handbook of the origin of place-names in wales and monmouthshire

Abertridwr. — Tridwr, three waters, so-called from the situation of the village at the confluence of threebrooks. English name — Watermouth.Abernant. — A brook called Nantygroes flows through the place, and empties into the Cynon near Tir-yfounder.English name — Brookmouth.Aberfan. — Ban, high; Banau Brycheiniog, the Brecknock Beacons. Fan is a brook that falls into the riverTaff at the place. Two farmhouses also bear the name. The village is also called Ynys Owen, from a farm ofthat name. The railway station has been designated Merthyr Vale, and henceforth, the village will, doubtless,be known by the same name.Alltwen. — Allt, a cliff, the side of a hill; wen r feminine of gwyn, white. The name is in correspondence withthe situation of the village, being on a hill-side. English name— Whitehill.Abwrthin. — Perhaps a corruption of Aberihin, which implies a place of sacrifices, so called, probably, fromthe supposition that Druidical sacrifices were offered here. English name — Altarton.Abercenffig. — Cenffig is a contraction of Cefn-y-Figy so called from the situation of the place on a ridge ofground above a bog. It is generally believed that this ancient town was inundated by the sea about themiddle of the sixteenth century, and that the present village was built near or on the place of inundation.English name — Bogton.Abercwmboy. — Some think the name is a corruption of Abercwmybwci: cum, a. dingle; y, the; bwci abugbear, hobgoblin. It was the vain belief of the aborigines of this valley that a hobgoblin once haunted theplace- Bwci was reduced to bo and ultimately y was added; hence the name in its present form. Perhaps theright wording is Aber-cwm-bwdau. Bwa is the Welsh for bow. Bwa a saeth r bow and arrow. We findCwmbwa in Cardiganshire ; and Brynbo (Bryn-bwa) and Cwm Bowydd (Cwra-bwa-gwydd) in North Wales,where bo is a contraction of bwa. Perhaps the place was once noted for its abundance of trees of which ourforefathers made their bows. The village is also called Cap Coch, red cap. Tradition has it that an eccentricpublican and cock-fighter in remote times always wore a red cap on a cock-fighting day, and that the place isso called from that circumstance. English name — Bowcombe, or Bocombe.Abergwynfi. — From a farm so named. It was once called Trejenkin, in honour of Mr. Jenkins, Gelli farm. Itwas also called Blaenavan, from its situation at the source of the river Avan. Gwynfi is a corruption of gwynfai,white or blessed plain. English name — Whitmouth.Bedlinog. — From an old farm so named. The word is probably a compound of bedw, birch tree, and llain, aslip, or long narrow place. Llain o dir, a slip of land, a small field. Or the right wording may be Bedw-Imyn,birchgrove. The village is also called Cwmfelin, from an old mill in the place. It is also popularly called Colly,from a farm so called; col, any' projecting body, a sharp hillock; and It-llc, place. English name — Bircham.Black Pill. — Probably from the blackened stumps of a submerged forest, which are to be seen all along theshore.Blaengwrach. — The village is situated at the extreme end of the Neath Vale, near the source (blaen) o therivulet Gwrach; hence the name. Gwrach may be a compound of cwr, extremity, and dch, river, signifying ariver flowing at the extreme end of a vale. English name — Nookton.Broughton. — From barrow, a sepulchral mound of great antiquity formed of earth or stones. Stone barrowsare called cairns in Scotland. Several tumuli or barrows were found on each side of the road from LantwitMajor to Ewenny; hence the name. English name — Barrowton .Bodringallt. — Bod, a dwelling-place; ringallt is variously derived. Some are of opinion it is a corruption ofrhingyll, a summoner, founding their reasons upon the supposition that Cadwgan y Fwyall, the summoner,took up his abode here. We rather think it is a corruption of reynallt, a fox, a reynard. The valley was noted inolden times for fox-hunting, as the following extract shows: — "1752, killing a fox whelp, 2s. 6d. 1819, paidfor killing a fox, 5s." English name — Foxham.Blaen Rhondda. — So called from a farmhouse bearing the name, and also the village is situated near thesource of the river Rhondda. Blaen means the forepart of anything, and here the spring of the river. EnglishOrigin of Place-names in Wales & Monmouthshire Page 56