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

Cwmllynfell. — Cwm, a narrow vale; llynfell, a mutation of llyfnell, which means a smooth river. Llyfn wy, thesmooth water. " Ni bydd llyfn heb ei anafi" there is nothing smooth without its blemish. English name —Smoothton.Crwys. — This name is a mutation of croes, a cross. A corpse lying in its shroud is said to be dan ei groes,i.e., " under the cross," from the Popish usage of putting a cross on the bosom of the dead. English name —Crosston.Dowlais. — Some derive the name from Dwrlais, the supposed name of the brook that flows through the oldironworks, and joins the Morlais at the upper part of Penydaren. " Clais dwfr a glau," the water edge, was anancient Welsh expression. Dwr might be easily changed into dow. Dowgate, London, was once calledDwrgau. Llandwr, a small parish in the Vale of Glamorgan, is now called Llandow. Others think it is acorruption of Dwylais, from the confluence of the two brooks in the place. Others derive it thus: du, black;clais, a little trench or rivulet. We rather think the right wording is Dulas: du, black; glas, blue, signifying thelivid water. Our forefathers were wont to name the rivulets and rivers from the respective hue of their waters.Dulas is a very common appellation in Welsh topography, and we find its cognate in Douglas, Isle of Man.And, strange to say, Morlais or Morlas is in close proximity to Dulas in several districts in Wales, and inBrittany we find its cognate in Morlaix. This coincidence inclines us to think that glas, blue, is the suffix ofboth names. Morglas, sea-green colour; Du-glas, black and blue. We have five Dulas in Wales, three inScotland, and one in Dorset; and the word appears in different forms: — Douglas once in the Isle of Man,twice in Scotland, once in Lancashire, and twice in Ireland; Doulas in Radnor, Dowles in Salop, Dawlish inDevon, and Dowlais in Glamorgan. English name — Lividton.Dinas Powis. — Dinas is a corruption of Denis. When Iestyn ab Gwrgant married Denis, the daughter ofBleddyn ab Cynfyn, Prince of Powys, he built a castle in the place, and called it Denis Powys, in honour ofhis wife. English name — Denisham.Deri. — This place adopted the name of a farm-house called Deri, from its situation in a place aboundingwith oaks. Deri means oaks, and it is cognate with Derry and Kildare. It is also called Darran from DarrenYsgwyddgwyn, which towers above the village. English name — Oakham.Dinas. — A populous village in the Rhondda Valley. It was first called Dims y Glo t the city of coal, onaccount of its wealth of coal. English name — Coaltown.Dyffryn. — Dyffryn means a valley. The village is situated near Dyffryn Goluch, the valley of worship, or thehill of adoration, where the largest cromlech in the kingdom and other remarkable remains of ancientreligious sanctuaries are visible. English name — Worshipton.Ely. — The river Llai, which means a dun-coloured water, flows through the village. The Welsh name isTrelai, and the English is a corruption of the same. English name — Dunwater.Ewenny. — A corruption of Ewyn-wy, the name of the river that flows through the place. It means the frothywater. English name — Foamton.Eglwys Ilan. — The church, according to some, was dedicated to Elian. Others think it was dedicated toElen Deg (the Fair), the daughter of Morgan Mwyn-fawr. Ilan, therefore, is a corruption either of Elian or Elen.' English name — Ellenschurch.Efailfach. — Gefail, a smithy; fach-back a small, little; from a smitny in the place. English name —Smithham.Flemingston. — This place was named in honour of Sir John Fleming, Robert Fitzhamon's knight, to whomhe gave the manors of St. George, Llanfaes, &c. The ancient name was Llanfihangel-y-twyn, St. Michael'schurch-on-the-hill.Fforchdwm. — Fforch, fforchi, to fork, to part into two; and twnt, a round heap; or, perhaps turn, fracture,splint. The name, probably, signifies a hillock forming a divergent point between two vales. English name —Forkhill.Glanybad. — Glan, side, bank; y the; bad, boat. Before the present bridge was built across the river Taff, theOrigin of Place-names in Wales & Monmouthshire Page 60