Place-Names in Wales
Transcript of Place-Names in Wales
T HO ~S..
SECOND AND REVISED ED ITION .
SOUTHA‘L L , 149, D-oc x, STREET .
PREFACE TO THE REVISED AND SECOND
EDIT ION .
The first edition of this work wa s published in 1887,
a n d wa s sold out in a very short tim e . Orders were
c on tinually sen t for copies , but n on e could be foun d in
the m arket . Even tually, J . E . Southall
,Newport
, who
has taken deep in terest in Welsh literature, Wrote to
a sk the author for perm ission to publish a secon d edition
of it . Arran gem en ts were m ade to revise the work care
fully a n d to brin g it up to date . The om ission of Mon
m ou thshire Place - Nam es is due to the follow ing fact :
The au thor won a £10 I os. prize in the Newport Nation al
E isteddfod,1897,
for A Diction ary of Welsh Nam es
of Places a n d Rivers in Monm outhshire,
a n d it is in ten ded
t o publish a separate edition of this in due course . The
a uthor gratefully ackn owledges the service rendered b y
S . J . Eva n s , Esq.,M. A.
,Llan gefn i
,in revising this work .
H is suggestion s were useful a n d destin ed t o enhan ce the
value of the work .
In con clusion ,the author repeats what he said in the
first edition In writing upon a subj ect so full of in t r i
c acies a n d difficulties the author is fa r from satisfied with
his etym ological attem pts in m any in stan ces .
T . MORGAN .
J anuary,r oth ,
1912 .
Prefixes a nd Su ffixes
Ca r-n fa rv onsh ire
Me r ion eth
PLACE-NAMES IN W ALES
INTRODUCTION .
T is surprisin g that a subj ect so deeply in teresting,
a n d so full o f historical value , should not have
in duced som e com peten t Welsh scholar to explore
every possible field of research , a n d give the results of
his etym ological investigation s to the public in a perm a
n en t form .
Welsh n om en clature ha s n ot had the atten tion it
deserves . This in terestin g field has b een sadly n eglected .
Very few have m ade it the am bition of their life to en ter
therein,a n d glean every possible in form ation n ecessary
to throw light upon ou r Welsh place - n am es . The
ren own ed Lewis Morris wa s deeply engrossed in this
bran ch of literature , a n d the publication of his Celti c
Rem a ins would , assuredly , be a n invaluable boon t o
Welsh literati . Iago Em lyn’s Essay which gain ed the
prize at Carm arthen Eisteddfod , Septem ber, 1867 , is
em in en tly calculated t o be a n adm irable quota ren dered
by the E isteddfod to the elucidation of this subj ect .
Most of our Eisteddfod io produ c t ion s are locked up in
im pen etrable secrecy , but this , fortun ately , has seen the
l ight of day.
2 PLACE- NAMES IN W ALES .
With the exception of the above - m en tion ed essay
our n ationa l in stitution has don e but very little to fill
this gap in Welsh literature. Worthy attem pts have
been m ade by som e Welsh t opog r a phist s to clear up the
etym ology of a m oiety of our place - n am es . Others have
endeavoured to explain their origin a n d m ean in g, but
owing to their im perfect acquain tan ce with the v er
n a c u la r , m any of their attem pts have been futil e a n d
un satisfactory : as Ca erm a rthen , the coun ty of Merlin ,
a Welsh en chan ter ; Den b z’
g k , a dwelling in the vale ;Pem b roke, the
“hill over the brook ; Dou g la s is given to
m ean black -water ; Pon typm'
dd , bridge of beauty ; Tyr
Escofi,B ishop’s tower ; Lla nfa wr , the church of four
sain ts,&c . , &c . We m ight quote a large n um ber of
sim ilar m isleadin g explan ation s of Welsh words a n d
n am es that are foun d in English books written eviden tly
by other than W elshfl
et ym olog ists. The attem pts m ade
by En glishm en a n d others ign oran t of the lan g uage of
dean—old Cam bria to explain Celtic n am es are often
failures a n d som ethin g more . Alt m a en , high rock , in
the Lake district has been tran sform ed in to the Old
Ma n of Con iston ; Bryn Hu el or Hu a l , hill of shackles , is
n ow spelt Brown Willy , a Corn ish ridge , a n d Pen san t
has been design ated Pen zan ce .
Tourists’ Guides to Wales m a y be quite safe a n d
trustworthy in their geographical in form ation , but the
m aj ority of them are woefully m isleadin g in their
etym ological peregrin ation s . Som e of their derivations
really deserve to be rem itted to the cabin et of philo
PLACE- NAMES IN WALES. 3
logica l cu riosities. Out of m an y hun dred place - n am es
in Wal es very few of them are explain ed satisfactorily
by gazetteers , a n d the m ost abstruse of them are left
in tact .
It is n eedless to say that Welsh philologists on ly c a n
deal satisfactorily with purely Welsh n am es, a nd even
they find it no easy task to investigate a nd a scertain
the origin of m an y of them , especially those that
have un dergon e so m an y processes of corru ption
a n d m utation . Man y Welsh appellation s a nd loc a l
n am es ,”writes on e em in en t Welsh historian , have
been so lon g corrupted that it would be affectation t o
attem pt to reform them . We m a y be allowed to give
a few in stan ces of nam es that have already been grossly
m utilated Llechwedd has been dislocated at Leckwith ;
Llys y Fro Nu dd has been cruelly distorted in to
Lisworney ; Ca er a u has been pulled down to Carew ;
M u gwyr ha s been alm ost ruin ed in Magor ; a o-
g la s
has been twisted in to the form of Kn ucklas ; Mer thyr
has been brutally m a rtyred atMa r threy ; Ta fa m Yspytty
(hospi ti um ) has been lon g converted in to Spite Tavern ;
Mein c i a u has been m in ced in toMinke ; Gze'en tllwg has been
chan g ed in to Wen tlooge Myddfa i has been m u ffled in
Mo thv ey Sa rn a u ha s been beaten down in to Sarn ey ,
&c . , &c .
Con sidering the rapid strides of English education
in the Prin cipality , we fear the tim e is not far distan t
when a m oiety of our m utilated Welsh place- n am es will
be n othin g less than a series of en igm at ical problem s ,
4 PLACE - NAMES IN W ALES .
even to children of Welsh paren tage . Man y of themalready seem to them as a m ean in gless a n d un pron oun ce
able jum ble of letters . This process of m utilation
appears to be gettin g m ore prevalen t . Ou r En glish
frien ds , n ot on ly do no t exhibit a ny sign of brin gin g
forth fruit worthy of repen tan ce,but they seem to
persist in the error of their wa y in dealing with Welsh
n am es . Brynm a wr , big hill , is pron oun ced with sten torian
voice Brynmor , which sign ifies the hill by the sea . A
com plete stran ger to the place , yet con versan t with the
Welsh ton gue , on hearing the latter pron un ciation of
the n am e , would n aturally expect he wa s goin g to
inhale the salubrious sea - air ; whereas , after little
en quiry , he would fin d him self in a t a n t a l ized‘
rn ood
d istan tly situated from the sea . A few m iles dist a n t , . a t
Na n tybwc h,the buck’s brook , he m ight be pardon ed if
he con cluded from the pitiful cries of the railway officia ls
that there were n on e- to- b ook at that station . I f he pursued
his j ourn ey to Llwydcoed, grey wood , which is pron oun ced
b y the railway m en Lycod , he would n aturally con clude
t hat the place m ust have been som etim e n oted for rats,
b ecause Lln d is the Welsh for rats .
In going through Loughor , provided his g eo
g raphical kn owledge were deficien t , he would im agin e
h im self to have reached Lloeg r , which is the Welsh
n am e for En glan d . An d a few m iles lower d own he
would fin d him self at Lla n elly , which is pron oun ced by
c ertain parties Lem- hea lthy , where he would be in duced
t o ca l l his inhalin g powers in to full play,positively
PLACE- NAMES 1N W ALES. 5
thin kin g he wa s landed in a place fam ous for i ts
sa l ubriousness. In North Wales he would discover
the sam e aptitu de in the art of m ispronun ciation .
Am id the din of the fiery horse he m ight hear a n am e
pron oun ced Ab er - jeel , the suffix of which would rem in d
him at on ce of the Hin dost a n ee for a m ora ss , or a
sha ll ow lake ; but a few m inutes’ talk with a Villager
would soon rel ieve him from the n ightm are of this
con fusion of ton gu es by furn ishin g him with the right
pron un ciation , Ab er - gele, a n out - a nd - out Welsh n am e.
At Dolgella u , which‘ is pron oun ced Dol—jelly, he m ight
a lm ost im agin e the n am e to im ply a doll m ade of j elly ;
a nd atqn gollen , pron ou n ced La n - jolen , he would , both
from a geographical a nd etym ological poin t of view ,
in dulge him self in little selfe c on g r a t u la t ion on bein g
con veyed to a j olly place.
Now he has travell ed fa r en ough to be thoroughl y
con vi n c ed of the n ecessity of m a king a n effort to save
our loca l‘
n ames from the relen tless han ds of the
foreign er before they bec om e so distorted as to b e
difficu l t of recogn ition even by Welsh etym ologist s .
Pure Welsh n am es should be left in tact—thosethat have u ndergon e an y changes shou ld , if possible , b e
restored to their prim itive form , a nd English equivalen tsor n am es shou ld be given to each and every one o f
them .
In pu rsu ing the study of Welsh plac e - n am es , We“
were forc ibly rem inded of Hom e Tooke'
s observation ,
6 PLACE - NAMES IN W ALES.
a s to letters, l ike soldiers being very apt t o desert a nd
d rop off in a long m a r ch. Con traction in creases our
d iffi cu l ties in en deavourin g to get at the fu l l a nd correct
im port of words . If the Am erican ten den cy—to pron oun ce words exactly as they are spelt arid writt en
w ere a u n iversa l prin ciple , the burden s of phil ologists
wou ld be con siderably lessen ed . Such is not the case
in Welsh n om en clature . Al though every Welsh letter
is supposed to have its own distin ct soun d , Wherever
placed , m an y of them have dropped off in lon g m arches ,a nd som e indeed in exceedin gly short m arches , a n d it
is with g reat diffi culty we have in duced som e of them
to retu rn t o their proper places in the etym ological
army—som e , probably , n ever to return ; hen ce the
pr im ary form of m any a n am e cann ot be obtain ed n or
t he true m ean in g ascertain ed .
Latin ized a nd Anglicized form s of Welsh n am es con
sider a b ly enhan ce our difficulties . Mon wa s tran sm uted
t oMon a , Ab er conwy toAb er c on ov z’
u m ,Gob a nn i u m toAb er
=g a v enny, Ab erogwr to Ogm ore, Nedd to Nidi u m , Coed - dy to
Coyty, Ta lyfem to Ta la v a n , Si lz'
to S u lly, Llys-
y- Fro-Nu dd
t o Lisworney, Lla nyflydd to La m phey , Lla ndeg to Len tea
g u e, Gwyn fa ‘
to W en voe, &c . Ou r n am es , l ike ou r fathers ,
were m ercilessly treated by our foreign invaders .
Hybridism is an other elem en t that ren ders Welsh
n om en clature exceedingly diffi cu l t a nd perplexin g.
Differen t n ation s visited our shores , a nd played sad havoc‘with our local n am es, especia l ly those havin g g u t ter a ls
in them . We have n ames of such barbarou s origin ,
”
PLACE NAMES IN W ALES 7
writes on e, com poun ded one - half of on e language a nd
the other of an other , that it is im possibl e to fix a
criterion how they ought t o be spelt .” The Flem ish
colon y in Pem brokeshire , in the reign of Hen ry I. , a n d
the Norm an settlem en t in the south of Glam organ , in
the 11th cen tury , are chiefly respon sible for this etym o
logical j um ble . The Norm an Con quest affected the
En glish lan guage m ore than an ythin g that happen ed
either before or after it,but very little of its effect is
foun d in the Welsh , except in place - n am es. These
hybrid n am es , albeit , are full of historical value , because
they give us geographical clues t o the in roads a nd
settlem en ts of these foreign in vaders.
Alludin g to the desirability of gettin g a correct
d efin ition of a n effete nom en clature , on e writer rem arks,It m ust be born e in m in d that the n om en clature of our
coun try gr eatly explain s the early history of Britain
from the tim e of the first colon ists , the settlem en t of
the Druids,a nd their subsequen t power both in civil
a n d religious m atters , a n d its con tinuan ce down to the
age of Sueton ius,a n d later still, as the old superstition
wa s n ot quite eradicated for m an y ages afterwards.
Their m ythology has left its m arks on num erous
places,even where their lithon ic structures have been
dem olished.
”After a l l it is , as Defoe iron ically rem arks
in his True- born En glishm en ,
W i th ea sy pa ins you m a y d ist in g u ishYou r Rom a n - S a xon - Da n ish - Norm a n - En g lish .
8 P LACE - NAMES IN W ALES.
Person al n am es enter very largely in to Welsh
nam es of places. The first place - n am e we have on
record wa s form ed after this fashion , An d he (Cain )builded a city , and called t hen ame of the city after the
nam e of his son ,En och .
”Gen . iv . , 17 .
These person al n am es are invariably in the
vern acular affixed to words , m ore or less , of a
descriptive character , as Tr ela les tre, the descriptive
first,then com es the person al , La les P or thrn a dog , por th,
t he descriptive , then follows the n am e Ma dog . The
m aj ority of n am es begin n in g with Lla n belon g to this
section . In Saxon a n d Norse n am es the reverse of this
is the gen eral rule . The descriptive part of the n am e
com es last , preceded by a person al or com m on n am e ,such as Ten b y Ten , a m utation of Dan e , a n d b y ,
the
Norse for a dwellin g , hen ce the dwellin g - place of the
Dan es . Walton , Walter’s town ; Wil liam ston ,
William ’s
town ; Gom frest on , Gom fre’
s town ; &c .
It wa s custom ary in olden tim es in Wales for m en
t o take their n am es from the places where they were
born or resided , as Pen n a n t , Mostyn , &c . ,a nd often
tim es the case wa s reversed . Brecon wa s call ed after
Brycha n Cardigan after Ceredz’
g Merion eth after
Mei rz'
on ; Edeym ion after Edeyrn ; Dog feilir afterDog/a el
Merthyr Tydfil after Tydfil , Brycha n’
s dau ghter, &c .
The n am es of popul a r Welsh sain ts have been bestowed
so liberally on the Lla n a n as to occasion n o little
con fusion . A simil ar practise prevails in the Un ited
States from respect to their popular Presiden ts. The
.PLACE -NAMES IN WALES. 9
Rev . Isaac Taylor tells u s that no less than 169 places
bear the n am e of Washington, 86 that of J efferson , 132
that of J ackson , 71 that of Mun roe , a n d 62 that of
Harrison . Hagiology has left a deep a nd wide im press
upon our n om en clature . St . Mary’s n am e has been
bestowed upon upwards of 150 churches a n d chapels in
the Welsh sees , that of S t . Michael upon about 100,
a n d that of St . David upon 60 or 70.
A great num ber of our place - n am es describe
gr aphically the physical features of the coun try.
Moun tain s , hill s , a n d m oun ds , rocks a n d cliffs , glen s
a n d com bes , m oors a n d woods , rivers a n d brooks , all
con tribute their quota to the treasury of our n om en cla
ture .
Man y of them are traced to local tradition s , which
rarely com m an d m ore than a local circulation . In
m akin g en quiries at differen t loca l ities we were m ore
than am used to observe the prevalen t tenden cy of the
inhabitan ts to trace the origin of their local n am es t o
tradition ary sources . The philologist is often super
seded by the tradition ist . Graphic a n d descriptive
n am es are frequen tly explain ed from a tradition al
stan d - poin t . Ma chyn ll a i th—a n am e descriptive of the
g eographical position of the place—wa s very dogm a t i
cally referred by on e to a n an cien t legen d con cern in gsom e m ochyn
-
yn-
y- lla eth,
” the pig in the m ilk. Troed
rhiwfu wch ,explain ed an other , m ean s Troed - rhym
- fa wch,
the foot of som e cow , in allusion t o a local tradition
about a c ow that had gon e astray. Man orbier , the third
I O PLACE- NAMES IN W ALES.
opin es , has referen ce t o a severe conflict between a
m a n a n d a bear in tim es gon e by. Wrexham , says the
fourth,is obviously a cor ruption of Gwr a t
'
g Sa m , Sam’
s
wife . Crymm ych , the fifth avers , is a tran sposition of
Ych yn crym u ,the ox stoopin g , &c . , &c . The reader
m a y take these fan ciful an d un ten able derivation s for
their worth , as eviden ces of the ten acity with which
som e people hold to their folk - lore.
The m aj ority of our place - n am es , as m ight have
been expected,have been derived from purely Celtic
sources .
B ishop Percy says that in En glan d , although the
n am es of the town s a n d villages are alm ost un iversally
o f Anglo - Saxon derivation,yet hills
,forests
,rivers , &c .
,
have gen erally preserved their old Celtic n am es .” In
i llustratin g the prevalen ce of Celtic n am es in Britain ,
t he Rev . Isaac Taylor writes Throughout the whole
islan d alm ost every river - n am e is Celtic , m ost of the
shire - n am es con tain Celtic roots , a n d a fair sprinklin g
of n am es of hills,valleys
, a n d fortresses , bear witn ess
that the Celt wa s the aborigin al possessor of the soil ;whil e in the border coun ties of - Salop
, Hereford,
G loucester, Dorset , Som erset , a n d Devon , a n d in the
m oun tain ~ fastn esses of Derbyshire a n d Cum berlan d,
n ot on ly are the n am es of the great n atural features of
the coun try derived from the Celtic speech , but we fin d
occasion al village - n am es , with the prefixes Ia n a nd tre,
in t erspersed am on g the Saxon patronym ics .”
PLACE ’NAMES IN W ALES . I I
What is true of En glan d is pre - em in en tly true of
Wa l es , where the great bulk of place - n am es ared istin ctly Cym ric , everywhere thrusting them selves
upon our n otice as stan ding proofs of the vitality of the
la n guage of our progen itors . Many are the false
prophets that have sarcastically declared,from tim e to
tim e, that the days of the Welsh language have beenn um bered. W e m i ght observe , en pa ssa n t, that it
con tain s m ore vitality than the Gaelic . The latter is
on ly spoken in som e parts of Scotlan d,but the Cym ric
is the dom estic langu age of a large n um ber of the
Welsh people , wheresoever situated. It’
is calculated
that n early a m il lion of the inhabitants of Wales
a n d Monm outhshire use the vern acular in dom estic
c on versation,in l iterary a n d n ewspaper reading
,or in
religious exercises . What with the con tinuation of the
Cym ric in the curriculum of our Un iversities a n d
Theolog ical Colleges , its in troduction as a com pulsory
subj ect in to m an y of our public elem en tary schools,the
arden cy a n d faithfuln ess with which it is taught in our
Su n d a y‘Lschools from Ca ergyb i to Caerdydd , the ever
in creasin g atten tion paid a n d the n ew life in fused in toi t by various in stitution s, as the Eisteddfod , the Hon ou r
able Society of Cym rodor ion ,the Society for Util ising the
Welsh langu age, a n d the proverbial clan n ishn ess of the
Cym ry ; lookin g retrospectively a n d prospectively ourc on viction is that the dear old language con tain s germ s
of a lon g a n d healthy life , a n d when it shal l cease to be
a vern acu lar , m uch of its in trin si c va l ue a n d glory will
be preserved in i ts local n am es .
PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES .
We shall n ow deal briefly with the chief prefixes
a nd suffi xes that occur so frequen tly as com pon en ts in
n am es of places in Wales , in order to avoid en terin g
largely in to details in tracing their origin in the su b se
quen t pages . Man y of them con tain the geographical
a n d historical clues to a large n um ber of n ames, a n d
sin ce they en ter so exten sively in to Welsh n om en
c l a t u r e, we thin k it essen tial to offer a few explan atory
n otes thereon .
ABER m ean s the m outh of a river , a_ particular
poin t at which the lesser water di scharges itself in to
the greater . In the old Welsh it is spel t a per , a n d
Professor Rhys , Oxford ,derives it from the root b er ,
the Celtic equivalen t of fer , in La t . fer - o, Greek phero,English b ea r . It origin ally m ean t a volum e o f water
which a river b ea rs or b r ings in to the sea , or in to an other
river ; but it is n ow gen erally used to den ote a n estuary,the m outh of a river. Som e thin k it is Cogn ate w ith the
Irish i n v er Inverary,m outh of the Airy ; a nd that in v er
a n d a b er are suitable test -words in discrim in atin g
between the two chief bra n ches of the Celts . Mr
Taylor says that if we draw a lin e across the m a p
14 PLACE NAMES 1N W ALES.
redun dan cy in the En glish language. To say Bristol
is on the river Avon is tan tam oun t to sayin g Bristol
is on the river river.” Afon,a com m on n am e , ha s
becom e a proper n am e in En glan d, but in Wales it is
the gen eric term for a river.
AR sign ifies ploughed lan d . Arddn , to plough.
The Greek word for a plough is a r otron , the Latin is
a r a trnm ,the Norse is a r a r , the Irish is a r a t li a r , a n d the
Welsh is a r a a r . The En glish harrow wa s origin ally
a rude in strum en t dr awn over ploughed lan d t o level it
a n d break the clods , a n d to cover - seed when sown .
Ploughin g a n d reapin g are called earin g a nd harvest ."
Com pare Gen . xlv . , Ex. xxxiv . , 21.
When a r is used as a suffix it gen erally has a n
agricul tural sign ification , but when used as a prefix it
is a preposition ,m ean ing on
, upon : Arddwr , on the
water ; Argoed , on . or above a wood. Ar,sign ifies a
plain surface , level groun d , a plot of lan d taken in
from the m oun tain .
BEr rws.-This is on e of the m ost popular place
n am es in Wales , a n d yet one of the m ost difficult,t o
explain . We shall give a few of the m an y derivation s
given . 1. Eyd- b od , a dwell ing - place
, a n d tms, a n
extrem ity , either of a valley or a glen , or a copse of
wood . 2. A corrupted form of pea t - hou se, a house
con structed of peat or turf. 3. B a i t - hou se, a house for
refreshm en t by m en , or food by beasts , on a j ourn ey .
4. Bed - b edd , a grave ; ws, a place ; Sign ifying a burial .
PRE FIXES AND SUFFIXES. 15
place. 5 . Som e derive “ the n am e from the Latin Hos
pi t i um , or the Welsh Yspytty ,hospital ; a n d m ain tain
that they b ecam e very prevalen t at the tim e o f theCru sade. 6. Som e think it is a Welsh form of the Latinb ea tu s, blessed, a nd that it refers to the religious inst it u
tion of St. Beun o. 7 . Bedw- a s, a bir ch -
g rove situ ate
between hill a n d va l e. 8. Bod , dwell in g- place ; gwys
sign ifies low a nd deep , what lies low. Bettws would
then signi fy a low or sheltered place . The proverb
0 fryn'
i fettws ( from hill to dale) accords with this
sign ification . 9. Som e refer it to a b b a tis, a n appendage
to a m on astery or a n abbey , taking it as one of the few
Latin words which foun d a perm an en t place in the
Welsh langu age. 10. The m ost popular derivation is
b ea d -hou se, a n ecclesiastical term Sign ifying a hospital
or alm s - house , erected for poor religious person s n ear the
church in which'
the'
foun der wa s in terred, a nd for whose
sou l they were required to pray.
An em in en t Welsh an tiquarian writes that Bettws
wa s n ever a n in stitut ion properly speaking, a nd i t
n ever existed as a dist in ct religious house,but u m
dou btedly it did exist in som e in sta n ces as a cell in
conn ect ion with large abbeys. Soon after the prin cipal
abbeys had been foun ded in this coun try, a nd their
fam e as seats of piety a n d learnin g had spread far a n d
wide , pilgrim s began to flock to them , m any of whom
had long dist an ces to travel , on accoun t of which houses
of prayer,called b ea d - hou ses, were erected at long
in tervals along their course , in to which the wearied
161 PLACE- NAMES 1N -W ALES . '
pilgrim s en tered to offer prayers on their wa y t o a n d
from the abbey. I '
b eliev e we n ever have_
a b ea d - hou se
(B ettws) but on the wa y to a n abbey. When the abbeys
were suppressed , m ost of these b ea d - hou ses fell in to
r uin ,as a m atter of course , while a few of them m a y
have been developed in to parish churches a n d chapels
of ease , after the Reform ation . I do n ot think it has a
W elsh origin ,for the reason that the thing itself wa s
im ported from Norm an dy , a n d I a m of opin ion that
B ettws as a place - nam e wa s n ot in existen ce prior to the
Norm an survey .
Som e aver that the application of the term B ettws
t o parochial churches first occurs in the Taxation of
Ben efic es by order of Pope N icholas IV,about the year
1292 . The n am e probably origin ated between the early
p art of the12th a n d the latter part of the 13th cen turies .
The best wa y to ascertain the etym ology a nd sign ification
o f the word is by investigatin g the history a n d topo
g raphy of each place bearing that n am e . If the word
i s to be derived from En glish or Latin words ; how are
we to accoun t for the fact that it is exclusively used in
Wales a nd Monm outhshire , while there is n ot a sin gle
i n stan ce of it in the whole of England Professor Rhys
says,
B ettws would be phon ologically accoun ted for
exactly by supposing it t o be the English b ed - hi ts,or
hom e of prayer , but - if that origin be the correct one to
assum e , there is the historical difficulty where is there
a ny accoun t of this in st itution bearin g a n English
n am e P” Just so . If the n am e had been perpetuated
PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES I 7
in English as it has been in Wales , b ea d - hou se would be
the m ost plausible of all the derivation s . There were
no religious houses peculia r to Wales,a nd if there had
been such , the Cym ry, assuredly , would not have given
them foreign n am es but their own . When the thing is
pecu l iarly a nd exclusively Welsh , the people always
give it their own , a nd not a borrowed n am e. Eisteddfod ,for exam ple
,is a purely Welsh in stitution
,hen ce
the n am e . We offer the 11th explanation . Bedw,
birch trees ; 1213 , a term appended to places with u n
du la t in g grounds , precipitous. I f the word wa sja pplied
in olden tim es to chapels in Wales which were subj ect
to other churches in the n eighbourhood, they were
probably so ca l led because they were built in birch
groves .
BLAEN m ean s extrem ity, the tOp of an ything , a
beginn in g or source . I t is frequen tly used as a prefix in
the n am es of places that are situated at the extrem e
en d of a vall ey or n ear the sources of brooks a n d rivers .
Bla en a u a fonydd ,the sources of rivers . Dwfr y b l a en a u ,
water or stream from the height .
BOD origin ally m ean t a lord’
s residen ce. Having
fixed upon a certain spot of land , he would build a
dwell ing - house thereon , which wa s called b od , a n d the
n am e of the builder or own er wa s added to distinguish
it from other dwellin g- houses , hen ce we have Bodowa in ,
Bodedeyrn , &c .He had two residen ces—yr Ha /od , the
summ er residen ce , a nd Ga ea fod , the win ter residen ce.
Bu t in course of tim e b od wa s used to design ate a ny
house or dwellin g - place . Com pare the English abode.
18 P LACE - NAMES IN W ALES.
BRON m ean s a roun d protuberan ce , a n d is equ iv alen t to the En glish breast . In place - n am es it sign ifies
the breast of a hill . Ar [rest y mynydd , is a very comm on
expression , m ean in g on the breast of the m oun tain .
BRYN seem s t o be a com poun d of b r e, a m oun tain ,
a n d the dim inutive yn hen ce b reyn , afterwards c on
tracted in to b ryn ,a sm all m oun tain , a hill . I t en ters
largely in to Welsh place - n am es , a n d we find it also
Anglicized in Brea n down ,a high ridge n ear Weston
super-Mare ; Bren don ,a part of the great ridge Of
Exm oor ; Brin sop ,n ear Hereford
,&c .
BWLCH sign ifies a break or breach . It is gen erally
foun d in n am es of places where there is a n arrow pass
in the m oun tain s .
CAER is one of our en chorial n am es for a wall or
m oun d for defen ce , the wall of a city or castle , a fortress
Perhaps the root is c a n , to shut up ,to fen ce , to en close
with a hedge . Ca e m ean s a field en closed with hedges .
Cd er a zi were the m ost an cien t m il itary earthworks in the
Prin cipality , a nd when the B riton s began t o build cities
they surroun ded them by a fortified wall called c a er .
The city of Chester is still popu larly called Ca er,
from the an cien t wall that has en circled it for ages .
Chester— a Saxon ized form of the Latin c a str a m ,a fort
.
a nd one of the few words recogn ised as directly inherited
from the Rom an invaders— is a com m on prefix a n d
suffix in English place - n am es ; as Colchester , Ma n
chester , Chesterford , Chesterton . In the Anglian a n d
PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES. 19
Dan ish districts we fin d chester is replaced by
caster as Don caster , Lan caster, &c but both
form s are all ied to c a stm m , which is a Latin iz ation of
the Celtic c a er . As the Latin c a str a m will always be a n
etym ologica l souven ir to future gen eration s of the
Rom an in cursion s , a nd the havoc they com m itted here
ere “
Britann ia ruled the waves,even so the Celtic
word c a er, which is found in so m any Welsh a n d a few
English place - n am es , will ever be a n historical fin g er
post, poin tin g to the n ecessity which wa s laid upon our
forefathers t o defend them selves again st foreign ban ds
of invaders. The word is also a stan din g proof in
Englan d that the dom in ion of the an cien t Cym ry wa s
erstwhile con siderably m ore exten sive than that of
little Wales . I f the reader will be so fortun ate as t o
fin d a m a p of Englan d which wa s published in the tim e
of Ell a , the first Bretwa l da of the Saxon race , the
recurren t c a er would m ake him alm ost im agin e he wa s
peru sin g the m a p of Wales. There he wou ld fin d
Carer - leg ion ,Chester, which is still call ed Ca er lleon ;
Ca er - B a don , Bath ; Ca er - Glon , Gloucester ; Ca er - Eb r a we,
Eboracum of the Rom an s , a nd the Saxon York ; a n d
Ca er - La n den e or Ca er ln dd ,Lon don , &c . In course of
tim e the vowel ewa s elided , hen ce we have such exam ples
as Carm arthen ,Cardiff, Carlisle , Carsey , Ca rsoP,
Pen c a rrow (Pen c a er a u ) , Carew,&c .
CARN ,Ca rnedd , or Cairn ,
m ean s a heap of ston es.
These cairn s or tum uli are foun d in large num bers in
Wales.They were , according to som e , either fam ily
2 0 PLACE - NAMES IN W ALES.
cem eteries or m onum en ts raised to comm em orate the
r elics of a num ber of heroes who fell in defen ce of their
c oun try. Bu t others are in clin ed to think they were
t hrown , as token s of disgrace , over executed m alefactors .
Dr . Owen Pugh says The c a r n edd a u a n d the tum uli
of earth were the com m on m onum en ts that the an cien t
B riton s erected in hon our of their great m en . Which
of the two kinds wa s probably determ in ed by the
circum stan ce of the coun try being ston y or otherwise.
These m odes of in term en t con tin ued in use m an y years
after the in troduction of Christian ity ; but when the
custom of burying in churches becam e gen eral,the
form er ways were not on ly disused,but condem n ed as
fit on ly for the great crim in als . When the c a rnedd wa s
con sidered as the hon ourable tom b of a warrior,every
passenger threw his addition al ston e out of reveren ce
t o his m em ory. When this heap cam e to be disgraced
b y being the m ark where the guilty wa s laid , the customfor everyon e that passed t ofling his ston e still con tin ued
,
b u t n owise as a token of detestation .
”
Professor Rhys , in his Celtic B ritain ,gives a
g raphic description of the rem oval of one of these
c airn s in the v icin ity of Mold , in 1832. I t wa sb elieved ,
” he writes , in the coun try aroun d to be
h aun ted by a spectre in gold arm our, a nd when m ore
t han 300 loads of ston es had been carted away the
workm an cam e t o the skeleton of a tall a nd powerful
m a n placed at full len gth . He had been laid there
c lad in a fin ely - wrought corslet of gold, with a lin ing of
2 2 PLACE - NAMES IN W ALES .
d en ote the fortified residen ce of the tribal Chieftain s ,
who aspired to be the politica l successors Of the Rom an s
in this coun try. Com pare the Breton Ka stel , the Irish
b a isel , the Gaelic oa istea l , a n d the Manx ea shta l .
It is difficult to ascertain the exact tim e when
c astles were first in troduced in to W ales .
The Rom an s probably began t o erect fortresses in
t he territories con quered by them ,a n d the Saxon s
followed their exam ple ; but stron g castles Of defen ce
were com paratively few here ere the com m en cem en t of
the Norm an Conquest. Feudalism gave rise t o castles
i n the sen se of fortified residen ces , a n d it is from the
a dven t of the Norm an s to ou r lan d we m ust date the
castle as a n in stitution . A large n um ber wa s also
erected durin g the reign of Edward I I I a n d his
im m ediate successors . That old fortress , said Mr .
G ladston e , poin tin g w ith his stick to the rem ain s of
Hawarden Castle , is on e of the em blem s of the diffi
c u l ty the En glish had in govern in g the Welsh in form er
tim es . They had to plan t their stron gholds all alon g
t he Welsh border.
CEFN ,in n am es of places
, m ean s a high ridge . It
i s but n atural that this prefix should be applied to so
m any places in m oun tain ous Wales . The Chevin"
H ills
in Yorkshire , a n d Ceven n es in Fran ce , derive-
Ltheirn am es from the sam e root .
PREFIXES AND SUFF IX ES. 2 3
CIL im plies a sequestered place , a place of retreat .
Ci l ha u l m ean s the shade or where the su n does n ot
shin e . Ci l y llyg a d , the corn er of the eye . In Irelan d it
is spel t ki l ( the c being chan ged t o k ) sign ifyin g a
church , a n d is foun d in n o less than n am es , a n d
in m any in Scotlan d . Kilken ny , church of Ken ny ;Kilpatrick ,
church of Patrick ; Kilm ore (Ci lm a wr ) , the
great church . G ilm our is still a surn am e in the Scottish
lowlan ds , a n d we fin d Gilm orton in Leicester . We
fin d the root in c i lio, t o retreat , to go away. C i lfa c h, a
place t o retreat to , a creek , a n ook Som e Welsh
historia n s thin k that oi l is a local m em orial Of those
Irish m ission aries , who ,about the sth cen tury , visited
the shores of Wales for evan gelistic purposes , a n d
foun ded churches in the m ost quiet a n d sequestered
spots they could find .
CLYD m ean s shelterin g , warm , com fortable . Lle
c lyd , a warm ,com fortable place . We have it in
differen t form s in Clydach , Clydlyn , Clyder , Clyde ,
St r a thc lu d ,Clodock .
CLYN sign ifies a place covered w ith brakes , Clyn o
ei thin ,a furze brake .
CNW C l iterally m ean s a bum p , a swellin g a o y
gweg i l ,the back part of the skull ; but its geographical
sign ification is a kn oll or m oun d . We fin d it corrupted
in a few Welsh n am es , Knucklas (a o-
gla s) , &c . ,a n d
in Irish n am es , Kn ockg la ss (a o-
g la s) , Knoc km oy
2 4 PLACE NAMES IN W ALES.
(a c - m a i ) , Kn ockaderry (a o-
y—der i ) , &c . ,
a n d in
En glan d we have Nocton,Kn ockin ,
Kn ook , &c .
COED is the Welsh for wood , trees . In rem ote
tim es the sum m its of Ca m b r ia ’
s hills were covered with
wood , which accoun ts for the word c oed bein g still
applied t o barren a nd hil ly districts.
CRAIG ,a high rock or craig
,a n d som etim es it is
applied to a steep,woody em in en ce . It takes the form
of c a r r a ig or c a r r i ck in Irelan d ; Ca r r ig a foyle (Cr a igy
foel ) , the barren rock ; Carrickfergus , the rock where
Fergus wa s drown ed ; a n d in En glan d we fin d it in
Crick , Cricklade , &c .
CROES m ean s a cross . Croes-fiordd , a cross -wa y .
The word eviden tly poin ts to the Rom an epoch , a n d
also to the an cien t Welsh custom of buryin g m a l efactors
n ear the cross roads . Croes- fein i , ston e - crosses , in the
tim e of Howell the Good , were used prin cipa ll y t o
m ark lan d property , a n d som etim es , when placed in
hedges , t o caution travellers n ot t o cross the fields .
Som e of them ,with the n am es of the prim itive British
sain ts in scribed upon them , were placed by the road
side in com m em oration of the blessed fact that the
Gospel had been preached there .
CRUG m ean s a heap,a m oun d . Cr a g 0 g erryg , a
heap of ston es . It appears that the Briton s held their
bardic a n d j udicial g orsedd a u or assem blies on these
m ounds , a n d hen ce crug a n d gorsedd,
” accordin g
to Dr . Owen Pughe , are som etim es used as syn on ym ous
PREF IXES AND SUFFIXES. 2 5
term s . Cru g is a frequen t com pon en t in Welsh
n am es , a nd we fin d it An glicized in Crich (Derby) ,Creach (Som erset ) , &c .
CWM den otes a low place en closed with hills . I t
has a large place in Welsh n om en clature, a nd it often
occurs in En glish loca l n am es , especially in the western
coun ties. In Devon shire the Saxon ized form com b or
com b e m eet us fi equ en t ly : Wide - com b , Wel - com b ,Ilfr a - com be , B a b b a ~c om b , Burles - com b , Challa- com b ,Hac - com b , Para- com b , Yarn s - com b , &c . In Som erset it
is m ore plen tiful than in a ny other English coun ty we
have Nettle - com b , Od - com b , Tim ber - com b , Cha rlsc om b ,
Wid - com b , Mon cton - com b , Com b - hay , Cros - com b ,Win s - com be , &c . We find King - com be , Ra t - com be ,
Bos- com b , &c . , in Dorset . Cum berlan d , a Celtic
coun ty , aboun ds with com b es. So writes Anderson , a
Cum berlan d poet , of his n ative coun ty
There’
s Cu mwhi t ton ,C u mwh in ton . Cu m r a n ton ,
C u m r a n g a n , Cu m rew ,a n d Cu m c a t c h ,
And m a ny m a i r Cu m s 1 the c ou n ty,
B u t n on e wi th Cu m div ook c a n m a t c h .
CW RT , probably fr om the Latin cortis, which m ean s
a closed place, or a court where the la w is adm in istered .
In olden tim es when the kin g or a Chieftain wa s on his
m il itary or sportin g tour through the coun try , it wa s
n ecessary to provide accom m odation for him a nd his
party durin g their stay in the district , a nd that place
wa s design ated y e t,
’ the COu r t . Those that lived
in the v i llein townships were expected t o build or provide
2 6 PLACE - NAMES IN W ALES.
t he Court , n in e buildin gs which the vil l ein s of the
kin g are to erect for him ,a ha l l , a cham ber , a buttery ,
a stable , a doghouse , a barn ,a k ilyn ,
a privy, a n d a
dorm itory .
”
CYMMER m ean s a j un ction or con fluen ce , a n d is
frequen tly applied t o places situated n ear the j un ction
of two or m ore rivers . The root is related to a b er (vide
a b er ) .
DIN is a n an cien t Welsh word for a fortified h ill , a
cam p , from which we have ou r din a s, a fortified town or
city , a n d probably the En glish den i zen . Ou r cities were
on ce surroun ded b y fortified walls,like Chester , on
accoun t of which every on e of them wa s den om in ated
din a s. Professor Rhys groups the Welsh din with the
Irish dun , the An g lo - Saxon t un ,a n d the En glish town .
The da n a m , di n a m ,a n d din inm of the Rom an s are
probably allied with it .
The En glish suffix b n ry is closely related t o it in
m ean in g. Very few Welsh place - n am es have the
term in ation burgh , bury , or borough . The root is
alm ost a n En glish m on opoly. Horn e Took says that
a burgh or borough form erly m ean t a fortified town .
”
In the En cyclopaedia B ritan n ica ”we fin d the follow
i n g exposition of the word Bou r g ign on s or Burgun
dian s,on e of the n ation s who over - r a n the Rom an
Em pire,a n d settled in Gau l . They were Of great
stature a n d very warlike , for which reason the Em peror
Valen tin ian the Great engaged them again st the Ger
m aus . They lived in ten ts , which were close to each
PRE FIXES AND SUFFIXES. 2 7
o ther , that they m ight the m ore readily un ite in arm s
on a ny un foreseen attack . These con j un ction s of ten ts
they called b u rg hs, a n d they were to them what town s
are to us. It is supposed that the Burgun dian s
in troduced the word to the Germ an s , a n d they , again ,
l eft it in En glan d as a trace of their settlem en t here .
DOL sign ifies a m eadow. Dol - di r , m eadow- lan d.
We fin d‘
it in m an y of ou r place - n am es , a n d also in
variou s form s in Arun del,Ken dal (Pen - ddol) , An n an
da l e , Dalkeith , Dal rym ple , Dovedale , &c . The word is
foun d in n am es of places situate in valleys all over
Wales , Cornwall , a n d Brittan y .
DW FR is the m odern Welsh for water. It is
frequen tly spelt dwr Cwm dwr , the water - vale . In
En glish it has suffered m uch from phon etic decay
Derwen t , Dover , Appledore,Durham , Dore , Thur,
Durra , &c . It is also foun d in European n am es :
Dordogn e , Adour , Du r b ia n , Durbach , Douron ,Dwern a
,
Oder , &c . Words a n d Places ,” p . It m a y be
c om pared with the Corn ish doa r ,the Gaelic a n d Irish
d a r , a n d dob ha r , pron oun ced doa r , a n d the Greek a dor ,
a ll probably cogn ate with the Celtic da b r .
DYFFRYN is popularly derived from dwir , water , a n d
hyn t , a wa y ,a course ; literally a water - course , or a vale
through which a river takes its course . In the an cien t
Welsh laws the word dyfiryn t is used t o den ote a river.
Ynysoedd yn n yffryn t , islan ds in a river . It m a y be
a com poun d of dwir - b ryn ,sign ifying a hilly place through
which water flows .
28 PLACE- NAM ES IN W ALES .
GALLT m ean s a n ascen t , a slope . Gellt o goed , a
woody slope or em in en ce . In North Wa l es it sign ifies.
a steep hill ,”
a n d in South Wal es “ a coppice of
wood.
”
GARTH origin ally m ean t a buttress , a n in closure .
The Norse g a r th,the Persian g i rd ,
a n d the Anglo - Saxon
ya rd , den ote a place girded roun d , or guarded. Garden
is a place fen ced roun d for special cultivation . Bn a r th,
from b u ,kin e , a n d g a r th,
a sm all in closure,wa s situated
on a hill in perilous tim es . Lla a r th from llu , a legion ,
a n d g a r th,in closure , m ean s a n en tren chm en t on a hill .
In course of tim e the word becam e t o sign ify a ridge
a hill,a rising em in en ce , a prom on tory. Com pare t he
Breton li - orz, a nd the Irish la b -
ghor t , a n en closure for
vegetables.
GELLI - Celli m ean s a wood , a copse . The sim pler
form cell m ean t a grove , a n d the Irish c oi ll bears a n
iden tical m ean in g . Cell ysg a w, a n elder grove . The
aborigin es of Scotlan d were cal led Ca eoi ll da oin , which
m ean t the people of the wood , which n am e wa s
chan ged by the Rom an s to Caledon ia . A great n um ber
Of places have received their n am es from species of
trees , as Clynog , Pa n tyc elyn , Cly n eiddw , &c .
GLAN m ean s brin k , side , shore . Gla n yr a fon , the
river side , or the bank of the river. Gla n y m or , the sea
shore . The word is gen erally prefixed t o river - nam es ,as Glan - Conwy , Glan Taf , &c .
30 PLACE - NAMES IN W ALES.
on e en d to em it the sm oke from the fire which wa s
m ade ben eath . Its stools were ston es , a n d beds were
m ade of hay ranged alon g the sides .
LLAN is iden tified with n early all the n am es o f
parish churches in Wa l es , from which a n exceedingly
large num ber of places take their n am es . I t has been
said that Englan d is pre—em in en tly the lan d of hedges
a n d in closures . The term in ation s, t on , ha m , worth ,
stoke,fold
,garth
,park , burgh , bury , brough , burrow ,
alm ost invariably convey the n otion of in closure a nd
protection . The Welsh prefix Lla n , which orig inally
sign ified a n in closure , probably suggested the idea t o the
Saxon colon ists . We fin d the word in per lla n , orchard ;
gwin lla n ,vin eyard ; cor la n , sheep - yard , in Welsh place
n am es it is n ow gen erally taken t o m ean a church ,
probably in cluding the church - yard , though originally
applied to a n in closure with or without a buildin g.
Myned i’
r lla n m ean s goin g to church .
”
The British sain ts , havin g been deprived of their
possession s by the powerfu l a n d ever - in creasin g
foreign ers a n d invaders , retired to the m ost solitary
places in the coun try to l ive a wholly religious
l ife , a n d foun ded churches which will bear their
n am es as lon g as hagiology rem ain s a part of
Welsh history. Judgin g from the n u m ber of churches
dedicated to the sain ts , it appears that the m ost popular
am ong them were St . Mary , St . Michael , a nd St . David
the patron sain t of Wales . It is n eedless to say that the,
first two n ever foun ded churches , although we fin d that
PREF IXES AND SU FFIXES . 31
28 churches* in the see of Bangor ; 27 in the see of St .
Asaph ; 59 in the see of St . David’s ; a n d a few in the
see of Llan daff ; in all about 150 churches a n d chapels
have been dedicated to S t . Mary , a n d 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 Llan daff ; a n d
a few in the see of Hereford , m aking a total of n early100. Next com es St . David . We fin d that 42 so - called
sacred edifices bear his n am e in the see of St . David’s
8 in the see ofLlan daff a n d a few in the see of Hereford
such as Dewstow .
Man y churches were a lso n am ed from their
con tiguity t o water , as well as to other obj ects : Lla n
wr tyd (Llan wr th -
y- rhyd) , the church by the ford ;
Lla n da f, the church on the Taff , &c . The llan , a publ ic
house, a n d a few cottages , form ed the n ucleus Of the
m aj ority of ou r rural villages a n d parishes , a n d when the
Village or parish becam e worthy of a n appellation , the
n am e of the lla n wa s alm ost invariably applied to them .
The word sa n t , sain t , n ever becam e a popular term in
Wales as it did in Cornwall . We have sim ply the
lla n a n d the un adorn ed n am e Of the sain t who foun ded
it,or wa s ded ic a t ed , _
n ot Lla n sa n tddewi , St . David’
s
church,but Lla n ddewi , David
’
s church .
When several churches are dedicated t o the sam e
sain t som e differen tial words are added , a n d so we have
those lon g n am es which arouse the curiosity of our
English frien ds , a n d Often supply a healthy exercise
P roba bly m ore n ow) .
3 2 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES.
t o their risible faculties,such as Lla n fa i r -Ma tha fa r n
ei tha f, &c .
For the sake of euphon y a n d brevity we have , in
m any of our En glish equivalen ts , om itted the word lla n ,
a n d have given the n am es of the sain ts on ly , except
when they are tran slatable . When differen tial words
a re added to the hag iological n am es , as Penyb ryn ,
Helygen , &c ., we have thought it advisable to om it
the ecclesiastical term , a n d give the m un dan e portion of
the n am e on ly as a n En glish quasi- equivalen t . For
i n stan ce , Lla ndewi -Aberarth , om itting St. David’s
, a n d
r en der Aberarth in to a n in telligible English n am e . We
fin d the word lla n in m an y place - n am es in Englan d, in
t he Cym ric part of Scotlan d , i .e. between the Clyde
a n d the Solway , e.g . Lan ark , La n r ic k , &c ., a n d in
Brittan y , as Lan geac , Lan n ion , La n c e , &c . The word
eg lwys, church , is now used for a m odern ecclesiastical
building in m ost parts of the Prin cipal ity.
LLECH , a flat ston e , a flag,refers probably to the
Druidical circle ston es . Notice should be m ade of the
differen ce between Crom lec h a n d Cistfa en . The form er
wa s a sepulchral m onum en t a n d always above groun d,
a n d the latter wa s the coffin,con cealed by a tum ulus
e ither of earth or of ston es. The crom lech gen erally
had a c ist fa en un der it . The English league is probably
derived from this word , a“ league wa s a m easure of
distan ce m arked by a ston e stan ding on en d .
LLW CH is the an cien t Welsh for a n in let of water,
a lake , Ma esllwch ,n r . Three Cocks S tation .
It
PREFIXES AND SU FFIXES . 33
correspon ds to the S cotch loc h,the Irish la u g h, a nd
the English la ke. Loch Leven—sm ooth lake .
LLW YN in its prim ary sen se m ean s a bush , but it is
frequ en tly u sed to den ote a grove .
LLYS origin ally m ean t a royal court , a palace .
Llysdin , a city where a prin ce’s court wa s kept , but i t
is n ow the comm on appellation for a court .
MAENOR origin ally m ea n t a division of lan d m arked
by ston es , from m a en ,a ston e ; hen ce it becam e to
sign ify a district , a m an or. The m a en - hi r , lon g- stone
m onum en t , is con sidered by Professor Rhys to be a s
old as the crom lech , but n ot so im posin g a nd costly.
Croes- fa en . (See Croes) .
MAES , a n Open field,in con tradistin ction to c a e, a n
en closed field. It is som etim es used as a m ilitary term
sign ifyin g a battle - field . Ca d a r fa es is a pitched battle ,
a nd colli y m a es is to lose the battle . In the m aj ority of
n am es where this com pon en t occurs we m a y fairly in fer
that a battle has been fought there .
MAI m ean s a n open ,beautifu l plain . I t is also the
Welsh for Ma y ,the m on th when n ature in duces one to
go ou t to the open fields t o View her gem s of beauty.
MOEL when used as a substan tive sign ifies a ba ld ,
con ical hill . Dyn penfoel , a ba l d - headed m a n . In olden
tim es it wa s used as a surn am e . Hywel Foel , Howell ,
the ba ld- headed. It is derived by som e from the Celtic
root m u ll , a bald head . Moylisker (Westm oreland) is a
D
34 PLACE fNAMES IN W ALES. f
corrupted form of Moel - esga i r ,bare ridge . Malvern is
supposed to be a con t raction of Moel - y- fa rn ,
the hill of
judgm en t . In Irelan d we fin d it corrupted to m oyle
K ilm oyle , bald church ; Din rn oyle ,bald fort .
MYNYDD is the popular Welsh word for m oun tain ,
from mwn , what rises con siderably above the surface of
the surroun din g lan d . Myn”d i fynydd or fyny m ean s
going upwards . In Shropshire this word appears in
Lon gm yn d ; in Gloucestershire , n r . Mitcheldean . as the
Meen d .
NANT in its prim ary sen se sign ified a ravin e , a
d in gle ; but n ow it is m ostly used in South Wales t o
den ote a brook ,a stream let . The root en ters larg ely
in to Welsh n om en clature , a n d it is also foun d in m an y
place - n am es in the region of the H igh Alps . Na n h a n
a n d Na n n ey are plural form s of it , om ittin g t , a n d
a ddin g the plural term in ation a n .
PANT m ean s a low place , a hollow . It is c on
sider a b ly less than a cwm or dyfiryn ,com be or valley
,
bein g som ewhat sim ilar to a glen .
PARC , from the Norm an - Fren ch , is a n in closure,
equivalen t to c a e, a piece of lan d en closed with hedges.
It is used in the latter sen se in the south -west coun ties .
P a r th com es from the sam e root , which m ean s a divisi on
of lan d . P a r tha n Cym r u, the division s of Wales . The
En glish park is a derivative , which has a m ore
exten sive m ean in g .
PREF IXES AND SUFF IXES. 35
PEN in geographical n am es m ean s the highest
part or the extrem e en d , as of a m oun ta in or a field,or
a m eadow. We fin d it in tact in n am es of places in
Cornwall , as Pen zan ce , Pen rhyn (headl an d) , a nd in
the n orth of En gla n d we have Pen rith ; but in its n ative
cou n try the con son an t n has been om itted in m an y
in stan ces , a nd m substituted , as in Pem broke , Pem brey,&c . Ben ,
a m oun tain , en ters largely in to the c om
position Of place - n am es in Scotlan d , especia lly in the
H ighlan ds ,as Ben - m ore , (Penm a wr ) , great m oun tain , &c .
Cen or c en n is an other Gaelic form , sign ifying the sam e
as pen a n d b en . Ca n tyr e (Pen tit ) , headlan d ; Kenm ore
(Penm awr ) , great m oun tain ; Kin loch (Penllwch) , head
of the lake . In South Scotlan d b en is replaced by pen ,
the Cym ric form ,as Pen c r a ig , the top of the rock ;
Pen pon t , the en d of the bridge , &c . We find it also
in European n am es poin tin g out the earlier settlem en ts
of the Celtic race , as Pen n in e , Apenn in es , Penn e ,
Penm ark , &c .
PONT is gen erally derived from the Latin pon tem ,
( a ce ) a bridge . The m on ks were great bridge- builders , a nd
it is supposed that they in troduced the word to us.
Pon tage is a duty paid for repai rin g bridges . The
Rom an pon tiff wa s so ca l led because the first bridge
over the Tiber wa s con structed an d con secrated by the
high priest . Pon tefract is a pure Latin n am e , from
pons, a br idge , a nd fr a n ger e, to break , sign ifyin g a-broken
bridge,so called from the bridge breaking down when
Will iam ,Archbishop of York , wa s passing over.
36 PLACE - NAMES IN W ALES.
PORTH is referred by som e t o the Latin por t a , a
passage -wa y , a gate , a n open in g .
RHIW is the Welsh for ascen t , acclivity , slope . It
has a n an alogous m ean in g to Eppyn t , the n am e of a
chain of m oun tain s in Brecon shire , probably from eb ,
a n issuin g out , a n d hyn t , a wa y , a course , sign ifyin g a
wa y risin g abruptly . Hyn tio m ean s to set off abruptly.
RHOS m ean s a m oor. Som e thin k the Latin rns is
a cogn ate word , sign ifyin g un drain ed m oorlan d . The
Cym ric rhos is of t he sa m e orig in a s the Gaelic r os,which sign ifies a prom on tory. Ross , the n am e of a
town in Herefordshire , is probably a corruption of the
form er .
RHYD in its prim ary sen se m ean s a ford ,but its
secon dary m ean ing— a stream , is frequen tly given to it .
Rhyd- erwi n m ean s the rough
,dangerous ford
, whereas
Rhydfelin design ates a stream of water that turn s a m ill .
SANT : The title sa n t wa s very sparingly used in
Med imv a l Welsh ,a n d then m ostly in the case of sain ts
other than Welsh . Som e historian s m ain tain that
churc hes were dedicated t o Welsh a n d Irish sain ts from
500 to 800, t o St . Michael a n d som e of the Apostles
from 800 t o ~1000,a n d to St . Mary a n d others in the
12th cen tury.
The earliest use of the word M a b sa n t , the typical
holy m a n of the parish , appears to be in a eulogy Of the
Welsh patron sain t Can u y Dewi by Gwynfa rdd
Bryc hei n iog (1160
38 PLACE- NAMES IN W ALES .
p iece of lan d taken for the purpose of cultivation . It
i s used in Glam organ t o den ote a green sward.
TREF wa s the prim itive Welsh appellative for a
hom estead,a dwellin g - house . Myn ed tn a thr ef, goin g
hom e“
,is still a com m on expression in South Wales . In
course of tim e the term wa s exten ded to in di cate a
group of hom esteads . Havin g buil t a house for him self
the lord would proceed t o build dwellin gs for his people
a n d h is cattle , a n d these form ed what wa s called tr ef.
The word gradually becam e to be applied to a n
aggregate of houses , hen ce the reason why it is used SO
frequen tly in Village as well as in town - n am es .
The root is widely distributed over B ritain a n d
Europe . The Norse b y ,the Dan ish thorpe, the Germ an
dorf , a n d the En glish ha m a n d ton m a y be con sidered as
i ts equiva l en ts . It is spelt tr en in Dom esday Book ,hen ce we have Treu ddyn for Treddyn .
Hen dr ef form s the n am es of m any old m an sion s ,a n d is syn on ym ous with the English Al t a nd
Oldham . Hyd y dr ef (October) , wa s the harvest season
the tim e t o gather the produce of the fields to the
barn s , a n d leave the ha fod ,summ er - house
,to spen d the
Win ter m on ths in the hen dr ef, the Older establishm en t.:The origin a l m ean in g of c a n tref (can ton or hun dred) is
supposed to have been a hun dred hom esteads .
TROED is the W elsh for foot , base . The Irish tr a i gsign ifies the sam e , both of which , Professor Rhys thin ks ,
PREPIxEs AND su r r ixE’
sfi 39
a re of the sam e Origin as the Greek trecho,I ru n.3 The
En glish trea d m ean s to set the foot . The wor d is fre
quently applied t o places situated at the foot" of a m oun "
t ain. The Welsh Troedyr hiw a n d the Ita l ia n pie di
m on te are syn on ym ous term s .
TY gen era lly m ean s a house , a dwellin g- place,but
in Welsh n om en clatu re it is occasion a lly used to den ote
a church or place of worship , as Ty Ddewi , St. David’s.
The house of God is con sidered by m an y as equivalen t
to the church of God . Ty has a n in ferior m ean in g to
b od the latter wa s the residen ce of a superior, a nd the
form er is of a later date , sign ifying a n ordin ary house, a
cottage.
W Y—Gwy is a n obsolete Celtic word for water,
m ostly used as a suffix in river- n am es, as Elmy, Ta wy
a n d som etim es as a prefix , as gwya ch, a water- fowl ;
gwyla n ,sea-
g ull ; gwydd , goose . Gwysg is related to it ,
which m ean s a ten den cy to a level , as of a fluid or
stream . We find the root in various form s, as Wysg ,
ea sk, u isge, a sk, esk, is- c a , &c .
YNYs an cien tly sign ified a n islan d, a n d also a
quasi- island an swering to inc h in Scotla n d, In ch Kei th;a nd in is or enn is is Irelan d, Enn is Kil len , Enn is Got tb y ,
In n iskea ,&c . The word is applied to som e places with
no river or water n ear them , nor anything su ggestin gthe probabil ity that they had, in rem ote tim es , been
islan ds .
40 PLACE- NAMES 1N W ALES.
YSTRAD is a gen era l term for a low or flat valley
through which a river flows. The Latin str a ta , the
Scotch str a th, a nd the En glish street are supposed to be
of the sam e origin . The term ystr a d wa s used som etim es
t o den ote a paved road.
PLACE NAMES IN W ALES .
W a LEs.—The real a n d correct n am e is Cym r u ,
or
a s the late Mr . T . Stephen s in variably spelt it , Kym ru ;
from cym- b ro, the com patriot , the n ative of the coun try,
in con tradistin ction t o a ll - fro,the foreign invader who
c am e to dispossess him of his n ative lan d.
Professor S ilvan Evan s derives it from - cyd , the d
bein g chan ged to m for assim ilation with the followingb ; an d b r o, a va l e , a coun try . Som e think it is a
com poun d of eyn , first,prior a n d b r u , m atrix , hen ce
im plyin g P r im i t i v eMother , a n expression sign ifyin g that
the aborigin al Brythons, t o sustain their in alien able
c laim to the cou n try , con sidered them selves as
descen ded from the direct Offsprin g of their n ative soil .
Accordin g to som e the n am e is syn onym ous with the
Cim m er ii a n d Gom ari .
A few derive the n am e from Ca m b er , the son of
Br u tu s, whilst others in sist upon a rem oter origin ,a nd
trace it back to Gom er , the eldest son of J a phet ._
In
the laws of Hywel Dda the n am e is spelt Cyb r u ,a n d in
G . a p Arthur’s Chron icle the n am es Kym ry a n d Kym r a ec
a re respectively given to the n ation a n d the lan gu age .
Mr . Stephen s derives Kym ry from Hom er’
s Kim
m eroi a n d Ger'
m an ia’s Cirn b r i . These people gave
4 2 PLACE- NAMES IN W ALES .
their n am e to Cum berlan d , a n d subsequen tly they
settled in their presen t coun try ,a n d called them selves
a n d the c ou n t re ym'
ry or Cymry , the form Cym ru for
Wales bein g a m odern varian t .
Professor Rhys thin ks the ties of un ion between
the Brython s of Upper B ritain proved so"
stron g a n d
close that the word Cym ry , which m ean t m erely
fellow- coun trym en ,acquired the force a nd charm of a
n ation al n am e , whic h'
i t still retain s am on g the n atives
of the Prin cipality. I t is also popularly call ed
GWALIA, of which Wales is a Saxon ized form .
Very m an y favour the Germ an derivation zea l , foreign ;wa ller , foreign er . The gen eral n am e given by the
'
Teuton ic races to their n eighbours is W a lsc h,foreign ers
or stran gers . The word Du tch is a n adj ective
sign ifying n ation al , a n d wa s the n am e by which the old
Teuton s called them selves in con tradistin ction to other
people , whose lan gu age they were un able to under
stan d . They styled them selves the ( in tell igible )people , but called others , as the Rom an s a n d the Kelts
in B ritain , W a lsc h a n d W elsh.
”
(Morris H ist . Gra m ) .
W a lsch- la nd is the Germ an n am e of Italy , a nd
Wea l - la nd is the n am e given by the Saxon Chron icle t o
Brittany . Cornwa les wa s the origin al form of Cornwa ll ,Which sign ifies the coun try inhabited by the Welsh of
the Horn . Som e derive the n am e from Ga l , the ancien t
Ga l , whilst others give the p referen ce to g a l , a n open ,
cu ltivated coun try.
“
Le P r in ce de Ga lles is the n am e?
PLACE- NAMES IN W ALES. 43
g iven to the Prin ce of Wales in Fran ce . The people
of Ga la ti a in the tim e of St . Paul possessed som e
characteristic features of the Celtic race. J acob
Grim m traces the n am e back to Ga lli (Gaules ,which wa s taken by the Germ an s from the n eighbourin gGauls . It is gen erally supposed that when the Saxon s
settled am on g the Britan n ic Loeg r ia ns ( the Cym ry of
En glan d) they call ed them Vea les,W ea la , or W ea lha s,
from which the n am e Wales probably origin ated.
CAMBRIA .— Som e derive it from Ca m b er of fabulous
record,but we rather thin k it is a distorted Latin ized
form of Cym r u .
We shall now proceed t o deal with the n am es of
the an cien t territories of Wal es , n am ely , Gwynedd ,
Powys, Dyfed , a n d Gwen t .
GW YNEDD ,or VENEDOCIA .
— This territory c om
prised the coun ties of Anglesey , Ca rn a rfon , a nd Den bigh ,
Or Gwyn edd i s Conwy,Ven edocia below Conway ,
a nd
Gwynedd u c h Gonwy , Ven edocia above Conway . It wa s
som etim es applied to a ll North Wa l es .
Professor Rhys thin ks the word Ven eti is m ost
likely _ ,
of the sam e origin as the An glo- Saxon wine, a
frien d , a n d m ean t all ies ; the Irish fine, a trib e or
sept,is m ost likely related , a n d so m a y be the Welsh
Gwynedd.The Ven eti have left their n am e to the part
of Brittan y called by the Breton s Gu ened , Van n es , a n d
it is this n am e probably that laid the foun dation for
the ta l es which trace a n arm y of Cym ry from Gwyn edd
to Gu en ed . (Celtic Britain , p .
44 PLACE- NAMES IN WALES.
PowYs.—This in cluded the coun ties of Merion eth;
Flin t , a nd Mon tgom ery. The word , according to
som e , m ean s a state of rest . Pwyso m ean s to lean ;
gorphwyso, to rest. I t is said that Cer idwen placed
Gwi a n , the son of Gwrea ng , the herald of Lla n fa ir , the
fan e of the lady,in Ca er Ein i a wn , the city of the j u st in
Powys, the lan d of rest. (Davies’
Myth. , p .
Powys Fa dog m a y m ean Madoc’s settlem en t or rest.
DYFED,or DEMETIA.
—This provin ce em braced thecoun ties of Pem broke , Carm arthen , a n d Cardigan ; the
form er con stituted the pri n cipa l part , a nd is cal l ed
Dyfed even to - day by the Old inhabitan ts. In the seven th
cen tury Dyfed con sisted on ly of Pem brokeshire. Som e
derive the n am e from Deheu b a r th, which is rather far
fetched. We are in duced t o thin k the root is dwfn ,
deep or low, in dicating the geographical position of
Dyfed, which is the lowest part of the Prin cipality.
Devon is probably of the sam e origin . Dem et ia is
Dyfed Latin ized.
GWENT. This territory com prises part of
Glam organ , a lso Monm outhshire , a nd part of Hereford
shire, the latter districts are to be deal t with in a su b
sequ en t work .
46 P LACE - NAMES IN W ALES.
The Rom an s called it Ga da v i a g a da ,t o fall or r u n
d own ; v i a , wa y ,sign ifying
“
the swift or run n ing water .
This place wa s one of the 3 Royal residen ces of Wales ,
a n d a seat of their chief courts of j ustice .
AMLWCH .— This n am e has elicited various c on
jec t u res. Som e thin k it is a com poun d of a m l - llwch,
sign ifying a dusty place . Others derive it thus : a m ,
roun d , about ; llwc h, a lake , a n in let of water , sign ifyin g
a circul ar in let of water . Llwc h is cogn ate with the
Scotch loc h. Man y places in Wales take their n am es
from this word , as P en llwch,Ta lyllyc ha u ,
Lla n llwc h,a n d
,
perhaps , Am lwc h. In a n an cien t book , The Record of
Carn arvon ,
” supposed to be written about 1451, the
n am e is spelt Am log h. The harbour at Am lwch is a
sort of llwch.
BEAUMARIs.—Various n am es are given to this town
Bu m a r is, B im a r is, Beu m a r ish , Bello -Ma r iseu m , a n d
B eaum aris . In the Myv yr i a n l ist of the parishes Of
Wales it is spelt Bywm a r es. Edm un ds derives it from
b a w,a c ow ; m or , the sea ; a n d is, low ; sign ifyin g the
low place of cows by the sea . Som e thin k the n am e is
a com poun ded form of b is, twice ; a n d m a r is, the sea ,foun din g their reason upon the position of the town as
lyin g between two seas , the Irish Sea a n d St . George’s
Chan n el . Others thin k the radices are b ea u ,beautiful
,
fin e ,a n d m a ree, sea ; sign ifying a place n ear the beautiful
sea . Man y w ill have the suffix to be the Fren ch m a r a is,
m arsh ,a tract of low lan d occasion ally covered w ith
w ater , hen ce the n am e sign ifies the beautiful m arsh .
-\NGLESEY. 47
The town wa s an cien tly called Porth W yg yr ; por th,port ; wygyr ,
which m a y be a corruption of W i g - i r ; gwig ,
a n open in g in the wood , a wood ; i r , fresh , florid. P ren i r
a green tree . The n ew n am e , Beaum aris , it is said , wa s
given t o the town by Edward I . Hé b uil t the castle
about the year 1285 , a n d chan ged the n am e of the place
t o B eaum aris , descriptive of its pleasan t situation in
low gr oun d.
BELAN .—An abbreviation ofLla n b eu la n , the church
dedicated t o Beu la n , son Of Paulinus .
BETHEL .— So called after a Non con form ist chapel
in the village . The edifices of the Established Church
a r e gen erally dedicated to em in en t .Welsh sain ts ; but
the Non con form ist san ctuaries are gen erall y den om in ated
after Scriptural place - n am es .
BODEDERN .— Bod ,
a dwell in g - place , a n abode ;
Edern ,or Edeyr n ,
the son of Nu dd , the son of Beli .
H e wa s a w arrior a n d a poet , a n d before the end of
his earthly career becam e very devoted to religion ,
a n d built a church in this place , which wa s dedicated
to him ,hen ce the n am e .
BODEWRYD .— This place is situated about four
m iles west of Am lwch . Bod , a dwellin g ; ewryd , a
con traction ,pe rhaps
, of ewi a r , sm ooth , clear , a n d rhyd ,
a ford ; the n am e , therefore , sign ifies a m an sion at the
clear ford .
48 PLACE NAMES IN W ALES.
BODFFORDD.—Bod ,
a dwelling ; flordd , a wa y , a
road ; the n am e,therefore
,sign ifies a residen ce by the
wa y or road .
BODOW YR.-The habitation of the priests . A
ham let situated n ear Tre’r Dryw,the seat of the
chief Druid.
BODWROG .—Bod
,a dwellin g ; Twr og ,
supposed t o
be the son of Ithel W a el , of Brittan y ,to whom the
church is dedicated . The n am e sign ifies a fortified
dwellin g .
BRYNSIENCYN .—Bryn ,
a hill ; Sien cyn ,a W elshified
form of J enkin , which m ean s little a n d pretty John .
CAERCEILIOG .—From a farm so n am ed . Som e
thin k the right wording is Ca ergei lyg—Ca er , a fortified
wall ; Gei lyg , clear, prom in en t : others thin k the n am e
is a slight corruption of Ca e’
r cei li og , the cock’s field
,
from the tradition that a certain field belon ging to the
farm stead wa s som etim e n oted for c oc kfight in g .
CAPEL GWYN .—Ca pel , chapel ; Gwyn ,
a con tracted
form , probably , of Gwyn gen a u , the son of P a wl , the elder ;or , perhaps , gwyn here has a n ecclesiastical m ean in g
,
sign ifying blessed .
“
Gwyn ei fyd y gwr ,
” blessed is
the m a n .
CAPEL MEUGAN .— Ca pel , chapel ; Meu g a n , son of
Gwynda fHen , the son of Em yr Llyda w. Meu g a n is a nOld person al n am e which m a y have com e through the
Irish , c .f. Feg a n .
ANGLESEY . 49
CEI RCHIOG .—This n a m e m ean s aboun ding with
oats . The soil of the district is rem arkable for yielding
large crops of oats .
CEMAEs.—This n am e is very comm on in Wales .
It is a com poun d word , m ade up of c e/n ,back ridge ;
a n d m a c s, a field , sign ifyin g a high field . Som e thin k
the n am e den otes ridged or arable lan d, from the fer
t i li ty of the soil in the district . Others thin k it a
com poun ded form of c a m p , a feat , a gam e a nd m a cs, a
field . The Welsh had 24 gam es , or qualification s , that
m a y be called their course of education . We rather thin k
the word must be un d erstood here in a m artial sen se ,Sign ifyin g a field on a high place , form ing a van tage - groun d
for m ilitary Operation s . The n am e in dicates sign s of the
defen sive conflict of the Kym ry from the tim e of Ca dwa la dr
down to the fall of Llewelyn , with whom t he in depen den ce
Of Cam br ia term in ated .
CERRYG CEINWEN .
—Cer ryg ston es ; Ceinwen , the
daughter Of Bry cha n Brychein iog , to whom the church
is dedicated .
CERRYG v GW YDDYI .—Cerryg , stones ; Gwyddyl ,
Irishm en . Ca swa llon La w~H i r (Long Han d ) , abou t
the year 500 , fought v a'
i i a n t‘y again st the Ir ish in vaders
in North Wales . Having achieved such a
n oble victory at a certain place in Mon a , he built a
church thereon,a n d called it Lla n y Gwyddyl , but n ow
i t is kn own by the n am e of Cerryg y Gwyddyl .
CLEGYROG .
— The root,probably , is c leg r , which
m ean s a rock,a cliff . Clegyrog , rocky , rugged ; the
n am e is quite descriptive of this craggy district .
E
50 PLACE NAMES IN WALES .
COEDANA .—Coed ,
wood ; An a“
An n e , supposed to be
a Welsh lady t o w hom the parish church is dedicated .
Ann e or An n is a con traction of H a n n a h .
DW YRAN .—Dwy ,
two r a n,part or
“
portion . This
ham let w a s divided in to two by Idwal , the Prin ce of Wales ,
a n d he gave on e t o St . Beun o , a n d the other to the Bishop
o f Ban gor , hen ce the n a m es Dwyr a n B eu n o,a n d Dwyr a n
Esgob . The place is also called Ab er b r a i n t .
GAE-KWEN .
—A com poun d of c a er , a fortified wall , a
fortress ; a n d wen ,the fem in in e form of gwyn ,
whi te ,fair
,blessed ,
what is desirable or affords ha ppi n ess .
GWREDOG .—The root m a y be gwa r (g wa r edd a wg ) ,
t am e , m ild , g en tle ; som e thin k the correct wording is
Gwa r edog ,what is bein g protected or saved . Perhaps it
is derived from gwa ered ,a declivity . We adopt the
latter . The right wordin g,therefore
,is Gwa eredog , a
flat or bottom at the foot of high groun d . It is the
n am e of several farm s in Anglesey a s Gwa eredog ,Am lwch ,
a n d Gwa eredog Ucha f, a n d Gwa eredog Isa f , n ear Lla n
er chym edd .
GW YNDY .
—Gwyn ,white
,blessed dy z ty ,
house the
n am e sign ifies a blessed house . The n am e w a s on ce
used t o den ote a n episcopal residen ce . In the tim e of
St . Germ an n s , gwynda i—episcopal residen ces or houses
were first alloted to the bishops . It wa s supposed
that a Cloister wa s on ce in the place where a large
n um ber Of virgin s devoted them selves en tirely t o holy
service .
HOLYHEAD .
—The Welsh n am e is C a ergyb i or accord
in g t o som e , Co‘
r Cyb i . Cyb i , the son of the Kin g of
Cornwall , flourished about the latter half Of the fourth
ANGLESEY . 51
cen tury . Havin g spen t som e tim e with Bishop Hilary,
i n Gaul , he return ed a nd took up his abode here . It is
said that the Prin ce of Mon a took com passion uponhim in his great poverty
,a nd presen ted him with a
castle in the place,wherein he established a sm all
m on astery , from which circum stan ce the castle wa sc alled Cor Cyb i
—Cyb i’
s Choir . Penn an t thin ks the
right wording is Ca ergyb i , from the afore - m en tion edc astle , ruin s of wh ich are discern ible now . The sain t
also is m em orable for his con n ection with the Rom anpharos or lighthouse on a hill adj acen t t o the town . At
the n orth en d of the pa rish church the following
in scription m a y be seen z—Sa n c teKyb i , or a pro nob is, i .e. ,
“
Oh "Sain t Cyb i , pray for us . Opin ions differ as t o
the origin of Holyhead . Som e thin k it wa s so n am ed
from the large n um ber of sacred“
edifices in the place .
Others thin k the English gave the'
a ppell a t ion“
Holy
head t o the place on accoun t of the holy a nd san ctified
l ife of the ever m em orable Sain t Kyb i . Others m ain tain
that the right wording is Hollyhea d—a tran slation of
Pen c elyn ,or m ore correctly , P en Cyhelyn , Cyhelyn
’
sHead .
Pen m ean s head ; a n d Cyhelyn wa s reduced to Cetyn ,
which sign ifies holly - wood,hen ce Hollyhea d ,
a n d then
Holyhead .
LLANALLGO .—The church wa s dedicated t o Ga llgo,
a son ofCaw Cawlyd ,a nd built in the 7th cen tury . In this
n eighbourhood the Royal Charter wa s lost , October 2 6th ,
1859, when upwards of 400 lives perished . In the
parish there is also seen a large c rom lech.
LLANBABO .—P a b o Post P ryda i n wa s a n em in en t
w arrior , a n d ere the close of his life he devoted
him self un reservedly to religious m atters . He founded
5 2 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
the church of Lla n b a b o,where still rem ain s a ston e on
which his im age a nd the following in scription m a y b e
seen H i c y'
a c et P a b o Post P r u d Corpors- te- P r im a .
LLANBADRIG .— The IolO MSS. in form us that P a d r ig
wa s a sain t of the seven th cen tury ,a con tem porary of
Elford ,a n d a fellow of Kyb i
’
s sem in ary . He built the
above church,which still bears his n am e . This is St
Pa trick , the great apostle of Irelan d . (The n am e
Patrick m ean s a sen ator,a n oblem an ) .
LLANDEGFAN .—Som e thin k the church wa s built
by Tydecha a n d his sister Tegfedd ,a n d that it wa s
dedicated t o the latter in the sixth cen tury ; but we
rather thin k that Teg fa n ,un cle of Elian
,a n d a sain t
a n d con fessor in Kyb i’
s sem in ary,gave his n am e to it .
(William s’ “
Em in en t Teg/a n m a y m ean a
fair spot, or a fin e place .
LLANDYSSILIO .
—The church is dedicated t o Tyssi lio
a celebrated sain t Of the sixth cen tury .
LLAN DDANIEL FAB —Mr . Rowlan ds writes :Dan iel , who had a church n ear that of Llan Aiden
,
wa s son of Dan iel,
first Bishop of Ban gor ; a n d there
fore , the church is com m on ly called Lla n Dd a m’
el Fa b .
LLANDDE I: SANT .
—The church is dedicated to da u
sa n t , two sain ts— Marcellus a nd Marcellin us .
LLANDDW YN .
— The church is dedicated to St . Deu wen
or Dwynwen daughter of B rych a n , on e Of the prim itive
Christian s of Britain . This parish wa s,in the reign of
w
Hen ry VII I , on e of the richest prebends in the cathedralof Ban gor . The com m on people were superstitious
en ough t o m ake pilgrim ages here to c rosses,reliques
,holy
wells , ordeals , a n d fish divin ation .
54 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
m ade of hon ey a nd water ; that an cien t beverage wa s
probably prepared a n d con sum ed at the above tavern ,
hen ce the n am e .
LLANEUGRAD.—The church wa s ded icated t o
Eu g ra d , son of Ca w Ca wlwyd ,a fellow of Ill tyd
’
s
sem in ary,a n d a sain t of the sixth cen tury . It is said that
a very great battle wa s fought here in 873 between Rhod r i
Mawr a nd the Dan es , a n d that the latter had t o retreat .
LLANPACHRETH .—The church wa s dedicated to S t
Ma chr a i th, who flourished in the seven th cen tury ,a n d
founded churches in Merion eth a nd Anglesey .
LLANFAELOG .—The church wa s dedicated a bout
the seven th cen tury t oMa elog , son of Ca w Ca wlwyd . Hard
by there is a lake called Llyn M a elog ,
Ma elog’
s pool .
LLANFAES .—Ma es, a field . The n am e den otes a
church built on the spot where a m em ora ble battle
wa s fou ght in the year 819 between Egbert a nd the
W elsh . The rem ain s of the imm ortal j ohn Eli a s o Fon ,
were in terred here in Jun e , 1841.
LLANFAETHLU .—The church wa s dedicated t o
Ma ethlu, son of Ga r a da g Frei chfr a s, in the sixth cen tury
Ma ethl u or M a ethle m eans a nursin g place .
LLANFAIR -MATHAFARN - EITHAF.—The n am es of this
a nd the adj oin ing parish m ust be com pared here inorder that they m a y throw light on each other
Lla n b edr -
goch, or Lla n b edr -M a tha fa rn - Gwion - Goch,the
con tiguous parish is called Lla n b edr,the church dedi
c a t ed to St . Peter ; M a tha /a rn ,the place (m a n ) of a
tavern ; Gwion Goch, the n am e of the own er . Now
take the n ext . Lla n fa i r,St . Mary ’s Church ; M a tha /a rn ,
ANGLESEY . 55
tavern ; ei tha f, extrem e , furthest ; the suffix ei tha f wa s
added t o the latter tavern to distinguish it from theother .
This parish is fam ous for being the birthplace ofGoronwy Owen , on e of the greatest poets of Wales .
He wa s born here,Jan uary 7th ,
172 2 .
LLANFAIR- PWLL—GW YNGYLL .—Lla n fa i r
,St . Mary
'
s
Church ; pwll , pool ; gwyn ,white ; eyll , hazel wood .
Ceris Pool, Men ai Stra i ts , is con tiguous to this place ,
an d the ban ks of the straits were som etim e covered with
white hazel wood . The full n am e is som etim es play
fully given a s Lla n fa irpwllgwyn g yllgog erychwyrnd ro
b wlltysiliogog og ogoch— a rather pretty a nd inviting word
to a Saxon tourist . The railway station is called Llan fair
P .G .
LLANFAIR- v N- NGHORNW Y .
—Lla n fa i r —a church dedic a t ed to St . Mary yn ,
the corn - wy , lan d proj ecting out
to the water, which is very descriptive of this part of the
parish .
LLANFAIR—YN—NEUBW LL . Lla n fa i r St . Mary’
s
church ; yn , in ; n eu bwll da u bwll,two pools , which
are visible from the church .
LLANFECIIELL .—Mechell or Mechyll , the son of
Echwydd, wa s a Welsh bishop , a n d the church wa s
dedi cated to him in the seven th cen tury . He wa s buried
in P enrhos Llu gwy ,a n d Mr . Rowlan ds (Mon a An tiqua)
says that a n old ston e wa s foun d there in the
eighteen th cen tury bear in g his n am e .
LLANPIIIANGEL DIN SYv .—Lla nfiha ngel , St .
Michael’s Church . Din Sylwy,according to som e , is a
con traction of Din a s Sylwi , the gazin g city ; others
56 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
t ra ce it to Din Sol , the city of the su n . It is gen erally
believed that a n old British stronghold stood here , a n d
wa s taken by the Rom an s durin g the subjugation of
Mon a . We offer the following derivation : Di n , a hill ;syl
—syllu ,to gaze ; the n am e
,therefore
,sign ifies a
church on a hill which com m ands a view of the river
or water.
LLANFIHANGEL TRE ’R BEIRDD .—Lla nfiha n gel , St .
Michael ’s Church . Tre’
r Bei rdd ,the bards ’ dwellin g
place . It is supposed that a Druidic station a n d a
bard ’s sem in ary existed here in rem ote tim es,from
which circum stan ce the village a nd parish derive the
n am e .
LLANGADWALADR .
- The Church is said to have been
foun ded by Ca dwa la dr , last king of the Briton s , a n d m ade
on e of the san ctuaries of Mon a .
LLANGEFNI .—The n am e sign ifies a church on the
river Ce/n i , which run s through the place .
LLANGOED .—The n am e sign ifies a church in the
wood , so called from the woody n ature of the n eighbour
hood . The church wa s dedicated to Ca wrda f in the
sixth cen tury ,a n d the parish is som etim es called Ll a n
g a wrda f.
LLANCRISTIOLUS.— Cr ist iolu s, a descen dan t of E -m yr
L lyda w, flourished in the seven th cen tury,a n d buil t the
church which comm em orated his n am e .
LLANIESTYN .—The titular sain t of this church wa s
St . Iestyn , son of Gerain t , on e“of Arthur’s kn ights .
LLANRHYDDLAD .—Rhu ddla d ,
a daughter of the King
ofLein ster, Irelan d , wa s a sain tess of the seven th cen tury ,
a n d the supposed foun der of the above church . On e
ANGLESEY . 57
a uthor thinks the right wording is Rhyddla d ; rhydd, at
l iberty,free ; la d = gwla d, coun try . Perhaps the prefix
is rhu dd, red ; the n am e,therefore
,m ean s red soil or
c oun try .
LLANTRISANT .—The church is dedicated t o tr i sen t ,
three sain ts : Afren,Ieu a n ,
a n d S a v a n ,who,
it is sup
posed , foun ded i t in the year 570 .
A m onum en t is seen here in m em ory of Rev. Hugh
W illiam s , D.D. , father of SirW m .Will iam s,speaker of the
House of Comm ons a n d Solicitor Gen eral in 1687.
LLECHYLCHED .— Som e thin k the church is dedi
c a t ed to Ilched or c hed . The n am e is , probably , a
com poun d of llech,a flat ston e ; a n d cylched , a circum
feren ce , that which goes about or en closes . Cylchedu ,to
en circle , to in clude in a circle Perhaps the n am e
has referen ce to the Druidical circle ston es .
MALLDRAETH .—M a ll sodden tr a eth, beach
or m arsh . The place is som etim es called Cors
Ddyg a i . The hun dred of Ma lld r a eth con tain s m an y
parishes,a nd reaches from the sea n ear Aberffraw to the
vicin ity of Tr a ethc och .
MENAI BRIDGE —The Welsh n am e is Por tha ethwy,
which is variously derived . The late Rev P . B .
William s writes This ferry,probably , to
'
ok its n am e
from the hundred or division in which it is Situated
Tinda ethwy. Ia go Em lyn derives a ethwv thus : Ac th,
t errible ; wy—gwy ,water ; foun din g his reason on the
perilousn ess of the passage- across the Straits . An other
Writer thinks it is P or th—y - c a eth- wy ,the port of the
n arrow water. The place has been popularly called
Men ai Bridge ever sin ce the con struction of the world
58 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
ren own ed bridge that span s the straits . Men a i com es
from M a in - a w,whi ch sign ifies the n arrow water ; or it
m ight be Ma in - wy ,which m ean s the sam e .
MOELFRE .— A very com m on place - n am e in Wales .
It is a com poun d of Moel , bare , bald ; a n d b re, a hill ,m oun tain . The n am e is gen erally applied t o a treeless
hill,but covered with short
,sm ooth grass , som etim es
in terspersed with heath .
MYNYDD Pa RYs.
—P a rys m oun tain ,probably from
a Robert Parys, who wa s Cham berla in of North Wales
in the reign of Hen ry IV . This hill is n oted for
i ts copper ore .
NEBo .
—This vi llage takes its n am e from a Non con
form ist chapel in the place .
NIW BW RCH, or NEWBOROUGH .
—Its an cien t n am e ,according t o som e wa s Rhosfa i r , from a sm all church
dedicated t o St . Mary . Mr . Rowlands thin ks the n am e
w a s Rhos Hi r , lon g m eadow,from its situation in a n
exten sive m arshy plain on the eastern side . The place
w a s on ce the capital of Mon a , a n d the residen ce of the
prin ces of North Wales . Edward I . m ade it a free
corporation,from which circum stan ce origin ated the
presen t n am e of Newborough . Niwbwr ch probably
represen ts the older pronun ciation of Newborough .
PENCARNEDDI .
— P en ,head
,top
,en d Ca rn eddi , a
plural form of Ca rn edd,which den otes a sepulchral heap
of ston es . Ca rn edda u were the com m on m on um en ts
erected by the an cien t B riton s in hon our of their great m en .
PENMYNYDD .—The n am e sign ifies m oun tain top
,
a nd wa s given t o the village from respect to the
m an sion of the sam e n am e, which is fam ous for bein g
the place where Owain Tudor wa s born in 1384.
ANGLESEY . 59
PENSARN.—P en , head ,
end S a rn , Rom an paved
road , a causeway. A n am e of frequen t occurren ce in
Welsh topography .
PENTRAETH .—The parish is also called Lla n fa i r
Bettws—Ger a in t . The church wa s dedicated to St . Maryabout the sixth cen tury , a n d supposed t o have been built
by Cera in t or Gerim iu s, gran dson of Con stan tin e . The
village is called P en tr a eth from its bein g situated at the
head or upper en d of the sa ndy beach ,or bay , which is
called Tra ethcoch or Red W harf B a y .
PONTRIPONT .—A corruption ,
probably , of Pon trhyd
y- b on t . The an cien t n am e wa s Rhydpon t , or Rhyd
—y
- b on t ,
the ford of the bridge . The prefix pon t wa s probablyadded when an other bridge w a s built across Rhydyb on t .
RHOSBEI RIO .—Rhos, a m oor , a dry m eadow Pei r io,
the n am e of the son of Ca w of Twr c elyn , to Whom the
church is dedicated . P ei r io im plies what causes or
effects . Abwy a b a i r wy b od llc b o—carrion will cause
i t t o be kn own where it is .
RHOSCOLYN .—Rhos
,a m oor , a dry m eadow ; Colyn
is perhaps allied with Colo/n ,a colum n , a pillar. It
is said that the Rom an s erected a colum n here t o
perpetuate the m em ory of their con quests in Mona .
The an cien t n am e of the parish wa s Lla nwen/a en , from
respect to Gwenfa en ,the daughter of Pa wl Hen , who is
supposed to have foun ded a religious in stitution here .
RHOSNEIGR .—Rhos, a m oor ; neigr is gen erally
supposed to be a corruption of n ig er = b la ck , in allusion
to the black hue a n d peaty n ature of the soil .
RHOSYBOL .—Bol is a n etym ological puzzle . It looks
like a con tra ction of P a u l - P a u lin u s. Edward Llwyd
refers t o a place called P a n t -
y- P olion ,
n ear which he
60 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
foun d a n in scription of the n am e P a u lin u s. Som e thin k
t hat Sueton ius Paulinus on ce took up his abode in Taly
b olion . We are in clin ed t o thin k b a t is a corruption ofmoel ,
a coped hill . Moel Don is n ow comm on ly called B ol yDon .
Ta lyb olion wa s, probably ,som e tim e called Ta lym oelion .
The n am e therefore,den otes a m oor n ear a coped hill .
TRAETHCOCH .—Tr a eth —beach
,san ds c och, pro
bably from Gwion Goch.
TREGAIAN .—Ca i a n
,a sain t who flourished about
the m iddle Of the fifth cen tury,
a n d foun ded the
c hurch of Treg a i a n .
TRE—WALCHMAI .— Tre, a dwelling - place ; Gwa lch
u za i,the son of Meilir . The n am e wa s bestowed upon
the place about the twelfth cen tury . Gwa lchm a i im plies
a hero in w a r .
VALLEY .—A gross m utilation of the WelshM a el—dy ,
or
Jll a el - le, a house of trade or tra ffic . Tacitus in form s us
that a n exten sive trade wa s carried on between this district
a n d Irelan d in the tim e of Julius Agricola . There is a
hom estead n o t far from the place called Ty Ill i lo,
”
which , eviden tly , is a corruption of“
Ty M a elu ,
” a
house of trade .
Yxr s BRONWEN .— It is recorded in the M a b i n
og ion that B ronwen ,the daughter of Llyr ,
w a s buried
here B edd petrya l a wn a cd i I'
ronwen ,v er ch Llyr , a r [a n
a /on .~l la w
” square grave wa s m ade for B rom r'
c n,
the daughter of Llyr , on the ban ks of the river Ala w
(Ca m b rO—B riton ,v ol . ii . , p . Ynys m ean s a n islan d .
YNYS SEIRIOL .—It is also called Puffin Islan d .
It is about on e m ile in len gth a n d half a m ile in breadth .
Seir iol , son of Owen Da nwyn , erect ed his cell here in the
sixth cen tury .
62 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
C r a i , with the river Ta wy . Cr a - a f, the issuin g forth , the
c han n el torn by the im pulsive force of the stream , as
well as the act of tearin g or breakin g up a ny substan ce .
C r a fu m ean s to scratch ; er a /a n g u , t o claw ,to gripe .
ABERGWESYN .—The place is situated at the c on
flu en c e of the rivers Gwesyn a n d I r b ou . According t o
the Welsh Triads, Gwesyn is a n old Welsh word for a
shepherd,a n d he w a s so called after Gwesyn , the shep
herd of Goronwy a b Ednyfa in . The district is n oted for
rearin g sheep,a n d som e thin k that the n am e Gwesyn
w a s given to the stream that run s through the place in
hon our of som e popular shepherd .
ABERHONDDU .
—Hon ddu ,the n am e of the river that
,
on approaching the town ,flows quietly in to a n d j oin s
t he Usk t o r u n t o its destin ation . Hon represen ts or
older Hodn ,a n d ddu
,black
,seem s t o indicate the
r espective hue of the water . Man y Welsh stream s
a nd lakes received their n am es from the peculiar hue
Of their respective waters , such as Gwenflrwd ,white
stream ; Pwllg la s, blue pool . Llewellyn uses the word
hoen in that sen se : Hoen b loda u ha ], the colour of
the sum m er flowers . Hoen also im plies livelin ess,
gladn ess .
Perhaps hoen wa s used t o den ote the lively n ature
o f the river , a n d ddu, black , t o in dicate the hue of its
waters . Others seem t o thin k that the n am e is a c om
poun d of ha wn - hein i , swift , wild ,hasty a n d dwy ,
which
im plies a sacred cha racter . The term w a s applied by
the Druids to their sacred stream ,such as Dyfrdwy ,
&c .
We rather think the correct wordin g is H a wu - dd u,
the rapid black stream ,which is true description Of
BRECONSHIRE . 63
i ts course from its rise on the Eppyn t m oun tain to its
jun ction with the Usk .
ABERLLYFNI .—Llyfn i is a com poun d of llyfn ,
sm ooth ; a n d wy,water . The pla ce is deli ghtfully
situated at the jun ction of the Lly/n i a nd Wye Rivers .
ABERYSCIR .—A corru ption of Ab eresg a i r ,
‘
from its
situation on the river Esg a i r , which discharges itself
here in to the river Usk . Esg a i r here implies a bran ch ,
o r tributary.
BATTLE —This sm a ll parish ,according t o tradition
,
r eceived its n am e from a battle that wa s fought here ,in which Bleddyn a b M a enyr ch,
the last of the B rycha n
prin ces wa s killed by Bern ard de Newm a r ch . We fin d
several n am es in the vicin ity which favour the above
d erivation,such as Heol y Cym ry, the W elshm en
’
s ro a d
Cwm Gwyr y Ga d, the vale of the battle m en .
BEAUFORr .—The popular Welsh n am e of this place
is Gen dt , from Ken dall , the n am e of the proprietor of
the Ironworks that were on ce the m ain stay of the place .
The pre 'sen t n am e wa s given in hon our of the Duke of
Beaufort .
BEULAH .—This villa g e takes its n am e from a chapel
of that n am e which belon g s to the Congregation al b ody .
BRONLLYS . —Som e Spell it Bryn llys, a n d others
B rwyn llys, but the form er is the correct wording . A
farm house in the parish is called B ryn y Groes, the hill
of the cross . History poin ts to the probability that
wars were engaged in here , from which we m a y in fer tha t
a llys, a court , wa s held on a certain hill in the vicin ity .
The old castle is still called B ron llys.
64 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
BRYNMAWR .
—It wa s an cien tly called W a u n Helyg en ,
w illow - tree com m on ,from a m eadow in the place which
a boun ded w ith willow- trees,but when it becam e a n
im portan t seat Of the iron a n d coal trades , the old
n am e wa s chan ged for the n ew a n d m ore dig n ified on e
of B rynm a wr,the big hill .
BUILTH .—This n am e is a m utation of B u a llt . Som e
are Of Opin ion that B u a llt is the B u lceu m Si lu r u m of the
Rom ans, but others are in duced t o thin k the n am e is a.
derivative of B u a l , the wild 0x or buffalo . Lla n fa i r—yn
M u a llt , St . Mary’s Church in the wood of the wild ox.
H istorian s believe that the wild ox ran ged unm olested
in the forests Of this district . We offer the followin gderivation ; B u ,
a n ox ; a llt , g a llt , a wooded em in en ce .
CAPEL ISAP .
—Isa /, lower , is a difieren t i a added to
distin guish it from Ca pel Ucha f.
CAPEL UCHAF.
— The n am e m ean s the higher chapel,
a n d it wa s so called from the chapel of c a se that wa sbuilt in the place .
CAPELYFFIN .
—The n am e sig n ifies boun dary chapel ,a n d is derived by Mr . J on es (History of Breckn ock )thus In 1708 ther e wa s a lon g dispute in the
ecclesia stica l court about this chapel (chapel of the
boun da ry) ; Lewis Thom as , clerk ,vicar Of Llan igon
,
refused t o do duty here as there wa s n o salary a n n exedt o the cure , whereupon he wa s cited to the bishop ’s.
court at the prom otion of som e of the parishion ers,a n d
in the articles filed a gain st him it is stated tha t som e
tim es a corpse rem ain ed un in terred a whole n ight , a n d
children died without being baptized in con sequen ce of
the vica r ’s n eglect , thou gh he had theretofore reg u larlyofficiated ther e by him self or curate for ten or twelve
BRECONSHIRE 65
years. In this cau se m any old witn esses were exa m in ed ,
two or three of them say the chapel is in the ham let of
Bla en bwch, in the parish of Glasbury ,others that it is in
Lla n igon ,but a ll agree that it is a chapel of ease to the
latter .
CATHEDIN .—Mr . Jon es , in his History of Breck
n ock,states that this vicin ity wa s given by Bern ard
de Newm a r ch towards the support of Gwrg a n ,who
wa s to b e kept confin ed in Brecon Castle . The
origin of the word is un certain .
CEFN - COED - Y - CYMMER .—Cefn , back , ridge ; coed ,
wood ; y ,the ; cym m er ,
con fluen ce of waters . The
village is situated on a risin g ,a n d (one tim e ) very
woody em in en ce , below which the Ta ] Fa wr a n d Ta f
Fecha n em brace each other .
CENOL .—Ca n ol , m iddle , is the right wording . This
picturesque n eighbourhood form s the m iddle of Lla nfiha ng el
- Cwm du ; hen ce the n ame .
CIL - LE .—This n am e sign ifies a sequestered place .
CILMERY .—Some thin k the right wordin g is Ci t M i er
'
i
oi l , is spelt Ki l in Irelan d a n d sig n ifies a church m i er i ,
plural of m i a r en ,a bram ble . We rather think the n am e
is a corruption of Gi l - M a ry , St . Mary’
s Church ,
COLBREN .
— C0l,a sharp hillock ; pren , a tree , a
piece of wood . Som e thin k the word is a corruption of
c oel b ren ,a pie 'ce of wood used in choosing or balloting .
CRAY .—This n am e is , proba bly , a corruption of
c r a i,Which ,
when used geographica lly , den otes a deep
place in a valley . The Word is used to sig n ify a hole
in the handle of a weapon . Cr a i'
r n odwydd ,the eye or
hole of a n eedle .
F
66 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
The Swan sea reservoir is s ituated in this beautiful
valley .
CRICKADARN .— Som e are of opin ion tha t C ru g - c a da rn
is the true orthography . Cr u g , heap or ban k ; c eda rn ,
stron g . The church wa s bui lt upon the t op of a craggy
hillock . We rather thin k it is a con traction of C a ry ,
c eda r n ,from the rocks a n d ston es which appear
frequen tly on the surface in differen t parts of the parish
The river Clettwr rushes over rocks a n d throu gh craggy
places un til i t falls in to the W ye at Erwood . Clettwr
is a con traction of c a led—ddwr , hard water , or it m ight be
Clyd- ddwr , sheltered w a ter .
CRICKHOW EL .— A m utation of Cr u g Hywel , or Cer r i g
H v zr'el . C r u g , a hea p ; hywel , con spicuous . Cer r i g ,
ston es ; Howel,proper n am e . Hi storia n s differ as t o
the application of the word Hywel . Som e apply it t o
the place from the con spicuity of the hill ; others apply
it to Howel , the prin ce of Glam organ . The latter
theory is supported by the fact that in this vicin ity the
territorial boun daries of Howel a n d the Lords O fBreckn ock were determ in ed . After the battle Howel
raised a huge heap of “ ston es t o defin e the boun dary
hen ceforth ; hen ce the n am e Cr u g Hywel , Howel’s heap .
Cerr ig Hywel alludes t o the sam e circum stan ce . Som ed erive the n am e from Cr u g Hywel , a n an cien t British
fortress , surroun ded by large heaps of ston es,Situated
about two m iles n orth—n orth—east of the town,the
rem ain s ofwhich are still visible .
C\V1\IIOY .—A c orruption of Cwm I a u , the vale of
yoke , so called , probably ,from the resem blan ce of the
vale t o oxen ’s yoke . Cym erwch fy i a u a rnoch.
” takeMy yoke upon you .
BRECONSHIRE . 67
DEFYNOG .—Som e derive this n am e from “
dyfn og ;which sign ifies a place aboun din g with glen s . Byin ,
deep . Devon com es from the sam e root . Others thin k
the patron sain t is Dyfnog ,the son of Medrod ,
a gran d
son of Cr a doc Frei ch—fm s,who flourished in the sixth
c en tury . The right wordin g is Tref Cynog . Sain t
Cynog , son of B rycha n ,flourished in the fifth cen tury ,
a n d foun ded a church here , which is dedicated to him .
His n am e is preserved also in Mer thyr Cynog ,a nd Lla m
DOLYGAER. Dol,m eadow g a wk
—c a ter , a wall . Thisplace took its n am e from a farm house of the sam e
n am e .
DUKESTOWN .— In hon our of the Duke of Beaufort .
DYFNANT .—A com poun d of dy/n ,
deep ,a n d wa n t , a
b rook .
ERWOOD .—Som e thin k this is a n Anglicized form
of the Welsh Erw-
yd ,which sign ifies the lan d of corn .
I t is,probably
,a corruption of y rhyd , the ford ,
in
allusion t o a certain ford in the river Wye , where
cattle were won t to cross in tim e of yore .
FELINFACH.—The n am e m ean s the little m ill
probably derived from a n old m ill which form ed the
n ucleus of the Village .
GARTH .
—From an old m an sion of the n am e , when ce
the celebrated Charles Wesley had his better half .”
G arth has been explain ed in the in troduction .
GLASBURY .—‘This n am e is derived by
,
som e from,
g la s,green
,v erdan t , a nd b u ry , borough , probably from
t he beauty a nd fertility. of the valley . The an cien t
68 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
n am e of this place wa s Y Chis,the green or verdan t
in closure . Cla sdz’
r m ean s glebe lan d .
GWENDDWR .—A com pound of gwen , fem in in e form
of gwyn ,white , clear , tran sparen t , a n d dwr , water .
GW RAVOG .—This n am e has suffered a little from
m utation . Gwa r,a ridge a / from ha ], summ er hat /0g .
sum m er—li ke .
HALFWAY .—This village derives its n am e from a n
inn so called ,which is situated half - wa y between Tre
c a stell a n d Lla ndov ery .
HAY .—The origin al n am e w a s Gelli , which sign ifies
a n en closed park or forest,con tain in g wood or boscag e
within a fen ce or pale ; a grove ; a n d the presen t n am e
is supposed t o have b een derived from the Norm an
Fren ch H a ye or H a i e,which origin a lly m ean t the hedge
or in closure itself on ly , but in course of tim e its m ean in g
wa s am plified ,a n d the n am e wa s used t o den ote the
wood a nd groun d in closed . H a ter,t o in close . Here
we perceive the Welsh n am e supplan ted by tha t of the
Norm an Castle .
LIBANUs.
— This place probably derives its n am e
from a sacred edifice so called ,which belon gs t o the
Con gregation al body .
LLANAFAN FAWR .
— The chu rch wa s dedicated t o
bishop Im a n or I v a n ,whose n am e is foun d in the list of
'
the prelates of St . David ’s durin g the ten th cen tury,
a n d who is supposed to have been m urdered by the
Dan es in a m ea dow on the W hefr i side , a little belowthe Vicara ge house , where a m a en hi r wa s pla ced
,
obviously ,in mem ory of the m a rtyred bishop . On a n
altar—tom b in the churchyard the following inscriptionis discern ible ' H t
'
c fa c et s c tu s Am n a s Epi scopu s.
70 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
dedicated to Ellyn ed or Eilin eth ,a daughter of Brycha n .
Som e thin k it wa s an cien tly called Lla n ellyn ed ,of which
Lla n elly is a n abbreviation .
LLANFEUGAN .
—Men g a n ,the son of Gwyn d a f Hen ,
wa s a sain t of the sixth cen tury ,a n d foun ded the
church which bears his n am e .
LLANFIHANGEL CWMDU .
—Lla nfiha ng el , St . Michael’
s
church. Opin ion s differ as t o Cwm du , the black or
gl oom y vale . The old in habita n ts very stron gly ob
jec t ed to the n am e Cwm du , as the followin g couplet
Shows Ca m enwi r ef Cwm d u ,
Cwm gwy n, yw’
n cwm mi .
I t is wron g ly c a l led t he v a le of g loom ,
O u rs is a fa i r a n d br i g h t c oom b .
A glan ce at this cheerful vale would n ever suggest such
a gloom y appellation . The an cien t n am e of the parish
wa sLla nfiha ngel tref Cerm'
a u,or Ca er a u , from the n um erous
fortification s there are in it , a n d the presen t n a m e is
supposed t o have taken its origin from the black m oor
ston e rock ,which is on the brow of a n adj acen t hill .
Som e der ive it from Cwm De, the south vale , from i t s
bein g situated in the southern part of the c a n t rev of
Crickhowell . We have in stan ces of du bein g chan ged
in to de a n d dee,such as Tyda - Tydee. &c .
,a n d it m ight
have un dergon e the sam e process here .
LLANFIHANGEL NANTBRAN .
— The church wa s dedi
c a t ed to St . Michael , a n d is situated on a tributaryc alled B r a n . N a n i B r a n , Bran brook .
LLANFILO .—The church is dedicated to Milb u rg ,
the eldest daughter of Merwa ld ,Kin g of Mercia , a n d a
sain t of the seven th cen tury . F/yn on Vi lo,a well in
the n eighbourhood,also preserves her n am e .
BRECONSHIRE . 71
LLANFRYNACH .—B ry n a ch,
a n abbot a n d con fessor ,m arried Cor t h ,
the daughter of B rycha n . The church
wa s dedicated to him .
LLANGAMMARCH .
— Som e thin k the n am e sign ifies
the church upon the river Ga mm on/ ck,but the gen eral
opin ion is that the church is dedicated t o Ga mm a reh, a
gran dson of Brych a n .
LLANGAe - TALYLLYN .
—Ga styn wa s a n em in en t
religious teacher in B rycha n’
s fam ily , a n d the above
church wa s dedicated to him . Ta lyllyn ,the en d of the
lake,in allusion to the situation of the church .
LLANGANTEN .
— The church is dedicated to Ca n ten ,
gran dson of Brycha n .
LLANGATTOCK .—The church is dedicated to Ca ttwg ,
gran dson of Brycha n .
LLANGORS .
—A con traction of Lla n—yn -
y-
gors, the
church in the Fen or Marsh . The soil n ear the lake is
very m arshy . The correct n am e of the lake is Llyn sa
fa ddcm ,the stan din g water or lake . An old tradition
sa ys that the lake covers the rem ain s of a n an cien t
a n d popul ous city called Lov en ti u m .
LLANGYNIDR .—St . Cyn idr , gran dson of B rycha n ,
foun ded the churches at Ll a n gym’
dr a n d Ab erysc i r ,which
were subsequen tly dedicated to him a n d St . Mary .
LLANIGON .—The old church wa s dedicated either
to E ig en ,daughter of Cradoc ab Bran , or to Eig ion or
Eig ron ,son of Ca w,
a sain t of the sixth cen tury . The
presen t church is dedicated t o N icholas .
LLANILID .
—The church wa s dedicated to St . Ilid ,
a n d is situated on the ban ks of'
the river Crai .
72 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
LLANLLEONFOEL .—Lleon m ight have referen ce to
S a m Lleon or Sa m Helen ,Helen ’s causeway , a bran ch
of which,it is supposed
,passed throu gh the place .
The suffix foel sig n ifies a bare tra ct of lan d .
LLANSPYDDYD .—A corrupti on ,
accordin g to som e ,of Lla n - osb a i dd - ty ,
a house of en tertainm en t or refresh
m en t for guests . In an cien t tim es hospitable m an sion s
were kept by the m on ks to en tertain m a n a n d beast
free of charge , a n d the chief officer therein wa s ca lled
Host i lla r i u s, whose sole duty wa s“
To welcom e the
com in g,speed the going gu est .” It is said that this
hospi t im n wa s supported by the priory of Malvern .
LLANWRTYD .—The church
,accordin g t o som e
,is
dedicated t o St . W r tyd ,but we cann ot find the n am e in
Bonedd y Sa i n t ." Its proxim ity t o the river Ir v on ,
where, in tim es of yore , there wa s a ford ,
which is now
spa n n ed by a ston e bridge , in duces us to think the right
wordin g is Lla n - wr th-
y- rhyd ,
the church by the ford . A
place in Herefordshire is ca lled Byford from the situa
tion of the church by a ford . The a n cien t n am e of the
village wa s P on trhydyb ere, which is a com poun d of pa n t ,bridge ; rhyd ,
ford ; y ,the ; fler a u ,
an kles ; sign i fy in g a
bridge spann ing a ford which on e could wade w ithout
going over on e’s ankles . I rfon ,or Ir/a wn ,
sign ifies the
oozin g s from the turba ry,which is very descriptive of
the river .
LLANYWERN .—Gwem m ean s a bog or swam p ;
gwem en ,the alder tree the alder grows in wet swam py
places . The n am e sign ifies the church in the swam p
or alderwood .
LLECHFAEN.—The an cien t etym ology of this n am e
m ean s the “ upright or lofty ston e . There wa s a
BRECONSHIRE . 73
c hapel of ease here som et im e to the m other church ofLla n a m lech.
LLECHRYD .—From a farm of the n am e
,but it is
n ow called Rhym n ey Bridge from the railway station .
LLWYNEGROG .
—The right word in g is Llwyn -
y-
g rog ,
which m ean s the bush of the cross .
LLYSWEN .—The n am e sign ifies a white court . A
Welsh pri n ce resided in the parish at som e period , a n dprobably held a court here ; hen ce the n am e . Som et hin k it is Llys Owen ,
Owen ’s court but who this Owenwa s
, we are n ot in form ed .
LLYWEL .—Som etim es spelt l
’
wel,which
,accord
in g t o som e is a m utation of Llu - lle, the residen ce of
the arm y ,in allusion to the soldiers of Rhys ab Tewdwr
m akin g this pla ce one of their station s to resist the
attacks of the Norm an in vaders. It is derived by som e
from Lle Wyllt , a n ephew of Rhys a b Tewdwr . We offer
the following : Lly ,what is m an ifest ; wel—gmel , see ;
sign ifyin g a con spicuous place . Trec a stell m oun tain is
feet high .
MAESYGWARTHAF.—Ma es, a field gwa r tha f, the
u pper part , the summ it . The village lies in the upper
part of the parish ; hen ce its descriptive n a m e . Som e
of the in habitan ts thin k the nam e is a cor ruption of
M a esygwa r theg , cattle field .
MAESYMYNYS .—Ym , ya , in ynys, islan d therefore ,
it literally m ean s a field in the islan d . This derivation
i s supported by the fa ct that Lla nynys is the n am e of
the con t iguou s parish .
MERTHYR CYNOG .—Merthyr , m artyr Cynog , the
e ldest son of Brycha n . He wa s m urdered by the Sa xon
74 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
pagan s on a m oun tain called Y Fa n,where a church
wa s built on his grave in com m em oration of his m artyr
dom ,which wa s called Merthyr Cyn og .
NANTYFFIN.—The n ame sign ifies the boun dary “
brook . The boun ds of a pari sh or coun ty are frequen tlydefin ed by certain m arks or boun daries , such as heaps
of ston es , dikes,hedges , ditches , rivers , stream s ,
rivulets , &c .
NANTYRARIAN.— It sign ifies the silver brook .
NEWCHURCH .—The an cien t n am e of this church wa s.
Lla n - ddu la s- ti r -
yr—Ab b a d .
— It wa s presen ted by Rhys ab
Gruffydd ,t o the m on astery of Strata Florida , on accoun t
of which it wa s called Ti r—yr- Ab b a d , abbot
’s lan d . In .
1716 a n ew church wa s built here hen ce the n ew n am e .
ONLLWYN .
—This appears like a tran sposition of
Llwyn On ,the ash grove .
PANTYCELYN .—P a n t , a hollow ,
a low place ; c elyn .
holly wood .
PATRISHow.
—The n am e is a corruption,either of
P a r tha u yr Ishow,the territory of Ishow,
the patron sain t
o f the parish,or of Mer thyr Ishom . It appears that
B ishop Herewa ld, in the eleven th cen tury ,
dedi cated
the church t o Ishow,
a n d n am ed it Merthyr Yssm'
.
PENCELLI .—This is a com poun d of pen ,
head , a nd
celli,grove .
PENDERYN .—A corruption probably of P enyda ren ,
which is a very frequen t term in South Wales,sign ifyin g
a rocky cliff , a rocky tum p . The church is situated on
the very summ i t of a rock . P en - m a i la rd is close by ,
which is a corruption of P en - m oel—a r th ,the summ i t of the
ba re cliff.
BRECONSHIRE . 75
PENTRE BERW .—P en tre— village Berm
,perhaps
refers t o P la s Berm . Berw’
rdwr m ean s water cress,a n d
b erw’
r g erddi—garden cress . Near P la s Berm there is a
sm all waterfall . Berm m ean s also a boiling,a n eb u lli
tion .
PENTRE BW AAU .
— P en tre —villa ge ; Bwa a a — bows .Tradition has it that this place w a s n oted som etim e for
bein g the arm oury where ou r forefathers kept their bowsin tim e of wa r .
PENTREFELIN .
—P en tre, village ; felin , m ill .
PENTRE SOLERs.
— From the Solers or de Sola r i is,Norm an con querors
, who settled in the n eighbourhood ,
a n d con tin ued to be very wea lthy a n d influen tial here
un til the middle of the seven teen th cen tury . An other
bran ch of the house of Solers settled a t Paun tley a n d
Shipton Solers,in Gloucestershire .
PENW YLLT .—A corruption of P en - wyli (gwyll) , the
gloom y place . Gwyll is a n old Welsh word to den ote a
fairy,a n d perhaps this isolated spot wa s a fairy hill .
PONTBRENLLW YD.
— P on t,bridge pren , wood llwyn
grey,a dorable . In olden tim es a very an cien t oak - tree
w a s thrown across the rivulet in the place , which wa s
a very good specim en of the un adorn ed wooden bridges
of our forefathers . In course of tim e this old m uch - worn
oak becam e a kin d of trough ,for which it wa s called
P on t b ren llwyd .
PONTNEDDFECHAN .—Nedd fecha n ,
the lesser Neath ,
is a tributary em ptying itself in to the greater Neath
river,a n d span n ed by a bridge in the village , hen ce the
n am e .
76 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
PONTSARN .
—P on t,bridge sa rn ,
Rom an paved road .
The n am e is a n abbreviation of P on t—y—Sa rn—hi r , the bridge
of the long Rom an road . On e bran ch of the Rom an road
called Sa rn H i r wen t through the Rhym n ey Valley‘Gelligaer
,Twyn ywa u n ,
Pen yg a rn du ,P a n t c a d ifor ,
Pon t
sa rn a n d ascen ded the Brecon Bea con s a n d term in ated
at Ca er b a nn a u n ea r the town of Brecon . This road
crossed the Taff a little below the presen t bridge , where
the river could be forded .
PONTSENNY .
—The n am e sign ifies a bridge across
t he Sen ny river . Sen ny is derived by som e from sa n ,a
fishery,n ets a n d gwy,
water ; sign ifying a river
aboun din g in fish . Mr . Jon es H istory of Breck
n ock derives it from the Celtic sea n a i dd,t o drop or
ooze forth,the n am e , accordingly ,
sign ifying the oozin g
or flowing water.
PONTSTICYLL .—A com poun d of poa l‘, bridge ; a n d
ysz'ig l , a stile , from the An glo - Saxon st ig el , a step .
S t ig a n , t o ascen d . About the beginn in g of this cen tury
there wa s a n old bridge,a little below the village
,Wi th
a stile at each en d of it,from which the place received
its n am e .
PRINCETOWN .
— Fr0m a n old public house in the
place called Prin ce of Wales .
PW LLGW RAc n .
— Pwll , a pool gwr a ch,a b a g ;
l iterally , the hag’s pool . The village lies in a deep
v alley at the base of Talgarth Hill .
RHOSFERRIG .
— Rhos, m oor, m eadow ; Fer r ig from
Fer reg ,a n exten sive district situa te between the rivers
W ye a n d Severn . The suffix is probably a corruptiono f Mea r ig .
78 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
TRALLW NG .—Som e thin k the n am e sign ifies a soft
place on the road or elsewhere that travellers m a y be
apt to sink in to ; a dirty , boggy place .
”Edward
Llwyd derives it from Tr a eth—lyn , a quagm ire . The
d istan ce of this place from the sea - shore dism isses the
com pon en t tr a eth from the n am e altogether . Mr . Jon es
(History of Breckn ock) thin ks the n ame is a corruption
of Tre’
r lleng , oppidzm z leg ion is, the town of the
legion,founding his reason s upon the supposition that
a summ er cam p of the secon d legion of Augustus m ust
have been at Twyn -
y-
g a er , a hill in the parish where a n
a rtificial m ound is still seen .
TRECASTELL .—Tre
,a place c a stell , castle . A castle
wa s built here by Bern ard de Newm a r ch, som e ruin s
of which are to be seen n ow ; hen ce the n am e .
TREFECCA .—The n am e sign ifies Rebecca’s hom e ,
from a n heiress of the n am e of Rebecca Prosser , who
built it in the reign of Elizabeth .
TREFIL.-Som e t hin k the n am e is a m utation of
Ti r - foel , barren lan d ,which is very descriptive of the
place,but we rather thin k it is a com poun d of i re, a
place,a nd m a l
,a n an im al , a beast . Stud farm s were
very num erous am on g the an cien t Briton s , a nd one
m ight have been here .
TRENGARTH . Tre,a hom estead , a village n -
yn , in ,
y ,the
, g a r th, prom on tory .
TRE ’R ESGOB .—The ten an ts in this place owe suit
,
a nd service t o the bishop ’s courts leet a nd courts
baron , a nd pay their chief ren ts at Lla nddc zc'i , St .
David ’s . Tre’
r Esgob m ean s B ishop’s place .
VAEXOR—This is derived ' b y som e from M a en a wr,
which sign ifies a district surrounded by a wall,a m an or .
BRECONSHIRE . 79
Accordin g t o the laws of Howell the Good,the M a en a wr
c on tain ed 1024 acres . This on e wa s probably thed em esn e attached t o Morla is castle . In an cien t MSS.
the“
parish is called Fa enor Wen,sign i fying Gwen or
Gwenfirewi’
s dem esn e or m an or . It survives in North
Wales as Va enol . Som e thin k it is etym ologically dis
tin c t from English m an or,a nd seem s to have m ean t a.
g roup of ston e buildin gs . Others think that the root
is b a n , high or lofty ; a nd‘or
’ added t o den ote a borderor a boun dary . The pa rish is situate n ear the base ofB a nn a u Brychein iog—Brecon Beacon s .
VELINDRE .—The right wording is y feli n - dre, the
m ill of the town,from a n old m ill
,called the lord ’
s
m ill , that stood here in an cien t tim es .
YSTRADFELLTE .—Ystr a d has already been explain ed .
I t m ean s here a flat or low valley form ed by the course
of the riverMellte. Mellte—m ellten ,lightn ing . The ri ver
is so called because it run s very rapidly for som e
d istan ce on the surface , a n d then it is sudden ly lost under
g round .
Ysr RADGYNLAIS .—It is supposed that this l
'
st r a d ,
vale,wa s the m arriage portion that Gn n len s a p Glewisseg ,
prin ce of Gwen t , a n d father of Sain t Ca t twg , received
with his wife , Gwla dys, daughter of Bry cha n . Others
state that the church is dedicated t o St . Mary,a n d n ot
t o St . Gn n lens, a n d that the proper n am e of the parish
is Ystr a d Gwrla is, or Ga rwla z'
s,sign ifying the vale of the
rough - soun din g brook ,
”a nd is derived from a stream so
called,which form s a boun dary between the coun ties
of Breckn ock a n d Glam organ . Iago Em lyn derives
Cyn la is from eyn ,prim eval a nd d a is, a tren ch through
which a stream flows.
CARDIGANSH IRE .
CARDIGAN is a corruption of Ceredz’
g ion , the orig in al
n am e , which wa s so called after Ceredig , the son of
Cu n edda W ledig , who beca m e its king a bout the en d of
the fourth cen tury . It is also called Ab er teifi, from the
situation of its cou n ty town at the estuary of the river
Tei v i . Ta / is the r a dix,which m ean s spreadin g . Ta f—gwyTeifi,
the Spreadin g or exten ding water .
ABERAERON .—This place is situated at the m outh.
of the river Aeron , which is proba bly a com poun d of a i r
a n d a in ,sign ifyin g bright a n d clear water.
ABERARTH .—'
This village is situated at the m outhof the river Ar th ; hence the n am e . Ar th is the Welsh
for b ear,
”a nd perhaps the river received its n am e on
a ccou n t of the n oisy,blu sterin g , bear- like character of
its waters . Arthu m ean s to growl , like a bear ; to bark
roughly or hoarsely . Ar thog is the nam e of a n other
brook in the coun ty ,which m ean s bearish
,gruff.
Cy/a r th, t o bark , belon gs t o the sam e fam ily of words .
ABERCERDIN .—A rivulet called Cerdin flows in to
the river ' Teiv i about a m ile a bove Llandyssul ; hen ce
the n a m e of the pla ce . The comm on opin ion in the
n eighbourhood is that the rivulet wa s so called fromthe abun dan c e of cerdz
’
n , ash trees , that on ce a dorn ed i t s
ba n ks .
ABERGW Roc .—Gwrog , the river
's nam e , is a corrup
t ion of gwyrog , crooked , devious . Another river in the
sam e cou n ty is called Gwyre, which m a y have the sa m e
sign ification .
CARDIGANSHIRE . 81
ABERMAID .—Ma i d m ean s a boun da ry , what
separates , or lim i ts . The n am e fit ly describes the
place , sin ce i t is a term in atin g poin t separating on e
valley from the other.
ABERPEITHNANT .—P a i th, clear , open ,
tran sparen t ;n a nt , brook : sign ifyi ng the m outh of the clear brook .
P a i th is the chi ef radix in the word gob a i th,hope . One
who possesses hope has a clear view of the futureDyfiryn P a i th, the vale of prospect , is in the sam e
coun ty .
ABERPORTH .—P or th m ean s a harbour . The place
is a ki n d of a n atural harbour, on accoun t of which it
wa s called Ab er -
y- P or th, the m outh of the harbour .
ABERYSTWYTH .—This fashion able town a nd seaport
is situated on the c onflu x of the rivers Ystwyth a n d
Rheidiol , the form er of which gives the town its n am e .
Its a n cien t n am e wa s Lla n b a da rn Ga erog , but it has
been kn own by its presen t n am e sin ce the reign of Queen
Eli za beth .
ARDUDW Y .—Ar , upon or above ; ta d , soi l , lan d ;
wy ,water ; literally , on the lan d or banks of the Wye .
ARGOED .—Ar - a rd , sign ifyin g height ; coed trees .
The n am e sign ifies a place sheltered by woods
ATPAR .—Pl '0b a b ly a n Anglicized form of At - b a r ,
which m ean s towards the top of the hill . The villa ge.
is also call ed Trefhedyn , which is probably a corruption
of Tref—y- din .
BEr rws- BLEDRws.—Bettws has already been ex
plain ed . The church is dedicated t o St . Bledrws ;
hen ce the n am e .
82 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
BEr rws IFAN .
—The church is dedicated to StJ ohn . Ifa n or Ien a n is a n old Welsh form of I c a n , John .
BLAENCARON .—This pla ce is situated n ear the
source of the river Caron hen ce the n am e .
BLAENHOW NANr .—This rivulet is ca lled Hown a n t ,
which is a corrupti on of koyw,lively ; a n d n a n t , brook ;
a n d the place wa s so called from its situation n ear the
source of the Hown a n t .
B LAENPORTH .—B la en ,
the extrem e end porth
(portus) harbour . In 1114 Gru ffydd ab Cyn a n ,Prin ce
of North Wales , cam e t o Ceredigion Isc oed ,a n d laid
siege to a fort that Ea rl Gilbert a n d the Flem ings had built
a t a place called Blaen Porth Gwytha i .
BLAENYPORTH .—Bla en
,the extrem e end ; y ,
the ;porth,
harbour . The parish li es on the extrem e en d of
t he huge rock which form s the southern side of the
n atural harbou r called Aberporth .
BRECHFA .
—A com pound of b reak,brin dled
,freckled ,
a n d m a n , a place . It is supposed that B rycha n ,who
cam e origin ally from Irelan d , a n d settled in Brecon
shire in the sixth cen tury,wa s so called from his bein g
freckled .
BRONGEsr .—B ron , a slope , or side of a hill ;
literally , breast . Cest, a deep glen between two
m oun tain s . The n am e is quite descriptive of the situa
tion of rhe place .
BRONGWYN .—A parish in Cardigan a n d Pem broke
coun ties . Som e are of opin ion that this n am e is a reli c
of the Druids , t o whose system belonged Ceryg y B rynGwyn , i .e. , the ston es of the hill of j udicatur e. I f so
,
the prefix b ron here is a corruption of b ryn ,a hill .
CARDIGANSHIRE . 83
BW LCHCRW YS .
—Bwlch, a break or breach ,a gap
,a
d efile ; erwys, a varian t form of c roes, a cross . Then am e Bwlch-
y-
g roes is of frequen t occurren ce in thePrin cipali ty . We have m an y in stan ces of c roes bein gc han ged to c rwys, Y Crwys, P a n tyc rwys a n d Bwlch-
y- erwys,
& c .
“ Da n ez'
g rwys,” un der the cross
,is a phrase even
n ow frequen tly used in Wales in referen ce to the
posture of a dead body before it is put in to the coffin .
In Popish tim es it wa s custom ary t o put a cross or a
c rucifix on a dead body lyin g in its shroud ; but n ow ,
a lthough the phrase is occasion ally heard,the usage of
this Popish relic ha s been en tirely aban don ed am ong
the Welsh people . Man y Welsh places still retain the
n am e , am ong which is Bwlcherwys. It wa s custom ary
in olden tim es for pilgrim s t o prostrate them selves at
c ertain passes t o in voke the blessin gs of the Cross
before goin g through ; hen ce the n am e Bwlchc rwys or
Bwlchyg roes.
l h
CAPEL Y DRINDOD.
—This village probably derives
i t s n am e from a Welsh Calvin istic Methodist chapel of
t he n am e .
CAPEL S ION .— So called from the Calvin istic Methodist
chapel in the place .
CAPEL GW NDW N.—Ca pel , chapel own ,
a n elevation ,
a risin g ; dwn ,dusky , swarthy , dark .
CEINEW YDD .—A hybrid n am e m ade up of qu a y ,
from Fren ch qn a l , a m ole or ban k form ed toward thesea or on the side of a river for the purpose of loading
a n d un loadin g vessels ; a n d n ewydd ,n ew
CELLAN .
—The n am e of this parish is a com pound
o f cell,a shelterin g place , a grove : a n d lla n , a chu rch ,
sign ifying a church in a grove .
84 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
CENARTH .— Som e m ain tain that the right wordin g
is Gen a r lh, the bear’s ja w . Tradition has it that the
jaw- bon e of a bear wa s foun d in the place , a nd its head
in Pen a r th. Pen arth , as we show elsewhere , is P enyg a r th,
a nd we are in clin ed t o thin k that Cen arth is a com poun d of
ce/n ,ridge
,back ; a n d g a r th,
a fort,a hill
,a cape . The
n am e is a gra phic description of the place , bein gperched on a high ridge , ever watchin g the graceful
m ovem en ts of the Tcivi .
CEULAN .—This place derives its n am e from the
river Geela n that flows through it . Traditi on poin ts t o
this place as Taliesin ’s place of sepulture .
CILCENIN .—Cl l , a place of retreat ; Cenn i n , a
corrupted form of St . Car men,t o whose m em ory the
parish church is dedicated .
C ILCENNIN .—This place probably takes its n a m e from
Cenwyn., a sain t belon gin g t o the con gregation of Pa d a rn ,
called Bangor Pa d a rn in Llan ba darn Fawr. The churchis dedicated to St . Cenwyn .
C ILIAU AERON .—The retreats on the Aeron .
CLARAc n .—This place takes its n am e from the
river Cla ra ch, n ear which it is situated . Cla r—c la er,.
clear ; a eh, river.
CNW CH COCH .-A corruption , probably of a n Irish
form of C is Cook,the red kn oll or m oun d .
CROEs.-This place takes its n am e from the river
Croes, which sign ifies cross .
CW M BARRE .—~A valley through which the river'
B a r re flows . B a r , a lim it ; re, a corruption of ra n ,
pluralising b a r . The river is the boun dary between.
86 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
GW ENFYL .
— The village takes its n am e from St .
Gwen fyl , who flourished 433—464 The Calvin istic
Methodist s began to worship here in a barn own ed by the
Rev . Dl . Rowlan ds,Llan geitho
,in 1757. The Post
Office wa s open ed here in July ,1853 .
GWBERT .—Gwy— water b er l z per l , pretty .
HAWEN .
—The village takes its n am e from the
river H a wen . H a wen ist a com poun d of a w,a m ovin g
agen t,water
,a n d a n or a in
,brook
,sign ifyin g the runn in g
stream . Som e thin k the n am e is a n a bbreviated form of
ha fod—wen , the whi te summ er - house .
HENBELIN .
~—A corrupted form,probably
,of Hen
feli n,old m ill .
HENFYNYW .— The n am e sign ifies Old Men ev ia .
Tradition has it that the cathedral of St . David ’s wa sorigin ally design ed t o have been erected here . This
parish is fam ous for being the place where the patron sain t
of Wales Spen t his earlier days . A sprin g that is
n ear the church is still called Ffyn on Ddewi , St . David’
s
Well .
HENLLAN .
— The n am e sign ifies old church,a n d it
poin ts ou t the great an tiquity of the origin al edifice ofthis pari sh .
HENLLYS . ~—Hen, old ; llys,
court,hall
,or seat
,
sign ify in g the an cien t hall . Hen llys a n d Ga dlys a re
found t o be very n um erous in Wa les,as traces of the
battles fought by the Welsh prin ces .
LLANANERCH .
— A com poun d of Lla n a n d lla n n er ch,a n
en closure , a n d som etim es the la tter sign ifies a risin gemi n en ce .
CARDIGANSHIRE . 87
LLANARTH .—Ar th here m ean s a bear
,accordin g t o
som e . The gen eral opin ion of the inhabitan ts is that
bears existed here at som e rem ote period . It is hardly
credible that the sain tly Cym ry , would do the bear su ch
a n hon our as to couple his n ame with the sacred
edi fice ; We derive the n am e from Lla n ,church ; a nd
g a r th, a hi ll , a n d som etim es en closure .
LLANBADARN .—The church is dedicated to P a da rn ,
who,accordin g to Usher
,wa s a n Arm orican bishop ,
a nd cam e t o Wales with his cousin Ca dv a n in 516.
He left Illtyd’
s sem in ary for Ceredigion , a n d gathered a
con gregation of 12 0 m em bers at a place called after
wards Lla n b a da rn Fa wr . The differen tia fa wr wa s added
to m ark its pre - em in en ce over the other parishes of the
sam e n am e , a n d t o distin guish it from the adj acen t
town of Aberystwyth ,which wa s an cien tly called Lla n
b a da rn Ga erog .
LLANBEDR - PONT - STEPHAN .—The popular En glish
n am e is Lam peter , which is a n Angli cized form of
Lla n b edr . We fin d m any churches in Wales bearing
the n am e Pedr , Peter, but who this Peter wa s is a
m atter of con j ecture . Most writers poin t to Peter the
Apostle . From a certain docum en t the pon t , bridge ,appears to have been erected early in the fifteen th
cen tury . Rhys,the son of David a p Rhys , of
Pen carreg, m arried Llen an ,daughter of Ieu a n David
Llwyd a p David Ddu a p David Decka a p Steven ,the
m a n who erec ted La m peter b r i dge a t his own expense.
"
LLANDAIN FACE —Dam m ean s beautiful , fin e ja ch
li ttle . The n am e sign ifies the beautiful little church .
LLANDEGW Y .—Tegwy wa s a sain t of the sixth
88 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
cen tury,a n d a descendan t of Nudd Hael . The above
chu r ch'
wa s dedicated t o him .
LLANDYSILIOGoc o .
— St . Tysi lio ,a bishop a n d a n
em in en t author,who flourished about the m iddle of the
seven th cen tury . B ru t Tysi lio,a copy of which is in the
Myv . Ar ch ,is attributed t o him . He wa s the patron
sain t of m a n y churches in Wales . The differen tia
g og o is a m utation of gogo/a n ,caves
,which are very
num erous in the parish .
LLANDYSSUL .—Tysn l , a d escen dan t of Cu n edd a
W ledig ,a n d a sain t of the sixth cen tury
,t o whom the
above church wa s dedicated . At Esgair W en,a sm all
farm in this parish,the im m ortal Chr istm as Evan s wa s
born on Christm as Da y ,1766.
LLANDDEINIOL .—B ei n i ol Wyn ,
or Dan iel,a ssisted
his father,Dn n a wd Fa r , in foun ding the celebrated
m on astery at Ban gor Isc oed ,a n d he foun ded several
churches , of whi ch Llan ddein iol is reckon ed to be on e ;
hen ce the n am e .
LLANDDEwr—ABERARTH .
—The church w a s dedicated
to Dewi,the patron sain t of Wales . Ab er
,estuary ;
Ar th, the n am e of the river, n ear the m outh of which
the village is Situated . Ar th sign ifies rough,harsh .
LLANDDEWI - BREFI . —B refi m ean s bellowing . The
trad ition al ox overstrain ed him self in en deavourin g t o
draw the a v a n c (beaver) from the lake,a n d sudden ly
expired . The other,having lost his yoke—fellow
, would
n ot be con soled,refused food
,a n d wan dered about
un til he died in a place called B r efi, so ca lled from the
dism al m oan s of the sacred an im al . Dewi,the patron
sain t of Wales,foun ded a church a nd a relig ious
CARDIGANSHIRE . 89
sem in ary on the spot hen ce Lla n ddewi—B refi. A fam oussyn od wa s held here in the 6th cen tury with the View ofsuppressin g the Tela g i a n heresy .
LLANDDYFRIOG .—Tyfr iog , a sain t who flourished
a bout the close of the sixth cen tury,foun ded the church .
LLANFAIR .
—The church wa s dedicated to St .Mary ; hen ce the n am e of the little village would beMary ’s Church .
LLANFIHANGEL CAe LL GW ALLr ER.
—The churchwa s dedicated to St . Michael . Walter l ’Espec built ac astle on a hill n ear the church durin g the Norm anc on quest ; hen ce the addition al n am e .
LLANFIHANGEL LLEDRon .
—The church is dedicated
t o St . Michael . Lledrod is a com pound of llelhr,a slope
,
a n d lroed ,a foot , base ; the church bein g built at the
base of the Slope .
LLANFIHANGEL - Y - CREUDDYN .
—The church is dedic a t ed t o St . Michael. Lewis Morris derives Creu ddyn
from c r en,blood ; a n d da n
,a fort
,sign ifyin g a bloody
fort . There is a com m ot of the sam e n am e n ear
Conway,in which the ca stle of Dyg a nwy wa s situated,
where the En glish kin gs , John a n d Hen ry I I I . , had
their cam ps in their fruitless expedition s again st the
W elsh .
LLANGEITHO .—St . Cei tho ,
son of Cynyr Ta rfdrwch ,
who flourished in the sixth cen tury, foun ded the church ,whi ch wa s dedicated t o him .
LLANGOEDMOR.
—Coed, wood ; m or - m a wr , great . The
spot where the church is built aboun ds with tim ber
o f an cien t a n d luxurian t growth.
90 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
LLANGRANNOG .
— Som e trace the n am e to St
Cr a nog ,the son of Gorun ,
the son of Cer edig ; whilst
others derive it from Gwyddn o Ga r a nhi r (lon g- Shan ked ) ,
which m ean s the cran e , reckon ed t o be a represen tative
of the priest of the ark,who safely lan ded the vessel
upon the reef of S a r n B a dr ig , Pat rick’s Causeway . W e
adopt the form er derivation .
LLANGUNLLo .
—Cu n llo ,on ce a prin ce , becam e the
patron sain t of severa l churches in Wales . He is .
recorded in Rees’
s Welsh Sa in ts as Cyn llo,the kin g .
LLANGWYRYFON .
—Gwyry/on ,virgin s . Tradition says
that this church wa s d edicated t o Ursula a n d 1100
blessed virgin s,who fled with St . Padern from
Arm orica to avoid the persecution that raged there in
the sixth cen tury,a n d settled in this parish
,leadin g a
pure a n d holy life .
LLANILAR .—The church wa s d edic a ted to St . H ila ry ,
who flourished in the 6th cen tu ry . The parish con t a in s .
two ham lets,bearin g the n am es Llan ilar Uchai (higher) ,
a n d Llan ilar Isaf (lower) .
LLANINA .
— The church wa s dedicated t o In a ,Kin g of
the West Saxon s .
LLANLLWCHAIARN .—Llwchha ia r n wa s a sain t of the
7th cen tury . 1010 MSS give him the hon our of havin gfoun ded m a n y churches
,am ong which the above is n a m ed .
LLANLLYR.
—Llyr Mer i n i flourished about the en d
of the 5th cen tury ,a n d foun ded a church a nd n un nery
at the above place .
LLANRHYSTYD .—The church wa s dedicated to Rhyslyd ,
a descen dan t of Hywel a p Em yr Llyd a w , who flourishedin the 6th cen tury .
CARDIGANSHIRE . 91
LLANSAN’
I‘
FFRAID.—The comm on opin ion is that the
church wa s dedicated t o S a nfir a id ,but we are in clin ed t o
thin k it wa s dedicated to St . Ffr a id , who wa s calledB ridget or Bri de , a celebrated Irish sain t .
LLANWENOG .— St . Gwen og ,
son of G ilda s , is recordedt o have fou nd ed the church .
LLANW NDW S .—St . Gwynws foun ded the church in
the 6th cen tury.
LLANWNEN .—The church is supposed t o have been
dedicated t o St . Gwn en .
LLECHRYD .—Llech,
a ston e rhyd , a ford , a stream .
This place is gen era lly poin ted out as the scen e of a
terrib le en gagem en t that took place between Rhys a p
Tewdwr a nd the three son s ofBleddyn a p Cyn fyn , in 1087,
in which the sons -
of Bled dyn were defeated a n d two of
them slain on the field . In course of tim e it is thought a
ston e wa s raised here in m em ory of Rhiryd , on e of
Bleddyn’
s son s . Som e thin k the n am e is derived from
the river bein g sea m ed with ledges of rock .
LLW YNDAFYDD.—Llwyn ,
bush Da fydd, David from
a n a n cien t house in the pla ce , which belonged to Da fydd
a b Iena n ,a n d where he en tertain ed the Earl of Richm on d
on his wa y t o Bosworth field .
MERTHYR CYFLEFYR.— Mer thyr , m artyr Cyflefyr ,
n am e of a descen dan t of B rych a n ,who is supposed to have
been m urdered a t a place ever sin ce called after his n am e .
MOCHRos.—Moch,
pigs rhos, a m eadow, a m oor .
Tradition says that St . Dyfrig wa s warn ed in this place
by a n angel to build a church in the n am e of the Trin ity ,
where he would see a white sow lyin g with her sucklings
hen ce the n am e .
92 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
MORFA .—The n am e sign ifies a m arsh , a sea - coast .
MYDYREILIN .—The n am e
,probably
,m ean s the ei lin
(a rm ) of the river M a dyr . Pen eli n is the Welsh for elbow .
The crooked course of the river here rem in ds the observer
very vivid ly of a m a n holdin g his a rm in a slin g . Mydyr
is a corrupt form ofM a dyr , the silen t water . Mydr oilyn
is the offic ial spelling .
NANTCWNLLE .— Na n l , brook ; Cwn lle is probably a
c orruption of Ca n llo, a n em in en t B ritish sain t of the sth
cen tury . The pa ri sh is in tersected by the brook ,a n d the
c hurch i s dedica ted to Cn n llo.
NANTEIRW .— N a nf
,brook
,a glen ei rw- ei rwy ,
a foam in g
c ataract . Som e thin k that ei rw is a corrupt form of a eron ,
sum m er fruits, so called on accoun t of the abun dan ce of
these fruits on the ba nks of the rivulet . Perhaps eirw
is a m utated form of garw ,c .f. Nan t Garw .
NEWCHURCH .— It wa s an cien tly called Lla nfiha n g el
y—Creu ddyn Ucha f. The presen t n am e wa s derived from the
fact that Col . Thos . J ohn s, Hafod Ucht ryd ,
built a n ew
church here in 1803.
PENDDOL .—P en ,
top dol , m ea dow ,sign ifying a
place at the top or hea d of a m eadow .
PENLLW YN .
—P en ,head ,
top ; Hwyn ,bush
,grove .
PENRHIW BAL .—P en ,
top ; rhiw,Slope b a l , prom in
Ien c e. B a l is a gen eral term a pplied t o those m oun tain s
that term in ate in a peak .
PENRHYLOG .—P en ,
head top ; rhylog , accord in g t o
som e , is a con traction of yr - ha leg , salty place . We rather
think it to be rhyllog , the n am e in full sign ifyin g a high
place full of clefts .
94 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
tion wa s a n im pulse superior to every other con sidera tion .
Fortun ately,however , she had a dog , a n d in her pocket
a piece of bread . A glorious thought occurred of savin gherself a n d c ow by the sacrifice of her cur . She took
the piece of brea d from her pocket a nd threw i t on the
o ther side . Her dog started over the bridge to seize it .
Satan looked peevishly a skan ce,galled at the thought
of bein g outwitted by a n old wom an ,hun g his ta il a n d
walked off.”
PONTERW YD.- P on t , bridge Em yd ,
a pole,a han drai l .
PONTRHYDFENDIGAID .—P on t
, bridge,
rhyd ,ford
,
b endig a z'
d , blessed . Meyrick ca lls it P en treRhydfen dig a id .
The n am e , eviden tly , is a relic of m on astic tim es . The
blessed celebrities of the m on astery at Strata Floridawere won t to cross a certa in ford in the river
,where they
in voked the blessin gs of the blessed virgin . We have n ohistorical proof that the m onks built the bridge that span st he ford . It appears that it wa s built in the days of
Edward Richard , the foun der of Ystrad Meurig school .The bridge caused a great dispute between the pa risheso f Gwnws a n d Caron ,
which is depicted in two hu m orous
poem s com posed by Edward Richards .
PONTRHYDYGROES.—P 0%t , bridge ; rhyd ,
ford ; y ,
t he ; g r oes, cross .
RHIW ARTHEN .—Rhiw , slope , declivity Ar then
,a c
cordin g t o som e , is the n am e of a kin g or lord ofCered igion , who died in 804, but we rather thin k it is acli pped form of g a r then ,
a ca m p or battle .
RHUDDLAN .—A com poun d of rhu dd , red ; a n d g lam ,
a . bank , a sacred en closure , church .
CARDIGANSHIRE 95
RHYDMANTEG .—Rhyd ,
ford ; m a n ,place
,spot ; leg ,
RHYD—PENNANT .—P er ma n t m ean s the en d of the
brook .
SARNAU .—This n am e is the plural form of su m
,
paved road,causeway , so called from the rem ain s of
several paved roads across a b og in the district .
STRATA FLORIDA .—Str a ta
, paved road . The Rom an
str a ta becam e the Saxon. street . Florida ,aboun din g
with flowers . Som e m ain tain that the abbey wa s dedi
c a t ed to Fflu r , the daughter of Mygn a ch Gorr , but the sup
position is un supported by historical fact . An eye
witn ess wrote a few years ago , an en t the fam ous place
even n ow the adj acen t peat lan d is covered with heath
flowers . As we were travelli ng over it , reaching Tregaronabout sun set , we gazed on the scen e
,a nd the whole
exten sive plain blushed a s i t bathed in a sea of purple .
”
This is the Westm in ster Abbey of Mediaeval Wales . The
Abbey wa s built c i r c a 1184, a n d founded by Rhys ab
G ruffydd . The rem ain s of a n um ber of Welsh prin ces
a re supposed to lie here .
SW YDDFFYNON.—Swydd here m ean s j urisdiction .
In an cien t tim es the la w court of the comm ot of
Mefen ydd wa s held here , perhaps n ear a celebrated
well , call ed Ffyn non oer , cold well.
TALSARN .—Ta l , end sa m , road from a bra n ch of
a Rom an road which term in ated here .
TRAE’
I‘
H SAITH .- Tr a eth
,san ds , seashore S a i th
is er ron erou sly referred by som e to Sei thynyn , fam ous in
W elsh m ythology . Saith here is from L . san ctus , a nd
m ean s the sacred shore .
96 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
TREFILAN .—The church wa s dedicated t o Elem
the m other of Con stan tin e the Great ; therefore , Ila n
is a m uta tion of Elen . Eglwys Ilan , Glam organ ,bears
her n am e .
TREFLYN .
—A com poun d of lref, a place , a town ;a n d llyn ,
a lake . The place takes its n am e from a
beautiful lake called Llyrl y m a es,the lake of the field
,
which ,according t o tradition
,covers the origin al site of
Treg a ron .
TREGARON .—The church wa s dedicated t o B ishop
Ca ron ,a n d the place is n am ed in hon our of him .
TREMAEN .
—Tre, place ; m a eri , ston e ; its literal
sign ification bein g “ the town of the ston e ,”
so called
from the n oted ston e , Llech yr a st , a n d the adj a cen t
c istfa ens n ear the vi llage .
TROEDYRAUR .
—Troed , foot , base , lower part . Troed
yb ryn ,the lowest part of the hill . P iedm on t has the
sam e sign ification , from It, pi e di m on te
,foot of the
m oun tain ,so called from its situation . Yr
,the ; a u r
probably wrongly—spelt for a i r,bright
,clea r . I f we
adopt the term in ation a i r, the n am e m ean s the base
m en t of a hill , from which a clear view m a y be had of
the sur roun din g district . Som e derive the n am e fromthe tradition that a u r gold wa s d iscovered at the foot ofthe hill . It appears that the an cien t n am e of the churchwa s Tr edeyr n , the king
’
s town,from the supposition that
Owain ab Hywel Dd a , the king of Ceredigion,som e tim e
took up his abode in. the vicin ity . Llys Owa i n ,Owen ’
s
court , the ruin s of which are still discer n ible,about a
quarter of a m ile from the church ,in clin es us to th in k that
Tr edeyrn is the correct n am e of this place .
CARMAR ‘THENSH IRE .
CARMARTHEN is a n An glicised form of Caerfyrddin .
The Welsh Chron icle derives the n am e from Myrd in , the
pseudo—prophet a n d bard,a n d m an y are the tradition s
t hat boldly but absurdly support the derivation . H istory
r ej ects the popular etym ology by statin g that the town
wa s called Ma r idu nu m by the Rom an s , durin g a n d after
the Rom an subjugation,lon g ere the prophet w a s born.
The K a eroyrddi n of the Briton s is the Ma r id u n u m ,
the city by the sea of Ptolem y , a n d the Ma r id u n u m ,
the walled city of An ton ius . Som e thin k that the Latinn am e is a tran slation of the Welsh on e
,a n d derive the
latter thus : Ca er , fortress , wa ll ; fyr , a m utation of
m or—m yr , the sea ; di n—ddin , a hill,sign ifyin g a fortified
h ill upon or n ear the sea . Others m ain tain that Ca ermyrdi n , the ruin ous city is the true derivation . so
'
m ewrite thus—Ca er - fyrd - dyn ,
the cita del of t en. thousan d .
We a r e in clin ed t o thin k that Ma r idu n u m is the correctetym ology , a n d that t he Welsh c a er w a s prefixed t o it ,a nd hen ce tran sm uted to its presen t form—C a erfyrddi n .
ABERARAD .
—Ab er,estuary ; a r a d ,
the n am e of the
river on which the village is situated,so called
,perhaps
,
from its resem blan ce to a n a r a dr ,plough . Ar a d is the
popular pronun ciation of a r a a r .
ABERBRAN .—This place takes its n am e from the river
B r a n .
ABERCOUYN .
-Cowv ri or Cywyn ,the r iver - n am e
,m ean s
a rising or swellin g up ; the popular word cwn u ,risin g
,
com es from the verb cywym i,to rise
,m oun t up . Cog
n ate with Latin sc a n do,I m oun t .
CARMARTHENSHIRE . 99
ABERDUAR.—Ab erdya r is the right wording ,
prob ably from its situation on the river Dya r , which m ea n sa n oise , a soun d ,
a din .
Di l - a r m a y sign ify water run n in g over black soil .
ABERGORLECH .—Gor lech
,the river - n am e , probably ,
is a m utation of Ga rw—lech, g a rw,
rough ; lechZZZeck ,
ston e, or from c or , sm all , a n d llwch, water , lake .
ABERGW ILI . —Gwi li , the river—n am e , is a derivative
of Gwyllt , wild a n d lli,a flux
,sign ifyin g wild water . Som e
derive it from gwy,wa ter
,a n d lli , a flux . This village
r etain s the hon our of bein g the residen ce of the B ishop of
St . David 's .
ABOVE—SAW DDW Y .—The village derives its n am e
from the river Sa wddwy , on which it is situate . S a wd
im plies depth,a sin kin g gwy is water but m ore probably
my is here a n adj ectival term in ation ,a n d the m ean ing
wa ter is fan ciful .
AMMANFORD .—The an cien t n a m e of the place wa s
Cross Inn ,from a public house of that n am e , which
is situated at the jun ction of four roads . Som e thin k that
Amm an ,the river - n am e , is a com poun d of a m l , m any ,
a n d a n or a in ,water
,sign ifying a river ofm any tributaries
or sources . Others thin k the root is b a n , height . Perhaps
it is”
derived from Am on , Am a is. The word for river in
Gaelic , is a b ha i nn ,a n d a mha in is a n an cien t form of
a /on ,a river .
BANCYFELIN .—Ban k , a ny steep acclivity , as one
rising from a river,a lake
, or the sea ; y , the ; felin
m elin , m ill .
BRECHFA .
-A hilly place . B reck is fem . of b ryc li ,
m ottled , a doublet of brith c . i . Cefn b r i th .
100 PLACE‘
Na MEs IN WALES .
BRYNAMMAN .—It wa s som etim e called t er Fa wr ,
the big ditch . In 1838,a house in the place wa s called
B ryn a mm a n , a nd in 1864,when the railway cam e in to the
place,the station wa s called Bryn am m an ,
hen ce the n am e
of the village . For Am an see Amm an ford .
BRYN GWYNE .
—B ryn ,hill Gwi nn a a , in ten sified form
of gwyn ,white
,blessed . Gwyn du d ,
a happy lan d , or per
haps for gwin a u— reddish colour of bracken .
BRYNHAFOD.—H a fod , m ean s a summ er - house ,
which wa s gen erally built on a hill .
BRYNYBEIRDD.—This place derives its n a m e from a n
an cien t farm house in the vicin ity called Cwr t - b ryn-
y- b ei rdd
from the supposition that it wa s on ce the residen ce of the
bards .
BURRY PORT .
—The place adj oin s the an cien t village
of P em b re or Pen—b r a . Pen , head ,t op, b re, m oun tain ,
high place .
Som e thin k Burry is a com poun d of b a r , wild , frothy
a n d gwy ,water . B u rym , barm is derived from the sa m e
root . The river Berem is not far from the place . An other
a ttem pt is b re,hill ; por th,
port . Bu r i y is probably from
burgh , a hill , com pare Burythorpe in Yorkshire .
The seaport is situated at the en tran ce of the river
Burry .
BW LCHGW YNT .—Bwlch, a n open in g , a pass ; g a ya l ,
win d ; sign ify ing a pass where the win d occas i on ally
asserts its power very vehem en tly .
CALEDFW LCH .—C a led ,
hard , Severe bwlch,a n open
in g , a p 15 5 . Tradition ha s it that bloody wars were foughtin the vicin ity , a n d 1hat the distress a n d cal u n ity wa s so
g reat at a certain spot , that it wa s hen c efor th'
c a lled C a led
I OZ PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
CILCARW .—Ci l , a place of retreat c a rw, stag . In tim e
of yore stags resorted to this sequestered vicin ity as a place
of refuge .
CILCWM.
—The n am e sign ifies a sequestered vale the
upper reaches of the valley,or the ridge overlookin g
the valley .
CILMAENLLW YD .—C i l , a pla ce of retrea t ; m a en
,
stone llwyd ,grey
,blessed ; so called from the relics of
druidi ca 'l ston es in the place .
CLOYGYN .
—The right wording,probably
,is c logwyn ,
a precipice .
CROSS HANDs.—From a public house so called in the
place .
CRUGYBAR .—Cr u g ,
heap b a r,affliction ,
fury,wrath .
The place derives its n a m es from the supposition that the
Roman s buried their fallen soldiers in the vicin ity,where
they suffered heavily at the han ds of the wrathful a n dform idable Briton s , led by the imm orta l Bu ddu g .
CWMAMAN .—Cwm ,
n arrow vale Am a n vide Am m an
CW Mc or Hr .
—The river—n am e Cothi m ean s to ej ect
or ev a cuate ; ysgothi , t o babble . The Greek K a tha r iso
has a sim ilar m ean in g . Dola n cotki is the seat of the
John ses, a well - kn own fa m ily in the coun ty ofCa rm arthen
a n d close by wa s the residen ce of the celebrated bard,.
Llywelyn (Lewis) Glyn Cothi , who flourished in the 1sth
cen tury .
CWMCUCH .—A village situate on the ban ks of the
river Cn ch. Cn ch m ea n s what is con tracted or drawn
together . s t chio,to frown .
CARMARTHENSHIRE . 103
CWMDUAD .
—Dn a d im plies blackn ess . The river
Dna d flows throug h the va le .
CW M GW ENDRAETH .
—Cwm , vale Gwendr a etk,the
n am e of the river that run s through the vale . Gwen , white ;tr a eth,
a tract , a beach .
CW MHW PLIN.—Hw7§lin is a n etym ological puzzle .
The n am e is probably from Cwm,vale
,a nd hwplin ,
represen tin g the English word—goblin .
CW MSARNDDU .—Cwm , va le sa rn
,paved road ddu ,
bla ck ,from a farm so n am ed .
CYNW IL CAIO . Gyn , prior , first ; wi l - gwyl , (vigilia )watches C a i o, Ca in s, the n am e of a Rom an person age .
The Rev . Eli eser William s , in the Cam brian Register ,”
thi n ks that the place wa s taken possession of by Caius’
advan ced guards .
DAFEN .—From the river Da fen ,
which flows through
the place . The n am e m a y be a corrupt form of ta f- a in ,
the spreadin g water . Ta /wys, the Tham es , has the
sam e sign ification .
DRAFACH .—Tre/, a hom estead , town ; fa ch- b a ch,
little .
DREFELIN.—Som e thin k the n am e is - a com poun d of
tref , a hom estead , a n d m eli n , a m ill . In spite of the fa ct
that there is a m ill in the village som e are in clin ed to thin k
tha t the n am e is a tran sposition of fileindref, the villein s’
village,or a place un der villein soccage tenure . In the
old Welsh Laws we find ta eogdref a n d filein dr ef.
DYFFRYN CEIDRYCH .—Dyfiryn ,
a valley c ei - c a in,
clear,fair
,beautiful ; drych,
aspect,sight ; the n am e
sign ifies a valley of beautiful sc en eries . Som e think the
valley wa s n am ed after Ceind rych ,a daughter of Brycha n .
104 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
FELINDRE .—A m ill residence .
FELINCWM.—A com poun d of m elin ,
m ill ; a nd
c u m ,vale.
FELINWEN.—This village takes its n am e from a n old
m ill called Felinwen ,the white m ill , which is still in the
place .
FERRY S IDE .—A pretty village n ear the m outh of the
river Towy,where passen g ers ferry over in bo a ts t o the
opposite village , Llan stephan .
FFAIRFACH .—A very popular fair wa s won t t o be
held here on Novem ber 2 2 n d ,hen ce i t s n am e , wh ich
sign ifies the little fair,t o distinguish it from the fairs held at
Llan dilo
GARWAY .—It m a y be a cor ruption of g a rw
—wy,a
river m aking its wa y through rough pl a ces .
GELL i CEIDRYM.
—The n am e sign ifies a brush or grove
on m oun tain top with a chasm below .
GOYTREY .—Coed
,wood ; tre, a hom estead , a pla ce ,
sign ifying either a dwellin g in a wood,or a house built of
wood .
GWYNFE .—Gwyn ,
white , blessed , holy ; te- fa i , a n
in flection of m a i , a plain . Gwyn/a is the Welsh for Para
d ise .
HENGOED .—W en , old ,
a ged ; a n d coed , wood , so
called from the abun dan ce of an cien t a n d large forests of
wood that on ce adorn ed the d istrict .
HENLLAN AMGOED .
—The old church surroun ded by
woods .
Homes —The village takes its n am e from Horeb,
the Baptist chapel in the place .
1 06 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
craggy,rocky . Perhaps the right wording is Llogyn ,
a .
dim inutive of Llog , a com pact , a hire . Llog 0 di r , twen ty
yards of lan d . We fin d the n am e Logg in in Brecon shire ..
LLAN .—This ham let takes its n am e fr om the parochial
church bein g situate wi thin its lim its . n ear the right ban k
of the Gwen dr a eth Fechan river.
LLANARTHNEv .—Ar thney is probably a corruption of
g a r then ,a cam p . Som e thin k Ar thn ey is a corrupt form of
Ar then, the nam e of the fourth son ofBrych a n Brychein iog
'
There are several obj ects of an tiquarian in terest in this.
district , such as the ruin s of Dryslwyn castle , a n d Gron g a r
hill , which has been imm ortalised by the fam ous poet ,Dyer . Grong a r is a com poun d of g ron , fem . of c rwn , round , .
circular , a nd c a er , a fortress .
LLANBOIDY . Som e thin k the n am e is a corru ption
of Lla n—b od - Dewi , the church in which (St .) David dwelt .
The church is on ly three m iles n orth of Ty Gwyn Abbey ,
n ear which place St . David Spen t t en years . Others sa yit is Lla n - m endwy , a church ,
dedicated to a herm it . We
are in clin ed to thin k that b oidy is a corruption of b eu dy,
a n ox house . The church m ight have been built in c on
j un ction w ith the ox—house or perhaps,the oxen had to .
perform the sam e duties there as their kindred at Brevi .
LLANDEFEISENr .—Ty/ei S a n t , a n ephew of St . Teilo ,
lived in a n early period of the 6th cen tury, a nd to him the
church wa s dedicated .
LLANDEILO .—The church wa s dedicated to St . Teilo
,
a descen dan t of Cu n edd a W ledig a nd one of the most popular sain ts in the an cien t B ritish church . He wa s St .Teli a u s
, the patron sain t of Llan daff . He departed thislife at Lla n dei loFa wr , a nd wa s in terred at Lla n d f‘ff in 566
CARMARTHENSHIRE . 107
LLANDOVERY .—An An g licised fo rm ofLla nym ddyfr i ,
which m ean s a church between waters , or Lla n a m ddyfr i :a m , in i ts sen se of beyon d ,
a n d therefore the church
beyon d the river . The Myv yr i a n calls it
Lla nymddywy . The town is situate on the river
Towy ,a t the con fluen ce of the rivers Gwy ther ig a n d Bran
,
the l a tter jon in g the Towy a little distan ce below the
town . This town is fam ous as the birth - place a nd resi
den ce of Vicar Pritchard.
,author of Ca nwyll y Cym ry .
LLANDYBIE . Tv b i e wa s a daug hter of Brycha n ,a n d
a sain t of the 5th cen tury . She wa s m urdered at a pla ce
where a church wa s af te rwards built a nd con secrated t o
her m em ory .
LLANDYFAELOG .—The church wa s dedicated to M a elog
on e of Ca twg'
s disciples . The proper n am e is Lla nm a elog .
LLANDYFAEN .
—Som e derive the n am e from St . Dyfa n
who cam e here from Rom e abou t 186,to preach the Gospel
to t he Kym ry . It is believed he wa sm artyred at Merthyr
Dyfa m We r i ther thin k the place t a kes its n am e from
Di -fn a l z,one of the son s of Brycha n .
LLANDYSILIO .—The church w a s dedica ted t o St .
Tyssi lio .
LLANDDARoo .—The church w a s dedic a ted t o St .
Twr og .
LLANDOWROR .—A corruption of Lla ndyfrgwyr , the
church of the water - m en ,so called on accoun t of the
seven son s ofMa in a u r Ma thr u , who were called Dy/rgwyr ,water—m en ,
because they were foun d in the water , esc a ped
from the water a nd were m ain tain ed by fishes of the
wa ter . They devoted them selves to religious life hen ce
the above church wa s dedicated to them .
108 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
LLANEDI.—The church wa s dedicated t o Edyth a
Saxon sa in t . There were fiv e Saxon sain ts bearin g the
n am e .
LLANEGWAD .—The church wa s dedicated to n a d ,
a sain t of the 7th cen tury . He wa sson ofCyn ddeli g , son of
Cenydd , son of Gildas .
LLANELLI .—The church wa s dedicated t o Ellyw, a
descen dan t of Brych a n , a n d a sain t of the fifth cen tury .
Lla n elliw is the proper n am e . On a m a p published in 1788
by a Mr . Wm . Owen ,it is spelt Lla n elliw .
LLANFAIR—AR - Y—BRYN .—St . Mary’s church on the hill
I t wa s a Site of a Rom an station .
LLANFIHANGEL ABERBYTHYCH .—St . Michael
’s church
a t the influx of the river Bythi ch. The river - n am e m ean s
the con stan tly flowin g water .
LLANFIHANGEL—AR - ARTH .
—Ar - Ar th,
or a r -
y-
g a r th,
m e a n s on the hi ll . The church wa s dedicated to St .Michael . a n d built on a hill above the Teiv i .
LLANFIHANGEL RHosv c onN .—St . Michael’s church
on the berry - m oor - lan d . I t appears that the place
produces hurtle a n d b i llb er ri es.
LLANFRYNACH .— The church wa s dedicated t o St .
B r vn a ch, whose history , according to som e is m arked
by som ewhat rem arka ble in ciden ts .
LLANFYNYDD .—The n am e sign ifies a church on the
m oun tain .
LLANGADOG .—The church wa s ded icated t o St . Ca doc
,
a m a rtyr who flourished in the 5th cen tury , a n d died inB r i tt a ny, in 490 .
I I O PLACE - NAMES IN WALES
LLANLLW Ni .—Llwn i is a corruption of llom
'
, t o
gladden . Lla n io Lla whi r (lon g han d) wa s a descen dan t ofEm yr Llyda w , a nd is supposed t o have foun ded the
churches of Llandin am a nd Lla n llwn i .
LLANNEW YDD.—The old pa rish church wa s pulled
d own , a nd the foun dation ston e of Lla n n ewydd , the n ew
church , wa s laid , July sth , 1870 .
LLANON .—The church wa s dedicated t o Nonn , the
piou s m other of St . David , the patron. sain t of Wa les .
LLANPUMSAINT .—P u -m sa in t z fiv e sain ts . The
c hurch wa s dedica ted to five brothers, Cei tho , Gwyn ,
Gwyn r o , Gwynoro ,a n d Celyn in , who were born a t the
sam e tim e a nd devoted them selves t o religi ous life .
LLANSADWRN .—The church wa s dedicated to
S a dwrn , the brother of Ill t u d .
LLANSADYRNYN .—The church wa s dedicated t o
S a dyrnyn , the Bishop of St . David ’s in the ea rly pa rto f the oth cen tury .
LLANSAW YL .—The church wa s dedicated to Sa wyl ,
a sa in t of the 8th cen tury .
LLANSTEPHAN .—The church wa s founded by Ystyfia n ,
a sain t a nd ha rd of the 6th cen tury . Som e derive then am e from the supposition that the church wa s dedic a t ed to Stephen , the first m artyr .
LLANWRDA .—Opin ion s differ a s t o whom the church
wa s dedica ted . On e suggests St . Ca wrda f,a son of
Ca r a dog Frei chfr a s ; an other , gwr—da ,the holy m a n . Som e
thin k gwr - da is a c orru pt form of gwr - da f, th em a n of the
Taf , refering to St . Teilo who lived on the ba n ks of the
river Taf for m an y years , a n d beli eved to have perform ed
m an y m iracles .
CARMARTHENSHLRE . I I I
LLANW YNIO .—The church is supposed t o have been
d edicated to Gwyn io, a W elsh sain t .
LLANYBRI . —B ri , is , a ccordin g to one wri ter , a corruption of b eyr , the Norse for farm stead . Som e think the
n am e is derived from one Awbrey , who resided there . We
rather thin k that b ri is a m utation of b re, up high .
LLANYBYDDER.—Som e thin k the right wordin g is
Lla nyb ydda i r , the church of the Am buscade . The n am e
m a y be a corruption of Lla n b edr , from the church beingd edicated t o St . Peter .
LLANYCRW Ys.—The n am e sign ifies the Rood church .
LLWYNHENDY .—Llwyn , bush hendy , old house .
There wa s a bush n ea r a n old hom estead called Hen dy ,
con cern in g which a local dispute arose , a nd in order t o
d istin guish it from other bushes it wa s called Llwyn - hendy.
MACHYNYS.—An islet a t the estuary of the Loughor
river . Som e thin k the n am e is a m utation of b a ch—ynys,the little island ,
but in view of the fact tha t a myn a ch- dy ,
a m onastery wa s established here in 513 by St . Piro , we are
i n clin ed t o thin k the n am e m ight be a n abbreviation of
myn a ch-
ynys, the m on k’s islan d . Or , perha ps , i t is a
c om poun d of m a ch, a bail , a surety a nd ynys, a n islan d .
Som e thin k it wa s som etim e held as a surety for debt .
MANORFABON.—Som e thin k the origin al form is
Ma n—a r - a fon ,a spot or a residen ce on or n ear the ri ver.
W e rather thin k the n a m e is a compoun d of m a en or , m an or,a n d M a b on ,
proper n am e . Ma b on is som etim es u sed t o
den ote a young hero .
Ma ri nes—Some think it is m awr - rhos, the great
m oorlan d or comm on . The nam e sign ifies a wild ,m oun
I IZ PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
t a inou s region ,whi ch wa s un doubtedly suggested by the
physica l aspect of the district .
MEINCIAU .—A corruption
,probably of m in -
y- c a e
,
edge of the field . Som e thin k it is the plural of m a in s,
a ben ch , im plying elevated pieces of lan d .
MOELFRE .—Moel , bare ; a n d b re, hill .
MYDRIM .—A com poun d of m ei - m a i , a plain or open
field dru m , a ridge , a back ,a hill .
A Rom an road r a n through the pla ce from Ca r
m a r then to St . David’s .
MYDDFAI .—Mya—m ed , m eadow fa i—m a i,a plain
,
or open field . The pla ce is n oted for its celebrated phy
si c i a ns in the 12 th cen tury . Meddygon.Myddfa i the physi c i a ns ofMyddfa i is a proverbia l phra se . The first b a tch
of these were Rhiwa llon ,a n d his sons
, Ca dwg a n , Gruffydd ,
a n d Bin ion .
MYNACHDY .—A m on astery . It is su pposed tha t
a cell t o som e an cien t abbey wa s situated here som etim e
hen ce the n am e .
NANTGAREDIG .- Na n t , brook Ca redig ,
a m an ’s nam e
—Na n t , brook r a i n ,clear
,fair .
NANTYMW YN.—Mwyn , m in e , ore . Lead m in es
a boun d in this district .
NEWCASTLE - EMLYN .—Opin ion 5 differ as t o the
o rigin of this n am e . It is a tran slation of the WelshC a stell- n ewydd - Em lyn . The presen t ca stle wa s built
on the site of the old on e by Sir Rhys a p Thom as , inthe reign of Hen ry VII I .
,hen ce the appel lation
Newc a stle. Em lyn is va riously der ived . Som e d erivei t from Em i li a n u s, the n am e of a Rom an n oblem an tha t
114 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
n ear Pen boyr is called Llwyn Pyr . The n am e is also
foun d i n the parish of Lla n llwn i .
Pyr succeeded Sa wyl B en Uchel on the thron e of
Britain .
PENCADER.—Som e thin k it wa s origin ally c a lled
P en c a dlys pen ,hea d c a d ,
battle,battlefield lys, court .
Near the church there is a ca irn ca lled The Castle , a n d
from that the comm on in feren ce is tha t som e battles were
fought in the vicin ity . Others thin k the n am e sign ifies
the chief chair , possibly of the bards—Dru idic order .There is a n imm en se tum ulus here . C a der a lso m ea n s
a stronghold . Ma n y fortified hills a nd m oun
tain s still retain the n am e as Cader Idris , Ca der Dinm a el .
C a dern i d is the Welsh for stren gth or fortitude .
PENDINE .—Som e thin k the right wordin g is P en—da n t ,
the beautiful summ it . It m a y be a corrupt form of P end i n , the t op of the fortified hill .
PENRHIW GOCH .—Pe’n , t op ; rhiw,
slope ; gOChZCOCh,
red , su n—parched . The attri bute c och form s a pa rt of m a n y
n am es in the district , as Ga r reg—goch,red ston e ; n n n on
g och,ruddy well
, &c .
PENRHOS .—The t op of a m ea dow or plain .
PENYGROEs.—Pen , hea d , en d ; y , the ; g roes, cross .
PONTAMAN .—Pon l , bridge ; a m a n
,the n am e of the
r iver that flows through the place (vide Amm an ford) .The village ta kes its n a m e from a m an sion so called
,
which is situa te on the river Am an .
PONTARGOTHL—Pon t, bridge a r
, on ,across Gothi
c othi , the n am e of the river (vide Cwm c othi ) .
PONTBRENARAETH .—P on t b ren , a wooden bridge ;
a r a eth, the n am e of the ri ver.
CARMARTHENSIIIRE I I 5
PON1HENRY .—Pon t , bridge ; Hen ry , probably the
n am e of the builder of the bridge .
PONTNEWYDD .—P on t , bri dge ; n ewydd, n ew .
PONTTW ELI .—The latter portion of the n a m e is
v ariously wr itten ,v iz . , Twelly ,
Tyweli , Tywely ,Taf - gurli ,
a nd Taf—wely . The n am e seem s t o be a con traction of the
latter form ,which is the n am e of the river that run s
un der the bridge.
PONTYATES .—The villa ge wa s ori gin ally called Trewi a i l , the place of rods . Opin ion s differ a s t o Pon tyates .
P on t , m ean s a bridge , which ,accordi n g to som e , wa s built
b y a Mr . Yates ; hen ce the n am e.In olden tim es there wa s a toll - gate n ear the b r idge,
a n d som e thin k the n am e is derived from that .
PONTYBEREM .—P 0n l , bridge ; Berem , river - nam e .
The gen eral opin ion is that a wooden bridge crossed the
B erem river before the Gwen dr a eth bridge wa s built ;hen ce the n am e .
Berem com es from b erw, a boilin g , a n ebullition .
S ion Lam Roger,about 190 years ago , called the place
P on tyb erw'
.
PORTHYRHYD .—P or th
, (porta) , a gate ; y ,the ;
rhyd ,a ford .
PUMP HEOL . -a p,fiv e heol , road so called from
the j un ction of five roads in the place .
RHANDIRMW YN.—Rha ndi r , a portion of lan d , a
"district ; mwyn ,a m in e
,ore . There are an cien t lead
m in es in the district called Na n tymwyn ,which are n oted
for pottery ore .
RHYDARGAEAU .~—The right wordin g seem s to be
Rhyela rg a er a n ,the ford n ear the fortified walls .
116 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
ST . CLEARs.—The Norm an s
,im m ediately after the
con quest,built a castle a n d a church here , the latter
of which wa s dedicated t o one of their own clan n am ed
St . Clai r. Hen ce the n am e of the place . In the Myv yrian she is called Sain Cler a n d St . Clares . She died a
m artyr in Norm an dy ,Novem ber 4th ,
894.
TALOG .~—The n am e sign ifies high - fron ted , bold - faced .
Ta lwg m ean s a high house with ston e roof , in con tra- di s
tin ction t o the low cot wi th thatched roof .
TALYLLYCHAU , on TALLEY .
— Ta l , fron t or end ; y,
the ; Llycha u , plural of llwch,lake or pool . There are
two large pools n ear the church . Ta lley is a n a b b re
v ia t ion of the Welsh n am e .
TERRA - COED .— It is , prob a b ly ,
a corruption of Ti r
y- coed , which im plies woody la n d .
TIR ESGOB .— Ti r
,lan d esgob , bishop .
TIR Row n .—Ti r , lan d Rosier
, Roger . Rogersla nd .
TRECLAs.—Cla s m ean s a green coverin g or surface.
Cla s Merddin , the green Space of sm ooth hills , the oldn am e of the Isle of Brita in — Tr ioedd .
TRELECH .—Som e thin k the n am e sign ifies the c on
c ea led dwellin g . We rather thin k the n am e sign ifies“
the town of ston es .
” Not far from the village there
is a n imm en se c a r nedd called Cr u g yDew'
u ,or Cr u g Edeyrn ,
The place derives its n am e , probably ,from this a n d other
relics of Druidism in the district . Som e an tiquarian s
believe that Edeyrn wa s buried here . Nathan Dyfed,a nd
an other gen tlem an open ed a c istfa en here in 1830 , a nd
foun d therein calcin ed bon es a n d charcoal .
TRERHOS.— Tre, place , town rhos, m eadow. The
village is situated on a m arshy plain .
CARNARVONSH IRE .
An An glicized form of Ca er—yn- Ad on , the fortified
town opposite t o Mon a . After the subjugation of
Wales un der Edward I . the n am e of the t oxm w a s applied
to the n ewly - form ed coun ty .
LLEYN .—A region ,
accordin g t o som e , that derived
its n am e from Lleyn ,the son of Baran . He con quered
this portion of the territory of the Kin g of Gwyn edd ,
a n d called it the coun try of Lleyn (Iolo MSS. ,
The late celebrated an tiquarian , Mr . Owen William s ,of Waen fawr
,der ives it from Zleu yn ,
which is syn ony
m ous , with lleu a r , llezt a d , goleu a d, gole'zm i , sign ifyin g light ,splen dour . Lleu a r ha u l, the light of the su n . He foun ds
his reason s upon the fact that Lleyn is a n even coun try ,en j oyin g the light of the su n from m orn in g till dusk ;hen ce it w a s called Lley
f
n ,the lan d of the li ght . Dr .
Owen Pughe tran slated Lleyn thus— lleyn , a strip , a
t on gue of lan d , which correspon ds with the physic a l
aspect of this part of the Prin cipality . It is cogn ate
with Irish Lein in Lein ster,from a n Irish word m ean in g
a lan ce head , so called from the outlin e of the land .
EIFIONYDD .
—Eifi07z m ean s the lan d of rivers . A/on ,
a river,ez
’
fion ,a n old plural form of Mom, as m ei b z
’
on
becom es the plural of m a b,a son . Ap, a San skr it root
sign ifyin g water, is seen in the n am es of the Pun j ab,
the lan d of the five r ivers ; Do—a b , a dist rict betweenthe two rivers Ga n ges a n d Jumn a . We fin d it a l so inthe river - n a m es of the L a b a n d s —u b - u e, or Dan ube .
ABER , OR ABERGW YNGREGYN .
—From the quan tity
of cockles foun d there . The ri ver Gwyn g regyn , whi te
CARNARVONSHIRE . 119
shells, discharges itself in t o the sea about half- a—m ile
below the village .
ABERDARON .—The villa ge is situate at the m outh
of the river Daron . Althou gh a n in sign ifican t place , it
is fam ous for bein g the birth—place of Richard Robert
J on es , a li a s Di c Aberdaron , the celebrated lin guist .
He wa s born in 1778, a n d died at St .Asaph in 1843 . It is
said that he was fam iliarly con versan t with thirteen
lan gu ages . The n am e Da ron wa s an cien tly applied t o
the Deity, sign ifyin g Thun der er .” Da ron im plies n oisywater.
ABERCEGID.—Near Lla n degai . Ceg id is the Welsh for
hem lock .
ABERERCH .—The river Er ch flows in to the sea a
little below the Village hen ce the n am e . Er ch m ean s
dark , frightful .
ABERSOCH .—The Village lies at the m outh of the
river Soch . Soch m ean s a sin k , a drain , a ditch , so
c a l led from the slow course an d m uddy hue of the r iver .
AFON W EN—This n am e wa s taken from the river,which has its source n ear Myn a chdy gwyn , the white
m on astery. Wen is the fem in in e form of gwyn , white,a n d in place - n am es sign ifies fair or beautiful .
BANGOR—B a n ,high , superior g a r
- cor , a circle , a
stal l , a choir . Cor is n ow used in m an y parts of the
Pri n cipality to den ote a pew or seat . The term cor has
a l so been ren dered college .
”B a ngor m ea n s the chief
en closure or circle , an d when applied to a ny particular
establishm en t , i t sign ifies , a“
high choir, or chief c ol
lege . The comm on churches were called cor a n , but the
chief or superior churches b a n gor a a , because they were
IZO PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
the chief theolog ical sem in aries of the per iod , the cen tres
from which the Christian religion exten ded over the coun try .
It is supposed that this B a ngor w a s established as early
as the year 525 by Dein iol ab Du n a wd , which shows that a
Un iversity College is n ot a r ew boon t o this city .
BEDDGELERr .—Various derivation s are assign ed t o
t his popular n am e . It is said that a herm i t erected a
booth in the place , a n d ,in the cour se of tim e , a church
w a s built on the sam e site , a nd w a s called Emik Gi lfa ch
Ga r th,which wa s corrupted in to Emik Ci la r th, a nd then
Belhcelert . Som e trace it t o the n am e of Celer , the
patron sain t of Llan geler . Tradition says the n am e
is derived from the followin g circum stan ce —At arem ote period
, when wolves were n um erous , a n d c onse
quen tly form idable in Wales , Llewelyn the Great c am e
t o reside here for the hun tin g season ,with his prin ces
a n d children ; but while the fam ily were absen t on e
day,a wolf en tered the house , a n d attem pted t o kill a n
in fan t that wa s en j oyin g his sleep in the cradle . The
prin ce ’s faithful greyhoun d n am ed Geler t , in whose
care the child doubtless w a s en trusted , seized the rapa
c iou s an im a l , a n d , after a severe struggle , killed it .
In the struggle the cradle wa s overturn ed , a n d lay upon
the wolf a n d child . On the pr in ce ’s return , m issin g the
in fan t , a nd observin g the dog’s m outh stain ed with blood ,
he rashly j um ped t o the con clusion that Geler t had killed
the child, a n d , in a paroxysm of rage , drew his sword , a n d
bur ied it in the heart of the faithful an im al but how great
wa s his aston ishm en t , when ,on replacin g the cradle
,he
foun d the wolf dead a n d the child alive . He,however ,
caused the faithful Geler t to be hon ourably in terred , a n d ,as a m on um en t t o his m em ory , erected a church on this
12 2 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
BODFUAN.—Bod , a dwellin g ; B ri a n , a sain t of the
seven th cen tury , a n d a descen dan t of Llywa r ch Hen . .
He foun ded a church in this place .
BODFERIN .—This w a s the dwellin g—place of Mer in ,
a descen dan t of Sei then in , a n d a sain t of the sixth c en
tury .
BORTH - Y - GEST , or m ore correctly, Por th-
y—gest
por th, harbour, por t y, the , ; g est- cest , a deep g len
between two m oun ta i n s havin g but on e open ing . This
isolated village is situated n ear Moel - y-
g est .
BOTTWNOG .—A corrupt ion of Bodwynog , the dwel
lin g - place of Gwynog .
BRYNCROEs.—B ryn ,
a hill ; c roes, a cross .
BRYNKIR .—Som e thin k the place wa s n am ed in
hon our of a fam ily bearin g the n am e , who wer e desc en
dan ts of Owain Gwyn edd . Others thin k the n am e is a
con traction of Bryn c a e hi r , sign ifying a lon g field at the
foot of the hill . It is , perhaps , a com pound of b ryn ,
a hill , a n d c a rm, a stag .
CAB LLW YN GRYDD .
— Probably a corruption of c a e
llwyn y g a er rndd . Ca e, a field llwyn , a bush y, the
g a er rndd, red wa ll . The village is situated n ear a n old
for tress,which is n ow in ruin s , a n d supposed to have
been built of red ston es hen ce the n am e .
CAER RHUN .—Rha n , the son of Ma elgwyn Gwyn edd ,
a n d a prin ce of the six th cen tury , who took u p his abode
in the Rom an Conov i a m ; hen ce the n am e .
CAPEL CURIG .— C a pel , chapel ; Cn r ig , the n am e of
the son of Ilid or Ju lit t a , who flou r ished in the seven th
cen tury . The church wa s d edicated to Curig a nd his .
m other.
CARNARVONSHIRE . 123.
CARN Gw en —Ca m , a heap . On the summ it of a
hill close by, called Moel Ca rn Ciwch, there is a large
heap of loose ston es , supposed to have been raised toCiwch , a Bri tish sa in t of a n early period .
CLW TYBONT.—Clwt , a portion clwt 0 d i r , a piece
of lan d y, the b a n i - p a n t , bridge sign ifying a piece of
lan d n ear a bridge .
CLYNOG .—A corruption of Celynog , a place over
r u n with hollywood . It is situated in a sm all grove.
n ear the Shore , on a plain n ear the base of the hill .
COLWYN .—Som e derive the n am e from Colwyn , the
n am e of the chief shepherd of Bran ab Llyr Lledi a i th .
Others thin k it is a com poun d of c a n ,hollow , en closed ;
a n d llwyn , a grove , a bush , from the deep brooks a nd
en circlin g groves in the distri ct .
CONWAY.—The town of Conway wa s built on the
n orth side of the r iver by Ma elgwyn Gwyn edd , in 581,
a nd w a s called Caer Gyflin , whi ch sign ifies the border
fortress . Conwy is the presen t Welsh n am e , tak en from .
the n am e of the river, which sign ifies the chief water .
Som e philolog ists derive the n am e from c a in , fair, fine,beautiful ; a nd wy, water . Conwy a n d Ca inwy are
equa l ly applicable to this beautiful river. From gra y
or wy , water , m ost of the Welsh rivers derive their
n am es . For in stan ce , Llu gwy, clear water ; Elmy,
glidin g water ; a n d the above , Conwy, chief water , or
Ca i nwy , fair or“
fine water. The site of Conway Castle
wa s an cien tly called Ca n n och, from c a nn ,white , fair ,
clear, a nd oi ch, water .
CRICCIETH .—Penn an t Spells it Cri cka eth, The
Myv yr i a n Cra c i a i th, a n d others Cra g—c a eth. Som e
124 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
thin k it is a com poun d of c r u g , a heap , a hillock , a n d
d eth, sorrow,pain sign ifyin g a frightful or form idable
p rom on tory . Others say it is Cr a g—c a eth, the n arrow hill .
Perhaps it is a com pou n d of c r a ig a eth, sign ifyin g the awful
rock .
CROESOR.—A n arrow com b in Blaen au Na mm or .
Tradition says that Elen Lu eddog w a s on her j ourn ey
hom ewards when , on hearing the sad n ews of her son’
s
death,she sorrowfully exclaim ed , Croesa wr i m i
a n hour of adversity t o m e ,”a n d the place wa s called
Croesa wr or Croesor from that sorrowful circum stan ce .
CRYNANT .—Cry , a corruption of c r a i , a word im
plyin g a n arrow place ; c r a i’
r n odwydd, the eye of the
n eedle ; n a n t , a brook . The old in habitan ts spell it
Cra in a n t , a nd a bridge that span s Nan t -
y- Bettws is called
P on t - y- Gr a in a n t , because un der the br idge the brook is
very n arrow.
CWMEIGIAU .
—Cwm,valley ei g i a n , the plural form
of a ig , which sign ifies what br ings forth , anythin g that
is prolific . Mon th (mynydd , m oun tain ) Elgie , in Scotlan d , im plies a hill covered wi th luxur ian t grass . Eig ion
is from Latin ocea rm s. the ocean, a n d u ig is a m odern
back form ation from it . There are several lakes in thev alley, a n d the n atural in feren ce is that it wa s so calledfrom its bifurca ted aspect .
CWMYGLO .— Cwm , valley g lo, a corruption probably
of golen , golen n i , light ; sign ifyin g a va l ley rem arkable
for en j oying the sunn y beam s .
CYMYDMAEN.— Cymyd
- Cwnm 'd, a vicin ity ; nm en , a
ston e . On the san ds , Opposite Bardsey Islan d , there
is a ston e called M a en Melyn Lleyn ,from which the
vicin ity took its n am e .
126 PLACE - NAMES IN WALE S .
FOUR CROSSES . Near the village there are two
roads in tersecting each other hen ce the n am e .
GARNDOLBENMAEN .
— Ga r n ,a heap , a cairn ; dol ,
m oun tain m eadow ; pen ,top
,head ; m a en , ston e . In
the vicin ity there is a large m oun t , on which m ight
have been a watch - tower . About the begin n in g of the 19th
cen tury som e cairns a n d urn s were discovered here .
GARSW YLLr .— Probably a corruption of c orswyllt ,
which sign ifies a wild b og .
GLAN ADDA .—A corruption
,probably
,of Clyn
E iddw ; c lyn ,a place covered with br akes ei dam, ivy ,
GLANW YDDEN .-The village takes its n am e from
a farm of the n am e in the vicin ity . The n am e,probably
,
is a com poun d of g la n , brin k , side , shore , ban k ; a n d
gwydden ,a stan ding tree or gwydd
- din ,woody hill .
GROESLON .
—Groes- c roes, cr oss lon ,a n arrow road
sign ifyin g the cross road . Lon is from the English word
l a n e.
GW IBERNANT .
—This n am e is variously spelt,n am ely
,
Ewyb r Na n t , a fleet , swift br ook Gwyb er N a n t , a brook
of sweet water a n d Gwi b er Na n t, the viper
’s brook . The
l ast is the proper n am e .
GWYD IR .
—P r in1-a fa c ie on e m a y take it t o be a c ompoun d of g ra y, water , a nd i i r , lan d . Som e derive it from
gwydi r , glass , upon the supposition that the m an sion of
Gwydi r wa s the first house in Wales t o have glass win
d ows . Sir J ohn Wyn n m en tion s a date of 1512 on
a window at Dolwyddelen , which is long before the
buildin g of Gwydir . Cyn ddelw Brydydd Mawr , who
flourished about the year 12 50 , m used the followin g
l in eTrwy ffenest r i Gwyd ir yd ym gwela n t
CARNARVONSHIRE . 127
t hat is , They see m e through the glass win dows . The
n am e probably is a corruption of gwa ed , blood , a n d ti r ,
la n d , sign ifyin g the bloody lan d . B loody battles were
fought here between Llywa r ch Hen a nd his foes about
the year 610 , a n d also between Gruffydd ab Cyn a n a n d
Tr a eha ea rn ab Ca r a dog , a n d others .
GYFFIN .—An in flection of cyfi
Pn , a con fin e , a lim it ,
a border . The Village is situated on the rivulet Gyfi‘in ,
a bout three - quar ters of a m ile from Conway , which wa s
an cien tly called Ca er Gyflin .
H1RAEL .—H i r , lon g a el , brow a el b ryn ,
the brow
of a hill . The n am e is quite descriptive of the situation
of the village .
HEBRON .
—The v illage took its n am e from the
Congregation al Chapel that wa s built in the place .
LLANAELHAIARN .—The church is dedicated t o
Aelha i a rn , a brother of Llwchh a ia rn , a n d a sain t of the
s ixth c en t u rv .
LLANDRILLo .—The church is ded icated to St . Trillo .
LLANDDYNIOL .—The church is dedicated t oDei n iolen ,
a descen dan t of Du n awd , the foun der of Ban gor Isc oed .
LLANLLECHID .
—The church is dedicated t o Llechi d,
daughter of Ithel Hael , a nd a s a in t of the sixth c en
t ury .
LLANEUGAN, or LLANEINON.—The church is dedi
c a t ed t o B in i on , a royal sain t of the sixth cen tury . The
followin g in scription wa s in the belfry of the church
som e tim e ago En ea nns Rex W a lli a Fa b r i c a v i t .”
LLANDEGW YNIN .—The fair church of Gwyn in , a
sa in t of the seven th cen tury , to whose m em ory it was
d edicated .
128 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
LLANGWNADLE .—The church is ded icated t o Gwyn odl ,
son of Sei thenyn , a nd a celebrated sain t of the sixth
c en t u r v .
LLANRHYCHWYN .—Accordin g to the Myv yr i a n ,
the church wa s dedicated t o Rhychwyn , son of Ithel
Hael .
LLANDWROG .—The chur ch is dedicated t o Twrog ,
son of Ithel Hael .
LLANFOR .—The church is dedicated t o Mor a b
Ceneu a b Coel , a sain t of the fifth cen tury .
LLANIESTYN .— The chur ch is dedicated t o Iestyn a b
Ger a i n t , the foun der of it . He flourished about the en d
of the Sixth cen tury .
LLANDUDWEN .— The church wa s dedicated to
Trzdwen , a Welsh sain t .
LLANDUDNO .—The church is dedicated t o Ta da o,
son of Sei thenyn , a n d a sa in t of the sixth cen tury . A
cur ious rocking ston e , called Cryd Tu dno, Tu dn o’
s
cradle , is seen on the Great Orm e ’s Head .
LLANBERIS .—The chu r ch w a s dedicated t o P er is, a
sa i n t of t l e sixth cen tury , a n d a cardin al m ission edfrom Rom e , took up his abode a n d died here .
LLANARMON .—The church is dedicated t o Ga rm on ,
or Germ an n s , a sain t a n d bishop of the fifth cen tury .
LLANGYSTENYN.—The church wa s probably dedi
c a t ed to Cystenyn Cern en , an d n ot t o Con stan tin e the
Great , as som e believe .
LLANFAELRYs.—The church wa s dedicated t o
M a elfrys, a descen dan t of Em yr Llyd aw, a nd a sain t
of the sixth cen tury.
130 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
St . Mary, an d the adj ective fecha n , sm all , little , wa s
added probably t o distinguish it from other a nd larger
churches dedicated t o the sam e sain t .
Le HEAEN.—Lli th im plies at traction m a en , ston e .
There is a ston e in the vicin ity that partakes of the
n ature of a loadston e , from which , probably , the place
d erives its nam e .
MB IN I HIRION.—Mei n i , plural of m a en , ston e ;
hi r ion , plural of hi r , long . Druidic m onum en ts , such
as c r om lechs a n d other large ston es , are still visible in
this vicin ity . The place took its n am e from the long
ston es that wer e seen above the Bwlch, which , accord
in g to tradition , wer e con veyed there by a gian t .
MOEL TRYFAN .—Moel , bare , bald ; i ry/
“a n , high
place , uplan d .
MYNYTHO .—A corrupted form of mynyddoedd,
m oun tain s . The n am e is quite descri ptive of the
place , which is situated on a rugged em in en ce .
NAZAREr H.—This village takes its n am e from
Nazareth , the Congregation al Chapel .
NANNAU .—Plural form of n an t
,a brook .
NANTFFRANCON.-Na n t , a brook fir a n con , a beaver
t he n am e sign ifies the beaver’s hollow.
NANr LLE .—A com poun d of n a n t , a brook , a n d llef,
a cry, a voice , so called from the tradition al belief thatsom e sorrowful cries were heard n ear the brook at som erem ote period .
NEFYN .—The church w a s probably dedicated to
Nefyn , daughter of Bryc ha n Brychein iog, a nd a sain t
of the fifth cen tury hen ce the n am e of the place.
CARNARVONSHIRE I 31
PoRTMADoc .—In 1813,
‘Mr . Maddock, Tan -
yr-All t
,
m ade a n emban km en t to save the site of the presen t
town from the in cursion s of the sea ; a n d in 182 1, he
obta i n ed a n Ac t of Parliam en t for open in g a port in the
p lace , so he is n atural ly called the foun der of the town ,
a n d hi s n am e wa s deservedly bestowed upon it .
PoNr NEW YnD.—P on t , bridge ; newydd, n ew ; so
"called from a certain bridge, that wa s built over the
r iver Gwyrfa i .
PwLLHELr.—Pwll, pool heli , salt water the sea
port is Situated on the edge of Cardigan B a y . The
Myv yri a n derives heli from H eli , the son of Gla nog .
PORrD1NORwrc .—Din , a hill fort ; TheRev . Isaac
Taylor derives it thus P or t Dyn Norwig , the Port of
t he Norway m en ,
” foun din g his reason s upon the pro
b a b ili ty that the Norm an s frequen tly visited that haven .
His derivat ion in our opin ion , is rather far - fetched
a n d m isleadin g . Din orwig proba bly m ean s fort of the
O rdovices .”
PENYGROEs.—So called after a n in sign ifican t cot
t age of the n am e , which stood n ear a crossway .
PENMAENMAW R.— P en , head ; m a en , ston e , rock ;
m a wr , great . The prefix pen is frequen tly found in the
n am es of m oun tain s , such as Ben Nevis , Appenn in es,Penn ign a n t La P enn e, Pen a rd , &c . Penm a enm a wr is a
hu ge m oun tain , 1545 feet perpen dicular from its ba se ,bein g the term in at in g poin t of the Sr .0wdon i a n rar g e
o f m oun tain s . The beauti ful wa t er ir g—place , which
shelters at its base,takes its n am e from it . Som e thin k
.t he ri ght wordin g is Penmonm awr . The ad j acen t jpromon
tory is n ow frequen tly called
132 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
PENMACHNo.—Ma chn o ,
a m utation of M a chn a wf ;m a ch- m a ch, ready , quick , swift ; n awf, swim . Moch
dysg n awf m a b hwy a d the young of the duck
soon learn t o swim . M a chn o is the n am e of the river
n ear which the villa ge is situated . Som e are of opin ion
that the n am e sign ifies the head of Ma chn o, a descen d
a n t of on e of the Irish prin ces that visited these shores
about the fourth cen tury . The comm on opin ion of the
inhabitan ts is that m a chn o is a corruption of myn a chlog ,
m on astery, foun din g their reason upon the supposition
that a m on astery stood here in tim e of yore .
PENr rR.—The n am e m ean s headlan d . Cen t ir e has .
the sam e sign ification . Pen in Gaelic is c en . The
place is also called Ll a n g edol , from the dedication of
its church to Cedol , a Welsh sain t .
PENRHYN .—Rhyn m ean s a prom on tory . Rhe, ru n
r ain , a nd rhyn , are derivatives of the San scr it r i . Rhedeg ,
run n ing rein deer, the runn in g deer rhe, swift . P en r
hya , a poin t of lan d that run s in to the sea . Rhin e , a rapidriver . The Rhyns are n um erous in our islan d . Rindow
Poin t n ear Wigton Pen rhyn in Cornwall Rhyn d inPerth the Rin s of Galloway , &c .
PEN ISA’
R Wa u n —The n am e sign ifies a placeSituated at the lower en d of the m eadow .
PENLLECH .—This n am e sign ifies the head of the
rock , from the situation of the place at the extrem ity
of som e rocks on the coast of St . George ’s Cha n n el
PORT PENRHYN .—The late Lord Pen rhyn m ade
t his a shippin g - place for the slates that were con veyedfr om his quarries in the Vale of Nan t Ffr a n c on hen cethe n am e .
134 PLACE NAMES IN WALES
RHOSTRYFAN .
— Rhos,”
a m oor ; tr y/fa n , high pla ce
The village is situated on a high elevated place .
SARN .
—The n am e gen er ally m ean s a road . Six
roads m eet at a cer tain poin t in the village ; hen ce
the n am e .
TREFOR .-A com pound of tref, place , town ,
a n d
fa wr,large
,great .
TY'
NLON . a house ; y n , in ; y ,the ; ion
Nor thw a li a n word for a n arrow road . The n am e Sig
n ifies a house in or n ear the road , a n d the village pro
bably derived it from a farm—house of the n am e .
TALSARN .— Ta l , end sa r n , road the n am e sign ifies
the en d of the Rom a n r oad . Sa m y Cyfia wrz, the high
wa y of the righteous . SGT } ? Helen occurs fr equen tly in
Welsh history . Helen w a s a Welsh prin cess , the d a u gh
ter of Eu dd a f, that is , Octavius , a Cam br ian pr in ce ,a n d the wife ofMa c sen W led ig , or Maxim us , the em peror .
S a r n Helen is a n old Rom an road , so c a lled b v the em perorin hon our of his wife .
TYDW AELIOG .—Som e are of opin ion tha t the church
wa s orig in ally ded icated t o Ty drc'a l , a Welsh sain t .
TREMADOG .
—The derivation of Por t rn a doc is alm ost
equally applicable t o this n am e . The on ly differ en ce
lies in the prefix . Tre m ean s a n abode, a town .
TALYCAFN .
— Ta l , fron t , en d y , the c a /n ,a tray or
t rough sign ifying the head or en d of the trou gh . Then am e faithfully represen ts this isolated a n d en circledspot of the parish .
CARNARVONSHIRE . 135
TREFR1w.— Tref, a place , a town rhiw, a Slope , a
brow of a hill . This pretty little village is situ ated on
a sm all em in en ce , com m an ding a n exten sive View of
the beautifu l Vale of Llan rwst .
TY’
NDONEN.—The correct wording probably is
Tyddyn yr On nen , the ash ten em en t . This is one of the
m an y place n am es in Wales where tyddyn is reduced to tyn .
WAENFAWR ..
— W a en or W a u n , a m eadow, a c om
m on ; fa wr - m awr , great ; the great m eadow . The
site of the presen t stragglin g village w a s on ce a large
m eadow,coverin g on e square m ile , where the n eigh
b ou r in g farm ers were won t t o turn their cattle in the
summ er t o graze , a n d quen ch their thirst in the river
Gwyrfa i .
YNYS ENLLr.—From Ynys Fen lli , i .e., Ben lli Gawr ,
or Ben lli the Gian t .
The English call ed it Bardsey Islan d , the isle of
the bards . It is said that the bards resorted there,preferring solitude to the in trusion of foreign in vaders .
DENB IGHSHIRE .
An glicized form of Di n b ych, which is vari ously d e
rived . A variety of very forceful derivat ion s have been
suggested , such as Di rn b a ch, which m ea r s “
n o hook ,”
in allusion t o the tim e when fishing hooks were obtain
able in the place . Is it n ot Di n b a ch Din,a hill b a ch,
little or sm all . The last derivation is am ply supported
by the geographical position of the place , bein g a
sm all hill in com parison wit h the loftier em in en ces that
tower above it . The coun ty derives its n a m e from the
town .
ABERGELE .— This pleasan t m arket town is so called
from its situation n ear the m outh of the river Gele. The
river , according t o som e , derives its n am e from g ele,
leech . A con siderable n u m ber of leeches were seen at
t he estuary in olden tim es .
ACTYN .
— A corrupt form of a c—i zt n - oa kt OW‘
BANGOR ISCOED .
— The word B a n g or here m ean s the
superior or prin cipal c hurch or college . Iscoed , un der
the wood . This place is fam ous for bein g the site of the
m ost an cien t m on ast ery or rather sem in ary in Britain .
It w a s foun ded accordin g t o the old writers b y Lucius , the
son of Coel , a n d first Christia n kin g ofBrit ain ,prior t o the
year 180 . Pelagius wa s here about the year 400 . The
in stitution som etim e con tain ed m on ks . It w a s alsothe site of the supposed Bon in rn or B or i i n n
,a Rom a n
station .
BERSHAM . Bers is supposed t o be a n En gli sh person a ln am e . It occurs in the Cheshire Doom sday Book . The
n am e , probably , sign ifies Bers’
ha m , settlem en t , or m a n or .
138 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
CLOG CAENOG .— Clog , a detached rock ; c a enog ,
having a cover en closed . Ca en en ,a coverin g . There
are som e excellen t quarr ies of ston e in this m oun tain
ous district , a n d som e parts of it aboun d with heaths .
CERYG—Y—DRUDION .
—A corruption of Ceryg—y
Dewr ion , the ston es of the cham pion s or war riors , so
called from a large heap of ston es that stood a cen turyor two a g o , n ear the church in m em ory of som e celeb r a t ed warriors . Som e thin k dr ndion is a corruption
of dr u v a’i on ,or derwyddon ,
druids ; hen ce the in t erpre
t a t ion would be ston es of the Druids .
”
DERWEN .—The n am e m ean s a n oak , so ca lled ,
probably , from the abundan ce of oaks in the distri c t .
DOLW EN .—Dol , a m eadow ; wen , fem in in e form of
gwyn , white .
EGLWYS BACH .
— Eglwys, church ; B a ch, the n am e
of the son of Corwel , who took refuge in North Wales
in the seven th cen tury,devoted him self t o religious
life , a n d founded a church on the ban ks of the Conwy ;hen ce the n am e of the place .
ESGA IR EBRILL .—Esg a i r , a sh a n k ,
a long ridge,that
which stretches ou t ; Eb r i ll,April .
EFENECHTYD .—A corruption of y fynei chdv d , the
m on k ’s land rn yn a ch, m onk dyd , or d a d , lan d .
ESCLUSHAM.
—~Esg lyw,protection
,defen ce , a n d [m m
a place,but m uch m ore probably from Eg lwysz Ec c lesi a ,
a church . The place is in close proxim it y t o Offa’s
Dyke .
FRON .
—An inflection of b ron , a poin ted or breast
shaped hill .
DENB IGHSHIRE . 139
FFRWD.—The n am e m ean s a stream ,
a torren t .
Ffrwd yr a fon ,
” the stream of the river.
GLYNCEIRIOG .~ Glyn , a n arrow vale ; Cei r iog , the
n am e of the river that flows through the valley .
GARTHEN .—Fr0m g a erddi n ,
for tified hill , so called
from a n Old Br itish cam p in the place . In this place
Owain Gyfeiliog van quished the Saxon s in 1161.
GRESFORD . cor ruption of Groesfiordd, so called
from its close pr oxim ity t o a n old cross .
GWERSYLLT .—The n am e sign ifies a cam p or en cam p
m en t.
GWYTHERIN .—From Sa n -t Gwyther in ,
t o whom the
church wa s dedicated . He flourished about the end
of the sixth c en t u rv . Gwyth, vein er in , gold .
GEFAILRHYD.
— Gefa i l , sm ithy rhyd, ford .
HENLLAN .—Hen ,
old ; lla n ,church . A n am e of
frequen t occur ren ce in Wales . The Old church , dedi
c a t ed to St . Sa dwrn , wa s dem olished , a n d re buil t in
1806.
Hor n—The Norse for wood , or hold of Wild an im als .We find B erg
- ha lt in Essex, which m ean s the fortress
in the wood . According t o Lewis’s Topographical Di c
tion ary,
” the an cien t n am e was Castell Lleon , the castle
of the legion s ,"a n d the presen t n am e wa s probably der ived
from a fam ily of the n am e of Holt , who are said to have.
held the castle in r em ote tim es .
LLANRHAIADR - YN-Moc HNANr .—Rha i a dr , waterfall ;
yn , the ; rn ochn a n i , quick, swift - brook . Accordin g t o
this in terpretation ,the n am e sign ifies a church built
n ear the swi ft water . Others say that m a ch m ean s
140 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
swin e , a nd that the word n a n t is applied t o the whole
valley , inclusive of the brook that flows through it ,on the tradition al belief that the place w a s som e tim e
aboun ding with wild hogs . The latter is the m ore
plausible a nd acceptable . Dr . Wm . Mor g a n ,the first tran s
l ator of the Bible in to Welsh,wa s vicar of the place .
LLANELrAN.—From Eli a n Geim i a d , a sain t of the
sixth cen tury , t o whom the church w a s dedicated . Elian’
sW ell is n ear the villa ge .
LLANEGW ESTL .—Fr om n estl , t o whom the old
c hurch wa s dedicated . Ein ion Waun alludes t o him
i n the followin g couplet
Owr a wn a ir fel. Gw a i r fa b Gwest l
Gwyr wa wr yn lla w r Ll a n egwest l .
Les—Like Gwest yl’
s son , he l ies in g loom profo u nd
In V a lle Cr u c i s Abbe y'
s ho ly g rou n d .
LLANELrDAN.—The church is dedic ated t o St .
E li da n .
LLANGOLLEN .—From Collen , a sain t of the seven th
cen tury . A Welsh legen d recoun ts his m artial deedswhen he wa s in the Rom an arm y , a n d shows how he
becam e Abbot of Glaston bury , a n d spen t the latterend of his life in that delightful vale which st i ll bears
his n am e .
LLANFAIR DYFFRYN CLWYD .— Lla n fa i r , St . Mary
’sc hurch ; dyflryn , vale ; Clwyd , t he n am e of the pict u resqu e a nd fertile vale in which the church is situa
ted . Clwyd is probably a m utation of llwyd, ven er
able , adorable . a lwyd ,” the adorable God .
LLANRHAIADR DYFFRYN CLWYD .—Rha i a dr m ean s
c ataract , waterfall . Rha i a dr a , t o Spout out .“
n nn on
Ddyfrog ,”Dyv rog
’
s well , a short distan ce from the
142 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
—of Ca dwr , the prin ce of Cernyw (Cornwall) hen ce the
n am e Lla ng ernyw.
LLANRWST . The old church wa s built in 1170 , a n d
dedicated t o Crwsl , a descen dan t of Urien Rheg ed , a n d
a sain t of the seven th cen tury . Lord Herbert burn ed
t he church in 1468, a n d the presen t on e wa s built in
1470 . Penn an t says the church wa s dedicated t o St.
Rhyst id , or Rest i t u t u s, Archbishop of Lon don ,in 361.
LLANGADWALADR .
— The church is dedicated t o
Ca dwa la dr , the Blessed , who succeeded his father,Ca dwa lla wn ,
to the thron e of Britain in 634. He w as
the last of the Welsh prin ces who assum ed the title of
Kin g of Britain .
LLANGEDWYN .
— F1'0m Cedwyn , a descen dan t of~Gwrthefyr , the kin g , a n d a sain t of the sixth cen tury .
It is supposed he wa s buried in the church .
LLANSANT S i on — The church,probably
,is dedicated
t o St . George , hen ce the n am e . Kinm el Park is close by,
Where , accordin g t o tradition , Oliver Cromwell wa s c on
c ea led when Carter , his gen eral lived there . A very big
spur wa s seen in St . George ’s church,called Oliver
Cromwell ’s spur .
LLANSANTFFRAID GLYNDYFRDW Y .—The church w a s
dedicated t o St . Ffr a id . Glyn , glen ,a n arrow
,deep valley ;
Dyfrdwy, Dee . The Dee valley exten ds about seven m ilesin length , a n d lies in the par ishes of Llan gollen , Lla n dysi
l io , Corwen , a n d Llan san tffraid . In this parish w a s the
prison where Owen Glyn dwr confin ed his captives, a n d the
place wa s called Ca r cha rdy Owen Glyn dwr , Owen Glyn dwr’
s
prrson .
DENBIGHSHIRE . 143
LLANDEGLA .—The church wa s probably ded icated
'
t o Teg la , who, according t o tradition , wa s converted to
Christi a n ity by the Apostle Paul, a n d suffered m artyr.
"dom un der Nero at Icon ium . The celebrated Tegla’s
Well is about 2 00 yards from th e Church .
LLANDDULAIs.—From Da la is—da , black ; g la is, a
brook— the river on which the church is situated .
Here the un fortun ate Richard the Second wa s b e
frayed in to the han ds of his form idable rival to the
thron e . The c a n t rev is called Is-Dn la is.
LLANFERRES . —The church wa s probably dedi
c a t ed ,about the latter en d of the fourth cen tury, to
Berres, a disciple of St . Martin , the Hungarian . Dr .
John Davies , the em in en t an tiquarian , a nd the author
of the Welsh—Latin Diction ary , wa s a n ative of this
parish .
LLANGWM .—The n am e sign ifies a church in the
“vale or dingle .
LLANDDOGED.—The church wa s dedicated to B a ged
a descen dan t of Cu n edda , a n d a sain t of the sixth cen tury .
Bon edd y Sain t calls him Doged the Kin g .
LLANEFYDD .—Nefydd, a descen dan t of Brycha n ,
a n d a sain t of the fifth cen tury , founded the church.
LLANSANNAN .~—Sen a u , or Sen a n u s, wa s a sain t a nd
a n Ir ish bishop of the sixth cen tury , a nd it is in
ferred that he lived in Wa l es from the fact that this
church wa s dedicated to him .
LLANEArR- TALHAIARN .—The church is d edicated t o
St . Mary . Ta lha i a rn wa s a celebrated bard a n d sain t
of th e sixth cen tu ry . H e wa s also a chapla in t o Em rys
144 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
W led ig ; but after the latter wa s killed , he becam e a
herm it , a n d foun ded the church which bears hi s Nam e .
LLANARMON—YN- IAL .
—The church wa s dedicated t o
St . Garm on ,bishop of Auxerre . I a l , the n am e of the
c a n t rev ,m ean s a n Open space or region . Ti r i a l , open
lan d . Yale, Derbyshire , is derived from the sam e root .
I a l is the differen tia , added t o distinguish the place
from the other Llan arm on The ‘Topographical
Diction ary of Wales says that within a n iche in the
outer wall of the church is the figure of a bishop , six
feet four in ches in height , which is sai d t o be that of
St . Germ a n u s, B ishop of Auxerre , who ,with St . Lupus
,
ga i n ed over the P icts an d Saxon s at Ma esg a rm on ,n ear
Mold , in the year 42 0 , the celebrated victory called b yhistor ian s Victoria Allelu i a t ic a .
LLANARMON DYFFRYN CEIRIOG .
— The village is
situated on the river Cei r i og hen ce the differen tia .
The parish is supposed t o have been the burial - place
of St . Germ a n u s.
LLYSFAEN .
— The n am e sign ifies the ston e cour t or
palace .
LODGE — The village is situate on the Lodge Estate .
In 1844 there w a s on ly on e house in the place,which is
n ow so den sely populated .
MARCHW IAIL .
—M a r ch, perhaps , is the sam e as m a r c
,
a m ark , a n d wi a i l is the plural of gwia len , a r od . View
in g the geographical position of this place , bein g inclose proxim ity t o Wat
’
s Dyke , we are of Opin ion that
the lin e of dem arcation w a s m ade of rods or poles ;hen ce the origin of the n am e .
MINERA .
— The n am e of this place wa s Mwyn -
y
146 PLACE—NAMES rN WALES .
PeNr RE CELYN (CUHELYN) . -The village of Cu helyn .
PENr REEOELAs.—P en tre, village ; moel , a pile , a
con ic al hill ; la s-
g la s, blue . Man y Of our m oun tain s
a nd hills bear the n am e m oel , such as Moel Sia b od ,Y Foel (Cwm avon ) , Moelyfam a u , Moelwyn ,
Y Foel
Goch , a n d the Foel La s. Som e thin k the correct word in g
is Pen tre - foel—aes,the vill a ge of the B a l d Shield .
PONTLLOGELL .—P 0n l‘, bridge ; llogell , pocket , so
called , probably , from the pedestri an s b eir g obliged t o
put their han ds in to their pockets t o pay a cert a in fee
before crossin g the br idge .
PONKEY .—A corruption of Pon cyn ,
a sm all hillock,
or it m a y be a con traction of the plural pon c i a n .
PANTYGROEs.—P a n t , sm all d ir g le ; y , the ; c roes
g roes, cross . It is said that the form of a cross which wa son ce visible on a certain spot in the n eighbourhood ,wa s des t royed by Crom well
’
s soldiers,but from which
c ircum stan ce the place wa s called P a n tyg roes.
RHYDONEN.
—Rhyd , ford ; onen, the ash tree . One
writer thin ks it is a corru ption of Rhyd Hen , the old
ford ; but this is rather far—fetched . Hewers of woodin olden tim es m ight have conveyed the ash trees over
the ford , n ear which a bridge n ow stands .
RHOSHOBYN .—Rhos, m eadow hob yn ,
pig Yr Hob
w a s in ancien t tim es the popular word for swir e . Hob
v der i da n do, i .e.
— The boar of the wood safely lodged
under roof . Havir g captur ed the boar in the woods a ndbrought him safely t o the house
, the popu lar Welsh son gHob y deri d a n do wa s sun g with rapture a n d joy .
RHOSLLANERCHRUGOG .—Rhos, m eadow ; Ila n er ch,
g‘
lade ; c r ngog , aboun din g with tum ps.
DENB IGHSHIRE . 147
RHOSYMEDRE .—A com poun d of Rhos a nd yn , the , a
c orruption of rnhen -
pen ,a n d dre- tre, a dwelling place,
sign ifyin g a m eadow at the en d of the town . Som e say,
that medre is a m utation of mya rea , m easures or circles .The form er der ivation is supported by the geographical
position of the village .
ROSSET.—A corruption of rhosydd, the plural of rhos.
RUABON . An An glicized form of Rhiw P a b on .
Rhiw, slope , ascend ing path ; M a b on , the n am e of a
W elsh sain t who lived here , a n d foun ded a church about
the tim e of Llewelyn ab Iorwer th . Som e thin k the
place took its n am e from i ts physical aspect,bein g
situate on a rhiw, a slope , n ear a stream let called Aionhen ce Rhiwa fon . The form er is the m ore popular view.
RUTHIN .—This n am e is variously der ived . Som e
say that a wom an n am ed Ruth on ce kept a large innn ear the (then ) village , a n d
,when the place began t o
d evelop in to a town , the people began t o call it Ru thInn . Red is the prevailin g colour of the soil in the
district . The prin cipal par ts of the town are situated
on red san ds or ashes hen ce the n am e wa s taken from
the ruddy hue of the soil . Rha th—rha da , ruddy, crim son ,red ;
i n a n abbreviation of di n sign ifyin g a ru ddy town . The
t own wa s burn t by Owen Glyn dwr, Septem ber 2 0th, 1400 .
RHUFONIOG .— This place wa s given to Rhnfa wn ,
son of Cu nedd a W ledig , for the g a lla r t ry shown by
h im in drivin g the Picts from Nor th Wales hen ce the
THREAPWOOD . Som e thin k threa p, is derived
from Throp, the m eetin g of cross roads . Pen n an t
d erives it from Threapi a n ,a n An glo - Saxon word signi fy
in g to persist in a fact or argum en t , be it right or wron g .
148 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
TREFNANT .—A compoun d of tref, place , a town ,
a n d n a n t , brook.
TREEOR.—Tref, town ; for - fa wr , great ; in con tra
distin ction t o tre/a n ,a sm all ham let or city .
TRE ’R YNYS .—Ynys Cyrys, t o whom is gen er ally
dedicated the hon our of havin g been the first t o collect
the Welsh proverbs . The collection is called Ma d
waith hen Gyrys o Ial , the good work of old Cyrys of Ial , .
W IG FAWR , or W ICW ER.— W ig
-
gwig , a wood or
for est M a i r , St . Mary , sign ifying Mary’s wood . There
is also a well in the place dedicated to St . Mary .
WREXHAM .—Som eon e , m ore Wittily than correctly ,
said that Gwrecsa ni m ean s Gwr a i g Sa m , Sam’s w ife .
Su c h Shor t - l iv ed w it s d o W i t her a s t hey g row .
The m ost an cien t form s of the n am e are W r ighesha m
a n d W r ig htesham . Old form , W r ight es han i , i .e . ,
Wright ’s ham . Churchyard , the Elizabethan bard,
described it as trim W r icksa m town , a pearl in Den
b ig hshire.
” The n am e , we thin k , is a com poun d of
r ex, kin g , a n d ha m ,
sign ifyin g the kin g’s ham let . A few
Latin words were in troduced in to the Speech of the
Cym ry in the m iddle a ges . In the elegy of Meilyr on
Gruffydd ab Cyn a n (twelfth cen tury) we fin d the
epi thet r ex radau , king of gifts, or graces .
W YNSTAY .—It wa s on ce called W a t—sta y from its
Situation on the fam ou s dyke . The presen t n am e wa sgiven t o it by Sir J ohn Wyn n .
YSBYTTY IEAN.—This villa ge , situated on the ban ks
of the Conwy , took its n am e from a n ysb ytty, hospital ,that wa s foun ded here in 1189, by Ifan ab Rhys . Ti r '
Ifa n is an other place in the parish .
I SO PLACE - NAMES IN W ALES .
BETTESFIELD .
— The gen eral opin ion is that the
field belon ged t o a wom an called Betty . A field below
the Baily hill,called Ca e Owa in , Owe i
’
s field , is sup
posed t o be the place where Owen. a n d his m en en cam ped
when they storm ed the Baily castle . There are several
fields in this distr ict either su ffixed or prefixed by proper
n am es . The right word in g would be Bet tysfield .
BAGILLT .— This n a m e is a perversion of B u gei llt ,
which is a com poun d of b u ,a c ow , a n ox, a n d g ei llt , the
plural form of g u ilt , a cliff , a n ascen t .
BROUGHTON . In Doom sday Survey a nd other
old records,the n am e is spelt as B roc tu n e, a n d that in
m odern En g lish is B rook—town . The Broughton fam ily
took their n am e from this place in the reign of Hen ryVIII.
BRYNTEG .
— Fr0m a n old farm —house so c a lled . The
n am e sign ifies fair - hill . ’
BW LCHGW YN . The n am e sign ifies white gap or
pass . ’ The ear liest m en tion of the n am e is in a docum en t
dated 1649, wherein Bwlchgwyn is described as a Com m on .
It takes its n am e , pl ob a b ly , from the white lim eston e cliffs
which lin ed the old r oad from Wr exham to Ruthin .
CAERGWRLE .
— Ca 67 , fortress ; gwr—c zw
,boun dary ;
le- lle, a place , sign ifyin g the border for t i ess. An old
castle b ea i in g the n am e is situate about a m ile from the
village called Hope . I t is supposed t o have been a n ou t
post t o Deva . On the supposition that it wa s on ce aRom an station , som e thin k the full wordin g is Ca er -
g a rw
lleng , the cam p of the great legion Ca wr - llengwa s the n am e given by the Briton s t o the twen tiethlegion .
FLINTSHIRE . 151
CILOW EN.— Ci l , a hidden place . This n am e wa s
given in hon our of Owen. Gwyn edd, who cam ped there
in order to avoid the in trig ues of Hen ry I I .
CAERW Ys.
— Ca er , a fortress , a city , from Latinc a strensis ; mys
-
gwys, summ on s . Som e thin k that the
Rom an s had a station here, where they held their
j udicial courts . The bards,in tim e of yore , frequen tly
held their session s here . An eisteddfod wa s held here
by royal comm ission on the zu d of July, in the 1sth
year of Hen ry VIII. The last royal summ on s for
holding these n ation al festivals wa s issued in the n in th
year of the reign of Elizabeth .
CAERFALLW CH .—A corru ption probably of Ca er
,
stron ghold Afa lla ch, proper n am e . In the pedig ree of
Sir Owain Tudor we fin d the n am e of Afa llech a p
Afflech ,a p Beli Mawr .” This A/a llech is supposed t o
be a n ephew of the ren own ed Ca swa ll a wn . On a n
adj acen t hill c a l led Moel—y—gaer there a re som e rem a i n s
of a British stronghold , which is supposed to have been
un der the com m an d of Afa llech dur ing the Rom an in cur
srons.
CEFN .— The n am e sign ifies a r idge , which is qu ite
descriptive of the place , bein g situated on a high em i
n en c e on the left ban k of the river Alun .
COEDMYNYDD.—A com poun d of c oed , wood ; a n d
mynydd , m oun tain .
COEDPOETH .-The n am e sign ifies Burn t wood .
In Norden ’s Survey of A.D., 162 0 , it is described as a
Comm on .
” It wa s at on e tim e the resort of charcoal
burn ers , but it is doubtful whether that sufficien tly ex
plain s the n am e . The probability is t hat the Comm on
152 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
w a s som etim e covered wit h trees which were bur nt down .
Poeth- ofirwm m ean s burn t—offer ing .
COED TALON .
— Coed , wood , trees ta lon ,plural form
of ml,towering
,high
,tall .
COLESHILL .— Literally ,
hi ll of coal . The Welsh
n am e is Cwnsyllt , which m ears the an vil of a sm i th ,a n d the other En glish n a m e , En g lefield ,
m ean s the
field of the En glish , which w a s given t o it , perhaps ,because the Ear l of Chester, a n d his followers were
en cam pin g there when Owain Gwyn edd m arched t o
m eet him a n d im pede his prog re ss throu gh his t erritory .
CILCAIN .
—Ci l , a place of retr eat c amz fa ir , beau
tiful . B a rg a i n w a s the n am e of St . Asaph ’s n iece .
Pen dir g the religiou s persecution that r a g c d at the
tim e , Eu rg a in r epaired t o a sequestered spot in this
vicin ity , built a cell there , a n d beca m e a relig iou s dev o
tee . Shor tly afterwards , she built a church n ear the
cell,which w a s ded icated to her m em ory .
COEDLLAI .
— Coed , wood ; lla z’
, less . It is gen eral lyc alled in En g lish Leeswood
,t a kir g lla i t o m ean less ;
but the proper English n am e is Lesswood . Owing t o
the abun dan ce of wood in the district , Edward , befor e
his con quest of Wales , wa s oblig ed t o cut a passage
throu gh them hen ce ther e were less tr ees than befor e .
DOLFFIN .
—A c om pound of dol , a dale , a m eadow ;
a n d fin,boun dary , lim it .
DYSER’
I‘
H .
— Dysei’th or disen‘h from latin deserms,
a . deser t . The villa ge probably takes its n a m e from
the an cien t castle which occupied the su m m it of the
rock . In tim e of yore,it wa s kn own by the n am es
of Din c olyn , Castell - y - Ffa idon , a n d Ca stell Ceri , a n d
154 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
m ere, cognate with the Latin m a re, sea , lake , or pool . The
village is situated n ear a lake, which lies between i ts
ban ks in the form of a m an ’s han d . The celebrated bard
Dafydd ab Edm u n t wa s born in this par ish .
HAWARDEN .—A corruption of Ha ordz
’
ne, which is
really a Welsh n am e ha w,fixed a r , upon. den - din ,
hill ; sign ifyin g a castle built on a hill . In Doom s
day i t is H a rodi rz. The B rut calls it Penka rddlech.
P a n a rd or P en a r th H a la wg is the Welsh n a m e , which
m ean s the headlan d above the lake . G a r th, hill , is
forcibly expressed in the word llu a r th, a n en tren chm en t
on the hill . H a la wg com es from ha l , salt m arsh , referr
in g to the Saltn ey a n d other m arshes , which were for
m erly covered by the sea . The m odern Welsh n a m e is
P em za r La g . P a n a rd, high en closure . Leg , lake . This
place is world - ren own ed for having been. the residen ce
of the late Right Hon . W . E . Gladstone , M.P .
HALK IN .—A corruption of the Welsh n am e H elygen ,
which m ean s a willow,a w illow tree . At the tim e of
the Norm an Conquest , the district wa s called Alchene,a con traction , probably , of Helygen . The village lies.
at the base of a m oun tain called Helygen .
HOLYWELL .—A free tran slation of Treflyrm on , so
called from St . Win ifred ’s Well, of legen dary r en own .
The origin al m ean in g of holy is healin g . The water of
this well wa s believed to be efficacious in the
cure of all corporeal infirm i t ies. It discharges 2 1 ton s
of water in a m inute . It is covered by a beautifulGothic building , supposed t o have been erected byMargaret , Coun tess ofRichm on d , m other of Hen ry VI .
HOPE —The old n am e w a s Caergwrle , previously
FLINTSHIRE . 155
explain ed . Edward I . took possession of Castle EstynJun e 1282 , a nd bestowed it upon Queen Elean or whenon her j ourn ey to Ca m a r v on ,
where she gave birth t oEdward I I . , the first En glishm an t hat wa s titled Prin ce
of Wales , from which circu m sta n ce the place wa s called
Queen’
s Hope , a n d som etim es East Hope to distinguish
it from North Hope .
LICSWM.—A com poun d of llu g , from Greek , lyckos,
a n d Latin lu x, a light , a gleam ; a n d cwm , a din gle , a
vale , sign ifyin g a lum in ous vale .
LLANASA .—Asa is a n abbreviation of Asa ph, a
popular sain t of the sixth cen tury , who succeeded St .
Cyndeyrn in the see of Llan elwy in 560 . The church ,a n d hen ce the villa ge , were n a m ed in hon our of him .
P a n ta saph took its n a m e from him .
LLANGYNFARCH .
—Cynfa r ch, a prin ce of the North
Briton s , a n d a sain t of the sixth cen tury , foun ded the
church , which wa s afterwards destroyed by the Saxon s
in the battle of B a n gor Orchard , 607.
LLANCILCEN.— Cz
'
l,a hi dden place ; Gen - Ga in , a n
abbreviation of Burgain ,n iece to St . Asaph . She
wa s the foun der of the Church . Vide Ci lc a in .
LANERc rr - Y - MOR.— Lla n er ch, a glade y , the m or ,
sea . This town ,as its n am e sign ifies, is situate n ear
the sea .
LLOc .— The word m ean s a m oun d , a d am , a fold .
Lloc rka g y Lli/ez'
r i a n t , a d a m again st the flood . Llochz’
,
to protect . Lla chas, a cover t , a refuge . Lock - gates
are employed on rivers a n d can als for penn ing back
156 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
the water a n d form ing locks . The word here probably
im plies a sheepfold .
LLONG .—Llong , a ship . The village derives its
n am e from a sm all inn which had the figure of a ship
i n full sail on i ts sign - board .
MELIDEN .—This place is supposed to derive its
n am e from the dedication of the church t o St . Meliden
o r Melid .
MANCOT .—A com poun d of m a n , a place , a spot ;
a nd c oed , wood .
MOSTYN.-A corruption
,probably , of m a es—ddz
’
n ,
which sign ifies the fortress field . Thom as a p Richard
a p Hywel a p Ithel c han,at the suggestion of Rowlan d
Lee, B ishop of Lichfield , w a s the first t o adopt the placen am e , as a person al n am e .
MOLD .
— Gwyddg ru g is the Welsh n am e,which
mean s the con spicuous m oun t or hill ,”
so called
from the great heap (n ow kn own by the n am e B ryn
Bei li , Bailey hill , from the word b a lli u m ,castle—yard) ,
which is n ear the pr in cipal road . The prevalen t opin ion
is , that this heap wa s on ce a tower of defen ce , which stood
so con spicuously in the Vale of Alun , that it w a s calledY Wyddg r u g . The Norm an s partially tran slated it Mon t
H a m, or Mou lhm tlz‘, the high m oun t , a nd som e think it
m a y be a corruption ofm oel iad , bald pate . Then am e is
obviously on e of the few m em or ials left us of the N orm a n
Conquest .
MAESGARMON .—Nam ed in hon our of St . Gan n on ,
who , with Bishop Lupus , led the Briton s again st , a nd
obtain ed a glorious victory over the Pagan Saxon s
a n d Picts . This took place in Easter week , 440 , a nd
158 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
PENTRE HOBYN .— P en tre, a village ; hob yn , a pig .
H a n erhob , a fli t ch or'
side of a hog . This place in an cien t
t im es w a s fam ous for its abun dan ce of wild boars . Vide
Rhos- hob yn ,Den bigh .
PENYGELLr .
—P en , head , en d ; i f, the g elli , grove .
PENYMYNYDD.
— The n am e sign ifies a place situated
o n a m oun tain .
P0NTBLE1DDYN.
—P on t , a bridge b lez’
ddyn , a wolf’s
PRESTATYN .
— A corruption of P rysgoed- dd in . In
an cien t tim es there wa s a castle here called P rysgoed
ddz’
n , eviden tly built by the Kym ry , a few ruin s of
which still rem ain . P rys, a covert ; coed , wood ; d i n ,
fortress ; the n am e sign ifies a place of resort . Som e
say i t is a corruption of P r v s Tyda in , Tyd a i n’
s place of
resort . P rys form a part of m any n am es,Prysa ddfed ,
Pryseddfod ,Pryst a lyn , &c .
RHUDDLAN .- This n am e is variously derived . Som e
derive it from Robert de Rothel a n,a m ilitary chief
,
who visited the place . Others derive it from rhu a’
d ,
red ; a n d gla n , ban k , from the town bein g situated on
the red ban ks of the river Clwyd . The castle wa s an cien t ly
called Ca stell Coch yn Ngwernfor , i .e. , the red castle
on the great plain . The m ost n atural explan ation is
Rhyd—y—lla n , the ford by the church . The n am e is written
even n ow by the oldest inhabitan ts Rhydla n . There
a re three fords in the district ; Rhyd-
y- dda u —ddzevfr , the
ford of the two waters , which is fordable t o this day ;For—ryd , the ford by the sea ; a n d Rhyd
—y
- lla n , theford b y the church . To the n orth of this ford
, on a n
em in en ce,there is a church dating back m any c en
FLINTSHIRE . 159
t u r ies a n d the ford is spann ed by a bridge whi ch dates
back to 1595 . Ere the buildin g of this bridge,the
c hurch -
g oers , un doubtedly, were won t to cross the
r iver by m ean s of this ford , hen ce it wa s called Rhyd-
y
l la n . It is spelt by som e Rhyddla n , perhaps from i ts
havin g been m ade a free borough by Edward I.,whose
son wa s proclaim ed her e the Prin ce of Wales,the first
English Pr in ce of Wales , 1283. In 1288, Edward I .held a parliam en t or a coun cil here t o divide his n ew c on
quests in to coun ties a n d to g ive laws t o the Welsh . Mor/a
Rhu ddla n is the celebrated m arsh wher e that m em orable
battle was fought in 795 between the Saxon s under Offa a nd
a n d the Welsh un der the vali an t Ca r a dog , when the last fell
in the con flict . Ma n y n am es in the vi cin ity poin t t o the
sa d catastrophe , such as B ryn y sa etha u , hill of arrows
B ryn y lla ddfa ,hill of slaughter P a n t y gwa e, the vale of
woe Ca e yr orsedd , field of the thron e or tribun al .
RHYL .-This beautiful water in g - place is situated
at the extrem ity of Saltn ey m ar sh , which is called in
Welsh Morfa yr H a l , or Yr Ha leg . We find the n am es
Pen a r leg n ear Chester, a n d P l a s-
yr- ha l n ear Ruthin
, a nd
a n old m an sion in the vi cin ity is called Ty’
n y—Rhyl ,
which m ean s a house in the s alt m arsh . An other
suggesti on is that the form Yr hel from hela , the hun t
in g g rou r d of Rhuddlan Castle , gave rise t o the n am e .
SALTNEY .—An abbreviation of Sa lt en ey , which is a
t ran slat ion of the Welsh ha lenog , aboun din g with salt .
The site of the presen t villa ge wa s n othing better than
a m arsh un til t he year 1778.
SEALAND .—Soon after the in corporation of The
River Dee Com pan y ,”in 1740 , six hu r dr c d acres of
160 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
the waste m arsh lan d of this district were purchased
from the lord a n d freeholders of the m an or of Hawarden ,
through which a n ew cha n n el w a s cut for the Dee, a nd
soon afterwards som e thou san ds of acres of the san ds
were redeem ed , which are n ow covered with good crops
of corn , &c . hen ce the n am e Sealand .
TRALLON .—A com poun d of tr a - llwng , beyon d the
m arsh , adj oin in g the m arsh , a sin kin g place , a quagm ire .
TRELAN .—A com poun d of tr ef, a place , a n d lla n , a
church . The parish church is in Trela n .
TREMEIRCHION .- Tref, place ; m ei r chion ,
a plural
form of m a r ch a word den otin g a lin e of dem arcation,
m ade of rods or poles . Com pare Ma r chwi a il , Den bigh
shire .
TREUDDYN .—The n am e is variously spelt . Treztddyn
Tryddyn , a n d Treddwz. The latter is the m ost acceptableTr e, a dwellin g dyn , a m a n .
TALAR .—The n am e m ean s a headlan d in a field
Ta l , head or end a r , lan d , ploughed lan d .
TRE ’R ABBOT .—The abbot ’s habitation .
W EPRE .—A corrupt ion of Gwyb re, its a n cien t n am e .
Gwy , water b re—b ryn , a hill . The place is situated on
the river Dee .
YSCE IFIOG .—A corruption of Ysc a wog , aboun d in g
with ysg a w, the elder wood . The correct n am e of the
par ish is Lla n fa i r Ysc eifiog , so called,i t is supposed
,
from its abundan ce of elder wood .
162 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
ABERCW MBOY .
— Som e sa y that BOY is a corrupted
form of bwc i , bugbear , hobgoblin ,from a tradition that
a hobgoblin on ce haun ted the place . c i wa s in course
o f tim e reduced t o 60 ,a n d ultim ately y wa s added . We
rather thin k the right wording is ABER - CW MBW AAU .
Bwa is the Welsh for b ow .
The place is also called CAP COCH ,red cap . There
wa s a public house here as early as 1650 ,a n d tradition
has it that the eccen tric lan dlord who wa s also a cock
figh t er , wa s won t to wear a red cap on a cock—fight in g day ,
hen ce the n am e .
ABERCYNON .
—~CYNON m ean s t he chief brook or
water .
ABERDAR .
—Som e think that the river Dar takes its
n am e from the abun dan ce of oa k trees (coed da r n en derw)that grew upon its banks . Others derive it from DU - AR
a u ,black ; a r
,arable groun d . The right wording pro
bably is DYAR ,which sign ifies soun d
,n oise
,or d in
,
so called perhaps from i t s n oisy waterfalls in the upper
part of the valley . In ABERDYAR we have the n am e in
i ts pristin e form .
ABERDULA IS .
— From its situation at the j u n ct ion of
the rivers Nedd a n d Du la is Da,black
,a n d d a is a brook ,
r iver . A little distan ce from the v illage the ruin of on e of
the m ost an c ien t t inworks in the coun ty still rem ain s .
It is called YNYSYGERW YN . Ynys an c ien tly sign ified a
quasi—islan d in the m arshes . Bon edd y S a i n t says that
Gerwyn ,son of Brycha n ,
wa s killed in YNYSGERW YN .
ABERDDAW EN.
~ DDAW EN sign ifies the Silen t riv er .
ABERFAN .
-B a n, high a lb a n
,the upper part . The
t r ook FAN discharges itself here in to the river Taff . The
GLAMORGANSHIRE . 163
v illage is also called YNYS OWEN, Owen
’s islan d,from a
farm of that n am e .
ABERGWYNFI .— From a farm so called which issituated at the m ou th of the brook GW YNFY . Gwynfa i ,blessed plain .
ABERNANT .
— The full n am e is ABERNANT—Y - W ENALLTI
n a n t, brook y ,
the wen,fem in in e of gwyn ,
white a llt :
g a lll , a woody Slope or em in en ce . Na n t originally m ean t
a very n arrow deep ravin e or valley,but it n ow refers
in South Welsh on ly t o the stream that flows through it .
ABERTRIDWR .
— Tr i—dwr,three waters
,so called from
t he Situation of the place at the jun ction of three brooks .
S ion Cen t , the fam ous bard a n d classical divin e wa s
born here about the year 1350 .
—I IN . corrupt ion ,probably
,of ABERTHIN ,
which sign ifies a place of sacrifices . It is supposed that
Druidical sacrifices were offered here .
ALLTWEN . Alll,a cliff g a lll o goed ,
a woody slope or
em in en ce wen ,fem in in e of gwy n ,
white .
BAGLAN .
— An abbreviat ion of Llan faglan . The
church wa s dedicated t o Baglan ,a Welsh sain t of the 6th
c en tury , a n d son of Ding a d ,the son of Nudd Hael .
BARGOD.
- The full n am e is PONT—ABER—BARGOD,
Sign ifying the bridge n ear where the river Ba rg od flows
in to the river Rhym n ey . Originally the river—n am e m ean s
a boun dary or m arch . BARGODION m ean s the m arches of
Wales . Com p . the Latin rn a rgo,
‘m argin .
’
BARRY . Thc islan d belonged t o the fam ily of
G ir a ldu s de Barry ,who were lords of the islan d , a n d gave
their n am e t o it . A person of that n am e wa s on e of the
164 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
in quisitors in the survey of the Lordship of G lam organ
in 1262 .
BEDLINOG .—Som e think it is a corruption either of
BEDD LLW YNOG,fox’s grave
,or BOD- LLW YNOG , fox
’
s
house . There is a farm adj oin ing called BLAENLLW YNOG .
We rather thin k the right wordin g is Bedw,birch trees
a n d llwynog having a gr ove . The old house,from which
the village is n am ed ,is alm ost surroun ded by birch
trees .
The village is also called CWMFELIN ,from a n old
m ill in the place .
BERTHLW YD.
— From a farm so n am ed . Ber th:
perfli , bush llwyd , ven erable , blessed the n am e Sign ify
in g the sacred bush . W e are told that the Baptists werewon t t o preach the Gospel a n d adm in ister the Lord’
s
Supper in this house as early as 1610 .
B ISHOPSTON.
— The W elsh n am e is LLANDEILO FERW ALLT . The church is dedicated t o B ishop Teilo . BER
WALLT is a com poun d of b erzc', the water - cress, a n d g a lll ,
a wooded dec l iv ity . In the Liber La n d a v en sis it isspelt La n b eru g a ll .
BLa c n rri LL .—This is a sem i—tran slation of the W elsh
n am e MELIN IFAN DDU . Mel i n, m ill ; Ifa n ,
Evan ,the
own er of the m ill , who lived in a farm called DoL IFANDDU hen ce the n am e
BLACK P ILL —P ILL is a corruption of the W elsh pl] ,a creek , a sm all islet of the sea . The ham let probablytook its nam e from the blacken ed stum ps of a subm erged
forest which are t o be seen all along the Shore .
BLAENGWRACH .
— The place lies n ear the source
(blaen ) of the rivulet GW RACH ,cwr
,extrem ity , a n d a c /z
,
166 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
m ost popular form is LLANSAWEL , from the c hurch being
dedica ted t o Sa wy l Ben u chel . In an c ien t MS S. the
place is called Berton Ferry , a n d Br i t t on e Ferry . Som e
say that Morg a n ab Ca r a dog ab Iestyn erected a
wooden tower on the river - side t o st op the Norm ans
from crossing the Ferry on their wa y from Ab erogwr t o
Cydweli .
BRITHDIR.
—This word m ean s lan d or soil of m edium
quality . Briton is derived b y som e from b r i l/i , spotted ,
or parti - coloured.
BROUGHTON .
-From a n old form of brook . The root
is Ba rrow. a sepu lchral m oun d form ed of earth or ston es .
Several tum uli or barrows were foun d on each Side of
the road from Llan twit Maj or t o Ewen ny , hen ce the n am e .
BRYNCETHIN .—Som e say i t is so c alled a fter a m a n
nam ed Gethin,but we offer the following derivation ,
b ryn , a hill celln'
n . dark ,terrible .
BRYNCOCH . From a farm so called . B ryn , a hill ;cock, red , is frequen tly applied t o a su n - parched field or
hill .
BRYNNA .-A villa ge perched on the hills n ear
Pen coed,hen ce B rwm a —b r v n ia u ,
hills .
BRYNSADLER.
—\n old thatched house on the Site
of the presen t Calvin istic Methodist chapel wa s calledTY’R SADLER , the sadler
'
s house . In the deeds of theabove 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 2 00 years a g o . The
saddler’
s house,in course of tim e , developed in to BRYN
SADLER,the sadler
’
s hill .
GLAMORGANSHIRE . 167
BRYNTROEDGAM. Som e think the right wording isBRYNTROEDYGARN
, but we rather take it w ith its troed
g a rn , crooked foot , the word sign ifying a place at the
crooked foot of a h ill , which is in full corresponden cew ith the physical aspect of the place .
BUTETOW N .
~ The village takes its nam e in honour
of the father of the late Marquis of Bute .
CABALFA.
—~Som e spell it Ca e- b a l/a ,ferry or ford
fields . There are several fords a n d ferries over the river
both in upper a n d lower Ca b a lfa . Som e think it is a c or
rupt form of cen—b a wlfa , a scooped ou t trun k of a tree,
the old Kim m r ic nam e for a can oe . I t is probably a c or
rupt form of CEUBALFA ,wh ich sign ifies a ferrying - place .
The village w ith all its lan ds a nd comm on age wa s given
by Gwyddg en ,son of Brochwa el , to B ishop Ou doc eu s,
in exchange for the heaven ly kingdom . (Liber La n
d a v en sis, p .
CADLE .— Ccld ,
battle,a field of battle c lip AR m es,
a pitched battle le- lle,place Sign ifying a place ofbattle .
Ca d is derived from the San scrit K a d, tohurt or kill .
CADOXTON .
—The church wa s dedicated to Ca twg ,
San t,a p Gwyn lliw a p G lywys a p Teg id a p Cadell Deyrn
llwg ,hen ce the Welsh n am e LLANGATTWG . The Sain t wa s
called Ca twg the wise ,from his superior wisdom in a ll
coun cils .
CAERAU .-CAER is a n en chorial nam e for a wall or
m oun d for defen ce , such as the wall of a city or castle . The
root is c a n,t o shut up ,
t o fen ce , t o en close with a hedge .
Ca e is a field en closed with hedges . CAERAU is the
plural of c a er . This place derives its n am e from a n old
Rom an fortress or en ca m pm en t , called TIBIA AMNE .
”
168 PLACE—NAMES rN WALES .
CAERPHIL1. —Opin ion s differ as t o the origin of the
postfix PHILI or FFILI. The origin al n am e of the place wa s
Senghenydd (Sain t Cenydd ) who foun ded a sem inary here .
W hen the sain t m oved t o Gower he left the sem in ary
un der the care of his son Ffili,who built a c a er , fortress
or defen sive wall roun d i t,hen ce it wa s called CAER
FFILI, according t o som e , but we rather think the right
wording is Caer Philip . The castle wa s in the possession
of Philip de Br a ose,in the 12 th cen tury . Ha ving
en larged it,his nam e w a s probably con ferred upon it .
CARDIFF.~ Ma ny form s of the n am e have been fou n d .
The first wa s probably CAIRTI . In 1126 it wa s spelt
Kardi,but later on the form w a s Ka erd iv ,
when it beg an
to be m odified in two direction s , on e towards Ka erdeethe ,
a n d the other towards Ka erdeef. The form er is the Welsh
m odification ,a n d the latter the English m odifica tion ,
hen ce CAERDYDD a n d Cardiff . In a gran t by King
John in 1205 it is spelt Ka erd if. In MSS. that range
from the thirteen th t o the sixteen th cen turies the form
is Kaer Dyf. Iolo Morganwg gives Caer Dyf a n d the
m a b i nog ion Kaer diff . The DD in CAERDYDD m a y be
accoun ted for by the com m on colloquial change of F t o
DD,as g ODDer b yn for gyFer b yn . The correct wording,
probably,is Ca erda f, a fortress on the Taff .
CAERSALEM NEW YDD .— A straggling village between
Swan sea a n d Lla ng yfela ch . It wa s kn own by the nam e
TIRDEUNAW un til the Baptists erected a splendid chapel
in the place a nd called i t CAERSALEM NEWYDD,which is
by in terpretation ,New J erusalem .
CASLLW CHW R. The fu ll nam e is CAe LL LLWCHWR,
the castle of Loughor . The castle wa s built on a hillock
above the estuary of the river Llwchwr , hen ce the nam e .
170 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
a place t o retreat t o,a creek
,a n ook . In early tim es
churches were built in sequestered places , but in Scotlan da n d Irelan d ki l
,sign ifying a church ,
is n ot the sam e word .
Mynydd , m oun tain the n am e sign ifies a m oun tain recess.
CILYPEBYLL .— Ci l , a sequestered place y ,
the
peb yll , ten ts the nam e sign ifies the retreat of the ten ts .
It wa s custom ary in olden tim es t o repair to tem porary
abodes in sequestered a n d quiet plac es in the sum m er .
The an cien t seat of the Herberts wa s situate in a sequest ered glen in this parish
,where they retired in the summ er ,
in order t o indulge in the rural en joym en t of the district .
C1LFFRIW .—Ci l , a place of retreat fir iw,
m ien,coun
t en a n c e,visage . The n am e is applied t o hill tops
a n d em in en ces .
CIMLA.—A corruption probably of c eim le
,a portion
of lan d n ot own ed by anybody ,but used occasion ally by
everybody .
CLW YDYFAGW YR.—Clt t 'wl , a hurdle , a wattled gate
y , the fa gwyr z m a gwy r ,a structure
,a wall
, a n en closure .MAGW YR is frequen tly u sed t o sign ify the rem ain s of a
dem olished or decayed building,fortress
, &c . In thed istrict of Gwen t it m ean s a house , a dwelling .
CLYDAGH .—A few villages a n d rivers in the coun ty
bear the n am e . Som e derive the n a m e from c l u do,t o
carry . Others trace it to the Gaelic c lz'
llz,strong . W e have
the CLYDE in Scotlan d ,the GLYDE in Irelan d , a nd the
CLWYD in Wales . We offer the following derivationc lyd , Sheltering ,
warm , com fortable . Lle c lyd ,a cosy
,
com fortable place . Ad z,a river ; the nam e Sig n ifying
a river flowing through a sheltering place .
GLAMORGANSHIRE . I 7I
COEDFFRANC.—The n am e sign ifies the Norm an
’
s.
wood . The parish takes its n am e from a farm so nam ed .
CLYNE .-A corrupt form of c l im ,
a m eadow or field,or it m a y be a corruption of c lyn ,
a place covered withbrakes .
COGAN .—A corruption ofGzog a n ,
the nam e of a Welsh
person age , according t o som e . We rather think the
place takes its nam e from Cog a n , one of the leading
Norm an settlers, who held lan ds at Hun tspill . Sir
Milo de Cogan wa s one of the con querors a n d settlers
in the South of Irelan d , a n d the sam e fam ily probably
gave their n am e to this place .
CORLANAU .—A sm all village between Aberavon a n d
Cwm avon . The nam e is the plural form of corla n ,
a sheepfold . The place is conven ien tly situated for folding
the flock .
CORNELLY .—A m an or n ear Cenffig ,
which gave or
received its n am e t o or from som e early Norm an settlers.
Thom as de Corn eli gave t en acres of arable lan d in his fee
of Corn elly t o Neath before the 9 John . (Arch . Cam b .
X IV .
CORNTW N.—Corn town ,
a down or hilly tract of lan d
where corn wa S'
g rown .
CORSE INION.— Cors, a hog ; Bi n ion , the nam e of a
descen dan t ofHowel the Good . He led a n arm y twice t o
Gower , a n d probably en cam ped here before he reached
his destin ation . Port Eyn on also preserves his n am e .
E i n ion m ean s our leader ."
COYCHURCH .—The prefix is a con traction of coed ,
wood,.
the n am e sign ifying the church in the wood . Pen coed
172 PLACE NAMES IN WALES .
a nd Coet ty are n ot far distan t . The Welsh n am e is LLAN
GRALLO . Lla n,church Cr a llo
,the n am e of the founder
a nd patron sain t of the church , a n d a n ephew to Illtyd .
MYNYDD Y GAER,the fortress on the m oun tain , is in this
parish ,where the rem ain s of a n old Rom an cam p are sup
posed t o be seen .
COETTY .— Coed ,
wood Iy ,house sign ifying a wood
house , or a house in the wood ,Bod
,wa s the residen ce of a
superior , but ( V is of a later date , Sig nifying a n ordin ary
house , a cottage . The two d ’
S as in COED - DY,are gen er
ally harden ed ih pronun ciation in to 1. Diot ly com es from
diori (17
V
CRAIGCEFNPARC — Cr a ig ,a high rock
,or crag cefn ,
ridge,back pa re ,
a field,a n en closure . Cr a ig takes the
form of carraig,c arrick
,carrig
,crick
, &c . P a re is equi
valen t t o m e,a piece of lan d en closed w ith hedges , a nd is
used in that sen se in the south—west coun ties . Com pare
the English park which has a m ore exten sive m ean ing .
CROSSVANE .
—CR0ESFAEN is the correct wording ,which sign ifies the c ross ston e . In the tim e ofHowel the
Good , ston e crosses were used chiefly to m ark lan d pro
perty, a nd som etim es they were set up to caution pedes
t r ia n s n ot t o cross the fields. Those with the nam es of
British sain ts i nscribed upon them were placed on the road
side to comm em orate the blessed fact that the glad t idings
h a d been preached there .
CRW YS.—A corrupt form of CROES , a cross . When a
corpse is lying in its Shroud,i t is said t o be da n a i g rwys,
’
‘un der the cross,
’ from the Popish custom of putting a
cross on the bosom of the dead . We find the word in
BW LCHYCRW YS,PANTYCRW YS ,
&c .
174 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
CW MG IEDD.
— GIEDD is the nam e of the rivulet that
run s through the vale . Som e have derived it from Gwy
ei dden ,n oisy water , in con tradistin ction from its n eighbour
LLYFNELL , the sm ooth or silen t water . Gn '
v—ydd
l iterally m ean s waterer or aquat ic . Gzov a ch , gwyl a n ,
gwyclcl , la r v a e] , are all aquatic birds .
Cw .\IGW RACH .
— Czom,a narrow vale gwr a ch ,
a fairy
o r w itch .
CW MLLYNFELL — LLYFNELL is the right wording ,
which m ean s the sm ooth or silen t river .
CW M OGW Y .
—The valley ofthe n y river . 0g , a pt
t o m ove , a n d g rey , water .
CW MRHYDYCE IRw .
- Rhyd ford ; y ,the ; Cei rw,
stags .
CW MTW RCH .— The river Twr ch ru shes furiously
through the place a n d em pties itself in to the river Ta wy .
Tyr ckn ,t o turn up ,
t o burrow . The m ole is called in Welsh
lwr c /i da c’a r , from its bu rrow ing n ature .
CW MYGORS .
— CZC'171, com be y ,
the g ors—c ors,
a hog ,
a fen .
CYMMER .
— The word m ean s the jun ction of two rivers
or brooks bearing the sam e n am e,such as CYMMER CEEN
COED,where the Ta f fa wr a n d the Ta f fechan j oin a n d
CYMMER GLYN RIIONDDA,where the Rhondda fa ch
em pties itself in to Rhon dda Fa wr ; a n d CYMMER GLYN
CORRW G ,where the Cor rwg fach loses itself in Cor rwg
DERI .— DERI m ean s oaks , a n d is cogn ate w ith Derrya n d K ildare . The village takes i t s n am e from a farm so
called,which is situate in a plac e aboun ding w ith oa ks .
GLAMORGANSHIRE . 175
T he place is also called DARRAN,from Da r ren ysgwydd
gwyn ,which overlooks the valley in a very m aj estic
m an n er . Da r ren— rocky hill .
DINAS .
— The place wa s originally called DINAS Y GLo,
t he coal city , on accoun t of its being so abun dan tly
blessed w ith the black diam ond . The word is derived
from di n,a fortified hill , a cam p . Com pare the Irish
d z’
i n ,the An glo - Saxon lZlH
,the Rom an di n i n rn , a n d the
En glish town .
DINAS Powrs.
— The m ost popular opin ion is that
DENIS is the correct wordin g here . When Iestyn ab
G wrg a n t m arried Den is , the daughter of Bleddyn ab Cyn
fyn ,Prin ce of Powys , he built a m agn ificen t m an sion for
her about 1043 , a n d called it Den is Powys , in hon our of
his w ife .
differ widely as to the derivation
o f this n am e . Som e derive i t from da, black a n d c la is, a
little tren ch or rivulet . Others sa y it is a corruption
of DW YLAIS ,from the conflu en ce of the two brooks in
the place . We offer the follow ing : d a , black ; g la s,
blue,Sign ifying the livid water . River—nam es are
frequen tly derived from the respective hue of their
waters . DULAIS is of frequen t occurren c e in Welsh
topog ra phy . We have five Dulas,at least , in Wales ;
three in Scotlan d a nd on e in Dorset . It has differen t
form s : Douglas in the Isle of Ma n , in Scotlan d ,in
Irelan d,a n d in Lan cashire Doulas in Radn or Dowles
in Salop Dawlish in Devon a n d Dowlais in Glam organ
DYFFRYN . water a n d hyn t , a wa y , a course
the word sign ifying a vale through which a river takes it s
c ou rse . DYFFRYN’
I‘
wa s an cien tly used to den ote a river .
176 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
The village is situate n ear DYFFRYN GOLUCH , the valleyof worship or adoration . Golychwyd m ean s worship or
adoration . Ara ser i fwyd , a c a mser i olychwyd,”
“ There is tim e for m eat a n d tim e for worship .
” I t is.
supposed that the an cien t Druids m et together in this
vale t o celebrate the m ysterious rites of their religion .
EEAIL FACH .— Ge/a i l , a sm ithy ; ja ck,
b a ch,sm all ,
little so called from a srn i thy in the place .
EGLWYS BREwrs.—Eg lwys, church . The an cien t
lla n has been superseded by the ecclesiastical term
eg lwys in m any places in the Pr in cipality . B rewis is difficult t o explain . The roots , perhaps , are b re, hill ; a n d
mys, rest , sign ifying the hill or place of rest ; Or it m a y b e
a corrupt form of B reos, from William De Brac os, who
wa s con secrated B ishop of Llan daff in 1265 .
EGLWYS ILAN .—In Iolo MSS. , p . 637, we are told that
Elian foun ded the church . Others think it w a s dedicatedto Elen Deg (the Fair) the sculptor ofMorgan the Cour
t eou s. The derivation is supported by the fact thatCWM ELEN DEG , the fair Elen
’
s vale,is in this p a r ish .
ELY .
—The W elsh n am e is Trc la i , the river Lla i,
which ,according t o so m e , m ean s a du n—coloured water
,
run s through the place . We rather think the correct
wording is Elmy c l , active , swift a n d ze'y—gwy ,
water
the n am e sign ifying the active or rushing river .
EWENNY .—v n - wy. the frothy water, is the n am e
of the river that flows through the place . Som e thinkthe correct wording is y—zc’en—wy ,
the white water.
178 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
GARNANT .
— The roots are g a rw,rough ; a n d n a n t ,
a glen . The old n am e of the place wa s Cross Keys .
GELLIDEG .
— Gelli,grove ; deg ,
: teg ,fair .
GELLIGAER .~ - The n am e sign ifies a m ilitary station
in afiwoody place , a n d derived from Ca er Ca stell , the
rem ain s of which are still to be seen,It wa s built by
Ior wer th ab Owen in 1140 or 1240 . In this parish we fin d
traces of a n old Rom an road ,n am ed Strata Julia , from
Ma ret im a Julius Fon t in u s or Fron t inu s,which took its
c ourse from Caerleon to Brecon .
GELLIONEN.
— Gelli , grove om en,ash tree sign ify
in g the ash grove .
GELLY .
— Gell’i m ean s a wood ,a grove
,a copse . Cell
origin ally m ean t a grove , a n d the Irish coi ll has a n iden
t ical m ean in g . The aborigin es of Scotlan d were called
Gwm'
ll da v i n ,the people of the wood .
”
G ILESTON .
— LLANFABON - Y—FRO is the W elsh n am e,
from the dedication of the church t o St . Mabon , a n d its
situation in the vale of Glam organ . The English n am e
wa s“
bestowed upon the place by the Giles fam ily ,whose
pedigr ee seem s n ot t o have been preserved .
GILFACH GOCH .
—Gi lfa ch,a place of retreat ; c oc /z,
red . The place appears t o have taken its n am e from a
.l eap of red Cin ders , which still rem ain s as a m om en to of
the ironworks that stood there in tim e of yore . Ruin s of
) id furn aces are still t o be seen in the vicin ity .
GLAIS .
~ Gla ism ean s a tren ch through which a stream
ofh
w a t er flows . It is som etim es used to den ote the stream
itself,a n d n ot the tren ch through which it run s .
GLANYBAD . Cldn , bank , side , brin k y ,the b dd
,
GLAMORGANSHIRE . I79
GLYNCORRWG .— l n , a vale narrower but deeper
than a dyfiryn , through which a river flows . Com pare
the Gaelic g lea n n , a n d the Anglo - Saxon g len ,both sign ify
in g a sm all n arrow valley . Two rivulets called Corrwgem b race each other in the glen . Cor rwg is variouslyd erived. Som e have derived it from GORW G AB EIR
CHo others from c a r rog , a n obsolete form for brook.
An other explan ation is cow,a Celtic n am e for sheep
.corlew, sheep - yard a n d wg ,
im plying a place or locality.
It is said that a certain farm er here wa s won t to keep asm any as two or three thousan d sheep at the tim e .
GLYNNEDD.—Glyn ,
glen ; medd,river- n am e . (See
Neath) .
GOWER.—The root is —
_ gwyro , to deviate , to
swerve,suggested probably by the deviation of the
pen in sula from the m ain land , a n d its irregular character.
GOW ER‘
I‘
ON.—The old n am e wa s GOWER ROAD ,
from
its physical conn ection with Gower,but at a vestry m eet
in g of the ratepayers of the parish of Loughor , held October
1sth ,1885 ,
it wa s un an im ously passed That the n am e
of this village be changed from Gower Road t o Gowerton .
"
The n ecessary arrangem en ts were m ade for the new
n am e to be adopted January I st . 1886.
GOYTRE .— Coed
,wood ; a n d Ire, a dwellin g place ,
sign ifyin g either a dwellin g in a wood , or a house built
of wood .
GROESW EN.— Croes, cross wen z gwy n ,
white liter
a lly the wordm ean s white cross ,’but figuratively blessed
c ross . In olden tim es, white wa s a n em blem of purity ,
a n d ,therefore
,a source of blessedn ess .
180 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
GROVE’
s END — A village n ear Gorsein on . It takes
its n am e from a farm so c alled .
GW AELODYGARTH .
—Gwa elod ,bottom
,base ; y , the ;
g a r tk origin ally m ean t a n en tren chm en t on a hill , but in
course of tim e it cam e t o sign ify a ridge,a hill , a risin g
em in en ce,a prom on tory . Com pare the Norse g a r th, the
Persian g i rd ,the Anglo - Saxon y a rd , a n d the Welsh
g a rdd . The m oun tain that towers above the place is called
MYN-YDD—Y - GARTH , a n d the village restin g quietly at its
base is called GW AELOD- Y - GARTH .
GW ARYCAEAU .
— Gi a'de,the n ape of the n eck y ,
the
c a erm,
fields . These fields belong to a farm called Ty
draw,above which a few houses were bu ilt a n d called
Gwa ryc a ea u . The plac e has n ow developed in to a strag
gling Village .
GYFE ILLi ox.
— Som e th ink the n am e is a m utilated
form of GAFAELON . Ga fa el m ean s the share which each
brother held in their father'
s lan d , however num erous the
brothers were . Ga /a el cen edl the hold or tenure of a
fam ily . In a n old docum en t the n am e is Ys GOF
HOELIOX ,the n a ilor
’
s island .
HAFOD .
—~H a f- b od . sum m er residen ce . Hen dr cf wa s
a very c om m on appellation in olden tim es for residen ce
in the v a lley , a n d H_AFOD or HAFOTTY w a s used t o sign ify
a residen ce in the hills . The [Ill /0d con sisted of a long
low room ,with a hole at on e en d to em it the sm oke
from the fire wh ich wa s m ade ben eath . Its stools were
ston es , a n d beds were m ade of ha y ranged alon g the
sides .
HENDRE .
— Hen , old ; tref , hom estead . Hi 'a’rzf
Oc tober) , w a s the harvest se ason— the t im e to gather
182 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
LALEsr ox.
—TRELALES is the Welsh n am e,which
m ean s the town of Lales . De Grenville wen t on a pil
grim age in 1111 t o the Holv Lan d, a n d brought back
w ith him a n architect n am ed Lalys . He bu ilt NeathAbbey
, Marg am Abbey, a nd several castles a n d m a n
sion s in Wales .
LAND0RE .—GLANDWR is the correct wording ;
g la n , bank ; dwy,water . The old farm stead
,which
gave the n am e to the place,wa s situate on the banks
of the T a wy .
LANGLAND .
-The right wording is LONGLAND,so
called from the prom on tory that form s on e of the horn s of
the bay .
LAVERNOCK .
— This is probably a Norm an corruptionof LLANW ERNOG , or LLYW ERNOG ,
which sign ifies a chu rchon a m eadow .
LECKWITH .
—This n am e is an other in stan ce of the sad
havoc the Norm an s played with Welsh n am es when theysettled in Glam organ in the eleven th cen tury . It is a c orruption of LLECHW EDD , the steep or shelving of a hill .
LEWISTOWN .- So called in hon our of W . Lewis
, Esq,
Bon t n ewydd House , because the village is situate on hisestate .
LLANBEDR—AR—FYNYDD . Llan bedr - ar - fynydd ha s
been tran slated Peterston e - super -Mon tem . At the Norm a n Conquest Fi t zha m on divided the coun try betweenhis followers
,when Sir Peter le Soore w a s rewarded w ith
the lordship of Peterstown,which he called after his own
Christian n am e .
LLANBEDR - Y - FRO .
— The church wa s called LLANE INYDD un til the Norm an Con quest in 1091. It wa s bu ilt
GLAMORGANSHIRE . 183
by Rhys ab Einydd ,Prin ce ofGlam organ
,hen ce the n am e .
After the Con quest the parish fell in to the hands of SirPeter le Soore , hen ce the n ew n am e Lla n b edr
,Peter’s
Chu rch ,which is situate on the river Ely in the beauti
ful vale of Glam organ .
LLANBLETHIAN .— H istory tells us that BLEIDDIAN
(Lupus) a con tem porary of Garm on ,foun ded the first
church here in the sixth c en tury . The root is b la i dd,a
tran slation from lu pu s,a wolf .
LLANCARFAN .—W e are in form ed that in this place
the first m on astery wa s built in Britain by Germ a n u s,
from which circum stan ce Iolo Morganwg thin ks thatLLANCARFAN sign ifies the church of Germ a nu s
, CARFAN
bein g a corruption of the sain t ’s n am e . Others are of
opin ion that the m onastery wa s founded by Ca t twg
Ddoeth ,a n d that the n am e w a s Latin ized in to Ca r b a m
'
Va llis.
LLANDAF. Lla n,church ; da /z Ta f, the n am e of the
river on which the an cien t edifice wa s built , according to
the Welsh Chron icles ,’
in 173 by Lleu rwg (Lucius) . Thissee is reckon ed t o be the m ost an cien t in Britain . Dyfcm
is said to have been its first bishop,173—180 .
LLANDEILo - TALYBONT .— The church wa s founded by
TE ILO,B ishop of Llan daff , in the sixth cen tury . TALY
BONT literally m ean s the en d of the bridge . When
applied to places l a l m ean s en d but when applied t o per
son s i t sign ifies ‘ fron t ,’
Ta l—cen,fron t of the head ;
Ta li esin ,radian t fron t or lum in ous head .
LLANDOCHW Y .
—The church is dedicated to DOCHW Y ,
a n Arm orican sain t , as som e assert , who foun ded a
sem in ary here in the secon d cen tu ry .
184 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
LLANDYFODW G .
— The church w a s foun ded by a n d
dedicated to TYFODW G,a sain t of the sixth cen tury .
Several cairn s are t o be seen on the m oun tain s of thisparish .
LLANDDEW I ,—The Church is dedicated t o Dewi ,David , the patron sain t ofWales , who it is said ,
w a s the
rector before he wa s con secrated a bishop .
LLANEDEYRN .
— The church,according to the Welsh
Records wa s fou n ded by EDEYRN AB GW RTHEYRN ,
together with a sem in ary for 300 sain ts .
LLANFABON .
—The patron sain t is MABON ,Teilo’s
brother , who is sa id to have built the church in the sixth
cen tury . Mabon is derived from m a fion ,in old Welsh
m a p,n ow 71106
,a b oy ,
a youth ,a son .
LLANFADOG .
—~ The church is dedicated t o MADOG ,
son of Gildas , y Coed aur , a n d a sain t of Cenydd’
s College .
LLANFAES . The origin al n am e of the church w a s
LLAN FFAGAN FACH for the reason that it wa s bu ilt by
Ffa g a n . LLANFAES gen erally m ean s a church built on a
spot where a m em orable battle wa s fought .
LLANFEDW Y .
— In Iolo MSS. it is recorded that
Meu dwy ,the sain t
,bu ilt Llan FEDW Y
,which Church wa s
burn ed durin g Iestyn’
s wa r,a n d it w a s n ever ren ovated
afterwards .
LLANFRYNACH .
— The church , accordin g t o Bonedd y
Sain t,w a s founded by BRYNACH W YDDEL of the city of
Ffa r a on ,in the fifth cen tury .
LLANGENYDD.
—CENYDD foun ded a sem in ary here inthe sixth cen tury ,
havin g comm itted that of Ca erphili t o
the cu stody of his son Ffili .
186 PLACE - NAMES i x WALES .
LLANILLTYD FAWR .— On e of the nurseries of early
Christian ity . It wa s origin ally called COR EUCAIN .
Cor m ean s a circle,a stall
,a n d som etim es it is ren dered
‘college .
’ The comm on churches were called cor a u,a nd
the chief or superior churches b a ngora zl . This an cien t
in stitution is said to have been founded here by Eu rg a in ,
daughter of Ca r a dog ab B ran ,in the first cen tury of the
Christian era,hen ceCor Eu rg a in . This in stitution appears
t o have flourished for about fifty years,when it wa s
destroyed by Irish pirates,a n d Patrick
,the Head Teacher
a nd Superior of the sem in arywa s taken prison er to Irelan d .
About the year 450 it wa s t e- built by Gan n on ,who ,
together w ith Dyfr ig ,B ishop .of Llan daff , dedicated
ILLTYD, Ga rm on
'
s n ephew , to be the head teacher thereof ,in con sequen ce of which it wa s called Cor Illtyd ,
BangorIlltyd ,
a n d Lla n illtyd .
LLANISAN.—The church is dedicated to ISAN
,a
disciple of Illtyd .
LLANRHIDIAN .
—Fr0m RHIDIAN,a studen t in
Cenydd’
s sem in ary in Gower , a n d the foun der of the
church . The ruin s of W eob ly Castle are still overlookin gLlan rhidian m arsh .
LLANSAMLET.—The church , according to Bon edd y
Sa in t,wa s foun ded by SAMLED
,who flourished in the
seven th cen tury .
LLANTRISANT.—An cien tly called LLANGAW RDAF
,in
hon our of Ca wr daf , who foun ded a sem in ary here ,which is supposed to have taken fire
, a nd levelled to the
gr ound . After the destruction of the sem in ary,Ein ion
ab Collwyn , as som e assert , built a church here , wh ich wa s.
dedicated to three sain ts , v iz . , Illtyd , Tyfodwg , a nd
Gwyn n o ,hen ce the presen t n am e .
GLAMORGANSHIRE . 187
LLANTRYDDYD.—The church wa s origin ally built b y
TREIDDYD, of Illtyd
'
s sem in ary .
LLANW YNO .—Fr0m the dedication of the church to
Gwv xo . son of Caw,called Eu ryn y Coed aur , a nd a sain t
in the colleges of Illtyd a n d Ca t twg .
LLWYDCOED .—Llwyd ,
grey coed,wood . The forest
of LLWYDCOED,in the sixteen th cen tury ,
wa s con sidered
to be on e of the fin est in the Prin cipality.
LLW YNBRW YDRAU .— Llwyn ,
bush,grove b rwydm u ,
battles . The n am e has referen ce to som e battles fought
here in olden tim es .
LLWYNPIA.—Llwyn ,
bush,grove pi a ,
m agpie .
LLYSFAEN .—Llys, court , hall of judicature ; m a en ,
ston e . It appears there wa s a large hall built of stone
in the place, where the la w court m a y have been held
in tim e of yore .
LLYSWORNEY.—A gross m utilation of LLYS- BRO
NUDD .
— Iolo Morganwg tells us that Nudd Hael , son ofSenyll , a royal sain t , of Illtyd
’
s sem inary ,built the place
B rom ean s a cultivated region,a vale a nd Na dd , the royal
sain t , is supposed to have held a court (llys) here .
MAERDY .
—Ma er is syn onym ouswith the English lan d.
agen t , steward, a nd bailiff . There wa s a n officer called
Maer in every comm ot,who regu lated the villein s a nd
their con cern s . He wa s the kin g's lan d agen t but the
word even tually cam e to sign ify a ny land steward
MAER—DY m ean s a da iry~hou se.
MAEe G .—Ma es, a field ; teg , fair so called after
a farm stead .
188 PLACE NAMES IN WALES .
MANSELFIELD.
— So called in hon our of the Man sel
fam ily . W illiam Man sel , Esq,Pen rice Castle , wa s the
own er of the estate in the reign ofHen ry VI.
\IARCROSS . think the place derives its n am e
from a large cross that is supposed to have been raised
here in m em ory of St . Ma rk but we rather thin k the n am e
is a n An gl i c an i sm of the W elsh .l l er—g roes, the cross on the
sea - shore . The pla ce is situate on the Bristol Chan n el
coast . A larg e crom lech ,called y r li en eg lwys,
” the old
church is still visible,aroun d which the an cien t Christia n s
are supposed t o have assem bled for worship ,ere a ny sacred
edifice w a s built here .
MARGAM .
—Som e m ain tain that the abbey wa s
foun ded by Morgan the Courteous,which wa s kn own
for som e cen turies by the n am e ofMorgan,a n d ultim ately
it assum ed the n am e of MARGAM . Bu t there is a pre
pon deran ce of opin ion n ow that this an cien t place derives
its nam e from Morgan , the son of Caradoc,the son of
Iestyn ab Gwrg a n t .
MAW DLAM .
— The n am e is a corruption ofMAGDALEN .
In the Charter ofThom as le Despen ser,which wa s gran ted
in 1397,m en tion is m ade of St . Ma ry Magdalen ’s chapel .
MELIN CRYTHAN.
— So called from a m ill Situated on
the brook Cry tha n . Cr vz‘ha n
, a little c rooth ; or it m a y
com e from c r v dd u,to stretch or exten d roun d : erylhu
im plies swelling .
MELIN GRIFFITH — ill eli n, m ill , which wa s kept by
a Mr . Griffith to grin d corn for the farm ers of the district,
hen ce the n am e .
MERTHYR DYFAN.
— MERTHYR, m artyr DYFAN
,
t he first B ishop of Llan daff , a n d the son of Alwn Afierw
190 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
MORRISTON .
- Sir John Morris,Cla sm on t , built a large
c opper works here in 1876 ,aroun d which a large village
g rew very rapidly ,a n d took its n am e from its great ben e
factor . The English ha m a n d ten,the Norse b y , the
Dan ish thorpe, the Germ an dorf, a n d the Welsh tref, m a y
be con sidered as equivalen ts .
MORGANSTOW N.
— The place wa s som etim e called
PENTREPOETH ,the warm village . The presen t n am e w a s
c on ferred upon it in hon our of Morgan Thom as, Twzv b er
l lc m, on whose lan d the village is built .
MOUNTAIN Asa — The an c ien t n am e w a s ABER
PENNAR,from a farm so n am ed
,a n d the n ew n am e w a s
con ferred upon it b y John Bruce Pryce,Esq,
the then
own er of the estate . In a very short tim e after Mr . Pryce
cam e t o reside here , a m a n n am ed Dafydd Shon Rhy s
wen t to him on e day a n d asked if he would lease a certain
piece of lan d for buildin g a public house a n d a private
house . Havin g m easured the lan d ,Mr . Pryce wa s asked
t o n am e the public house . Observin g a cerdim ’
n (m oun
t ain ash ) close by ,he turn ed t o Mrs. Prv ce a n d said
,
We shall call this place MOUNTA IN ASH .
MUMBLES — The n am e w a s given origin ally t o design ate the detached rocks at the en d of the headlan d
,but in
course of tim e it wa s exten ded to the old village ofOyster
m outh . Col . Fran cis derives the n am e from m a mm a ls,
which word gives a very fair description of the two
r oun ded breast - like rocks in the place .
NANTGARw .
—Ga rw, rough ,rugged ; na n l origin ally
sign ified a ravin e , a dingle .
GLAMORGANSHIRE . I QI
NANTYMOEL .
— Nr ml , brook ; y ,the ; m oel , bald ,
ac on ical hill the n am e sign ifying a brook rushin g froma high hill .
NEAr H .
— The Welsh n am e is CAe LL NEDD,the
castle on the Nedd . This is the an cien t Nidi u m of the
Itin eraries,
’
a nd probably it wa s a n im portan t station
on the great Rom an road , called fu llerMa r i llm a .
’
Nedd ,
of which Nfai lm e is a Latin ised form,m ean s turn ing
,whirl
in g ; the river wa s so called,perhaps
,from its various
m ean derings . Or it m a y m ean a dingle or glen ,im plyin g
a place of rest,a n abode . An - n edd
,a dwelling nylh,
is
t he bird’s place of rest .
NEAr H ABBEY .
— Leland called this the fairest in all
Wales . ’ The lordship of Neath wa s given by Fi t zha m on
t o his youn ger brother Richard de Grenville . Bein g of a
religious disposition,de Grenville wen t on a pilgrim age
t o the Holy Land in 1111 , a nd brought back w ith him
a n em in en t architect of the n am e of Lalys , whom he
en gaged t o erect a n abbey about a mile from the townof Neath . It wa s com pleted in eighteen years , i .e. , in
1129,when i t wa s con secrated to the Holy Trin ity in the
presen ce of de Grenville a n d Con stan ce his wife . It
is stated that the first Abbot of Neath wa s Richard ,
who died in 1145 , a n d the last is said to have been a
Welshm an of the n am e of J ohn Lleision . LewisMorganwg ,chief bard of the Prin cipality ,
wa s dom estic bard t o
Neath Abbey in 1510 . Also in 152 0 when Lleision wa s
d edicated to his sacred office , a great Eisteddfod wa s
held in the Abbey ,when Lewis Morganwg took the laurels
for the best Awdl to the Abbot a n d the Abbey . In the
Ann a les de M a rg a m it is stated that Morgan ab Owen
192 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
burn t the Abbey ,destroying also 400 sheep , killing four
of the servan ts a n d a m onk, a nd severely woun din g
a n other. At the dissolution the estate wa s gran ted t o Sir
Richard William s , a li a s Crom well , by Hen ry VI I I .
NELSON —This village wa s on ce called FFOS Y
GERDINEN ,the m oun tain ash bog
,but when the collieries
of Lla n c a ia ch were open ed,a num ber of houses were
built in the place , am ong which wa s a public house n am ed
Lord Nelson ,
’
a nd in course of tim e the gallan t adm iral’s
n am e m inus Lord wa sc on ferred upon the village .
NEWTON NOTTAGE .— In a n old deed it wa s said that
William , Earl of Gloucester , gave to R ichard de Ka rdif,for his service , theNew- town in Margam with all its a ppu r
t en a n c es.
Nottage Court wa s a gran g e belonging t o MargamAbbey .
Nottage is probably a corruption of Nu la ge. The
pla c e wa s on ce n oted for nuts .
OVERTON .
—OVER , when a suffix , m ean s a hill site ;when a prefix it indicates the higher of two places .
Oxwi c n .—The prefix seem s to be of kin dred origin
a nd m ean in g with the San s , u x, u ks. to water ; Welshwysg ,
a curren t . We have Usk , Esk , Exe , Ock ,elsewhere
a nd we find OXWICH in the pen in sula of Gower.
W i ck com es from the Norse wi c,a bay
,a creek
.
The Vikings were attracted t o this coast, a n d in deed they
derived their very n am e (Vik- ings) from the W ig s or
creeks in which they an chored.
OYSTERMOUTH .—In the Welsh Bruts
,the place is
c alled YSTUMLLWYNARTH . Ysmm, form ,
shape ; llwyn ,
194 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
PANTYRID.~ —The right wording is PANT - Y - RHYD ,
t he hollow n ear the ford . Rhyd origin ally m ean t a ford ,but it is n ow frequen tly used to design ate a sm all stream .
PANTYW AUN.— W a lm ,
m eadow. The place is situated
in a bowl - shaped hollow on a m oun tain m eadow.
PANWAUNFAW R.— P a nwa 'l tn ,
a wet m eadow , peat
m oss ; fawr—m a wr,great , large .
PENARTH .
—P €n in geographical n am es m ean s the
highest part or the extrem e en d,as of a m oun tain or a
field. Penrhyn , headlan d . In the H ighlan ds of Sc otlan d
we find it in m any place—n am es,as Benm ore (Penm awr ) ,
g reat m oun tain ,&c . The Gaelic c en or c enu has the
sam e sign ification as pen a n d b en . In European place
n am es it poin ts ou t the earlier settlem en ts of the Celtic
r ace,as Penn in e
,Appen in es
,&c .
GARTH here sign ifies a prom on tory or m oun tain .
The n am e m ean s a headlan d , which is quite descriptive
of the place . This lofty place wa s in an cien t tim es
c hosen as van tage - groun d for kin dlin g the beacon fire
to warn the coun ty of in vasion .
PENCLAW DD.—PEN—CAE - CLAWDD is the right wordin g
,
a n am e giv en to a n old cam p on the Ga er m oun tain . n ear
a n old Rom an road . A dyke (clawdd) in olden tim e wa scon sidered as a Sign of defen ce a n d safety . PEN- CLAWDD
g en erally m ean s the head or end of the em ban km en t .
PENCOED .—Pen , head coed ,
wood the n am e sign ifies a place situate at the t op of the wood .
PENDERRY .—Pen , head or top ; derry—derz
’
, oa k grove .
PENDEULW YN.—It
'
m ea n s‘ the top of two groves . ’
The n am e wa s suggested probably by the physical aspect
of the place, a nd is now spelt PENDOYLAN .
’
GLAMORGANSHIRE . 195
PENGARNDDU .
—P en , t op , sum m it g a rn— c a rn
,
heap of ston es ddu, black . The village derives its n am e
from a black heap of ston es that wa s on ce in the place .
PENLLIN.— PEN- LLYN
,the head of the lake .
PENMAEN .— The n am e sign ifies the head of the rock
-or ston e ,’
from the situation of the place at the head of a
ridge of rocks,com m an ding m agn ificen t views of the
O xwich B a y .
PENMARc .—The n am e is supposed t o m ean the head
o f St . Mark .
’ 9150 c
PENNARD .
—Som e say PEN—GARTH,the lofty hill ;
o thers give PENHARDD,the fin e or beautiful head . The
right wordin g probably is PENARDD, a proj ection of a hill .
PENPRYSG .
—P rysg , bru shwood , or that which
e xten ds . The n am e sign ifies a place aboun din g with
brushwood . Prysg m oun tain is hard by .
PENRHIW CEIBR.
— The right wordin g is PEN- RH1w
CAE - BYR,Sign ifyin g the top of the slope of the little field.
PENRHIW FER.
— The n am e sign ifies the top of the:Sh ort slope .
PENRICE .— A corruption of PEN RHYS , the head of
Rhys . Rhys,the son ofCa r a dog ab Iestyn ,
wa sbeheaded
.h ere . .by the Norm an s in 1099.
PENTRE .— PEN- TREE
,from a farm so called. The
n am e wa s origin ally applied t o a few scattered dwellings,form in g a town en d or otherwise , a n d fin ally it wa s applied
t o a village in con tradistin ction to a town of the m odern
type.
196 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
PENTREBACH .
—The n am e sign ifies a sm all village .
It lies about a m ile below the town of Merthyr Tydv il ,
a n d so called in order to distin guish it from the latter which
w a s colloqu ially called by the old inhabitan ts , Y PENTREF,
the village .
PENTYRCH .
— The affix has been variously der ived .
The tradition al origin of the n am e run s thus : In olden
tim es a parish wake w a s frequen tly held in the n eigh
b ou rhood during which som e very question able pastim es
were indulged in . Previous to the festival a piece ofwood
wa s fixed in the groun d . Every youn g wom an that
purposed be in g presen t in the wake w a s expected t o m ake
a tor ch (torque or wreath ) , bearin g her n am e,a n d the
colour She in tended wearin g on that day plaited therein .
It wa s a foregon e con clusion that on e of the youn g wom en
would produce a better torque than all her rivals,roun d
which the people gathered a n d un an im ously exclaim edIl
'
el,dym a b en v ty r ch,
’ ‘
W ell,this is the head of the
torques . ’
The right wording is PENTIR—YR- YCH,the headlan d of
the ox. A com be hard b y is called CW M—Y—FUW CH ,the
cow’
s vale , the extrem e en d of which bears strikin g resem
blan ce t o the form of a n ox’
s head . Som e sa y it is PEN~
TW RCH, boar
’
s head , from the resem blan ce of the b ronv ,
of the Garth m oun tain to a boar ’s head .
PENYDAREN .
-Da ren sign ifies a rocky hill . The oldcottage that origin ally bore the n am e wa s situated on
a risin g em in en ce .
PENW AUN.
—The head or en d of the m eadow,so called
from its situation at the extrem e en d of Gwrg a n t’
sm eadow
198 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
the long town in the m eadow . Its presen t n am e wa s
derived thus Som e tim e after the ston e bridge wa s built
across the river Dawen ,a cow r a n un der it , a n d the place
being so n arrow her horn s stuck in the arch . She could
n either m ove onwards or backwards , a n d ultim ately the
own er had n o altern ative b u t t o kill her on the spot . The
town ’s coat of arm s ever sin ce is the figu re of a c ow stan d
in g on a bridge , hen ce PONTYFON , Cowbridge .
PONTLOTTYN .
— The bridge that crosses the Rhym n eyriver in the place wa s n am ed
,according t o som e , in hon our
of a m a n called Lot , colloquially Lottyn . Others thin k the
right wording is PONTYPLOTTYN ,which m ean s a bridge
erected on a dry spot between two stream s of the river .
It is spel t Pon t Lyda rt ,’
on a n old m a p , which m ean s a
wide bridge . Som e say that in olden tim es the bridge
wa s claim ed by the inhabitan ts of Gwen t a n d Morganwg ,as on e en d stood in each coun ty
,a n d here they m et t o play
gam es of chan ce - lotteries . In these gam es a n um p irewa s chosen ,
who wa s called Lot tyn .
’
He stood on
the bridge t o give his decision,hen ce Pon t lot tyn ,
the
u m pire ’s bridge .
We think the n am e is a corruption of PANTYPLOT
TYN,which wa s the n a m e of a farm in that place lon g
before a n y bridge wa s built there . P a n t,hollow y ,
the
plottyn , from the Anglo—Saxon plot , a spot of ground
PONTLLIW .
— LLlw, the n am e of the river that run s
un der the bridge . Som e think the root is lli , a flu x, a
stream but we rather think it is derived from lu g , which
isa Rom an ised form of llwch, a lake or hollow. Llwchwris close by .
P0NTRHYDY0YEF.—Pon t , bridge rhyd ,
ford y ,
the cyff, a stum p , a trunk .
GLAMORGANSHIRE . 199
PONTRHYDYFEN .—RHYDYFEN has g iven rise t o
m any con j ectures . Som e say it is RHYDYW AUN ,the
m eadow ford others call it RHYD EEAN , Evan’s ford
others thin k it is RHYDYFON,the cow ’s ford . We rather
thin k the n am e is a corrupt form of PONT - AR- RHYD - AFAN,
the bridge on the ford of Afan a n d is derived from the
sm all bridge that wa s built to cross the ford n ear Rhyslyn .
Or fen m a y be the Welsh m en , a cart or wagon , a n d the
n am e would m ean the bridge of the wagon ford .
PONTYCYMMER.
— P on t , bridge y ,the cymm er ,
the j u n ction of two rivers or brooks bearing the sam e n am e .
PONTYGW AITH .
—Gwa i th ,work or works . It is gen er
ally believed that a n ironworks stood here at som e rem ote
period . A sm eltin g furn ace wa s standing here as late a s
1850 ,but who built it is a m atter of con j ecture .
PONTYPRIDD .
— In the reign of Hen ry VIII . Leland
refers to this locality as Pon t Rhehesk ,which is a corru p
tion of PONT - YR- HESG,the bridge of the rushes . CRAIG - YR
HESG,the rock of the rushes
,is about half a m ile to the
n orth - east of the town . When Lelan d passed through
the place,the on ly bridge crossing the Taff river in the
locality wa s a footbridge over the rocks of the Taff
waterfall , hen ce the n am e PONT- YR- HESG . The place
afterwards took its n am e from PONT - YR—HEN- DY - PRIDD,
the bridge n ea r‘the old earthen house , which wa s erected
by William Edwards in 1755 .
PORT TALBOT .
— In a n Ac t of Parliam en t which
received Royal assen t July 4th ,1836 , it wa s en acted
that from a n d im m ediately after the passing of this
Ac t the said harbour Shall cease to be called the Aber
avon Harbour ,’ but Shall be called , kn own , a nd distin
g u ished by the n am e of PORT TALBOT .
”The fou n d a
2 00 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
tion ston e of the ha rbou r wa s laid b y on e of the Talbot
fam ily, Marg a m Park
,Septem ber
, 1837. The n a m e is
extended n ow t o the whole district .
PORTEYNON .
—The n am e is derived from Ei n ion , a
d escendan t of Howel Dd a . The,
wonderful ca ve calledTwll yr afr
,goat ’s hole
,is in this parish . In 182 2 - 2 3
rem a in s of elephan ts a n d m am m oths were discovered here .
PORTKERRY .
— The n am e is derived from CERI AB
CA ID,kin g of Essyllwg . An cien t history tells us that he
wa s a rem arkably w ise m a n,a n d a Ship - builder
,a n d that
he took up his abode here . FONT—DE—GERY ,Ceri
’
s well ,is not far distan t . Here the Norm an s lan ded when they
cam e t o Glam organ at the request of Ein ion ab Collwyn .
(Iolo MSS.,p .
PORT TENNANT .
— S0 called in hon our of H . T .
Ten n an t,Esq, Cadoxton Lodge
,who built it at his
own expen se in 1826.
PORTHCAWL .
— On e writer thinks the right wordin g is
PORTHCAW ELL por th,port c a well
,a weir
,so n am ed from
two fish ing weirs form erly placed here . W e rather thin k
that c a wl is a corrupt form of Ga u l . It is supposed that
the Gauls or Gaels left their m em orials here as well as in
G a lloway ,Ga lway
,Don eg a l , Portug a l .
PW LLCW M.
— Pwll,a pit
,a sm all pool c r am ,
a valley
so called from a n old coal pit that wa s open ed in the
plac e .
PYLE .
—From pi t , which m ean s a creek ,a sm all in let
of the sea filled b y the tide . It is supposed that the place
wa s som etim es inun dated by the sea,hen ce the nam e .
Q UAKERS YARD — The place derives its n am e from the
following in ciden t Lydia Fell,who lived in Cefn Forest
2 02 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
form of SYLFAN,a place to gaze
, which fully correspon ds
with the physical aspect of the place,the Solvemm oun tain
com m an din g a n exten sive view of the Vale of Neath .
REYNOLDSTON .— So called in hon our of Regin ald de
Breos, who wa s som etim e lord of the m an or , a n d is su p
posed to have been the foun der of the church .
Ra m os— In an cien t MSS.,it is spelt RHYGOES,
RHEGOES,a n d Y RYGOES . Som e thin k it is a corruption
of RHYDGROES , the ford of the cross . GRUG—RHOS , the
m eadow heath has been suggested. The physical aspect
of the place suggests an other derivation rha g ,what h a s
breaks or poin ts ; rhos,m eadow . The right wordin g ,
others thin k,is Grngos, heath ,
heather ; sign ifyin g a
heathy place— a true description of this rom an tic spot ,which is n oted for its sm all batches of heath . Thom as
Llewelyn , Rhigos , is a n am e that has not had the place
it deserves in Welsh history . It is supposed that hewa s born in a farm house called Clyn - Eithin og ,
Ei then
—a furse brake , in the earlier part of the sixteen th cen tury .
RHONDDA .— In an cien t docum en ts it is spelt
GLYN ROTHERE, GLYN RODNEU
, GLYN ROTHENEY,
a n d GLYN RHONDDA . Som e have derived the n am e fromthe Latin a nda . We rather thin k the n am e is a
con tracted form of YR HONDDU ; yr , the ; hoen,
com plexion , hue ; ddu , black . Many Welsh riversreceived their nam es from the peculiar hue of theirrespective waters .
RHossrLr.—The word m ean s a m oorlan d n ear the sea .
Rhos, m oor heli,brine . Regin ald de Sully had n othin g
t o do with this place.
Worm ’s Head is in this parish ,which is eviden tly
GLAMORGANSHIRE . 203
an other m em or ial of the Vikings . Worm is a Saxonized form of the Norse orm r
,a serpen t . This prom on tory
has been com pared to a huge sea serpen t raising i tshead a n d half of its len gth above the waves.
RHW S .—The n am e sign ifies a cultivated region .
RHYDR1.—A con traction
,say som e , of YR- YW - DRE
,
the hom e of yew trees, from the abundan ce of yew treesin the n eighbourhood . It m a y be a corruption of RH1wY- DERI , l iterally , the slope of the oaks , or it m a y be a nAnglicised form of RHODD - DRE
,the ham let of the red
soil .
RHYDYBOITHAN.—Rhyd ,
a ford ; y ,the . Boi tha n
m a y be a corruption of bwtkyn ,hut or cot .
RHYDYEELEN .—The true etym ology is RHYD - Y- FELTN
’
the ford or stream of the m ill . The word sign ifies a streamof water that turn s a m ill .
RHYDYFRo .—The n am e sign ifies ‘ the stream of the
va le .
’
SENGHENYDD .—(See Ca erphi li ) .
SIGGINGTON.
— This place lies n ear Cowbridge , a nd
seem s t o have belonged t o a fam ily n am ed Syg g in or
Sig g in ,who ,
however , left n o other record .
SKERRY .—From theNorse sc a r , a face of rock or cliff.
Skea ra ,to shear
,or cut asun der. The rocks of Sker Poin t
m n sheer down in to the sea . It is cognate with the
Gaelic a nd Erse sgei r , a cliff the Welsh esg a i r , a shank ,
a lon g ri dge a nd the Anglo - Saxon sei r a n , to divide . A
sc a r is the m ark where the flesh has been divided ; a .
sha re is a divided part a nd shi re is a division of lan d.
2 04 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
SKETTY .
— The n am e is probably a n abbreviated form
of I S KETTI . The village lies at the base of the hill where
Maen Ketti stan ds,hen ce the n am e is Ketti
,which Sig n i
fies a place below the ston e of the Arkite power .
SKEWEN .
— The right wording,say som e
,is Is- OAE
YW EN,a place below the field of the yew - tree
,but we rather
think it is a corruption of YSGAW EN,the Welsh for elder
wood , so called from the abun dan ce of that wood in the
n eighbourhood .
ST . ATHAN — Accordin g to the Welsh Chron icles the
church wa s b u ilt b y St . Tatham, son of An nwn Ddu, a n d
An n a , the daughter of Meurig ab Tewdr ig ,Kin g of
Essyllwg ,in the sixth cen tu ry . It is said that Tatham
foun ded a m on astic establ ishm en t here for 500 sain ts ,a n d that his m ortal rem ain s were in terred here .
ST . BRIDE — The church w a s dedicated to St . Ffra id ,
accordin g t o som e b u t Iolo Morganwg thin ks i t wa s dedic a t ed t o ST . BRIDE
,the daughter of p d a gws,
a n Irishsain t .
ST . DONNATT’
S . DONNATT is a n Anglican ism of the
Welsh Du n a wd , the n am e of the sain t t o whom the
church wa s dedicated . An other village,Welsh St .
Don n a t t’
s,wa s so called for the pu rpose of distinguishin g
it from ST . DONNATT’
S proper,which w a s occupied by a
p ortion of the Flem ish colony .
St FEAGAN — The parish church is dedicated to ST .
FEAGAN ,who is said to have com e to Britain w ith
Bytan a n d Medwy a n d Elfan in the year 180,at the
solicitation s of Lleu rwg ,t o preach the Gospel to the
p eople ;
2 06 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
drown ed at Swa n awick , _ a li a s Swa n a sey ,Swa n u s
sea) . Swann s’ fleet wa s destroyed in the Swan sea Ba y
by a storm in 877. I t is said that 12 0 ships were lost
a t the tim e , a nd that he him self perished.
T‘
ArBACH .— The n am e sign ifies sm all houses ,
’ so called
from the four sm all thatched houses that on ce stood at the
bottom of the road,which wa s afterwards called Water
Street .’
TALYGARN.—Ta l , fron t , en d ; y ,
the ; g a rn—c a rn ,
a heap,a cairn .
THREE CROSSEs.— So called from the jun ction of the
t hree roads in the ham let .
TIRPHIL .—Ti r
, lan d phi ] , a clipped form of Philip,the n am e of the then own er of the lan d on which the
v illage wa s built .
TON. The n am e sign ifies unploughed lan d , a grassy
plot of groun d. The village derives its n am e from afarm stead so called .
TONNA .—Plural of ton . (See Ton ).
TONDU .—Ton
,a grassy plot of groun d
,a green
sward. Ithel Ddu, gr an dson ofMorgan Hen
,kept a su m
m er - house here , called TON ITHEL BDU . He wa s calledIthel Ddu from his very black hair a n d beard. In courseo f tim e the appellation Ithel wa s om itted
, a nd the nam e
contracted t o TONDDU a n d TONDU . Ithel is written ino ld Welsh j a dha el , a n d on one of the Llan tw it stones it
it spelt j u t/i a helo. Pr ofessor Rhys thinks it is com posed-o f fa d , fight a n d ha el , gen erous , a gen erous m a n .
TONGW YNLAIs.
—Ton, gr een sward gwyn
- la s, whitea nd green . Som e call it TON—GW YRDD—LAS
,a green
,grassy
GLAMORGANSHIRE . 2 07
plot of ground. A m an sion n ear the village is calledGreen Meadow ,
’
which is a n approxim ate equivalen t tothe village n am e.
TONYREFAIL .—l -
'
r - efa i l , the sm ithy . The n am e infull m ean s a sm ithy built upon or n ear a green sward. A
very old sm ithy is in the place .
TREALAw.—Tref
,the prim itive Welsh for hom estead
,
a dwellin g house . Having built a house for him self the
lord of the m an or would proceed t o erect dwellings for his
people a n d his cattle , a n d then form ed what wa s called
t ref. The word,in course of tim e
,becam e t o be applied
to a n aggregate of hou ses . The Norse b y, the Dan ish
thorpe, the Germ an dorf, a n d the English ha m a n d ton
m a y be con sidered as its equivalen ts . This place wa s
c alled TREALAW in hon our of D. William s , Esq, father
of Judge William s , Miskin ,whose nom - de—plnm e wa s
Alaw Goch , a n d on whose lan d the village wa s built .
TREBANOG .— Tre/, hom estead , dwelling place b a nog ,
prom in en t , high ,con spicuous, lofty . B a n a n
, beacon s .
TREBOETH.—The n am e sign ifies the dry parched
ham let .
TREBANos.—B a nos b a n ,
a gen eral term for high
places or m oun tain s a s, a plural dim inutive , as in pla n ta s,c hildren .
TREFORGAN.—A sm all village n ear Cryn an t , so called
a fter John Morgan ,who built the first two houses in the
place in 1874.
TREFOREST. —SO called from CRAIG - Y - FEOREST, the
rock of the forest, near which the vil lage is situate
2 08 PLACE—NAMES i x WALES .
TREHARRIS .— SO n am ed in hon our of Mr . Harris ,
who open ed a very large colliery here in 1873 , a nd called
it Harris’ Navigation Colliery .
TREHERBERT .— The n am e wa s con ferred on the place
in 1851 by the Marquis of Bute , in hon our of Herbert , afavou rite n am e in the Bute fam ily .
TREORKY .—The right wordin g , perhaps , is TRE
GORCHW Y .—Gor chwv ,
river n am e , sign ifies en com passing
or'
ov erflowing water . The root m a y be or ch, a lim it , a
border.
TROEDYRHIW FUW CH .
— It is vu lgarly spelt by som e
TROED - RHYW - FUW CH ,the foot of som e cow
,in allusion t o
a local tradition about a c ow that had gon e astray . Som e
think it is a corruption of Troedrhiw- uchai , a farm so
n am ed ,in order t o distinguish it from Troedrhiw- isaf.
W e take it t o m ean a place situate at the bottom of the
cow ’s slope .
TROEDYm .—From a farm stead so c a lled . Troeu
’
is the Welsh for foot,base . The Irish i r a ig sign ifies the
sam e both of which , according t o som e , are of the sam e
origin as the Greek trecho,
‘I run .
’ The English trea d
m ean s t o set the foot . Rhiw is the Welsh for ascen t,
acclivity , slope . The Welsh TROEDYRHIW a nd the
Italian pie di m on te are alm ost syn onym ous .
TYLORSTOW N.
— The village derives i ts n am e from Mr .
Alfred Tylor , who open ed the first colliery here about
1872 .
TYTHEGSTON .
—LLANDUDW G is the Welsh n am e .The church is dedicated to TUDW G , a sain t of the sixth
2 10 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
Griffiths,B ryn Dafydd ,
purchased a piece of land which
belonged to the lord of the m an or , from which circum stan ce
the place wa s called WAUNARLWYDD ,the lord
’
s m an or .
W AUNTRODAU .— W a n n
, m eadow troda n is variously
derived . Som e derive it from troti a n,to trot , to g o on trot ;
t rodi,t o j ourn ey ; from the supposition that the place
wa s som etim e n oted for horse - racin g . Others thin k the
right wordin g is TROED—Y - DA,sign ifying the m eadow
where traces of cows’ feet were visible . An Old house ,c alled Castell Rhoda , Rhode
’s castle,on ce stood in the
place . This m a y be the an cien t TREODA ,which wa s burn t
by the Saxon s in 831 ,a n d the wa n n
,m eadow
,probably
belonged to the sam e m an sion .
WENVOE .
— The roots are gwyn , white blessed a n d
fa— m a n ,place . The nam e is a Norm an tran sm utation
of the original Gwyn fa . Gwyn wa s a sacred appellation
am on g the Celtic race . CYLCH Y GW YNFYD w a s the
Druidical Elysium . GWYNFA is the popular Welsh for
Paradise .
WICK .
— Som e think the n am e is indirectly derived
from the Norse ra te, a bay ; but wi c had a secon d
ary m ean in g of ha m let , villa ge . It wa s an cien tly
c alled Y W IG FAWR , the great wood,suggestin g
that the locality wa s som etim e thickly wooded, a n d the
presen t n am e is a n Anglicized form of the Welsh m inusfa wr , great , large .
YNYSBOETH .
—A village n ear Pen rhiwc ei b r . ynys,
a qu asi - island poelk, scorching , su n - parched .
YNYSAWDRE .—Ynys, island n a wdd
,r efu ge a nd
ire, hom estead.
GLAMORGANSHIRE . 2 11
YNYSHIR.— Ynys origin ally sign ified a quasi - island
i n the m arshes . It is equivalen t to i n ch in Scotlan d,
In ch Keith a n d in is or en n is in Ireland,Enn is Killen
,
In n iskia , &c . YNYS—HIR literally m ean s long islan d,so
n am ed after a farm stead in the place . It is n oteworthy
that a very large num ber of villages in the m in in g dist r ic t s take their n am es from farm - houses .
YNYSLW YD .
— From a n old cottage so called, on the
river Cyn on . Som e say it is Ys Y TYW OD LLW YD,a
quasi—island of grey san ds .
YNYSPENLLW CH .— Ynys, islan d ; pen ,
head,end ;
llwch,lake
,a n in let of water . The postfix corresponds
w ith the Scotch loch,the Irish lou gh, a n d the English
la ke. Tradition has it that the vale of Ta wy wa s on ce
s tudded w ith m any lakes or sheet of waters . Yslwch
m ean s a gutter,a n d slou gh is a m ire .
YNYSTAW E .— Ynys, islan d ; Ta me, the n am e of the
r iver . The an cien t farm stead ,which gave the n am e
to the place,wa s the residen ce of the celebrated bard ,
Hopkin a p Thom as a p Ein ion in 1380 . He served as a
m ili tary officer in the reign s of Edward II I . a n d Richard
I I .
YNYSYBW L .
— Som e thin k the affix is pwll , pit , hollow
the n am e,therefore
,sign ifyin g the islan d in the hollow .
The true ren derin g,probably
,is YNYs—Y—BEL
,which is
by free in terpretation ,the ball—m eadow . The place in
o lden tim es wa s a n oted ren dezvous for ball—players .
YSTALYFERA .—In som e old docum en ts the n am e is
Spelt ynys- ta l - fer a . In the adj oin ing places we find
ynysm eu dwy a n d ynyspen llwch. Som e think the right
wordin g is Ynys—ta l- fu r i a u ,the m eadow at the foot of the
2 12 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
high walls (of Allt g ru g a n d Ta r ren Gwyddon ) . Yst a l , a
stock or produce,a stall y ,
the fer a z b er a,a stack of
corn or ha y the n am e colloquially m ean ing the hay
stall . ’ The place is also called Y CYFIN ,which is a clipped
form of CYFYNG , im plying a n arrow ,deep gorge
,in which
anyon e on view ing the m oun tain s on either side m ight b e
in clin ed t o exclaim like the apostle of old ,I a m in a strait
betwixt two .
YSTRAD DYFODW G .
— Ystra d is a gen eral term for a
low or flat valley through which a river flows . It is derived
from the Latin str a ta , a paved wa y ,from sterno, str a tu m ,
t o spread ou t , t o strew a n d con sidered t o be one of the
words recogn ised as inherited directly from the Rom anin vaders . Com pare the Scotch str a th
, a n d the En glish
street . The parish church wa s dedicated t o TYEODW G .
ab Gwilfyw ,a sain t of the sixth cen tury .
YSTRAD MYNACH .
— ll[ y a a c lz is the Welsh for m on k .
Som e have been led b y the n am e t o thin k that som e
unkn own m onk m ust have lived here in tim e of yore .
The right wording isMAENARCH . In the Iolo MSS. we are
told that MAENARCH,Earl of Hereford bu ilt the par ish
church of Llan fabon .
YSTRAD OWEN — The parish derives its n am e fromPrin ce OWEN , the son ofMorgan Hen
,Kin g ofMorg a n nw o
,
who took up his abode here . In a field adj oin in g the
churchyard is a large tum ulus supposed t o indicate the Site
of his hou se , or as som e sa y , the grave of Owen a n d h is
w ife . Owen’
s rem ain s were buried here in 987.
2 14 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
ABERLLEEENr.— Som e think the n am e is a clipped
form of Ab er - llech—fein i , sign ifying a river m aking its wa yt hrough a n d over slate - ston es . Others th ink thatLlefen i is a m utation of Llyfnwy,
the sm ooth water. W e
have m any rivers bearing the n am e Llyfnwy . We are
inclin ed to think the correct wording is Ab er - llwyfen z.
In the works of Ifa n Tew in the Library of the BritishMuseum the n am e is given as Ab er - llwy/en i . Llwy/en im ean s elm—trees , which adorn the banks of the river.
ABERTRINANT .—Na n t prim arily sign ified a ravin e
,
a dingle,a comm ot .
ARDUDW Y .—Ar
,a height du d- tu d , a region ,
a dis
triet wy-
gwy ,water the n am e sign ify ing a watery dis
triet . Som e derive the n am e from a r , above da,black
a nd amy , or g ray , water hence a place above the blackwaters .
ARGOED .—A con traction of a r—y - coed
, a place situated
on or above a wood . Cam ps in tim e of yore were forti‘
fied on em ergencies, by fellin g trees to surroun d them ,
a nd on e so con structed wa s called Argoed .
ARTHOG .—The older inhabitan ts call it Ar thogof ;
Ar th,bear ogof, cave or lair . Tradition has it that bears
som etim e foun d a resting- place here . Som e thin k it is a
person al nam e . We fin d the form s Ar thawr a nd Ar tha wgin Bon edd y Sain t . We rather thin k the right word is
Ga r thog ,m oun tain ous , hilly . Garth , a proj ecting ridge .
BALA .— Som e think the word is Celtic , sign ifying a
village . Others derive it from b a lu , to shoot , or issue forth .
B a la coed , the buddin g or blossom of trees . B a la llyn ,the
outlet or efflux of a lake . It is cognate with Balloch in
MERIONETH . 2 15
Scotlan d. The town is situate at the efll u en c e of LlynTeg id , the lake of Teg id . The lake wa s so called from thefollowin g circum stan ces .
Teg id , the son ofBaran,wa s a wise kin g
,a n d a good
ha rd . He en acted excellen t regulation s for literature ;restored an cien t learn ing , which had n early becom e
lost a n d in stituted a coun cil of bards a n d Dru ids,as of
old . He con tin ued at wa r w ith his en em ies , but they
took him at last,through treachery
, a nd drown ed him in
the gr eat lake,called from that circum stan ce , Llyn Teg id
(Tegi d’s Lake ) in Gwyn edd . Iolo MSS. p .
CoRRrs.— W e find the form s Corys a nd Cor u s in the
Cam brian Register for 1795 . Som e thin k the place takes
its n am e from a sain t called Corus . It is also said that
Cu n edd a W ed ig had a son called Corus . Others thin k
that the river which gives the place its n am e , wa s called
Corus from its m aking roun d excavation s in the angles
of its banks .
BARMOUTH .—An Anglicized form of the Welsh
n am e , Ab erm a w,which sign ifies a place situated at the
m outh of the river Ma w . B a r is a m odification of Ab er .
a n d m ou th of Ma w, or M a wddwy . M a w m ean s broad ,
expan din g . M a wada ch,accordin g to Dr . Owen Pughe ,
m ean s ov erflOwin g water Oedd m a w c i rhyda u ,
” broad
were its fords . The Anglicized n am e wa s adopted in
1768 by the seafarin g fratern ity in order to have a n
English n am e in scribed upon the vessels .
BRYN Y CRUG .
— Bryn ,a hill y ,
the c ru g , a heap
sign ifying a heap on a hill .
CARROG .—From c a rog ,
which sign ifies a torren t or
brook .
2 16 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
CWM PRYSOR.— Cwm ,
valley ; P rysor seem s to be
derived from prysu ,to form a resort or covert . The
n am e is quite descriptive of this deep a nd solitary vale .
in which the ruin s of Castle Prysor are still visible .
CEINOG .—The root is c a i n
,clear
,bright
,fair . The
n am e wa s given t o the place,probably
, on accoun t of
the beautiful views it com m ands .
CORWEN .— Som e derive the n am e from Ca rmen a ,
the n am e of the m other of Bran a n d Beli , twin brothers .
Others derive it from Corv a en,which im plies a ston e
in a circle . Others thin k it is a m u tation of Ca er Owa i n .
H istory tells us that the place is fam ous for bein g the
rendezvous where the Welsh assem bled about the year
1163, un der their valian t leader , Owen Gwyn edd ,again st
Hen ry II . , a n d also for bein g the place of en cam pm en t of
Owain Glyndwr when he defen ded his coun try again st
Hen ry IV . We in clin e t o thin k the n am e retain s its pri
m i t iv e form hen ce it m ean s the white choir or church .
CWMORTHIN.—A corruption probably of Cwm—cer th
hi n . Cwm , valley ; cer th,awful
,dan gerous ; hi n ,
the
weather . The n am e is qu ite descriptive of the physical
aspect of this deep valley .
CYMERAU .—The root is cym er
,the jun cture or un ion of
two stream s . The place is Situated n ear the confluen ce of
the rivers Er ch a nd Heli .
CYNWYD .—The n am e
,which sign ifies prim ary evil
,
or m ischief , wa s probably derived from Cyn u'
yd a b
Cynwydion , on ce a very powerful prin ce in Edeym ion ,
but who Spen t the latter end of his life in herm itage .
DOLDREW IN.— Som e are of opin ion that the n am e
refers to the dru idical circles , rem ain s of which are
2 18 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
have been given of Dyfrdwy . Som e derive it from
da tr—dwy - a fon ,the water of two rivers others m ain tain
it is a m utation of dwfr - da,black water according to
others it is a corruption of Dwrdd—gwy , the roaring water.
The m ost popular derivation is dyfr—amy (f) , the
goddess’ water , or the water of the divin ity , from the
supposition that its waters were held in superstitious.
ven eration by the Kym ry .
GWYDDELWERN .—Gwyddel , a m a n of the woods ;
gwer n ,alder trees . Alder wood
, per chr n c e, abounded.
in the district,a n d the early inhabitan ts p robably were
obliged to build their hut - hom es in the woods . Or
perhaps , it m ean s the alders of the Irish ,in dicatin g the
place where a ban d of Irishm en were defeated. Dr . 0 .
Pughe tran slates the word thus A m oor or m eadow
overgrown with bushes,
which sign ification tallies .
well with the bushy aspect of the place . We also find
Y Wern Ddu,black m oor , a n d Ty
’
nywer n ,the house on
the m oor,in the district . The term gwyddel origin ally
'
m ean t a brake,a bu sh
, a nd the n am e probably m ean s a
m eadow full of bram bles.
HARLECH .
— In an cien t tim es the castle wa s kn ownb y the n am es of Twr B ronwen , Bronwen
’s Tower,from
B ronwen, the White - n ecked , or rather B r a nwen li t , the
blessed crow , Sister to Bran a p Llyr , kin g of Britain ;a n d Ca er Collwyn ,
from Collwyn a p Tango , head of on e of
the fifteen tribes of North Wales , a nd lord of Eifionydd , .
Ardu dwy , a n d part of Lleyn .
When Edward I . built the presen t castle it wa sden om inated
,according t o som e , H a rddlech
,the fair or ;
MERIONETH . 2 19
fine rock or ston e . The coun ty is exceedingly rich inc rom lechs a nd fine ston e m onum en ts . A traveller , in
clim bing a n adj acen t hill,m a y observe several m ein i
’
kir i a n , a nd circles form ed of large com m on pebble - ston es
LLANDANWG .—From Ta nwg , son of Ithel Hael , a nd
a sain t of the sixth cen tury . Ta nwg m ean s lowland.
LLANDECWYN .—From Tecwyn ,
son of Ithel Hael , .
a nd a sain t of the sixth cen tury . Two lakes in the
parish ,Tecwyn Ucha a n d Tecwyn Isa
,bear his n am e .
Som e derive teewyn thus— teg ,far ; gwyn ,
white , lovely .
Llyn Tecwyn is n ear the village,whose waters are of
crystallin e clearn ess .
LLANDRIN IO .- Tr in io,
a descen dan t ofEm yr Llydaw ,.
is supposed to have been the founder of the church .
Tr in i a probably com es from tr i n ,which m ean s a battle or
com bat trin io,to m eddle
,to m a n age .
LLANDDWYWE .
— From Dwywa u , a descendan t of
Em yr Llydaw,a nd a sain t of the sixth cen tury.
LLANFIHANGEL—Y—TRAETHAU .— The Parish Church
is dedicated to St . Michael , a n d is situated n ear the
two beaches, called Y Tr a eth B a ch a nd Tra eth Ma wr .
LLANFIHANGEL v PENNANT .—The chu rch is dedicated
to St . Michael , hen ce Lla nfiha n g el . P en n a n t , the extrem e
end of the din gle .
LLWYNGWRIL .
— Llwyn ,bush gwr i l , the nam e of the
river that run s through the place . Som e thin k the right
wording is Llwyn Cyr i l , from a tradition that a sain t called
Cyril walked over the sea from Bardsey Island to this
2 2 0 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
place,where he took up his residen ce . Probably the
place takes its nam e from a n un kn own person called
Gwr i l or Gwryl .
LLANFOR.— Som e thin k the church is dedicated to
Mor Meir ion . The right wording , perhaps , is Lla nfa wr ,t he great church .
LLANGAR .— The right word probably is Lla ng a er ,
which m ean s the fortress church . The church is built
n ear a n an cien t fortress called Ca erwern ; hen ce the
n am e .
LLANGOWER .—Gower is a corruption of Gwawr , the
m other of Llywa r ch Hen , a n d a sain t , to whom the
c hurch is dedicated.
LLANUWCHLLYN .
—The n am e in dicates a church
above the lake . The village is situated on the Dee a
short distan ce above Teg id lake .
LLANDDERFEL .
—From Der/el Ga da r n ,a celebrated
w arrior in the sixth c en tury . The church wa s rem ark
a ble for a vast wooden im age of Der/el , which wa s the
subj ect of m uch superstition in olden tim es .
LLANDRILLo .
—From Tr i llo,
son of Ithel Hael.‘
Tr ilo’
s well is n ear the village .
LLANFROTHEN .
— Fr 0m B rothen , son of Helig ab
G la n a wg ,a n d a popular sain t of the Sixth cen tury .
LLANGELYNIN .
—Fr0m Celyn in ,son of Helig ab
G la n a wg .
LLANEGRYN .—Eg ryn , a sain t of the seven th cen tury ,
i s supposed to have foun ded the church .
LLANWRIN .—From Gwrhin ,
son of Cyn ddilig ,a
supposed sain t of the sixth cen tury .
2 2 2 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
p lural term ination . The t is dropped a nd n substituted
for the sake of euphony .
PENRHYNDEUDRAETH .
—P en rhyn , headland ; da ze,
t wo ; tra eth, beach , seashore . The headlan d proj ects
i n to the Trem adoc B a y ,between the Tra eth i l l a wr a nd
the Tr a eth B a ch.
PENIARTH .
— The right wording is probably Peny
g a rth, which m ean s hill - top , from the village bein g
situate on a part of the Cader Idris range .
PANDY ’
R CAPEL .— P a ndy m ean s a fulling- m ill
,which
wa s situated n ear what is supposed to have been som e
t im e a Rom an Catholic Chapel .
PENNAL .—A com poun d of P en . head , t op, a n d
ta l , of the sam e m ean in g . The village lies on the
old Rom an road called Sarn Helen,Helen ’s cause
wa y ,a nd it is supposed that the Rom an s had a station
h ere .
RHYDERIN.—Rhyd , a ford ; er i n
,a corru ption of
gerwin ,rough . The n am e is derived from a rough a n d
perilous ford across the Dysyn i river. The etym ology
of Dysyn i is di - swn a c'y ,n oiseless water.
RHYDONEN.—Rhyd , a ford ; onen . the ash tree .
RHYDUCHAF.—The n am e sign ifies the highest ford .
RHIW AEDoc .—Rhiw
, slope , the brow of a hill
gwa edog , bloody so called from a battle that wa s fought
here between Llywa r ch Hen a n d the Saxons , in which he
lost Cyn ddelw, the last ofhis son s . A sm all lake in the dis
triet is called Pwll y Gela n edd ,the pool of slaughter.
SAETH MARCHOG .- In this place Owen Gwyn edd
i s supposed to have surprised Reginald de Grev a n d
MERrox-ETH . 2 2 3
seven kn ights (Sa i th M a r chog ) in his train ; hen ce the
right wordin g is Sa i th Ma r chog , a nd its En glish n am e is
Seven Kn ights .
TOWYN .-Edm unds derives the n am e from twyn , a
c urved hillock or bank ; but we thin k the right wordis Tywyn ,
which is derived from tywodyn ,san d ; hen ce
t he n am e sign ifies a place of san ds . The village is
situate n ear the seashore,a n d is celebrated as a beautiful
bath in g- place . Som e tran slate Tywyn as sea—shore or
sea—lan d . Br onyc lydwr is n ot far distan t from here , where
the im m ortal Hugh Owen w a s bor n in 1637.
TANyBW LCH .
— The n am e sign ifies below the pass .
The place is situate at the brow of a hill overlooking the
vale of Ffestin iog .
TRAWSFYNYDD .
— Tr a ms,across ; mynydd ,
a m ou n
t ain . The n am e in dicates a place situ ate on the Side of
a m oun tain .
TALSARNAU .
— Ta l,fron t r ; sa r n a u ,
causeways , roads .
TALYLLYN — The n am e sign ifies the en d or head
of the lake,from the situation of its church at the
head of a beautifu l lake called Llyn Mwyng i l .
TANYGRISIAU .— Ta n
,un der
,below y ,
the g r isi a u ,
steps,stairs . In com in g down from Cwm or thin t o
Dolredyn ,the pedestrian s used to descen d over a series
of steps m ade of ston es , called Gr isi a u M a wr , great
steps a n d,on accoun t of the village lying below these
steps,it wa s called Ta nyg r isi a u .
Y CWRT .— The Court . We fin d the n am es Top y
e t, _ a n d Tower Court in the locality ,
a n d a fewRom an
rem ain s are visible at Cefn c a er .
MONTGOMERYSHIRE .
The Welsh n am e is Trefa ldwyn ,Baldwin ’s town ,
so
c alled in hon our of Baldwin ,a Norm an gen eral , who
built a castle on the border of the coun ty . In 1090
the castle wa s taken by Roger Mon tgom ery,a n d the
Saxon s called the place afterwards Mon tgom ery . Som e
seem t o think the English n am e is a Norm an corrup
tion of Mynydd y Cym ry ,the m oun t of the Kym ry .
ABERHAVESP .
—The place is situate at the c on
flu en c e of the rivers H a v esp a n d Severn ; hen ce the
n am e . H a v esp sign ifies a river whose chan n el is d ryin the sum m er .
ABERRHOSAN .
—Ab er, estuary ; rhosa n
,the n am e of
the river,which sign ifies the m eadow brook .
ABERMULE .
— The village is situated n ear the poin t
where the river Mule discharges itself in to the Severn .
M u le is probably a con traction of m u dliw,changin g
colour,from which we have the En glish m otley .
BERRIEW .—The correc t etym ology
,doubtless
,is
A b er—rhiw . The river Rhiw flows through the parisha n d em pties itself in to the Severn . Rhiw
,perhaps
,
from rhiw,what breaks ou t .
BLAENGLESYRCH .
— A place situate on the rivulet
Glesyr eh. from which it takes its n am e . Glesyr ch is a
corruption of g la s- er ch,dusky blue .
BUTTINGTON .
— The Welsh n am e is Ta ly b on t , b r idgen d
,from a bridge crossing the Sever n n ear it . Offa’s
Dyke passes through the parish , a n d here separates
2 26 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
CWMBELAN.—Bela n , sign ifies a woody ridge .
CYFEILIOG .—This pleasan t vale is n am ed in hon our
of Owen Cy/ei liog , who ,in 1130 ,
becam e the sole own er
of the estate through the death of his grandfather ,Meredyth ,
the prin ce . The n am e m ean s com pact
t ogether .”
CA-Es s.— It appears . that
'the Rom an s had a
station a nd a road in this place . The latter wa s called
Sa r n Swsa n ,Susan ’s road
,portion s of which are dis
cern ib le t o this day . The station wa s probably called
after the sam e n am e , a n d the Briton s decided t o per
pet u a te it , reducin g Swsa n t o Sws ; hen ce C a ersws.
CROESLLW YB IR.
—Cr b es,cross
,over llwyb i r , a cor
ru ption of llwv b r , a wa y ,path .
CYFRONYDD .—A com poun d of cyd , with ,
un ited, a n d
b ronycld , sloping hills . Cyfron ydd Hall is situated on a
rising em in en ce , com m an din g the beautiful scen eries of
the valley below , through whic h the river Ma nw flows .
DOLARDDIN.
— Som e are of opin ion that this placewa s n am ed in hon ou r of Arddu n
,daughter of Pabo Post
Prydain , a nd a sain t of the sixth cen tury . Arddu n
m ean s sublim e , gran d ,from d6l+ a r+din la s: them eadow
beyond. the fort .
DAROWEN . corruption of da r or der i,oaks
,
-
a nd
Owa in ,n am e of a m a n .
DERLL\VYN.
—From rler i,oaks
, a nd llwyn ,bush
,
gr ove .
DOLFOR.—A com poun d of dol , a m eadow or plain
,
a n d /awr , large , great .
DOLW EN.
—A com pou n d of dol, m eadow, a nd wen
,
fem in in e form of gwyn ,white
MONTGOMERYSHIRE . 2 27
DOLL—A corr u ption of dol,a m eadow.
DW YRIW .—A com poun d of dwy ,
fem in in e of da u
t wo a n d rhiw,slope
,ascen din g path .
DW YNANT .—Dwy ,
two ; n a n t,brook ; sign ifyin g a
place situated between two brooks that flow in to theriver Ba chog .
DYLIFAU .—Som e thin k the n am e is the plural form
of dylif, a warp . Dylif goton ,a cotton warp . It is
som etim es Spelt Dylife,which is probably a con traction
o f dylif- le, which m ean s a high place when ce water
flows to differen t direction s .
DOLYFELIN.—D0l , m eadow , dale ; y , the ; melin ,
m ill . Near this place is the site of a n ancien t British
sm elting - hearth, where num erous pieces of lead - ore
have been found .
DYFFRYN .—A village in the parish of Meifod .
EsGArR- GEILroc .—Esg a i r m ean s a con spicuous pro
m on tory . Gei liog—gei lig , hun tin g , explorin g . The n am e
sign ifies a hun tin g—groun d .
EsGArR MAEN .
—M a en ,a ston e . The nam e sigmi
fies a stony or rocky ridge .
FORDEN .—Perhaps a n An glo—Saxon word
,m ean ing
a shallow part of a river where a road crosses . The
use of the Anglo - Saxon verbal plural en is very comm on
in som e parts of this coun ty .
GAER .—From c a er , a fortress . This place is in the
parish of Caerein ion .
GARTH MILL — Ga r th,a n en closure , a mess
,a
prom on tory .
2 28 PLACE - NAMES rN WALES .
GARTHBEIBIO .—Pei b io is a m odification of Pei b i a w,
the n am e of a king recorded in m an y of the Welsh legen ds .
GARTH GELLrN .
—Gelli n ,perhaps
,is
'
a corruption
of collen,hazel - tree .
GLYN CLYW EDOG .
— Glyn ,a glen , a n arrow vale
Clywedog ,the roaring river that run s through the glen . .
GLANYNANT .
—The n am e sign ifies the bank of the
brook .
GLYN TREFNANT .—Glyn ,
a glen , a n arrow vale
Trefn a n t is a corruption of tr i—n a n t , three ravin es (P)
GRIBBIN . A com poun d of c r i b , crest , sum m it ; y ,
the b ryn ,hill sign ifyin g a place situated high on the
hill . Cr i b m v n y da’
,the sum m it of a m oun tain .
GUILSFIELD .
—The Welsh n am e is Ceg i d/a , sig n i
fyin g a place of hem lock , or ,perhaps
,it is a com poun d
of c eg id ,the bird wi twa l a n d fa n—m a n
,place . Som e
derive Gzi i lsfield from St . Gu la n’
s field . Perhaps it is a
com poun d of g u i ld ,a n in corporation
,a n d field .
GUNGROG .
— A corruption of Grc'a zm i v-
g rog , the
m eadow of the cross,so called from the supposition
that a cross wa s erected here in the m iddle ages in c on
n ec t ion w ith the Ystrad Fa r chell m on astery .
GW ESTYDD .
— Fr0m g zr'est—l v—dd in
,the cam p restin g
place .
GW ERN- Y—BW LCH r a swam p,a b og y ,
the
b ra lc lz, a pass , a gap . The n am e is derived from a m ounta in —pass in the district
,from which a distan t view of
Cader Idris is obtain ed .
GW ERN ESGOB .—Gwer a ,
a swam p ,a m eadow ;
Esgob , a bishop .
2 30 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
LLANDINAM .- Di n a m is referred by som e to the
Rom an Di n a m,a frequen t term in ation in place—n am es
in Gaul a n d Britain ,equivalen t t o the English Tu ne,
n ow ton, town , &c . Others take Dinam t o be a proper
n am e , hen ce the n am e sign ifies Din am’
s Church . Din amwa s form erly Din a n z a little hill fort .
LLANGYNOG .~—The church is dedicated t o Cyn og ,
the eldest son of Brycha n .
LLANGW YNOG .— Gwyn og ,
son of Gildas , a sain t of
the sixth cen tury,is the patron sain t of the church .
LLANDYSIL IO .—The church is dedicated t o Ty si lio,
the son of Brochwel Ysgythr og .
LLANFAIR CAERETNION.
— Lla n/a i r , a church dedi
c a t ed to St . Marv . C a er . fortress ; Ei n ion ,the n am e
of the river n ear which the town is Situated . The
latter part of the n am e is derived from a n old British
en cam pm en t , about three m iles from the town,parts
of which are discern ible t o this day .
LLANERFYL .~ The church is dedicated t o Er/yl , in
m em ory of whom a large ston e is erected in the churchyard .
LLANYMECHAIN .—1Wecha i n is a com poun d of m a
,3.
place ; a nd c a in,fair
,the n am e of the river on which
the church is situate . This par ish is fam ous for bein gthe birth - place of Gwa llter Mechain , in 1761.
LLANFIHANGEL - YN- NGWYNFA .—Tl’le church is dedi
c a t ed to St . Mi cha el , a nd the village is Situated in that
part of Powys called Gwynfa , the blessed place ; hen ce
the n am e .
LLANv MYNACH .—Myn a ch here is probably a corr up
tion of mwa a n , m in es . The ch is frequen tly added t o
MONTGOMERYSHIRE . 231
plural n oun s en ding w ith a u . Mwna u is the right word ,but it is colloquially pron oun ced mwn a ch. The place
probably derives its n am e from the m in es in which the
distr ict form er ly aboun ded, a nd which were worked so
early as the Rom an period . Som e think the word ismyna ch, m onk , from the supposition that a m on k lived
som e tim e in the vicin ity .
LLANSANTFFRAID .—Fr0m St . Ffra id, t o whom the
church is dedicated .
LLANWDDYN .—The church wa s probably dedicated
to a m on k n am ed d yn ,who ,
accordin g to tradition ,
l ived in a sequestered spot in the n eighbourhood .
LLANWRIN .—From Gwr i n ,
to whom the church is
dedicated .
LLANDRINIO .— Tr in io is the patron saint of the
church .
LLANLLW CHHAIARN.—From Llwchha i a rn ,
to whom
the church is dedicated .
LLANBRYNMAIR .
— B ryn ,a hil l ; Ma i r
,the Virgin
Mary . The church is dedicated t o St . Mary ,a n d
pleasan tly situated on a n em in en ce ; hen ce the n am e .
MACHYNLLETH .
- Som e derive the n am e thus : Ma ,
a place chyn ,from c a in
,fair
,beautiful lleth, a n a b b re
v ia t ion of llethr , a slope . An other derivation Ma ch, a
high ridge,a barrier yn , in or on lleth—llethr , a slope .
Edm un ds thinks lleth is a con traction of lla i th, dead ,
a nd that the n am e sign ifies the field of the dead by
the wayside .
” Others thin k the n am e sign ifies Cyn
lla i th’
s field, a nd this is , n o doubt , the right derivation .
2 32 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
MOCHNANT .—Moch
,quick
,swift n a n t
,brook ; the
n am e of the swift stream,that flows through the place ,
or m ore prob a b ly z swine da le. Com pare P a n t -
y- m och
a s a place - n am e .
MEIFOD .—Ma i
,a plain
,or cam paign coun try ;
b a d, a dwelling . The parish con sists of a n open a n d
exten sive tract of lan d . Or,perhaps
,it is a com poun d
ofm a es, a field a n d b od ,a dwelling sign ifyin g a dwell
in g in a field . Som e derive it from m a i—fod ,Ma y resi
den ce . Others say that a herm it som etim e resided in then eighbourhood
,hen ce m eu dwy
—fod ,the herrn i t ’s place .
MANLEDD .
—A com poun d,probably
,of b a n ,
a high
place , a sum m it or top ,a peak a n d Lethr ,
Slope . In the
old parish registers it is spelt Ma n leth a n d B a n - lethr .
MOUGHTRE .—~A corruption of Mochdre.
NEWCHAPEL .
— SO ca lled from the chapel which is
Situated on the confin es of the parishes of Gu ilsfield .
Llan san tffraid,a n d Meifod
,for the accomm odation of
those who reside at a distan ce from the parish church .
NEWTOWN .
—A tran slation of the Welsh n am eTrefn ewydd . Its an cien t n am e wa s Lla n fa i r—yn—Nghydewa i n but
,in con sequen ce of the large flan n el m anu
factories that were built there,the place grew so rapidly
that , in 1832 ,the privileges of corporation were bestowed
upon it,a n d hen ceforth it wa s called Newtown .
POOL QUAY .
~ —A village n ear Welshpool,when ce it
d erives its n am e .
PENNANT MELANGELL .
— P en,head or en d n a n t
,
brook lVIeZa n gell , called in a Latin sain t book St . Mon a
234 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
SNEAD .—From the En glish sn aed , a piece of lan d.
separated from a m anor.
STAYLITTLE .—The an cien t n am e wa s P enfiorddla s,
the head or en d of the green wa y . The presen t n am e
is derived from a public - house in the place bearin g the
n am e .
TYLW CH .—Tradition has it that the n am e is a corrup
tion of ta welweh,calm n ess , tranquility ,
the word used by “
a Welsh Prin ce,probably Llewelyn ein llyw Ola f , when he
wa s m arching through the place . Ty ,a house ; llwch,
a lake or in let of water .
TREGYNON .-Fr0m the dedication of the church t o
St . Cynon .
TAFOLOG .— The nam e im plies a place aboun ding in
dock plan ts da i l ta fol , dock leaves .
TREFEGLWYS . —The n am e m ean s a ham let or a
district privileged with a church .
TrR—i' —Ti r , groun d ; territory , y ,
the ;m y n a ch ,
m onk ; so called from the town ship havin gsom e tim e form ed a portion of the possession s of the
Abbey of Strata Marcella .
WELSHPOOL .—The Welsh n am e is Tr a llwm , or
Tr a llwng .
— Tra,extrem e , very ; llwng ,
a corru ption of
llwng a ,so called from the great depth of the lake below
Powys Castle . The n am e sign ifies a greedy swallow . It
has been prophesied that the pool is som e day to swallow
up the whole of the town of Welshpool . It wa s called
Welshpool by the English t o distin guish it from a town in
Dorsetshire called Poole . Tr a + llwng = the place beyond
the b og .
PEMBROKESH IRE .
Som e Welsh scholars thin k that the Old Welsh
form of the n am e wa s Pen b rog or Pen b rogh,a n d the
Latin ized form P em b rochi a ,when ce probably the En g
lish Pem broke . The roots are pen ,head
,en d ;
a n d b ro,a coun try
, or exten sive tract of lan d ,sigu i
fyin g a headlan d ,which is a very proper appellation ,
sin ce the coun ty form s the west en d of Wales . Then am e Dyv ecl wa s on ce applied to the whole coun ty ,from which the Rom an Dim etce wa s derived ,
but in the
tim e of Gir a ldu s Cam b rensis, the sm all pen in sula of
Castlem artin,lyin g between Milford Haven
,on the
n orth, a n d the B ristol Chan n el on the south ,
con sti
t u t ed the provin ce of Pem broke . The n am e wa s also
extended t o the town a n d fortress built there by Arn u lph
de Mon tgom ery ,in the reign of Hen ry I.
, a n d u ltim atelyit wa s given t o the whole coun ty .
ANGLE — Probably from the angle - like form of the
district . It lies i n a n g u lo.
AMBLESTON .
— This place wa s n am ed in hon our of
Ham ill, on e of the Vikings who foun ded the Welsh
colon y .
AMROTH .
—Am ,about
,en circling ; roth, a corrupted
form of rha th,a m oun d or hill , a n d rha th is used t o
den ote a plain or m oorland . Roa th,Cardiff , com es
from the latter root . In“
Liber La n d a v en sis it is
called Ra dh a nd Lla n r a th.
BRAWDY .
— Fen ton thinks it is a m utation of Broad
wa y . We in clin e to think it has a m ore an cien t deri
236 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
vation . B ra wd is a n an cien t Welsh word for judgm en t .
Dydd b r a wa , the day of judgm en t . Dy- ty, hou se . The
rem ain s of a n old British en cam pm en t that are dis
c ern ib le n ear a farm house called B r a wdy poin ts to the
probability that a judgm en t court w a s held here hen ce“ the n am e B ra wdy or B ra wd—dy .
BUTTER H ILL - In a n an cien t deed it is called
the Gran ge of Butter H ill , supposed to have been a
grange to the Pr iory of P ill , settled by the foun der ,Adam de Rupe . Butter , perhaps , is a corruption ofBu tha r , the n am e of an other Vikin g who visited the seshores .
BRIMSTON.—From Er im i , the n am e of a Norse
s ettler. B r im i is the Norse for flam e , a nd the name of
a m agical sword m en tion ed in Norse poetry . Er im i
ha s left his n am e in Br im sc om b ,Som erset .
BUCKSTON.—Nam ed in hon our of B a kki , a Norse
settler.
BURTON .—An old Saxon form of Briton . Briton
Ferry wa s on ce called Burton Ferry .
BRYNBERIAN .
—B l’yn ,a hil l ; b er i a n
,according to
s om e , com es from B er a n,the n am e of a rivulet
,sign ify
in g a short river ; but we in clin e to derive b er i a n fromb er i
, a kite or glede . Beri Farm , n ear Newport,Pem . ,
wa s so called probably from the visit of the kite to this
district .
BONCATH .—Nam ed after an other of the bird species
,
the buzzard .
BUGELY .—Eu
, a n ox gely ,a corru ption of gelly ,
a
g rove , sign ifying the buffalo of the forest .
2 38 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
COED GLASAN .— The n am e sign ifies G la sa n
’
s
t rees .
CREAMSTON.— Cl’c’a m is a corruption of Gr im , the
n am e of a Norse settler.
CAMROSE .- Ah Anglicized for m of Ca m rhos ; c a m ,
crooked,a n d rhos
,heather .
CASTLE MORRIS—So called in hon our of a m a n
n am ed Morris.
CYLCH BYCHAN .—Tli e parish is divided in to four
districts,of which this is the sm allest hen ce the nam e .
Cy lch B ye/t a n ,the sm all district .
CAPEL NEWYDD .—A sm all village n ot far from
Ca stell Newydd .
C1LYMAENLLW YD.—Ci l , hidden place y ,
the m a en,
ston e llwyd , grey .
CLYDEY .— So n am ed in hon our of Clyda i , a daughter
-o f Brycha n ,t o whom the church is dedicated .
CRYMYCH .
—VV€ find the root c rwm i n c rym lin a n d
c rom lech. The n am e m a y be a con traction of c rwm
rhych ; c rwm , ben ding , con cave , crooked rhych,ditch
,
tren ch .
CRESELEv .—The roots are c res,
a heatin g or parch
in g ,a n d g elly , a grove , so called probably from the
abun dan ce of culm a nd coal in the district
CAREw.
—A corruption of c a era u , walls , or for t ific a
t ion s . The castle wa s built by Nest , the daughter of
Rhys ab Tewdwr , Prin ce of South Wales , or from c a er
+yw= yew tree .
DALE — A Norse n am e , sign ifyin g a broad va lley ,
a n swering t o the Saxon vale , a n d to the Welsh c a t -m .
PEMBROKESHIRE . 2 39
One writer thinks it is a con traction of De Va le,the
n am e of one of its an cien t lords , in whose tim e it wa sd ign ified with the title of a borough .
DINAS — This place derives its n am e from P en din a s,
t he prom on tory that form s a part of the Fishgu ard
an chorage . Fortified walls were on ce built on the
headlan d hen ce it wa s called P en di na s.
DREW SON. A corruption of Druid’s town . Near
t he village there is a n en closure of n early one acre
called Drewson cha pel . The ston es which form ed the
Druidical circle were rem oved in 1740 .
EGLWYSWRW .
—Eg lwysei rw is the right wording , the
c hurch b eing dedicated t o Ei rw,whose r em ain s are
supposed t o have been in terred here .
ESTINGTON.—A tran slation of Tre Iestyn ,
Iestyn’
s
t own . Iestyn wa s a Welsh prin ce .
FREYSTHORP .—The prefix refers to the goddess
Freya (Friday) , a n d the affix thorp is the Norse word
for vil lage , a n d the equ ivalen t of the Saxon ha m .
FELINDRE .—This place has probably taken its
n am e from a n old m ill that wa s in the vicin ity .
FISHGUARD .
—Ab ergwa u n is the Welsh n am e,from
i ts Situation at the m outh of the river Gwa c h or Gwa in,
which im plies a river takin g a level or straight course .I t bore the n am e of Fishg a r th as far back as the tim e of
Richard I I . The Welsh g a r th a nd the Norse g a rdr ,o rigin ally m ean t a n en closure or yard . The n am e
occurs in Norm andy , a s Fisig a rd , Au ppeg a rd , a nd Epe
g a rd, the form er of which m a y be com pared with Fish
g u a rd, which m ean s a fishin g w ear or fishin g en closure.
240 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
FLATHOLM.—A large body of Dan es took refuge
here in the year 918, a nd left their m ark in the above
n am e,which wa s origin ally Fla dholm en e, sign ifying a .
flat islan d. Holm is the Dan ish word for a grassy ban k
n ear water , or a n island . Stockholm , the Swedish capital ,is Situated on two grassy hills n ear the water.
FLEMINGSTON .—This n am e is a con clusive ethmo
logical eviden ce oi the Flem ish settlem en t .
GELLYSW ICK .—An 0ther hybrid. Gelly ,
a g rove ;wi ck
, a creek or bay.
GRESHOLM.—A com poun d of g r a ss a nd holm ,
sig n i
ty ing a grassy island .
GOMFRESTON.—~SO called in hon our of Gorm or
Gomfre, a Norse settler .
GLYNDERW EN.—A com poun d of c lyn ,
a placecovered w ith brakes
, a n d derwen , oa k .
Goonwrc r< .— Som e say it is a corrupted form of the
Welsh c oedwig , a forest but we are in clin ed t o thin k it
is a hybrid n am e , m ade up of good ,a n d the Norse wick
,
a creek or bay . Isaac Taylor is of opin ion that theViki n gs, or c reekers
, derived their n am e from thewies or creeks in which they an chored . In the n in th .
a n d ten th cen turies the creeks a n d islan ds alon g theW elsh coast , especially those of Pem brokeshire
,were
in fested with these m arauders . The Anglo - Saxon verbwi c i a n m ean s t o r u n a ship on shore , t o take up a sta
tion , a nd finally it becam e t o m ean a village .
HAVERFORDWEST .—The Welsh is l fiordd ,
fromhwyl , a sail , a nd flordd , a wa y ,
a strik ing appellation t o
a place where a sea m akes its wa y in to it . Edm un ds
derives the English n am e from Ga /r -fiordd -
gwesi , the in n
243 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
HODGESTON .
—A m odification of Oggeston or Hogges
ton ,probably from som e Norse chief called Ug g a .
HUBBERSTON .—So called in honour of H u b b er
, or
H u b b a ,a Norm an warrior
,who ,
w ith his brother H in g u a ,
led the Norsem en in that great invasion of 866 . H is
n am e is also preserved in Hu b b erst , Derbyshire ; a n d
probably in Ob b est on , Som erset .
HUNGERSTON.
—From H i ngwa r , the com pan ion of
Ubba, 866.
JAMESTON .—So n am ed in hon our of f a m es, a Flem ing
who took refuge here after the subm ersion of Flan ders
in the year 1110 .
J EFFRESTON .
—From j efirey , an other of the settlers
of Anglia Tr a nswa llia . j efirey or Geofirey is probably
a Norm an corruption of Godfred , the good peace , or
God’s peace .
J OHNSTOWN . Nam ed in hon our of j ohn , a n
English n oblem an , it is supposed of the twelfth cen tury
KESTON .
— Probably from Kessa or Cissa,a Norm an .
Keswick (Cum berlan d) , Cissa'
s dwelling .
LAWRENNY .— Som e thin k it is a corruption of lla w
ren i , plural of lla wren , or lla wr,
floor . groun d . Others
thin k it is a corruption of Lla n -
yr—wzys, a church in the
islan d . This accords with the topographical situation
of the place , as it is a n islan d surroun ded by water.form ing two creeks , on e run n in g t o Carew
, a nd the
other t o Langwm .
LANGUM.
—A corruption of Lla ngwnz, sign ifyin g a
c hurch in the valley.
PEMBROKESHIRE . 243
LUDCHURCH .— The Welsh n am e is Eg lwys Lwyd .
L u d is a n An glicism of lwyd adorable,blessed
.
LAMBSTONE .
~ SO called in hon our of La m b i or
La m b a, on e of the settlers of the Welsh colony
,whose
n am e is also preserved in Lam beth,Lam bourn e
, a nd
in the surn am e Lam be .
LAMPHEY .
— A corruption of Lla nyfiydd ,Fa n u m
Fi dei, the church of the faith . It is Spelt in som e old
docum en ts Lla n /a i th a n d Lla nfeth ; then i t w a s c or
r u p t ed in to Lla nfey a n d La m phey . The con son an t n is
fr equen tly substituted in Welsh place - n am es in lieu of
the letter a t .
LANTEAGUE .
~ Pr0 b a b ly a corruption of Lla n—deg ,
sign ify in g a fair church .
LETTERSTON .
— A tran slation of the Welsh n am e,
Treletter t,from Letta rd , the an cien t own er of the lan d ,
w ho gave the advowson of the church ,w ith the chapel
o f Ll a n fa i r an n exed ,to the com m andery of Slebech .
LLANIADEN .
— ] a den is a corruption of Aedda n,the
n am e of the patron sain t of the parish church . Pro
fessor Rhys refers the n am e Aedd to the word a dd which
is explain ed in Dr . Davis’s diction ary as m ean in g dom in u s
,
m aster . It would seem , he says , t o be m atched in
O . Irish by Geda ,the gen itive of Oed ,
later Aedh,Aodh,
H a odh,An glicized H u gh,
a n d the lateMr . Stephen s , ofMer
thyr Tydfil , w a s probably right in regarding the Aedd of
m odern Welsh tradition as a Goidelic im portation from
North Britain .
LLANFRYNACH or LLANFYRNACH .
—From B ryn a ch,a
popular Irish sain t,who accom pan ied B rycha n B rych
e in iog to Britain in the fifth cen tu ry .
244 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
LLANGLOEFAN .— Ths church is dedicated to Clofia n ,
LLANGOLMAN .
—From Colm a n ,supposed to be a n
Irish sain t .
LLANWNDA .
— W u da is a corruption of Gwyn da f, a .
descen dan t of Em yr Llyd a w , a nd a sain t of the sixth
cen tury ,who is supposed to have been the foun der of
the church . Llanwn da Poin t is celebrated for the
surren der,in 1797,
of the French troops un der Gen eral
Tate .
LLANTYD .— Tyd is a n abbreviation of Illtyd ,
t o
whom the church is dedicated . It is also called Lla n twit
LLANDELOY .
—A corruption of Lla n dei lo the parish
church is dedicated to Tei lo.
LLANRHIAN .
—Rhi c m is supposed to have been the
foun der of the church .
LLANSTINAN .— S ti n a n or j u stin i a n ,
a sain t of the
Sixth cen tury ,wa s the foun der of the church .
MILFORD HAVEN — Som e are of opin ion that thisis a tran slation of Rhyd
-
y- m i lwr
,the n am e of a brook ;
taking m i l from m i lwr,a soldier
, a n d tran slatin g rhyd
in to ford , then Mi l/0rd . Others thin k it is a n Angli
c ized form of Myl far , or ymyl mor ,bordering the sea .
Within a m ile of the presen t town a stream let w a s.
won t t o turn a m ill that belonged t o the Priory ,a n d ,
before the bridge—period had dawn ed in the district the
people were obliged t o cross the brook over the m ill ’s
ford , called in Welsh Rhydyfeli n , a n d we in clin e t o think
Milford is a tran slation of Rhydyfeli n . The Welsh n am e
is Ab er - da u —g leddyf, from the fact that the two rivers,Cledda u Fa wr a n d Cledda u Fa e/z
,discharge them selves.
240 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES
ban ks of which river the parish is situated ,which wa s
n oted for the abun dan ce of fish caught there durin gthe season .
MARLOES .
— Perhaps a m utation of M a r la is m a r
a n exten sive tract of lan d ; l a i s,a corruption of c la is,
a tren ch or rivulet . More probably from m oel z b a re ,
a n d rhos.
MAZEBRIDGE .
—The prefix m a y be the An glo - Saxon
m a ze, sign ifying a place or passage full of win dings a n d
turn ings,which is very often span n ed by a bridge .
MARTHREY or M a r thr i,which is perhaps a corru p
tion of m er thyr , m artyr . The place suffered very heavily
from the Dan ish on slaughts, a n d the church is dedi
c a ted t o the holy m artyrs , or it m a y be from m a a n d
tr u (a n ) : a wretched spot , a place of Slaughter .
MIDDLE MILL —A tran slation of Felin g a n ol . A
Baptist Chapel wa s built here in 1756,a n d called Feli n
g a nol , from its situation n ear a m ill of that n am e,which
in terven ed between two other m ills .
MUZZLEW ICK .— From Mou ssel , a Norse settler a n d
wi ck, a creek or bay .
MYNACHLOG DDU .
— Black m on astery t .e.,
m onastery belongin g to the B lack Friars .
MOYLGROVE .
—A com poun d of m oel,a bare poin ted
hill,a n d g rov e.
NEYLAND .—The old Norm an n am e wa s Na yla nd ,
from ey la n d : (isla n d ) w ith a prefixed n,for which corn
pare Narberth a n d Nash . We fin d Naylan d in Suffolka n d Nylan d in Som erset . The inhabitan ts , aspiring hardt o com pete w ith their n eighbours in Milford
,aban don ed
the old n am e, a n d called the place New Milford .
PEMBROKESHIRE . 247
NARBERTH . In the Ma b inog ion it is calledAr b erth
, which sign ifies a place situated on a sloping
hill , aboun din g w ith per thi , bushes . The n am e an swers
to the physical aspect of the town . The preposition
yn , in ,wa s gen erally used before Ar b er th ; hen ce the
con son an t n adhered to the n am e, a nd then ce we have
Na r b er th.
NEVERN .
— The parish derives its n am e from the
rivulet Nev er n ,which flows through it . Lewis
,in the
“
Topographical Diction ary , thinks , very im probably ,
the word is derived from n i fer , a num ber , on accoun t of
the num erous stream lets that r u n through the parish
in to the sea . Teg id spelt it Na nhyfer ; if so ,the roots
are na n t,a brook ; a nd hyf, bold ,
NASH— Perhaps a m odification of the Norse ness, a
cape,
.or prom on tory , b u t proba bly from (a ste)n a shz a t
the ash . Nash Poin t,Naze , a n d Na zeb y ,
com e from
the sam e root . Nash village is situated n ear Milford Ba y .
NOLTON .— Nol is supposed to be a con traction of
O liver ; hen ce the nam e Oliver’s town . More probably
from ’
n Old town . Com pare Na r b er th from yn Ar b er th.
NEW MOAT.— So called from the Flem ings having
con structed a n ew m oat here in the tim e of Hen ry II .
NEWPORT .— The Welsh n am e is Trefdr a eth,
which
sign ifies a town on the san ds , from its situation
n ear a san dy beach of con siderable exten t . Six or
seven places in the Un ited Kingdom bear the nam e
Newport . It wa s wisely proposed som etim e ago t o
chan ge Newport , Monm outh , t o Uskpor t . We would
strongly advise the corporation of Trefdr a eth to aban don
the nam e Newport , a nd give it the right English nam e— Beachton .
248 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
NEWCASTLE—There is a n an cien t m oun d n ear the
church called the castle,
which wa s called“
n ew
to distin gu ish it from a m uch older on e,which is at a
short distan ce from the village . Pa n t g rwndy ,P a n t , hol
low ; c rwndy,a roun d house .
PELcwrr. -From Pela,the titm ouse ; a nd wa rn .
valley .
PENYBRYN.—The n am e sign ifies a place on the t op
of the hill .
POPE H ILL .- The lower part of the coun ty wa s on ce
designated Peb ydiog , from P eb yd , probably a m an ’s
n am e . Com pare Dol B eb in in Carn arvon shire .
PATER , or PEMBROKE DOCK . This place on ce
con sisted on ly of a farm, on e house , a n d a church ,
then
design ated Paterchurch . In 1812 surveys werem ade , a nd in two years after the nucleus of the presen tGovernm en t Station wa s form ed
,when i t wa s called
Pem broke Dock .
PENAR .—The nam e sign ifies a place situated on a
high m oun tain .
PENALLY .—Pen
,head a lly ,
a corruption of g elly ,a
grove ; sign ifying the head of the grove . The churchis Situated in a thickly - wooded place
, or m ore probably
from P en +Alu n .
PONTFAEN .—Pon.t
,b ridge ; fa en - m a en ,
ston e . Per
haps [a m is a corruption of Gwa en,the n am e of the
river that flows throu gh the parish ; the b i - la b ial w
bein g changed in to the u n i—labial
PRENDERGAST.— Tbis place der ives its n am e from a
Dem et ia n fam ily of the n am e,who were the own ers of
t he land in olden tim es. Maur ice de Pren dergast wa s
2 50 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
REYNOLDSTON .
—S0 called in hon our of Reyn old , aFlem ing
, who probably settled here in the reign ofHen ry I .
ROGESTON .
— From Roger ,an other Flem ing ,
who
took up his abode here .
ST . DAVID’
s.
— A free tran slation of the WelshTy ddewi
,so called in hon our of Dewi
,David
,the patron
sain t of Wales . Its an cien t n am e w a s M v nyw ,j uttin g ,
pen in sulated ; but after S t . Da v id rem oved there , a n d
becam e the bishop of the see , a n d wa s buried ,the old n am e
wa s aban don ed , a n d his hon ourable n am e wa s bestowed
upon it . St . Da v id wa s gran dson of Cered ig ,who gave his
n am e to Ceredigion, a n d w a s son of Cu n edd a . It is sup
posed that he wa s the first who system atically un dertook
to Christian ise the people of Dem et ia .
ST . DoGMELL’
s.
— The Welsh n am e is Lla n d u doch,
Ta d, a surfa ce
,a region ; ei ch
,the Celtic for water , a.
n am e quite descriptive of the physical aspect of the
place . The church wa s dedicated to Dog/a el , son ofIthel
,son ofCeredig . Dogm ell is a n An glicism ofDogfa el .
ST . ISMAEL .
— This village derives its n am e fromI sm a el
, a sain t of the sixth cen tury ,a n d supposed t o
have b een the foun der of the church .
ST . FLORENCE —Called in Welsh Treg oyr ,which is
probably a corruption of Treg a er ,walled town
'
or place .
We have n o reason t o suppose that this place w a s fort ified by a c a er ; but it m a y be so called from its c ont ig u i ty t o a large wall that belon ged t o the exten sive
park of the Ear ls of Pem broke . The church wa s dedic a ted to S t . Floren c e ; hen ce i ts presen t n am e .
PEMBROKESHIRE . 2 51
STAR—Probably after a public house so called .
STACK—The word is derived from the Norwegiansta ckr
, a colum n ar rock , a n d is foun d in Stack Rocks ,Stackpole , Head Penyholt Stack ,
a n d Stack Island ,
frin gin g the Pem brokeshire coast .
ST . N ICHOLAS—The place wa s on ce called Mon kton
, from the church bein g gran ted by Arnu lph deMon tgom ery ,
in 1088,to the Abbey of St . Scyes in
Norm an dy . In a short tim e after this a priory ofm on ks of the B en edictin e order
,dedicated t o St .
Ni chola s, wa s foun ded at this place , a n d m ade a cell
to that foreign abbey .
ST . LAWRENCE — This parish derives its n am e
from the church, which is dedicated to St . La wren ce.
ST . PETRox.—A free tran slation of Lla n b edrog .
The church wa s dedicated t o St . Pedrog ,who flourished
about the begin n in g of the seven th cen tury ,when ce
(St .) Pedrog’
s corrupted in to Petrox.
SOLVA .— This beautiful little Village derives i ts
n am e from the river Solfa ch. Sol m a y be a corru ption
of sio, to hiss , whiz ; a n d lli , a str eam ,Sign ifyi ng the
hissin g stream,or it m a y be derived from si lod , seed
lin gs,youn g fish . Or
,perhaps
,sol is the fem in in e form
of the adj ective swl , which sign ifies dirty or m uddy ,
m odifyin g a ch,water hen ce sola ch,
the m uddy stream .
Som e thin k the n am e is a n An glicism of C i l/a ch, givingthe hissing soun d t o c ; hen ce Si lfa ch, then Sol/a ah,
Sol/a . It appears that the n am e wa s on ce spelt Ci l/a ah
a n d S i lfa ch hen ce it m ight be easily changed t o Sol/a ah,
Sol/a . We adopt the latter.
2 52 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
SPITTAL .—This n am e is a m odification of the Latin
hospi t i u m . An ysb ytty ,hospital
,is recorded to have been
erected in olden tim es n ear Roach en cam pm en t .
STEYNTON .—This village probably wa s so called in
h on our ofAda m de St a i n ton . Som e derive it from stea n ,
a ston e , som etim es a bounda ry stone.
SUTTON.~ An abbreviation of Sou th- town . It is
an alogous w ith Surrey , the south realm , a n d Suffolk ,
t he southern division of the East- Anglican folk .
SAUNDERSFOOT .— The prefix is a con traction of
A lexa nder . The n am e sig nifies Alexander's place at
t he foot of the hill .
S ILVER H ILL—Perhaps the burial - place of a Vikin gc alled Solv a r .
l
SOUTH DAIRY .— So called t o distin gu ish it from the
n orth a n d west dairies .
SKOKIIOLM. Norse n am e sign ifyin g a woodedi slan d . Holm e is the Norse for a n island .
TAEARN SPITE .— Ta fa r n ,
in n,public - house ; Spi te,
a corruption of ysbyt ty , hospital ; the n am e is derivedfrom a n inn raised from the ruin s of a n liospi tz
'
u m ,which
h a d been founded there for ' the accom m odation of the
pilgrim traveller t o the shrin e of St . David’s . Spital
Square , London ,derives its n am e from the church of
t he priory a nd hospital of St . Mary,which stood in
Spi t a lfields.
TIER’
S CROSS— Perhaps from Thor, one of the
V ikin gs who founded the Welsh colony .
TREFGARx.— Tre/, place , town ; c a r n ,
heap,cairn ;
sign ifyin g , literally , the town on the heap . There are
2 54 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES .
TI-IORNTON.—SO called in hon our of Thorn i , on e of
the Norse settlers .
TEGRYN —TEGFRYN .
— A corruption of teg , fair ,.a nd b ryn ,
a hill .
TRELEDDIDFAW R.
— A corruption of tre, place ;l la dd/a ,
slaughter ; a n d fa wr , gr eat ; sign ifyin g a place
o f great slaughter . Som e are of opin ion that som e
bloody battles were fought in this district .
TRETE10 .— Teio,
perhaps,is a corruption of tei a n ,
sm all houses , cottages , or of ta eog , a vassal , tenan t in
villeinage , a peasan t . One of the old Welsh laws reads
thus : Ta i r rha ndi r a fydd yn y da eogdref”— there
shall be three sha rela n ds in the villein—town .
TREFLERW .—Lerw, a n in flection of llerw
,what is
n ice or delicate .
USMASTON .— Usm a s is a corruption of Ism a el , t o
whose m em ory the church is dedicated .
WISTON .—A free tran slation of Ga s Gwys, the
Castle of Gwys, which wa s built by a Norm an n am ed
W iz hen ce the town of W iz .
WALTON—This district wa s given by a Norm an
n am ed W a lter de W a le to the Kn ights of St . John,a nd
wa s so called in hon our of the don or .
WILLIAMSTON .— SO called in hon our of W i lli a m ,
a n other settler of the twelfth cen tury .
RADNORSH IRE .
The Welsh n am e,
i'lI a esyfed ,
is variously derived .
In som e an cien t MSS. it is written Ma eshyfa i dd ,which
sign ifies a lan d of boldn ess,or a m artial region . We
are in form ed in the British Triads that three exiled
prin ces , Gwrg a i , Ca da fa el , a n d Hyfa idd Hi r ,the son of
Ca r a dog Freichfra s, were on accoun t of their m ilitary
prowess m ade kin gs ; the form er two in the n orth,a n d
Hyfa idd H i r in the south . Som e are of opin ion that
the latter wa s m ade kin g of Radn or , a nd hen ce his n am e
wa s bestowed upon i t .
* Others adhere t o the pre
sen t orthography , Ma esy/ed ,which sign ifies the im b i b
in g m eadow,
”or the drin kin g lan d
,from the fact
that the little river Som erg ill sudden ly sin ks in to the
earth in the vicin ity of New Radn or,a n d then follows
a subterran ean course for a con siderable distan ce . The
popular derivation am on g the inhabitan ts is M a esy
fedw,from the abun dan ce of birch—groves in the coun ty .
The En glish n am e,Radn or , wa s given to it in the reign
of Hen ry VII I .,a n d sign ifies the red district . We
fin d Radford in Notts , Radlow in Hereford ,Redcliff in
G loucester , &c .
ABEREDW Y .
—From the river Edwy that flows
through the place . Edwy is probably a derivative of
eddu,t o press on ,
t o g o . Or , perhaps , the right word
in g is a i dwy ,sign ifyin g the lively water (P)
ABBEY CW M HIR.— Cwm H i r
,lon g vale . Ca dwa llon
a b Madoc bu ilt a n abbey of the Cistercian order here in
1143 for 60 m on ks . The abbey wa s destroyed by Owen
G lyn dwr .*This is the best su ppor ted der iv a t ion .
2 56 PLACE - NAMES IN WALES .
BEGUILDY .—A corruption probably of B u gei l—dy ,
the shepherd ’s house , a very appropriate n am e in a
sheep - rearing district .
BLETHFA (older BLEDDEACH) .—Som e derive it fromb li th, m ilk a nd m a n , a place sign ifyin g a dairy place .
It is som etim es spelt Bleddfa as a con traction of
Bleddyn- fa n ,
Bleddyn’
s place . Bleddyn wa s the n am e
of several bards in the years 1090- 1260 . We in clin e to
thin k it is a com poun d of b la idd , wolf a nd m a n,place .
BOUGHROOD .—Edm un ds thin ks it is a corruption
of b uwch firwd , the cow’s brook . We rather thin k it is
a n Anglicised form of B a chrhyd ,which is a com pou n d
of b a chog , crooked , havin g m any turn ings or win dings ;a n d rhyd , a ford . A stream let that discharges itself
in to the Wye , n ear the village,is called Ba chwy ,
the
m eandering water. The Wye m akes a sharp turn in ghere . Ma i a n dros, a river in Phrygia
,is proverbial for
its m any win dings , when ce cam e the word m ean der .
Som e think the right wordin g is B a ch- rhyd ,sign ifyin g
the little ford ”
on the Wye,where a boat a n d horse
were in con stan t atten dan ce .
CROESFEILIG .— Croes, cross Mei lig , the n am e of
the son of Ca w , a nd a sain t of the fifth cen tury .
CREGRINA .—A m utilation of Cr u gyn a u ,
heaps .
COLFA .—A corr u ption of Collta , which m ean s the
place of the hazel- wood .
CASCOB .— In Doom sday Book it is ca lled Ca s
c ope, which , accordin g to som e , is a com pound of c a ska nd hope—Mr .William s , in his H istory ofRadn orshire
,
derives it thus C a s, a fortress a nd cope, a n em in en ce .
258 PLACE~NAMES IN WALES .
con fluen ce of the rivers Elan a nd Wye . The parish
adj oin s the coun ties of B recon , Cardigan , a n d Mon t
gom ery ,a n d is the on ly on e in Radn orshire where Welsh
is un derstood a n d spoken . According to colloquial pro
n u n c ia t ion it is Cwmwd Dou ddwr , the comm ote of the two
waters.
CLAS GARMON .— Cla s, a green spot or en closure , 3
Cloister ; Ga rmon , perhaps the m em orable Germ ann s .
DYFFRYN ELAN .—Dyflryn , a long vale ; Ela n ,
the
n am e of the river that run s through it .
EVENJOBB .—The popular opin ion in the n eighbour
hood an en t the n am e is that a m a n n am ed Job livedhere at som e rem ote period , a n d wa s proverbial
, a s
the prototype Job ,for patien ce a nd evenn ess of tem per ,
a n d hen ce the place wa s called in hon our of him . The
n am e is , perhaps , a com poun d of e/es, brink or m a rg in
a n d hwpp,a slope . Bu r linjob b ,
in the sam e coun ty,
m ean s Brechla ’
s hwpp or slope . It wa s an cien tly spelt
Ev a n chob b , Evan’s cop , i .e.
,Evan ’s hill - top .
FELINDRE .—The n am e is a corrupt form ofm i leindref,
a town ship under villain soccage tenure .
GLASCOMB .—A com poun d of g la s,
green a n d com b ,
a n Anglicism of cwm , a valley ,a din gle . The village
lies in a beautiful a nd verdan t valley , where also stan ds
the fine m an sion of Gla scom b .
GOLON .—A corruption probably of colwyn, a sharp
hillock , a prom on tory .
HARPTON .—A tran slation of the Welsh nam e
,
Tre/ydelyn .
HEYOP.—A com poun d of ha v e, a grove , a n d cope, a n
em in ence .
RADNORSHIRE. 259
KINNERTON .—A corruption of Cen a rth, headland ,
a nd town , Sign ifyin g a place at the headland .
KNIGHTON . The Welsh n am e is Trefycla wdd,Dykestown , so called from its con tiguity to Offa
’s Dyke ,traces of which are discern ible to this day . The En glishn am e m ean s kn ight - town
,which
,after the Norm an Con
quest , wa s probably held on the tenure of kn ightly service ,a n d is one of those n am es that illustrate the old law phrase ,“ a kn ight
’
s fee .
KNUCKLAs.—A corrupted form of cnwc , a slight
em in ence , a nd g la s, green . a c h a s been corru pted in
a few English place - n am es , such as Kn ock in (Salop) ,Kn ock - holt (Ken t ) , a n d Kn ook (Wilts) a nd in Ireland
we fin d Kn ockg la ss, Kn oc kdow ,&c .
LLANANNO .—The church is dedicated to Wa nn a , or
Anno.
LLANBADARN FAWR .
— The church is dedicated to
P a da rn ,a descendan t of Em yr Llyd aw, a nd it is called
Fa wr in distin ction from Llanbadarn - Fynydd a nd Llan
ha d a rn -
y- Graig.
LLANDEGLEY .— The church wa s probably dedicated
t o Tegwel , a Welsh sain t . Tegwel m ean s a fair coun
t en a n ce or aspect .
LLANGUNLLo .—The church is dedicated t o Cu nllo,
a Welsh sain t . Cu nllo or Cyn llo, is probably m ade u pof eyn ,
the first or chief,a n d llo or lo, referred by Pro
fessor Rhys to a word of the sam e origin as the Latin
lu pu s, a wolf.
LLANDRINDOD .— Its an cien t n am e wa s Ftynon Llwyn
y Gég , the well of the cuckoo’
s bush ; but in 1603 the
.260 PLACE- NAMES IN WALES.
church wa s dedicated t o the B r inda d (Trin ity) hen ce
the n am e.
LLANDDEwr- YSTRADENNI.—The church is dedicated
to St . Dewi . Ystra d , a flat , a vale enn i is obscure . The
village is situated in a low vale on the river Itha n .
LLANEARETH.—The church is situated n ear the
confluen ce of the rivers M a reth a nd Wye ; hen ce the
nam e . Ma reth sign ifies lively or active water.
LLANFIHANGEL RHYDITHON .—The church is dedi
c a ted to St . Mi cha el . Rhyd , a ford I tha n , the n am e of
the river that flows through the pari sh .
LLANYRE .—Yre is a n abbreviation of Llyre. The
church is dedicated to Llyr , a descendan t of Cu nedd a
W led ig , a nd a sain t of the fifth cen tury .
MEISTY - RHOS is,probably
,a cor
ruption of m a es, a field , a n d ty ,a house ; rhos, a. dry
m eadow, a plain . Lowry perplexes us the root perhaps,
is lla wr , ground. Lowry is however , a person al n am e
which probably wa s con n ected w ith the place .
MONOGHTY.—A corruption of myn a ch- dy ,
a m onast ery . It is supposed that a m onastery stood here inolden tim es. Mon a u ghty Poydd (Salop) is said to beMon a chty Poelk, the hot m on astery .
NANTMEL .—Na n t , a brook m él
,accordin g to som e ,
is a n abbreviation of Ma el, a personal nam e ; but we
rather think it is the Welsh for hon ey hen ce the nam e
m ean s hon ey - brook , so called ,perhaps
,from its hue
,
or from the hives of wild bees in the n eighbouring rocks.
262 PLACE—NAMES IN WALES.
RHAIADR.—This town derives its nam e from a
Rha i a dr,a waterfall , that is con tiguous to it . The
Welsh call it Rha i a dr Grev ,from its Situation on the
ea stern ban k of the river Wye . The word rha i a dr is
derived from the sam e root as rhedeg ,t o ru n , or perhaps ,
from rlza o, to roar , bluster , in allusion to the din of the
water in its fallen state .
SALFORD .—A com poun d of sa llow,
a willow,a n d
ford ; Sign ifying the willow ford .
ST. HARMON .—F1‘Oln St . Garm on , to whom the parish
chu rch is dedicated . Gerrn a n u S—Garm on , B ishop of
Auxerre , wa s the son ofRhedyn , a n d a n ative of Brittany.
Gir a ldu s says that in the chu rch of St . Harm on, n ear
Rha ia dr , wa s the crutch of St . Cyr ig , plated with gold ,a n d adorn ed with pearls , above loft , called lloflt y grog(because the im age of the cross w a s gen erally pain ted on
the fron t of the loft ) . This crutch possessed the virtue
of healing m any diseases , such as the plagu e , the king's
evil, a n d all m an n er of swelling in the arm pits. The sick
person would kn eel with reveren ce before the cru tch, a nd
offer a piece of m on ey for his clean sin g a n d un less this
wa s don e , no cure could be expected .
" This crutch wa sburn t at the Reform ation .
TREFONEN .— Tref, a n abode , a plac e onen
,ash tree
.
W EYTHEL.—A corruption of Grc'yddel , a m a n of the
wood ,a n Irishm an .