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

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to Exeter; the Ax to Axbridge; and the Ux joins the Thames near Oxford. We have an Esk in Donegal; anEsky in Sligo; and a Wisk in Yorkshire. The Gaelic and Erse word for water is uisge, of which whiskey isprobably a corruption. English name — Waterton.Victoria. — The place was anciently called Troed-rhiw'r-clawdd, which signifies a place near a dyke at thefoot of the hill. The present name is derived from the street that leads to the place from Ebbw Vale.Waun Avon. — A compound of waun, meadow, moor; and afon, river, from its proximity to the source of theriver Llwyd. English name — Rivermoor.MONTGOMERYSHIRE.The Welsh name is Trefaldwyn, Baldwin's town, so called in honour of Baldwin, a Norman general, who builta castle on the border of the county. In 1090, the castle was taken by Roger Montgomery, and the Saxonscalled the place afterwards Montgomery. Some seem to think the English name is a Norman corruption ofMynyddy Cymry, the mount of the Kymry.Aberhavesp. — The place is situate at the confluence of the rivers Havesp and Severn; hence the nameHavesp signifies a river whose channel is dry in the summer. English name— Hespmouth.Aberrhosan. — Abet, estuary; rhosan, the name of the river, which signifies the meadow brook. Englishname— Moorbrook.Abermule. — The village is situated near the point where the river Mule discharges itself into the Severn.Mule is probably a contraction of mudliw, changing colour, from which we have the English motley, Englishname — Motleyton.Blarnglesyrch. — A place situate on the rivulet Ghsyrch, from which it takes its name. Glesyrch is acorruption of glas-erch, dusky blue. English name- Dusky ham.Buttington. — The Welsh name is Talybont, x bridgend, from a bridge crossing the Severn nearby.Offa'sDyke passes through the parish, and here-abouts, separates England from Wales. During the Saxon periodit was called Butdigingtune; hence Buttington. The name signifies Archer's town.Bwlchyffridd. — Bwlch, pass, breach; y, the; ffridd, plantation, forest. English name — Passwood.Carno. — From cam, cairn, heap. Pennant says: " The mountains of Carno, like those of Gilboa, arecelebrated for the fall of the mighty. On a mountain called Mynydd y Garn or Garnedd, a huge heap of stoneswas raised to commemorate the death of a celebrated warrior. English name — Moundham.Cann Office. — An abbreviation of Cannon Office, so called from the cannons used by Cromwell's soldiersduring their encampment in the place.Ceri. — A corruption of Caerau, fortresses or walls, according to some; but some derive it from Cm HirLyngwyv, the name of Caradog's grandfather, who was the owner of the estate, which, as it was customarythen, was called after his name. Others derive it from ceri, the medlar tree, which, it is supposed, aboundedin the district in time of yore. We adopt the latter derivation. English name — Medlarton.Cemmaes. — A compound of cefn, back, ridge, and maes, a field. English name — Highfield.Clitterwood. — Perhaps from glitter and wood.Crigion. — A corruption of crugiau, heaps. English name— Heapham.Church Stoke. — From stoc, or stocce, the stem or main part of a tree. Woodstock, woody place.Cyfeiliog. — This pleasant vale is named in honour of Owen Cyfeiliog, who, in 1130, became the sole ownerof the estate through the death of his grandfather, Meredyth, the prince. The name, means "compacttogether." English name — Jointon.Origin of Place-names in Wales & Monmouthshire Page 83
Caersws. — It appears that the Romans had a station and a road in this place. The latter was called SamSwsan, Susan's road, portions of which are discernible to this day. The station was probably called after thesame name, and the Britons decided to perpetuate it, reducing Swsan to Sws; hence Caersws.English name — Susfort.Croesllwybir. — Croes, cross, over; llwybir, a corruption of llwybr, a way, path. English name — Crossway.Cyfronydd. — A compound of cyd, with, united, and bronydd, sloping hills. Cyfronydd Hall is situated on arising eminence, commanding the beautiful sceneries of the valley below, through which the river Manwflows. English name — Slopeton. *Dolarddin. — Some are of opinion that this place was named in honour of Arddun, daughter of Pabo PostPrydain, and a saint of the sixth century. Arddun means sublime, grand. English name — Grandmoor.Darowen. — A corruption of dar or deri, oaks, and O wain y name of a man. English name — Owen's Oak.Derllwyn. — From deri, oaks, and llwyn, bush, grove. English name — Oakbush.Dolfor. — A compound of dol, a meadow or plain, and fawr, large, great. English name- Big Meadow,Dolwen. — A compound of dol, meadow, and wen, feminine form of gwyn, white. English name — WhiteMeadow.Doll. — A corruption of dol, a meadow. For the sake of variety we assign to this the following English name—Plainham.Dwyriw. — A compound of dwy t feminine of dau two; and rhiw, slope, ascending path. English name—Bislope.Dwynant. — Dwy, two; nant, brook; signifying a place situated between two brooks that flow into the riverBachog. English name — Bibrook.Dylifau. — Some think the name is the plural form of dylif, a warp. Dylif go ton, a cotton warp. It issometimes spelt Dylife, which is probably a contraction of dylif-le, which means a high place whence waterflows to different directions. English name — Flowhill.Dolyfelin. — Dol, meadow, dale; y the; melin, mill. Near this place is the site of an ancient British smeltinghearth,where numerous pieces of lead-ore have been found. English name — Milldale.Dyffryn. — A village in the parish of Meifod. English name — Valley.Esgair-Geiliog. — Esgair means a conspicuous promontory. Geilioe-geilig, hunting, exploring. The namesignifies a hunting-ground. English name— Hunthill.Esgair Maen. — Maen, a stone. The name signifies a stony or rocky ridge. English name — Stoneham.Forden. — Perhaps an Anglo-Saxon word, meaning a shallow part of a river where a road crosses. The useof the Anglo-Saxon verbal plural en is very common, in some parts of this county. English name — Fordham.Gaer. — From eaer, a fortress. This place is in the parish of Caereinion. English name — Fort.Garth Mill. — Garth, an enclosure, a ness, a promontory. English name — Millyard.Garthbeibio. — Peibio is a modification of Peibiaw, the name of a king recorded in many of the Welshlegends. English name — Rexhill.Garth Gellin. — Gellin, perhaps, is a corruption of collen, hazel-tree. English name — Hazelham.Glanynant. — The name signifies the bank of the brook. English name — Brookside.Origin of Place-names in Wales & Monmouthshire Page 84
Page 1 and 2:
HANDBOOK OF THE ORIGIN OF PLACE-NAM
Page 3 and 4:
§ § § § §The Author begs to st
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pitiful cries of the railway offici
Page 7 and 8:
Bishop Percy says that "in England,
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The city of Chester is still popula
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There's Cumwhitton, Cumwhinton, Cum
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Llwyn in its primary' sense means a
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PLACE-NAMES IN WALES.Wales. — The
Page 17 and 18:
Church are generally dedicated to e
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think he was a contemporary of St.
Page 21 and 22:
Rhosbeirio. — Rhos, a moor, a dry
Page 23 and 24:
of Brecknock," states that this vic
Page 25 and 26:
Cam cnwir ef Cwmdu,Cwm gwyn yw & n
Page 27 and 28:
Penderyn. — A corruption probably
Page 29 and 30:
Ardudwy. — Ar, upon or above; tud
Page 31 and 32:
to mark its pre-eminence over the o
Page 33 and 34:
Some think that eirw is a corruptio
Page 35 and 36: present form — Caerfyrddin.Abergw
Page 37 and 38: place of refuge; hence the name. En
Page 39 and 40: Llansawyl. — The church was dedic
Page 41 and 42: eject. The village took its name fr
Page 43 and 44: house, and attempted to kill an inf
Page 45 and 46: Gwydir. — Prima facie one may tak
Page 47 and 48: Nefyn. — The church was probably
Page 49 and 50: DENBIGHSHIRE.Anglicized form of Din
Page 51 and 52: Llangollen. — From Collen, a sain
Page 53 and 54: hands into their pockets to pay a c
Page 55 and 56: Cefn. — The name signifies a ridg
Page 57 and 58: Maesgarmon. — Named in honour of
Page 59 and 60: Abertridwr. — Tridwr, three water
Page 61 and 62: it is said, was originally built by
Page 63 and 64: Cwmllynfell. — Cwm, a narrow vale
Page 65 and 66: Gwarycaeau. — Gwdr, the nape of t
Page 67 and 68: means a cultivated region, a vale,
Page 69 and 70: Penrhiwfer.- Pen, head, top; rhiw,
Page 71 and 72: Port Talbot. — So called in 1835
Page 73 and 74: Trealaw. — This appellation was g
Page 75 and 76: Aberdyfi. — So called from its si
Page 77 and 78: Llanddwywe. — From Dwywau, a desc
Page 79 and 80: Crickhowell and some in the directi
Page 81 and 82: Griffithstown. — This village was
Page 83 and 84: and gwy, water. Treiddiod troth tna
Page 85: derive Tintern from din, fortified
Page 89 and 90: English name — Ervylton.Llanymech
Page 91 and 92: Angle. — Probably from the angle-
Page 93 and 94: Gellyswick. — Another hybrid. Gel
Page 95 and 96: that the two rivers in their flowin
Page 97 and 98: ecame the bishop of the see, and wa
Page 99 and 100: earth formerly stood on a summit on
Page 101 and 102: Pilleth. — A corruption of pwll,
Page 103 and 104: Howells, Rev. J., Mountain AshHowel
Page 105 and 106: Williams, D., PenywernWilliams, Rev
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