a slope. Another derivation: Mach, a high ridge, a barrier; yn, in or on; lleth-lleihr, a slope. Edmunds thinks lleth is a contraction of llaith, dead, and that the name signifies “the field of the dead by the wayside.” Others think the name signifies “Cynllaith’s field,” and this is, no doubt, the right derivation.
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MOCHNANT. — Moch, quick, swift; nant, brook; the name of the swift stream, that flows through the place, or more probably swine dale. Compare Pant-y-moch as a place-name.
MEIFOD. — Mai, a plain, or campaign country; bod, a dwelling. The parish consists of an open and extensive tract of land. Or, perhaps, it is a compound of maes, a field; and bod, a dwelling; signifying a dwelling in a field. Some derive it from mai-fod, May residence. Others say that a hermit sometime resided in the neighbourhood, hence meudwy-fod, the hermit’s place.
MANLEDD. — A compound, probably, of ban, a high place, a summit or top, a peak; and Lethr, slope. In the old parish registers it is spelt Manleth and Ban-lethr.
MOUGHTRE. — A corruption of Mochdre.
NEWCHAPEL. — So called from the chapel which is situated on the confines of the parishes of Guilsfield. Llansantfiraid, and Meifod, for the accommodation of those who reside at a distance from the parish church.
NEWTOWN. — A translation of the Welsh name Trefnewydd. Its ancient name was Llanfair-yn-Nghydewain; but, in consequence of the large flannel manufactories that were built there, the place grew so rapidly that, in 1832, the privileges of corporation were bestowed upon it, and henceforth it was called Newtown.
POOL QUAY. — A village near Welshpool, whence it derives its name.
PENNANT MELANGELL. — Pen, head or end; nant, brook; Melangell, called in a Latin saint book St. Monacella.
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Her remains were interred in Pennant Church, which, henceforth, was called Pennant Melangell.
PENSTROWED. — Pen, termination, head; strowed, perhaps from ystref-wydd, a dwelling among trees; or from pen strata, the termination of a Roman road. Compare Stroud (Gloucestershire).
PENYBONT FAWR. — A village in the parish of Pennant.
PENYGELLI. — The name signifies the head or termination of the grove.
PONT-DOLGOCH. — This name signifies a bridge on the red meadow.
PENTREF HEILYN. — This pentref (village) derives its name from a family named Heilyn, who flourished here in the time of “Llewelyn, the Last Prince.” Heilyn means a cup-bearer, a waiter, a butler. Heilio gwin, to serve wine. Heilyn was a personal name very generally used in mediaeval Wales.
PENEGOES. — A corruption of Penegwest. The place derives its name from a supposition that a Welsh chief named Egwest was beheaded near the church.
PONTDOLANOG. — A compound probably of pont, bridge, and dolenog, having curves or bows.
PENTRE. Cilcwm — Pentre, village; Cil-cwm, a sequestered place in a valley.
RHIW SAESON. — Rhiw, slope; Saeson, Saxons, English. We find the name Saeson introduced into many names in the district: Nantysaeson, Saxons’ brook; Plas-rhiw-Saeson, and Rhiw Saeson. About 300 years ago a number of Saxon soldiers were stationed in the place which is now called Rhiw Saeson.
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SNEAD. — From the English snaed, a piece of land, separated from a manor.
STAYLITTLE. — The ancient name was Penfforddlas, the head or end of the green way. The present name is derived from a public-house in the place bearing the name.
TYLWCH. — Tradition has it that the name is a corruption of tawelwch, calmness, tranquility, the word used by a Welsh Prince, probably Llewelyn ein llyw olaf, when he was marching through the place. Ty, a house; llwch, a lake or inlet of water.
TREGYNON. — From the dedication of the church to St. Cynon.
TAFOLOG. — The name implies a place abounding in dock plants; dail tafol, dock leaves.
TREFEGLWYS. — The name means a hamlet or a district privileged with a church.
TIR-Y-MYNACH. — Tir, ground; territory, y, the; mynach, monk; so called from the township having some time formed a portion of the possessions of the Abbey of Strata Marcella.
WELSHPOOL. — The Welsh name is Trallwm, or Trallwng. — Tra, extreme, very; llwng, a corruption of llwnga, so called from the great depth of the lake below Powys Castle. The name signifies a greedy swallow. It has been prophesied that the pool is some day to swallow up the whole of the town of Welshpool. It was called Welshpool by the English to distinguish it from a town in Dorsetshire called Poole. Tra + llwng: the place beyond the bog.
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[PEMBROKE.] Some Welsh scholars think that the Old Welsh form of the name was Penbrog or Penbrogh, and the Latinized form Pembrochia, whence probably the English Pembroke. The roots are pen, head, end; and bro, a country, or extensive tract of land, signifying a headland, which is a very proper appellation, since the county forms the west end of Wales. The name Dyved was once applied to the whole county from which the Roman Dimetae was derived, but in the time of Giraldus Cambrensis, the small peninsula of Castlemartin, lying between Milford Haven, on the north, and the Bristol Channel on the south, constituted the province of Pembroke. The name was also extended to the town and fortress built there by Arnulph de Montgomery, in the reign of Henry I., and ultimately it was given to the whole county.
ANGLE. — Probably from the angle-like form of the district. It lies in angulo.
AMBLESTON. — This place was named in honour of Hamill, one of the Vikings who founded the Welsh colony.
AMROTH. — Am, about, encircling; roth, a corrupted form of rhath, a mound or hill, and rhath is used to denote a plain or moorland. Roath, Cardiff, comes from the latter root. In “Liber Landavensis” it is called Radh and Llanrath.
BRAWDY. — Fenton thinks it is a mutation of Broadway. We incline to think it has a more ancient derivation.
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Brawd is an ancient Welsh word for judgment. Dydd brawd, the day of judgment. Dy-ty, house. The remains of an old British encampment that are discernible near a farmhouse called Brawdy points to the probability that a judgment court was held here; hence the name Brawdy or Brawd-dy.
BUTTER HILL. — In an ancient deed it is called “the Grange of Butter Hill,” supposed to have been a grange to the Priory of Pill, settled by the founder, Adam de Rupe. Butter, perhaps, is a corruption of Buthar, the name of another Viking who visited these shores.
BRIMSTON. — From Brimi, the name of a Norse settler. Brimi is the Norse for flame, and the name of a magical sword mentioned in Norse poetry. Brimi has left his name in Brimscomb, Somerset.
BUCKSTON. — Named in honour of Bakki, a Norse settler.
BURTON. — An old Saxon form of Briton. Briton Ferry was once called Burton Ferry.
BRYNBERIAN. — Bryn, a hill; berian, according to some, comes from Beran, the name of a rivulet, signifying a short river; but we incline to derive berian from beri, a kite or glede. Beri Farm, near Newport, Pem., was so called probably from the visit of the kite to this district.
BONCATH. — Named after another of the bird species, the buzzard.
BUGELY. — Bu, an ox; gely, a corruption of gelly, a grove, signifying the buffalo of the forest.
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BLAENFFOS. — The village takes its name from a farmhouse so called, signifying the head of the ditch. We have Penyfoes, or, as it should be written, Penyffos, near St. David’s, so named from the tenement of Mynydd Din, bounded by a deep ditch.
BLAENCONIN. — The name signifies a place situate at the source of the river Conin.
BARRY. — The name means bare island. Colby. — A compound of cold and the Norse by, an: abode; signifying a cold place.
CALDY. — The name is Norse, signifying cold island.
CILGERAN. — This name has been, more wittily than correctly, derived thus: Cil yw dy gaerau, Ann — narrow are thy walls, Ann. Cil or kil forms a part of a large number of Welsh, Irish, and Scottish names of places. It means a hidden place, a place of retreat. Cil haul, the shade, or where the sun does not shine. Geran is an abbreviation of Geraint, son of Erbin, and a prince of Devon. Before the castle was built the spot was known by the name Dingeraint, Geraint’s fortress. The prefix din was changed into cil, and now the name signifies the place of retreat of Geraint.
CILFOWYR. — Some think the right wording is Cil Ofwyr, signifying Ovates’ place of retreat. Probably Fowyr is a personal name.
CASTLE MARTIN. — So named in honour of Martin, a descendant of Martin de Tours. The family built a castle here in time of yore, of which Leland remarks “Towards this extreme part of Pembrokeshire be the vestigia of Martin Castle.” The old name was Bwlchyclawdd, after a farm so named.
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COED GLASAN. — The name signifies “Glasan’s trees.”
CREAMSTON. — Cream is a corruption of Grim, the name of a Norse settler.
CAMROSE. — An Anglicized form of Camrhos; cam, crooked, and rhos, heather.
CASTLE MORRIS. — So called in honour of a man named Morris.
CYLCH BYCHAN. — The parish is divided into four districts, of which this is the smallest; hence the name. Cylch Bychan, the small district.
CAPEL NEWYDD.— a small village not far from Castell Newydd.
CILYMAENLLWYD. — Cil, hidden place; y, the; maen, stone; llwyd, grey.
CLYDEY. — So named in honour of Clydai, a daughter of Brychan, to whom the church is dedicated.
CRYMYCH. — We find the root crwm in crymlin and cromlech. The name may be a contraction of crwmrhych; crwm, bending, concave, crooked; rhych, ditch, trench.
CRESELEY. — The roots are cres, a heating or parching, and gelly, a grove, so called probably from the abundance of culm and coal in the district (?)
CAREW. — A corruption of caerau, walls, or fortifications. The castle was built by Nest, the daughter of Rhys ab Tewdwr, Prince of South Wales, or from caer + yw = yew tree.
DALE. — A Norse name, signifying a broad valley, answering to the Saxon “vale,” and to the Welsh cwm.
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One writer thinks it is a contraction of De Vale, the name of one of its ancient lords, in whose time it was dignified with the title of a borough.
DINAS. — This place derives its name from Pen dinas, the promontory that forms a part of the Fishguard anchorage. Fortified walls were once built on the headland; hence it was called Pen dinas.
DREWSON. — A corruption of Druid’s town. Near the village there is an enclosure of nearly one acre called Drewson chapel. The stones which formed the Druidical circle were removed in 1740.
EGLWYSWRW. — Eglwyseirw is the right wording, the church being dedicated to Eirw, whose remains are supposed to have been interred here.
ESTINGTON. — A translation of Tre Iestyn, Iestyn’s town. Iestyn was a Welsh prince.
FREYSTHORP. — The prefix refers to the goddess Freya (Friday), and the affix thorp is the Norse word for village, and the equivalent of the Saxon ham.
FELINDRE. — This place has probably taken its name from an old mill that was in the vicinity.
FISHGUARD. — Abergwaun is the Welsh name, from its situation at the mouth of the river Gwaen or Gwain, which implies a river taking a level or straight course. It bore the name of Fishgarth as far back as the time of Richard II. The Welsh garth and the Norse gardr, originally meant an enclosure or yard. The name occurs in Normandy, as Fisigard, Auppegard, and Epegard, the former of which may be compared with Fishguard, which means a fishing wear or fishing enclosure.
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FLATHOLM. — A large body of Danes took refuge here in the year 918, and left their mark in the above name, which was originally Fladholmene, signifying a flat island. Holm is the Danish word for a grassy bank near water, or an island. Stockholm, the Swedish capital, is situated on two grassy hills near the water.
FLEMINGSTON. — This name is a conclusive ethnological evidence of the Flemish settlement.
GELLYSWICK. — Another hybrid. Gelly, a grove; wick, a creek or bay.
GRESHOLM. — A compound of grass and holm, signifying a grassy island.
GOMFRESTON. — So called in honour of Gorm or Gomfre, a Norse settler.
GLYNDERWEN. — A compound of clyn, a place covered with brakes, and derwen, oak.
GOODWICK. — Some say it is a corrupted form of the Welsh coedwig, a forest; but we are inclined to think it is a hybrid name, made up of good, and the Norse wick, a creek or bay. Isaac Taylor is of opinion that the Vikings, or “creekers,” derived their name from the wics or creeks in which they anchored. In the ninth and tenth centuries the creeks and islands along the Welsh coast, especially those of Pembrokeshire, were infested with these marauders. The Anglo-Saxon verb wician means to run a ship on shore, to take up a station, and finally it became to mean a village.
HAVERFORDWEST. — The Welsh is Hwlffordd, from (?) hwyl, a sail, and ffordd, a way, a striking appellation to a place where a sea makes its way into it. Edmunds derives the English name from Gafr-ffordd-gwest, the inn
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on the goat’s road. Haver is rather perplexing. It may be a modification either of the Norse höfn or of the Welsh aber; ford, perhaps, from fjord; and west is probably a differentia added to distinguish it from Haverford East.
HAKIN. — Also called Hagin, which is probably a modification of the Danish hagen, a port. Compare Copenhagen.
HARROLDSTON. — So called in honour of Harold, a Norse settler, who became the lord of the manor.
HENLLAN. — The name signifies an old church, so called from the supposition that an old chapel of ease stood here in ancient times, but whose ruins are not now discernible.
HENRY’S MOAT. — There is a mound called Castell Hendref, the castle, of the old town, in the parish, surrounded by a moat, and when the English settled here they attempted a translation of the name, reducing Hendref to Henry, and Castell to moat; hence Henry’s Moat.
HARBURSTON. — From Herbrandt, the name of a Fleming, who, soon after the Conquest, fixed his abode at that place.
HONEYBOROUGH. — Honey is probably a corruption of Hogni, the name of a Viking, who settled here soon after the Conquest; or perhaps, it is from Hunna, a chief’s name. We find Honeybourne, Hunna’s Brook, in Worcestershire. Some think it was so called because honey was so largely made here in olden times.
HEARSTON. — So called in honour of Hearn, a Norse settler.
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HODGESTON. — A modification of Oggeston or Hoggeston, probably from some Norse chief called Ugga.
HUBBERSTON. — So called in honour of Hubber, or Hubba, a Norman warrior, who, with his brother Hingua, led the Norsemen in that great invasion of 866. His name is also preserved in Hubberst, Derbyshire; and probably in Obbeston, Somerset.
HUNGERSTON. — From Hingwar, the companion of Ubba, 866.
JAMESTON. — So named in honour of James, a Fleming who took refuge here after the submersion of Flanders in the year 1110.
JEFFRESTON. — From Jeffrey, another of the settlers of Anglia Transwallia. Jeffrey or Geoffrey is probably a Norman corruption of Godfred, the good peace, or God’s peace.
JOHNSTOWN. — Named in honour of John, an English nobleman, it is supposed of the twelfth century.
KESTON. — Probably from Kessa or Cissa, a Norman. Keswick (Cumberland), Cissa’s dwelling.
LAWRENNY. — Some think it is a corruption of llawreni, plural of llawren, or llawr, floor, ground. Others think it is a corruption of Llan-yr-ynys, a church in the island. This accords with the topographical situation of the place, as it is an island surrounded by water, forming two creeks, one running to Carew, and the other to Langwm.
LANGWM. — A corruption of Llangwm, signifying a church in the valley.
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LUDCHURCH. — The Welsh name is Eglwys Lwyd. Lud is an Anglicism of lwyd-llwyd, adorable, blessed.
LAMBSTONE. — So called in honour of Lambi or Lamba, one of the settlers of the Welsh colony, whose name is also preserved in Lambeth, Lambourne, and in the surname Lambe.
LAMPHEY. — A corruption of Llanyffydd, Fanum Fidei, the church of the faith. It is spelt in some old documents Llanfaith and Llanfeth; then it was corrupted into Llanfey and Lamphey. The consonant n is frequently substituted in Welsh place-names in lieu of the letter m.
LANTEAGUE. — Probably a corruption of Llan-deg, signifying a fair church.
LETTERSTON. — A translation of the Welsh name, Trelettert, from Lettard, the ancient owner of the land, who gave the advowson of the church, with the chapel of Llanfair annexed, to the commandery of Slebech.
LLANIADEN. — Iaden is a corruption of Aeddan, the name of the patron saint of the parish church. Professor Rhys refers the name Aedd to the word udd, which is explained in Dr. Davis’s dictionary as meaning dominus, master. “It would seem,” he says, “to be matched in O. Irish by Oeda, the genitive of Oed, later Aedh, Aodh, Haodh, Anglicized Hugh, and the late Mr. Stephens, of Merthyr Tydfil, was probably right in regarding the Aedd of modern Welsh tradition as a Goidelic importation from North Britain.”
LLANFRYNACH or LLANFYRNACH. — From Brynach, a popular Irish saint, who accompanied Brychan Brycheiniog to Britain in the fifth century.
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LLANGLOFFAN. — The church is dedicated to Cloffan
LLANGOLMAN. — From Colman, supposed to be an Irish saint.
LLANWNDA. — Wnda is a corruption of Gwyndaf, a descendant of Emyr Llydaw, and a saint of the sixth, century, who is supposed to have been the founder of the church. Llanwnda Point is celebrated for the surrender, in 1797, of the French troops under General Tate.
LLANTYD. — Tyd is an abbreviation of Illtyd, ta whom the church is dedicated. It is also called Llantwd.
LLANDELOY. — A corruption of Llandeilo; the parish church is dedicated to Teilo.
LLANRHIAN. — Rhian is supposed to have been the founder of the church.
LLANSTINAN. — Stinan or Justinian, a saint of the sixth century, was the founder of the church.
MILFORD HAVEN. — Some are of opinion that this is a translation of Rhyd-y-milwr, the name of a brook; taking mil from milwr, a soldier, and translating rhyd into ford, then Milford. Others think it is an Anglicized form of Myl for, or ymyl mor, bordering the sea. Within a mile of the present town a streamlet was wont to turn a mill that belonged to the Priory, and, before the bridge-period had dawned in the district, the people were obliged to cross the brook over the mill’s ford, called in Welsh Rhydyfelin, and we incline to think Milford is a translation of Rhydyfelin. The Welsh name is Aber-dau-gleddyf, from the fact that the two rivers, Cleddau Fawr and Cleddau Fach, discharge themselves
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into the haven. Dau Gleddyf means two swords. It appears that the two rivers in their flowing course resemble two swords; hence the name.
MOLESTON. — The place was once remarkable for its numbers of moles, on account of which it was called Moleston, moles’ town. Compare Molton (Devon) and Molesworth (Hants) &c.
MANORBIER. — Very many of the inhabitants think the name was derived from an expression made by the eye-witnesses of a conflict that took place between a man and a bear. When the combatants met vis-a-vis, the people shouted “Man or bear,” hence Manorbier. We dismiss the derivation as an outcome of vain conjecture. Some derive Pyrr from Barri, a Norman lord. Others think it is the plural of por, a lord. One writer derives it from, beyr, the Norse for farmstead. Evidently the English name is a modification of the Welsh Maenor Pyrr. Maenor is the Welsh for manor, and Giraldus Cambrensis (who was born here about the year 1146) thought it was called after Pyrrus, who took up his abode here; hence Maenor Pyrr, Mansio Pyrr, or the residence of Pyr. Had we not better call it Manor Pyr?
MAENCLOCHOG. — Maen, a stone; clochog, bell-like, ringing. It appears the place derived its name from a large stone that lay on the roadside near the church, which, on being struck, gave a bell-like sound (?)
MYNWERE. — This name seems like a corruption of Mwyn aur, gold mine, which was supposed to have been here in olden times; but we rather think it is derived from a weir on the Eastern Cleddy, on the
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banks of which river the parish is situated, which was noted for the abundance of fish caught there during the season.
MARLOES. — Perhaps a mutation of Marlais; mar, an extensive tract of land; lais, a corruption of clais, a trench or rivulet. More probably from moel = bare, and rhos.
MAZEBRIDGE. — The prefix may be the Anglo-Saxon maze, signifying a place or passage full of windings and turnings, which is very often spanned by a bridge.
MARTHREY or Marthri, which is perhaps a corruption of merthyr, martyr. The place suffered very heavily from the Danish onslaughts, and the church is dedicated to the holy martyrs, or it may be from ma and tru(an) = a wretched spot, a place of slaughter.
MIDDLE MILL. — A translation of Felinganol. A Baptist Chapel was built here in 1756, and called Felinganol, from its situation near a mill of that name, which intervened between two other mills.
MUZZLEWICK. — From Moussel, a Norse settler; and wick, a creek or bay.
MYNACHLOG DDU. — Black monastery; i.e., a monastery belonging to the Black Friars.
MOYLGROVE. — A compound of moel, a bare pointed hill, and grove.
NEYLAND. — The old Norman name was Nayland, from eyland = (island) with a prefixed n, for which compare Narberth and Nash. We find Nayland in Suffolk and Nyland in Somerset. The inhabitants, aspiring hard to compete with their neighbours in Milford, abandoned the old name, and called the place New Milford.
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NARBERTH. — In the Mabinogion it is called Arberth, which signifies a place situated on a sloping hill, abounding with perthi, bushes. The name answers to the physical aspect of the town. The preposition yn, in, was generally used before Arberth; hence the consonant n adhered to the name, and thence we have Narberth.
NEVERN. — The parish derives its name from the rivulet Nevern, which flows through it. Lewis, in the “Topographical Dictionary,” thinks, very improbably, the word is derived from nifer, a number, on account of the numerous streamlets that run through the parish into the sea. Tegid spelt it Nanhyfer; if so, the roots are nant, a brook; and hyf, bold, daring (?)
NASH. — Perhaps a modification of the Norse ness, a cape, or promontory, but probably from (aste)n asa = at the ash. Nash Point, Naze, and Nazeby, come from the same root. Nash village is situated near Milford Bay.
NOLTON. — Not is supposed to be a contraction of Oliver; hence the name Oliver’s town. More probably from ’n Oldtown. Compare Narberth from yn Arberth.
NEW MOAT. — So called from the Flemings having constructed a new moat here in the time of Henry II.
NEWPORT. — The Welsh name is Trefdraeth, which signifies “a town on the sands,” from its situation near a sandy beach of considerable extent. Six or seven places in the United Kingdom bear the name Newport. It was wisely proposed sometime ago to change Newport, Monmouth, to Uskport. We would strongly advise the corporation of Trefdraeth to abandon the name Newport, and give it the right English name — Beachton.
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NEWCASTLE. — There is an ancient mound near the church called “the castle,” which was called “new” to distinguish it from a much older one, which is at a short distance from the village. Pantgrwndy, Pant, hollow; crwndy, a round house.
PELCWM — From Pela, the titmouse; and cwm, valley.
PENYBRYN. — The name signifies a place on the top of the hill.
POPE HILL. – The lower part of the county was once designated Pebydiog, from Pebyd, probably a man’s name. Compare Dol Bebin in Carnarvonshire.
PATER, or PEMBROKE DOCK. This place once consisted only of a farm, one house, and a church, then designated Paterchurch. In 1812 surveys were made, and in two years after [sic; = and two years after] the nucleus of the present Government Station was formed, when it was called Pembroke Dock.
PENAR. — The name signifies a place situated on a high mountain.
PENALLY. — Pen, head; ally, a corruption of gelly, a grove; signifying the head of the grove. The church is situated in a thickly-wooded place, or more probably from Pen + Alun.
PONTFAEN. — Pont, bridge; faen-maen, stone. Perhaps faen is a corruption of Gwaen, the name of the river that flows through the parish; the bi-labial w being changed into the uni-labial f.
PRENDERGAST. — This place derives its name from a Demetian family of the name, who were the owners of the land in olden times. Maurice de Prendergast was
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the last member of the family that lived here. Some think the name is a Saxonized form of Bryn y Gest. Bryn, a hill; y, the; gest-cest, a deep glen between two mountains having but one opening. Others say it is Pren-dwr-gwest, the inn by the tree near the water. The right wording is probably Pen-dre-gast. The suffix is Druidic. Llech-yr-ast, in Cardiganshire, consists of five cist faen, stone chests or cells, enclosed within a circle of rude stone pillars.
PUNCHESTON. — Casmael, the Welsh name, is a compound of Castell, castle; and Maelog, or more probably Maelgwyn — Maelgwn Fychan. The “Myvyrian” calls it Castell Mâl. Some derive the English name from, pincan, pine tree; Pincanes-tun, then Puncheston, the town of the pine trees. Others derive it from Poyntz, a proper name, pronounced Punches.
ROACH. — A mutation of rock, from, the castle being perched on a solitary rock standing out of the plain. The first possessor of the castle is supposed to have been Adam de Rupe, or Adam of the Rock, in the reign of Henry I. The Roche family held possession of the castle until the reign of Henry VI., when their extensive estates were divided between two co-heiresses, since which time it is supposed to have been abandoned as a residence.
RHOSMARKET. — Rhos, the name of the cantrev. A market was once held here; hence the market for Rhos. Rhos is spelt Roos, Roose, and Rouse by English writers.
RHYDGWILYM. — The Rev. William Jones was the first Baptist Minister of the place, and having performed the rite of Baptism for the first time in the river, the spot was called after him Rhydgwilym.
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REYNOLDSTON. — So called in honour of Reynold, a Fleming, who probably settled here in the reign of Henry I.
ROGESTON. — From Roger, another Fleming, who took up his abode here.
ST. DAVID’S. — A free translation of the Welsh Tyddewi, so called in honour of Dewi, David, the patron saint of Wales. Its ancient name was Mynyw, jutting, peninsulated; but after St. David removed there, and became the bishop of the see, and was buried, the old name was abandoned, and his honourable name was bestowed upon it. St. David was grandson of Ceredig, who gave his namme to Ceredigion, and was son of Cunedda. It is supposed that he was the first who systematically undertook to Christianise the people of Demetia.
ST. DOGMELL’S. — The Welsh name is Llandudoch, Tnd, a surface, a region; cich, the Celtic for water, a name quite descriptive of the physical aspect of the place. The church was dedicated to Dogfael, son of Ithel, son of Ceredig. Dogmell is an Anglicism of Dogfael.
ST. ISMAEL. — This village derives its name from Ismael, a saint of the sixth century, and supposed to have been the founder of the church.
ST. FLORENCE. — Called in Welsh Tregoyr, which is probably a corruption of Tregaer, walled town or place. We have no reason to suppose that this place was fortified by a caer; but it may be so called from its contiguity to a large wall that belonged to the extensive park of the Earls of Pembroke. The church was dedicated to St. Florence; hence its present name.
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STAR. — Probably after a public house so called.
STACK. — The word is derived from the Norwegian stackr, a columnar rock, and is found in Stack Rocks, Stackpole, Head Penyholt Stack, and Stack Island, fringing the Pembrokeshire coast.
ST. NICHOLAS. — The place was once called Monkton, from the church being granted by Arnulph de Montgomery, in 1088, to the Abbey of St. Seyes in Normandy. In a short time after this a priory of monks of the Benedictine order, dedicated to St. Nicholas, was founded at this place, and made a cell to that foreign abbey.
ST. LAWRENCE. — This parish derives its name from the church, which is dedicated to St. Lawrence.
ST. PETROX. — A free translation of Llanbedrog. The church was dedicated to St. Pedrog, who flourished about the beginning of the seventh century, whence (St.) Pedrog’ s corrupted into Petrox.
SOLVA. — This beautiful little village derives its name from the river Solfach. Sol may be a corruption of sio, to hiss, whiz; and lli, a stream, signifying the hissing stream, or it may be derived from silod, seedlings, young fish. Or, perhaps, sol is the feminine form of the adjective swl, which signifies dirty or muddy, modifying ach, water; hence solach, the muddy stream. Some think the name is an Anglicism of Cilfach, giving the hissing sound to c; hence Silfach, then Solfach, Solfa. It appears that the name was once spelt Cilfach and Silfach; hence it might be easily changed to Solfach, Solfa. We adopt the latter.
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SPITTAL. — This name is a modification of the Latin hospitium. An ysbytty, hospital, is recorded to have been erected in olden times near Roach encampment.
STEYNTON. — This village probably was so called in honour of Adam de Stainton. Some derive it from stean, a stone, sometimes a boundary stone.
SUTTON. — An abbreviation of South-town. It is analogous with Surrey, the south realm, and Suffolk, the southern division of the East-Anglican folk.
SAUNDERSFOOT. — The prefix is a contraction of Alexander. The name signifies Alexander’s place at the foot of the hill.
SILVER HILL. — Perhaps the burial-place of a Viking called Solvar.
SOUTH DAIRY. — So called to distinguish it from the north and west dairies.
SKOKHOLM. — A Norse name signifying a wooded island. Holme is the Norse for an island.
TAFARN SPITE. — Tafarn, inn, public-house; Spite, a corruption of ysbytty, hospital; the name is derived from an inn raised from the ruins of an hospitium. which had been founded there for the accommodation of the pilgrim traveller to the shrine of St. David’s. Spital Square, London, derives its name from the church of the priory and hospital of St. Mary, which stood in Spitalfields.
TIER’S CROSS. — Perhaps from Thar, one of the Vikings who founded the Welsh colony.
TREFGARN. — Tref, place, town; carn, heap, cairn; signifying, literally, the town on the heap. There are
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great masses of rock contiguous to the village, which, from a distance appear like extensive ruins of buildings.
TEMPLETON. — This village is so called from the fact that the Knights of the Temple in olden times made it a special place of resort.
TREFIN. — A corruption probably of Treffin, a boundary-place.
TENBY. — Called in Welsh Dinbych y Pysgod. The word pysgod, fish, is the differentia added to distinguish it from its namesake in North Wales. Some maintain it is a corrupt Anglicism of the original name, dinbychan, the little fortification or camp. The English name affords an ethnological evidence of the temporary occupation of the Danes. Ten is a mutation of Dane and by is Norse for a dwelling, a residence, an abode; hence the name signifies the dwelling-place of the Danes. Danesby would be the correct name. We have Danby, the Dane’s abode in Yorkshire, and sixteen places in the north-east counties of England called Denton, the Dane’s town.
TREF ASSER. — So called in honour of Bishop Asser, the bosom friend and celebrated biographer of Alfred the Great. Some say that he was born here. Others derive it from Asserius Menevensis, who is supposed to have been born here, became a Benedictine monk, and was scribe and chancellor to his uncle Asser.
TREWYDDEL. — Gwyddel, a forester, one that lives, in the wood; hence the name means the woodman’s abode.
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THORNTON. — So called in honour of Thorni, one of the Norse settlers.
TEGRYN — TEGFRYN. — A corruption of teg, fair, and bryn, a hill.
TRELEDDIDFAWR. — A corruption of tre, place; lladdfa, slaughter; and fawr, great; signifying a place of great slaughter. Some are of opinion that some bloody battles were fought in this district.
TRETEIO. — Teio, perhaps, is a corruption of teiau, small houses, cottages, or of taeog, a vassal, tenant in villeinage, a peasant. One of the old Welsh laws reads thus: — “Tair rhandir a fydd yn y daeogdref” — there shall be three sharelands in the villein-town.
TREFLERW. — Lerw, an inflection of llerw, what is nice or delicate.
USMASTON. — Usmas is a corruption of Ismael, to whose memory the church is dedicated.
WISTON. — A free translation of Cas Gwys, the Castle of Gwys, which was built by a Norman named Wiz; hence the town of Wiz.
WALTON. — This district was given by a Norman named Walter de Wale to the Knights of St. John, and was so called in honour of the donor.
WILLIAMSTON. — So called in honour of William, another settler of the twelfth century.
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[RADNOR.]The Welsh name, Maesyfed, is variously derived. In some ancient MSS. it is written Maeshyfaidd, which signifies a land of boldness, or a martial region. We are informed in the British “Triads” that three exiled princes, Gwrgai, Cadafael, and Hyfaidd Hir, the son of Caradog Freichfras, were on account of their military prowess made kings; the former two in the north, and Hyfaidd Hir in the south. Some are of opinion that the latter was made king of Radnor, and hence his name was bestowed upon it.* Others adhere to the present orthography, Maesyfed, which signifies “the imbibing meadow,” or “the drinking land,” from the fact that the little river Somergill suddenly sinks into the earth in the vicinity of New Radnor, and then follows a subterranean course for a considerable distance. The popular derivation among the inhabitants is Maesyfedw, from the abundance of birch-groves in the county. The English name, Radnor, was given to it in the reign of Henry VIII., and signifies the red district. We find Radford in Notts, Radlow in Hereford, Redcliff in Gloucester, &c.
ABEREDWY. — From the river Edwy that flows through the place. Edwy is probably a derivative of eddu, to press on, to go. Or, perhaps, the right wording is aidwy, signifying the lively water (?)
ABBEY CWM HIR. — Cwm Hir, long vale. Cadwallon ab Madoc built an abbey of the Cistercian order here in 1143 for 60 monks. The abbey was destroyed by Owen Glyndwr.
*This is the best supported derivation.
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BEGUILDY. — A corruption probably of Bugeil-dy, the shepherd’s house, a very appropriate name in a sheep-rearing district.
BLETHFA (older BLEDDFACH). — Some derive it from blith, milk; and man, a place; signifying a dairy place. It is sometimes spelt Bleddfa as a contraction of Bleddyn-fan, Bleddyn’s place. Bleddyn was the name of several bards in the years 1090-1260. We incline to think it is a compound of blaidd, wolf; and man, place.
BOUGHROOD. — Edmunds thinks it is a corruption of buwch ffrwd, the cow’s brook. We rather think it is an Anglicised form of Bachrhyd, which is a compound of bachog, crooked, having many turnings or windings; and rhyd, a ford. A streamlet that discharges itself into the Wye, near the village, is called Bachwy, the meandering water. The Wye makes a sharp turning here. Maiandros, a river in Phrygia, is proverbial for its many windings, whence came the word meander. Some think the right wording is Bach-rhyd, signifying “the little ford” on the Wye, where a boat and horse were in constant attendance.
CROESFEILIG. — Croes, cross; Meilig, the name of the son of Caw, and a saint of the fifth century.
CREGRINA. — A mutilation of Crugynau, heaps.
COLFA. — A corruption of Collfa, which means the place of the hazel-wood.
CASCOB. — In “Doomsday Book” it is called Cascope, which, according to some, is a compound of cask and hope. — Mr. Williams, in his “History of Radnorshire,” derives it thus: “Cas, a fortress; and cope, an eminence.
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The justness of this etymology is confirmed by tradition, which reports that a small fortification of earth formerly stood on a summit on which the church is erected; or, perhaps, the name casgob might mean the eminence impending over the brook Cas, which runs through the parish, and discharges itself into the river Lug.”
CEFNLLYS. — Cefn, back, ridge; llys, court, hall. Ralph Mortimer built a castle here in the year 1242, which suggests the probability of the place being defended against the incursions of the Saxons. The name might have been derived from a martial court that was held here. Camden says that there were ruins of an ancient fortress upon the spot when he wrote, almost surrounding the Court House, except on one side, where it lies open to the common.
CENARTH. — Cen is Gaelic for pen, head; arth is an abbreviation of garth, a hill. The place forms the lower end of the parish.
CILGIL, or KILGIL. — Cil, a hidden place, a nook; gil, probably a corruption of coll, the plural of collen, hazel-tree; so called from the abundance of hazel wood in the district.
COED-GLASSEN. — Coed, wood; glassen, a corruption of gleision, the plural of glas, green; so named from the abundance of green trees that beautified the district in olden times.
CWM-GELLAU, or CWM-GILLA. — Cwm, a vale; gellau, a corruption of collen, hazel-tree. The place lies in a beautiful valley, abounding with hazel wood.
CWMDAUDDWR. — Dauddwr, two streams of water, so called from the situation of the parish church near the
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confluence of the rivers Elan and Wye. The parish adjoins the counties of Brecon, Cardigan, and Montgomery, and is the only one in Radnorshire where Welsh is understood and spoken. According to colloquial pronunciation it is Cwmwd Douddwr, the commote of the two waters.
CLAS GARMON. — Clas, a green spot or enclosure, a cloister; Garmon, perhaps the memorable Germanus.
DYFFRYN ELAN. — Dyffryn, a long vale; Elan, the name of the river that runs through it.
EVENJOBB. — The popular opinion in the neighbourhood anent the name is that a man named Job lived here at some remote period, and was proverbial, as the prototype Job, for patience and evenness of temper, and hence the place was called in honour of him. The name is, perhaps, a compound of efes, brink or margin; and hwpp, a slope. Burlinjobb, in the same county, means Brechla’s hwpp or slope. It was anciently spelt Evanchobb, Evan’s cop, i.e., Evan’s hill-top.
FELINDRE. — The name is a corrupt form of mileindref, a township under villain soccage tenure.
GLASCOMB. — A compound of glas, green; and comb, an Anglicism of cwm, a valley, a dingle. The village lies in a beautiful and verdant valley, where also stands the fine mansion of Glascomb.
GOLON. — A corruption probably of colwyn, a sharp hillock, a promontory.
HARPTON. — A translation of the Welsh name, Trefydelyn.
HEYOP. — A compound of haye, a grove, and cope, an eminence.
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KINNERTON. — A corruption of Cenarth, headland, and town, signifying a place at the headland.
KNIGHTON. — The Welsh name is Trefyclawdd, Dykestown, so called from its contiguity to Offa’s Dyke, traces of which are discernible to this day. The English name means knight-town, which, after the Norman Conquest, was probably held on the tenure of knightly service, and is one of those names that illustrate the old law phrase, “a knight’s fee.”
KNUCKLAS. — A corrupted form of cnwc, a slight eminence, and glas, green. Cnwc has been corrupted in a few English place-names, such as Knock in (Salop), Knock-holt (Kent), and Knook (Wilts); and in Ireland we find Knockglass, Knockdow, &c.
LLANANNO. — The church is dedicated to Wonno, or Anno.
LLANBADARN FAWR. — The church is dedicated to Padarn, a descendant of Emyr Llydaw, and it is called Fawr in distinction from Llanbadarn-Fynydd and Llanbadarn-y-Graig.
LLANDEGLEY. — The church was probably dedicated to Tegwel, a Welsh saint. Tegwel means a fair countenance or aspect.
LLANGUNLLO. — The church is dedicated to Cunllo, a Welsh saint. Cunllo or Cynllo, is probably made up of cyn, the first or chief, and llo or lo, referred by Professor Rhys to a word of the same origin as the Latin lupus, a wolf.
LLANDRINDOD. — Its ancient name was Ffynon Llwyn y Gog, the well of the cuckoo’s bush; but in 1603 the
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church was dedicated to the Drindod (Trinity); hence the name.
LLANDDEWI-YSTRADENNI. — The church is dedicated to St. Dewi. Ystrad, a flat, a vale; enni is obscure. The village is situated in a low vale on the river Ithon.
LLANFARETH. — The church is situated near the confluence of the rivers Mareth and Wye; hence the name. Mareth signifies lively or active water.
LLANFIHANGEL RHYDITHON. — The church is dedicated to St. Michael. Rhyd, a ford; Ithon, the name of the river that flows through the parish.
LLANYRE. — Yre is an abbreviation of Llyre. The church is dedicated to Llyr, a descendant of Cunedda Wledig, and a saint of the fifth century.
MEISTY-RHOS-LOWRY. — Meisty is, probably, a corruption of maes, a field, and ty, a house; rhos, a dry meadow, a plain. Lowry perplexes us; the root perhaps, is llawr, ground. Lowry is however, a personal name which probably was connected with the place.
MONOGHTY. — A corruption of mynach-dy, a monastery. It is supposed that a monastery stood here in olden times. Monaughty Poydd (Salop) is said to be Monachty Poeth, the hot monastery.
NANTMEL. — Nant, a brook; mil, according to some, is an abbreviation of Mael, a personal name; but we rather think it is the Welsh for honey; hence the name means honey-brook, so called, perhaps, from its hue, or from the hives of wild bees in the neighbouring rocks.
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NORTON. — The name probably means north-town, or, perhaps, Norman town. The British name was supplanted by that of the Norman castle.
PAINSCASTLE. — A castle was built here during the Norman period by the De Pain family, whose name was conferred upon it, and the village which lies at the base of the hill. Pain was a Norman knight, and his name is also preserved in Paignton (Devon) and Painswick (Gloucester).
PRESTEIGN. — It was anciently known as Llanandras, so called from the dedication of the church to St. Andrew. The English name means the priest’s town. It is almost the only instance of Prest occurring in Welsh place-names. We have thirty-six Prestons, two Prestburys, and two Prestwolds, in the nomenclature of England; but we have only two in Wales, and those occur practically on the English border. Prestatyn contains the same element. Who was the priest of Presteign? Probably David Martin, bishop of St. David’s, about the end of the thirteenth century. He was an extraordinary benefactor to this place, having obtained for the inhabitants many privileges, and among others, those of holding a weekly market on Saturday, and fairs three times a year.
PANTYDWR. — The name signifies the hollow of the water.
PENYBONT. — The end of the bridge; hence Bridgend.
PILLETH. — A corruption of pwll, pool; and llaith, moist, humid (?) The vale is very narrow and well-watered, which probably suggested the name,
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RHAIADR. — This town derives its name from a Rhaiadr, a waterfall, that is contiguous to it. The Welsh call it Rhaiadr Gwy, from its situation on the eastern bank of the river Wye. The word rhaiadr is derived from the same root as rhedeg, to run, or perhaps, from rhuo, to roar, bluster, in allusion to the din of the water in its fallen state.
SALFORD. — A compound of sallow, a willow, and ford; signifying the willow ford.
ST. HARMON. — From St. Garmon, to whom the parish church is dedicated. Germanus — Garmon, Bishop of Auxerre, was the son of Rhedyn, and a native of Brittany, Giraldus says that “in the church of St. Harmon, near Rhaiadr, was the crutch of St. Cyrig, plated with gold, and adorned with pearls, above loft, called llofft y grog (because the image of the cross was generally painted on the front of the loft). This crutch possessed the virtue of healing many diseases, such as the plague, the king’s evil, and all manner of swelling in the armpits. The sick person would kneel with reverence before the crutch, and offer a piece of money for his cleansing; and unless this was done, no cure could be expected.” This crutch was burnt at the Reformation.
TREFONEN. — Tref, an abode, a place; onen, ash tree.
WEYTHEL. — A corruption of Gwyddel, a man of the wood, an Irishman.
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