welsh language

The Meanings of Welsh Place-names

Beth Mae Enwau Cymraeg Llefydd yn Feddwl

Welsh place-names are very descriptive as the language has not changed significantly for centuries. Whereas in England many places have Viking or Anglo-Saxon names which use words that are not in use in the English Language today. Therefore with a knowledge of modern Welsh you can often guess the location of a village, or the character of a mountain from its name. Here are some local place-names and their meanings:

Mae enwau llefydd yn Gymraeg yn ddisgrifiadol iawn am nid yw'r iaith wedi newid llawer ers canrifoedd. Ond yn Lloegr mae gan lawer o lefydd enwau 'Viking' neu rhai yn dod o'r hen Saesneg ac mae rhain yn defnyddio geiriau sydd ddim yn cael eu defnyddio yn yr iaith Saesneg heddiw. Felly hefo gwybodaeth o'r Gymraeg fodern gallwch ddyfalu yn aml lle mae pentref wedi ei leoli, neu cymeriad mynydd, oddi wrth yr enw. Dyma rai o enwau llefydd lleol, ac beth maent yn feddwl:



Towns and Villages    Trefi a Phentrefi

Abersoch  click to hear word Mouth (Aber) of the river Soch
Beddgelert  click to hear word The grave (Bedd) of Gelert
Betws Garmon   click to hear word Prayer house (Betws) of Garmon
Betws-y-Coed  click to hear word Prayer house (Betws) in the woods (Coed)
Caernarfon  click to hear word Fort (Caer) near Anglesey (Môn)
Capel Curig  click to hear word The chapel of St. Curig
Dolgellau  click to hear word Meadow (Dôl) of the Monks' cells (Cellau)
Ffestiniog  click to hear word Land of Ffestin (person)
Harlech  click to hear word Beautiful (Hardd) rock/slab (llech)
Llanrwst  click to hear word Church of St. Crwst [see below for more accurate description]
Machynlleth  click to hear word The plain of Cynllaith (person)
Pwllheli  click to hear word Salt water (heli) pool (pwll)
Tremeirchion  click to hear word Town (Tre) of the horses (meirchion)
Tywyn  click to hear word Sandy plain near a seashore

What exactly is a Llan?
There are over 430 places in Wales that start with 'Llan'. A 'Llan' was a piece of land enclosed by a wooden fence within which would be a church and a group of Christians. Each 'Llan' was established around the 6th century by a Celtic saint after whom the site was named.



Mountains    Mynyddoedd

Cadair Idris (or Cader Idris) The chair (Cadair) of Idris
Carnedd Llewelyn The cairn (Carnedd) of Llewelyn
Crib Goch The red (Goch) ridge (Crib)
Pen Llithrig y Wrach The slippery (Llithrig) peak (Pen) of the Witch (Wrach)
Y Garn The cairn
Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) The grave (above ground) - tumulus


Places to Stay    Llefydd i Aros

Bach y Graig  click here to hear name (~80K) River bend (Bach) by the rock (Graig)
Barcdy  click here to hear name (~80K) Tannery
Dwy Olwyn  click here to hear name (~80K) Two (Dwy) wheels (Olwyn)
Ffarm Afonwen  click here to hear name (~80K) Farm (Ffarm) of the white (wen) river (afon)
Ffridd Uchaf  click here to hear name (~80K) Upper (Uchaf) mountain pasture (Ffridd) [see below]
Marchlyn  click here to hear name (~80K) Lake (llyn) of the horse (March)
Pant Glas Canol  click here to hear name (~80K) Green (Glas) shallow valley/dip (Pant) central (Canol) [see below]
Ty Coch  click here to hear name (~80K) The red (Coch) house (Ty)
Tyn Don  click here to hear name (~80K) The house (Ty) by the wave (don)

Isaf, Canol, and Uchaf
You will often see names that end in 'Isaf', 'Canol' or 'Uchaf'. These are equivalent to the English 'Lower', 'Middle' and 'Upper' tags respectively.


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