kimkat3762k The Dialect of Gwent. Cadrawd. Cardiff Times. 1908.
13-7-2022
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RHAN 1: 22 Chwefror 1908
RHAN 2: 29 Chwefror 1908
RHAN 3: 7 Mawrth 1908
RHAN 4: 14 Mawrth 1908
RHAN 5: 2 Mai 1908
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Cardiff Times. 22 Chwefror 1908. Welsh Tit Bits. Neu Wreichion Oddiar yr Eingion By CADRAWD. THE DIALECT OF GWENT. (1/5) The pure
dialect of Glamorgan has always been called the Gwenhwyseg i.e., the
language, or dialect, of Gwentland. This shows how closely connected the
people of Gwent and Morganwg have been from time immemorial, and the one may
speak of the other as Ruth of old spoke to her mother-in-law - “Thy people
shall be my people, and thy God my God." A great
number of words which are marked aa obsolete in Dr. Davies's Dictionary
(1632) are to-day used in common conversation throughout Gwent and Morganwg
where the old language is still spoken. Monmouthshire, in the days of Iolo
Morganwg, or, say, up to within tho last seventy years, though reckoned an
English county, came nearest of any to the ancient literary dialect. The
words of Taliesin Ben Beirdd and other bards of the fifth and sixth centuries
to the thirteenth are more readily understood in Monmouthshire, says the old
bard of Flemingston, than in any other part of Wales. The reason he assigned
for this was that during the British Monarchy, after its emancipation from
the Roman Empire, the seat of government was at Caerlleon, in Monmouthshire.
The Gwenhwyseg, or as it is also called, the Silurian dialect, then became
that of the Court of government, and consequently the dialect of literature.
Its use as a language of literature was continued even in the Courts of North
Wales, and among their writers. Their numerous bards, from the eleventh to
the fourteenth centuries, all wrote in the Silurian dialect, on the
principles of which all the verbs are inflected, all their phraseology and
idioms are constructed. We may
here point out some of the broad ind distinguishing characteristics of the
Wenhwyseg. The Gwentian dialect illustrates what Max Muller designates the
law of phonetic economy perhaps better than any. This law is in operation in
a more or less degree throughout the world of speech, but certain languages
and dialects are more amenable to its operation than others, but there are
none more so than the Gwenhwyseg. (a)
Assimilation, - Letters produced by the same, or nearly the same, organs of
speech are often assimilated, thus Pontbren – Pompren; Pont-faen - Ponffan. (b)
Sounds are frequently transposed, especially in certain connections - e.g.,
after 'ys’, “wythnos" very often becomes “wsnos," and “wsnoth” - the
affinity of ys with ws being greater than that of "ys" with
“wyth." The
instances of metathesis are very numerous; a few only need be indicated - “Cwiddyl”
for cywilydd - “os arnat ti ddim cwiddyl o dy hunan" (are thou not
ashamed of thyself?) “pyrnu” for prynu - "mae wedi mynd i byrnu cwpwl o
ddefid i ffair 'B'rhonddu” (he has gone to buy a couple of sheep to Brecon
fair). A “couple” in Glamorganshire means anything between two and fifty in
number. These are the other examples we shall quote: “trenfu,"
“cenfu," “drychynllyd," “cyrnhoi," - “i clasgu nhw at i
gilydd” for “eu casglu nhwy at eu gilydd” (to collect them together). ( c)
Sounds frequently disappear at the end of the word, especially the sound “dd”
- e.g., fynydd becomes “fyny," clawdd “claw," ymladd “wmla,"
and "ymla." Other instances - “gentyn” for ganddynt; cymin
“cymaint," &c. (d) The
instances of consonantal disappearance from the body of a word are not
numerous, but the forms “Arlwydd” for Arglwydd, “gwrlod” for gweirlodd,
“genyn” for ganddynt, “bachan" and “achan" for bachgen, are to be
met with. (dd) The
Silurian dialect illustrates a strong tendency to rundown the somewhat difficult
combination “gwl” - e.g., gwlaw is always "glaw." “Mae'n
bwrw glaw'n y Blaena, Mae'n
dechra pican yma; Mae'n
haulo'n deg ar bont Llandaf, Mae'n
dywydd braf yn Brysta." This old
triban was put together by someone many years ago on a harvest field, the
weather being unsettled, and a good deal of work needed to be done. The exact
spot must be imagined, from which the Blaena, the hills of Glamorgan, the
bridge crossing the Taff at Llandaff, and the channel towards Bristol, could
be seen. “Glad" for gwlad is to be heard towards the English borders of
Monmouthshire: [an]d always the “gl” in the proper name “Gwladys," which
is now being spelt as it is pronounced - “Gladys." Other instances are
“glyb” for gwlyb, "wleia," “wilia," and “wlia” for chwedleua -
to talk. The
sound “chw” becomes "wh” or “w" - e.g., "wipan" and
"whipan" for chwiban; “wech” and “whech” for chwech; “war” and
“whar" for chwaer; “whigan” and “chwigain” for chweugain; “gwr”
frequently also becomes “gr” - e.g., “grondo” for gwrando, "gryndwch"
for gwrandewch. Chweigain. This
word is used to mean ten shillings, but never do those who use it think, or
indeed know, its exact and original derivation; viz., that it means one
hundred and twenty pence, six scores the amount of pence in ten shillings. So
completely the word “whigan” is attached to the number ten in and about Neath
that the people of Mera used to say “whigan o ferched” for ten girls and
“whigan” for a troup of ten of anything. (e) With
regard to disappearances of sounds, it is specially to be noted that
tripthongs and dipthongs are almost universally rubbed down to simple vowel
sounds. So marked a feature of Gwentian is this that it may almost be
described as the dipthongless dialect. In
further illustration of the law of phonetic economy, a number of elliptical
expressions may be given here – “Ishta"
is a corruption of Yr un sut. Stim =
Nid oes dim. “Byfi” =
Ebefi. "Nte"
= Onide. “Ysgwthyrodd”
= Ys gwaetha'r modd “Ar
fecos” = Ar fy einioes. Another
distinguishing characteristic of the Gwenhwyseg is the retention of the older
forms - “Iou," "cnou," "dou," "bou,"
"houl," &c. “Houl,
houl, dera; glaw, glaw, cera," is an expression often made by the
children of "Llan" (village)* when their play is put to a stop by
the rain. (To be
Continued.) *[NODYN
/ NOTE: Llangynwyd yw’r “Llan” hon, mae’n debyg, plwyf brodorol Cadrawd ger
Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr; This “Llan” is most likely Llangynwyd, Cadrawd’s native
parish, near Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr / Bridgend. |
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Cardiff Times. 29 Chwefror 1908. Welsh Tit Bits. Neu Wreichion Oddiar yr Eingion By CADRAWD. Y WENHWYSEG - THE GWENTIAN DIALECT. (2/5) (Continued
from last week). There is
one peculiarity of the Gwenhwyseg which must not be forgotten, the third
singular termination, past tense indicative mood is invariably "ws” -
dysgws, cwnws, wetws, and gwetws. This is fully illustrated in the old englyn
to a woman of Gwent, who had flogged her husband for misconducting himself in
some way or other – “Yn awr
y cwnws i'r nen - ei ffastwn, A
ffustws ei gefen Cnocus
[sic; cnocws,] tolcws ei dalcen, Pan waeddws,
baeddws i ben." In fond
speech of proper names, we have the same rule, Edward is called Netws;
Margaret, Macws; Catherine, Catws; Anne, Nanws; Mary, Malws, &c. The
unfortunate feature of the modern Gwenhwyseg is the impurity of its
vocabulary; of words which have been added to its vocabulary since 1850, it
may be said without exaggeration that seven-tenths are English, and the
remainder, most of which are of slang or of doubtful origin. The evidence
which has recently been produced at the Royal Church Commission, whether
emanating from Church or Nonconformist sources, proves conclusively that the
dialect of our populous valleys is no longer the pure language of Rhys Goch
ab Riccart, o dir Iarll; or that of his descendant, Anthony Powell of Llwydartb,
obit. 1618. Let us
prove our saying by an example or two. Here are some lines by Rhys Goch, in
his ode, or rather song, to send the birds with messages to a maid; - this is
how he expresses his feeling “Eos o'r
Llwyn, yn fwyn gyfanedd, Arail
mewn gwyrddail gerddi maswedd. A chydar
dvdd ehedydd hoywdon, A gan yn
drylwyn fwyn benillion; A phob
llawenydd hirddydd hyfryd, O'th gaf
Weuno [sic; Wenno] yno enyd." Translation.
The
nightingale from the bush kindly joins The harmonious
concert 'mid the greenwood leaves, And the clear voiced lark, delightfully
sings Most
charming verses at the break of day; And we
only want thy presence, Gwen, To
complete the joys of my woodland house). We will
next give a short paragraph from a love letter in prose by Anthony Powell – “Y fun
feinad lygadlon, a'r manwallt sidanwe eurdduog, yn geinwalc uwch gwyndalc
lliw calchaid, fal pargwm y wengaer wyngalch, pan ganfyddir tros goedwig
ucheldwf foregant yr haelwen, glaerddwyreog yn gwenu ar yr ucheldwr, chwi yw
fy anwylyd, anwylaf, a'm holl gyfoeth bydol, a'r cyfan o'm da daearol." What
girl under the sun who heard this, and could understand it, could turn a deaf
ear to such pleading! Anthony Powell did very well in matrimony, for he married
into the rich and respected family of Mathews, of Rhadyr and Llandaff. But
the Welsh we hear spoken generally to-day is an inane patois belonging to a
degenerated age. This is much to be deplored. The corruptor, or the one who
permits the corruption (for the two are equally guilty) of a dialect stabs
straight at the heart of his country. He commits a crime against every
individual of the nation, or at least the district - for he throws a poison
into a stream from which all must drink. He wrongs himself first, and
afterwards every man and woman whose native speech he mars or permits to be
marred. It is the duty of every educated man to guard zealously the purity of
his native dialect. No inheritance which can descend to an individual or to a
nation is comparable in value with a dialect which possesses words which tell
of the struggles, of the triumphs or the motives, of the endeavours, and
above all, of the pastoral dreams of the people who coined them. He who does
aught to preserve such a dialect deserves the gratitude of this people, as he
who mars the organism of such historic worth merits their severest
displeasure. As
compared with the other dialects of Wales, the Gwenhwyseg is,
perhaps, less chaste, but far simpler in structure, and richer in symbolic
than the Gwendodeg, the dialect of North Wales - less subtle, but more
forcible than the dialect of Dyfed, the Demetian. It lacks the majesty of the
former, and the delicacy of the latter, but makes compensation to itself by
its beautiful, if rustic, melody. In [sic; It] is the language of the ear,
not of the eye. In type, it looks foolish and forbidding, but on the lips it
is convincing and entrancing. The Wenhwyseg is the language of the ploughboy,
and the sick lover, who made labour light and love warm by the exuberance of
their verbosity." In our valleys it has degenerated into a nondescript
jargon but on our “bennau” and pastoral “twyni," where the air is purest
blowing over the everlasting hills, it will long remain "mor iached a'r
gyrchen." We may here remark that the language of the Mabinogion is
to-day spoken in Gwent and Morganwg. Rhys Goch of Tir Iarll, who sang in the
12th century, was perfectly acquainted with the tales of the Mabinogion - in
fact, it is supposed that it waa his base son, “Ieuan Fawr ap y
Diwlith," made the first attempt at making a collection of the Mabinogi.
Rhys Goch often refers to Olwen in his poems “Cerais
ne'r wylan Olwen wisgi." (I loved
the delights of the swiftgull Olwen. “Gofal
am wen, droedled Olwen." (A care
for the smile of the smart Olwen). The tale
goes that whenever she trod the green sward, a trefoil sprang up in her
footprint. “Am
Olwen ail byddwn fugail." (Next to
his duties to his country, he would be the shepherd of Olwen). The word
"gantho," and "genthi," which is in the same MSS. of Tir
larll, are also found in the Mabinogion, and “dylit” is another word in
everyday use, and very often met with in the Llyfr Coch." “Cronglwyt
uwchben y gerwyn.” “Tir
daiar, eur, ariant." "Hirblygeint."
“Clwyten”
(a gate). “Pen y
flwyddyn a'r undydd.” “Duw
dalo iti." These
and hundreds of similar expressions which may be quoted, are sufficient
evidence that the language of the Mabinogion is more understanded by the
Gwentians and the Silurians than by any other of the Welsh tribes. To write
some Gwentian words as they are spoken there must be resort to the English in
such as the following - "jawl," “joni” (for daioni), “jest” (yn
agos). Then there is the inevitable “sh” – “Shwd i
chi a shwd ywch mam, Shwd mae
Shon a Shincyn." “Shiwan
shonc yn dreso, A Shoni
Shams yn shafo." Certain
sounds have been represented in some works by means of English symbols, such
as we have already pointed out. The value of these sounds cannot exactly be
denoted by any of the symbols of modern Welsh. The sound “sh" perhaps is
the most important. It is the cement which binds the members of the dialect
together, even as “ws” is the liquid which mixes that cement. |
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Cardiff Times. 7 Mawrth 1908. Welsh Tit Bits. Neu Wreichion Oddiar yr Eingion By CADRAWD. (THE DIALECT OF GWENT.) (3/5) Some few
mouths ago, through the kindness of the Hon. Mrs Herbert, I was privileged to
spend a few days at Llanover, looking over the Iolo Collection. Having no
difficulty in finding what I most particularly wanted (for the books are in
very good order, and Mrs Mrs [sic] Herbert placed in my hand a written
catalogue of the whole collection, which is of a very great convenience to
those who are not acquainted with the valuable store of Welsh literature
which is so carefully looked after and guarded at Llanover). I took a fancy
to a small volume very carefully written, containing about 500 Glamorganshire
words, alphabetically arranged and annotated in Iolo Morganwg's handwriting.
Having been employed some months before in making a glossary of
Glamorganshire words and phrases for competition at the National Eisteddfod
at Swansea, I copied the whole but as I went on found that some had been
doing the same thing before me: and after I came home and consulted Canon
Sylvan Evans' Welsh-English Dictionary, I found that he had incorporated most
of these words in his great work, as far as it went, earmarking them as
peculiar to Gwent and Morganwg. It is much to be regretted that this great
and valuable Lexicon is not likely to be completed we have barely the half in
the four parts already issued, which will remain a sufficient monument to the
industry and intelligence of that great man, who did more for Wales and Welsh
literature than hardly any other man who lived in the 19th century. If ever
I get my glossary from the custody of the National Eisteddfod Association, I
should be very pleased to add it to the whole of Iolo’s glossary in Llanover,
together with some hundreds of words I have collected since the Eisteddfod. Following
is a selection from the Iolo MS., which I am certain will be read w[i]th much
interest and pleasure by the readers of “Welsh Tit-Bits." “Abercawrdaf”
- Hen Fonachlog a fu gynt ym mro Morganwg. This monastery is said to have been
established in the sixth century, and dedicated to St Cawrdaf, son of Caradoc
Vraichfras, regulus of Brecknock. The site of this old British religious
settlement is supposed to be about a mile and a half to the south of
Llantrisant. “Ach” -
noun masculine, waterline. “Aches”
noun, feminine, a river. “Mawddach-
"ga," which "ach” (a pedigree) be hence metaphorically
derived, because from a spring-head, or source, it runs like a river in a
long line. “Adryw"
- degeneration, a change in nature - “Rhyw ac adryw” - what is, and what is
not. “Ael” –
a progeny. “Aelawd"
- a family. “Aelod”
- a limb. “Da
hiliaist dewis aelwvd Daear a
nef deyrn wyd." “Aelodi,
Cyfaelodi, Cyfaladraeth” - Association. “Aeronydd”
- Fruit trees. “Aig” -
n. masc., the tide, a periodical flood which seems coming up the Severn, and
is called by the inhabitants of the banks of the Severn, “Baedd Hafren” (the
boar in the Severn), which is much dreaded by those who are employed at the
mouth of the Severn river. It is seen coming up from the Channel, forcing
itself through the middle of the river, and imperils the lives of those it
may overtake, who are employed in small vessels and fishing boats. “Aigwy -
Eigwy - Agua." “Alban” -
a high habitation, or country - Scotland. “Albanau”
- Cardinal points, Alfa - a high place. “Ammerth
(am-merth)” - adj. opulent. “Gwlad
ammerth iawn yw Sir Gaerloyw." (Gloucestershire
is a very rich country). This I
heard from an old farmer. I have known other instances wherein I caught a
word seemingly out of the grave - as books increase the Welsh language
becomes daily more uniform in every part of Wales, the language of writers,
and thus drives out of use many local words and dialetic expressions. “Ar
warthau gwlad” - All over the country “Ar
warthau byd” - All over the world. "Aran"
- gu., a garden. “Aran
deg gylch eiriau dy A
gwindorf yn y y; windy." S.
Lewys, i Blas yr Adyr. “Archeuad”
- Shoes and stockings, says Harri Hir. “Athres,"
(ath-res). Tres - "beth yw'r athres” (Gwent). (What is the matter). “Balch -
Gwenith balch" - proud wheat. “Cerad
balch” - i.e., cerdded hoyw - smart walking. “Mae gwenith
gwyn yn rhy falch i'r Blaena, neu i'r mynydd-dir." (White wheat is too
rich for the hilly part of Glam., or the mountain land. "Barner
i'r holwr ei hawl a’i amryrgoll (verdict with costs). “Barn
cyffredinwch” - general verdict. “Trenig”
- contempt of Court. “Cymeryd
cred” - affidavit. Brewych
(brew-ych), n. masc. terror, fright. “Yn ei
frewych." - in his fright. (Blaenau Gwent). Brwysel
(brwy-sel), n. masc. - a thicket, or brake of wood. "Braegoed" is
the word in use in the northern part of Glamorgan; “Clun" in other
parts, hence Pont-y-dun. Bwchran
(bwch ran), the grunting of a hog, or boar - “Iaith
gerrigawg, iaith gregwaedd. Iaith
heb gan fel bwchran baedd." An old
Welsh poet to the English. “Bwlwth
(bw-lwth)” – a large globular mass of anything - a very fat man, woman,
child, or beast. &c. “Bwt” -
Dera bwt (come at once). “Bwt
" – Dera toc (North Wales). "Bwt
Bat” - yn ol ac ymmlaen (back and fore). “Mae Shon
bwt bat drwy'r dydd yn y dafarn." (John is back and fore in the
public-house all day). “Byrlwnc
- Ysbyrlyncu” - to gargle the throat. “Cythlwnc,
i.e., Llyngyr” - a llwnc (things swallowed). “Dyrlwnc”
- a flood gate. “Tarlwnc”
- a sluce, a door, a gulph. “Cadlas
- Taplas” – Cadlas haf - taplas haf (the Glamorganshire summer games, same as
the "Twmpath Chwareu" in North Wales). “Campuraidd”
- expert, dexterious. “Clera”
- a reward, or perquisite due to a bard or minstrel. “Clic"
- speedy, quick; “clicied” (a spring). “Caled
fydd cybydd yn ceibio - y dom, Nid a
dim oddiwrtho; Caled
fydd clicied y clo, Nid
caledrwydd ond clidro." I.M. |
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Cardiff Times. 14 Mawrth 1908. Welsh Tit Bits. Neu Wreichion Oddiar yr Eingion By CADRAWD. (THE DIALECT OF GWENT.) (4/5) WELSH
DIALECTS. The report of the dialect section of the Guild of Graduates for the
year 1906 has just come to my hand, and I regret very much the shape or my
humble contribution to the same has been allowed to appear. The printer's
devil has been granted a free hand. I think every care should be taken in the
publication of this transaction, under the wing of the Welsh University, to
correct the proof sheets, so that not a shadow of a mistake should appear and
in such important matters as the district dialect of the different districts
of Wales, unless every word should appear correct, the labour is all in vain.
A North Walian, whatever might be his ability, can never correct the Gwentian
dialect in its various lights and shades. It appears that the contributions
of the Reverends. Williams, of St. Clears and Wade Evans have escaped the
vengeance better than my own, but even in the headline of the latter's
interesting article, the radical form of Abergwaun is given, and not the
colloquial rendering, which is so characteristic of the Fishguard dialect
(Cwmrag Ab'rgwein). The
dictionaries we have are not to be trusted in their explanation of certain
words. If we turn to the dictionary to know what is meant by the word
“celfi," we find in the one which is acknowledged to be the best and the
most complete in Wales to-day that it means tools, implements, trifles, farm
implements, dairy utensils, &c. In Glamorganshire we use the word celfi,
which is the plural of celficyn, for furniture, the house furniture, and the
word “twls," and offer, for every kind of implements. The word
"celfi” for the furniture of the Royal Palace in the ancient Welsh laws
is often met with, so we have ample and sufficient authority for its use. “Mae yn
dechra tywyllu o dan y celfi," is an
expression often heard in Glamorgan, when the shadows of the night are
commencing to fall. In the
Iolo manuscripts, in the tale “Y Gof wedi cael enw da," we have the
words "celfi min" for edged tools, but in Glamorgan to-day they
call the same “twls awch." Iolo Morganwg, in his Glossary in MS. at
Llanofer. calls implements of husbandry “celfi tir," but all kinds of
implements now are called in Gwent and Morganwg “twls," such as twls
gwaith, twls tir, twls coblera, twls shafo, &c. The word
“celficyn” is in use in Cardiganshire for a piece of furniture, and the
literary form of the word is “celfiyn," which is met with in “Cyfrinach
y Beirdd," in the following sentence - "Aco hyny y gelwir celfiyn
at dori tir yn bal." (And from that the implement for cutting the sod
was called spade). Again in the Welsh proverbs we have the same form of the
singular word for “celfi” - "Celfiyn ty goreu yn y byd yw gwraig
dda." (The best piece of furniture in a house is a good wife). The Iolo Glossary. (Continued
from last week). Cloppwrn
- n. masc. a blockhead. Cluppa -
pl. clopaod “Taro
cloppwrn a dwrn dig." Sils ap Sion. (To
strike a blockhead with angry first [sic; fist]). Clych
Enid - daffodils. Crun
(Devon) for ague, or a trembling; the same as the Welsh cryn, and cryndod. “Y
flwyddyn mil chwe chant ac wyth, Oedd
blwyddyn fawr y cryd a'r mwyth; A'r
flwyddyn hono torws cwmwl Ag a
foddws bron y cwbwl." That is -
The year 1608 was the year of the great ague. In that year also a water spout
broke, and the whole land was nearly drowned. Crwybr -
n. masc. hoarfrost. “Gochel
niwl a chrwybr y nos, a gwlychu traed." (Avoid mists and night
hoarfrost, and wet feet). Note -
In North Wales they call “crwybr” mwllwg, and honeycomb “crwybr”; the
Glamorganshire word for honey comb is “dylife” and “dylifa” (c). Crwybro
– verb; Gwent, hoarfrosting. In Glamorgan they say "llwydrewi," and
hoar frost “llwytrew." Cwnu -
lit. whence esgyn, esgynnu, dos-gyn. Cwyro -
pro. cyweirio, cwyro menyn (making butter), cwyro dillad (mending clothes). Cynu tan
- cynu y tan (imperative verb), fel cyn dan, ni chyn y tan ddim (the fire
will not light). Cyfreithlys
- a hall of justice, town hall, court of law or justice. Gorseddlys
- a law court house. Llysbrawf
- a trial. Llys
farn - a verdict (also barn air, ib. gorseddfarn, dedfryd, dedryd. Cyfreithbwyll
- law reason. Anian
bwyll, naturbwyll (natural reason). Awen
bwyll - reason of genius. Celfydd
bwyll - scientific reason. Dain -
adj. Good; seldom used now in Glamorganshire. Darddal
- "Yn darddall ar yr un peth o hyd, ac ar yr un chwedl." (To be
continually repeating the same tale). Darllais
gwlad - Common report. Deiniadaeth
and Deiniedigaeth - indenture. Iolo
used to call the North Walians “Deudneudwyr," because they always said
"deud” Instead of dweyd. Following is what he styles “deudneudian cant”
- "purfwyn, ara deg, drwg o'i go, wala hai purion." Diannad
- immediately. Deongli
- to define the angle of a figure. Dwlm -
dwlm and dwlmwth - something greater than usual of its kind. Pwmlwth
[sic; ?Dwmlwth] o blentyn. o afal, o ddyn, o erfinen, o garreg, o dorth, o
dy, - an exceptonally large apple, turnip, stone, loaf, or house. Dy ardd
- to cultivate. Dywain -
to carry, the same as “dwyn." Dygwain
- is also the same meaning. “By yno
y baw annardd. Yn
dygywain wyn bach hardd." Bedo Brwynllys
i'r lleidr a ddygasai ei wyn. Ebach -
bar, traethell. Eichiog
- boneddig (noble), from the word ach, medd Harri Hir. Egwal -
bwth bugail ar fynydd (a shepherd's hut on a mountain). Harri Hir. see in Wm.
Lley's Poems. Ffunws -
Pobl oeddynt o dir Llychlyn (Scandinavia), a ddaethant i Brydain yn yr amser
y bu'r Bruttaniaid yn ymladd gyda gwyr Gwasgwyn (Gascony) yn erbyn gwyr
Rhufain; sef nid oedd nid oedd y pryd hyny a allai gadw gelynion rhag dyfod i
dir gan faint y cadau a aethant i dir Gwasgwyn. A Roman author calls them
Fenni, Tacitus calls them Fennos. Ffres,
and Ffresg – gwyra, croyw (i.e., that which is in use, says Harri Hir). Glai -
"cyn iachad a'r glai;" in other places, they say “cyn iached a'r
glain." “Glai" is usure, blue sky, azure. The glow worm is called
“gleian," which might be a corruption of “goleuan." Glai -
says Lewis Hopcin of Ystradyfodwg, is the clear azure sky in Glamorgan
mountain districts only have I heard the word in that sense qu wh. hence
glain. Glaswg -
the same as glaswch, or glesni (verdancy). Gwyrddlesni
- gwyrdd laswg and gwyrdd leswch, the same. Gawl -
holy, Caergawl in Newlyn - the holy town. Gawlog -
gwr gawlog (a holy man). |
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Cardiff Times. 2 Mai 1908. Welsh Tit Bits. Neu Wreichion Oddiar yr Eingion By CADRAWD. THE GWENTIAN DIALECT. (5/5) It has been remarked that language is purely a
species of fashion, in which, by the general but tacit consent of the people
of a particular country, or part of a country, certain sounds come to be
appropriated to certain things as their signs, and certain ways of inflecting
and combining those sounds come to be established as denoting the relations
which subsist among the things signified. A glossary of a dialect is no other
than a collection of words methodically arranged, comprising all the modes
previously and independently established, by which the signification,
derivation, and combination of the said words in that dialect are
ascertained. To the glossarist pure and simple, it is of no consequence to
what causes originally words and their various meanings owe their existence -
to imitation, to reflection, to affectation, or to caprice; they no sooner
are accepted and become general than they are part of the constitution of
that dialect, and the glossarist's only business is to note, collect,
methodise, and illustrate them. Again the glossarist is not asked to deal
with the etymology of words that is the business of the philologist. An
unfortunate feature of the modern Gwenhwyseg, or the Gwentian dialect, is the
impurity of its vocabulary of words which have been added to its vocabulary
since 1850, it may be said, and the great quantity of pure and excellent
Gwentian words with their peculiar and significant pronunciation which have
been allowed to disappear. It may be said without exaggeration that seven-tenths
of the words used by the Welsh-speaking people of Glamorganshire in the
industrial districts are English, and the remainder mining and commercial
terms newly created and badly constructed. Some are slang and of doubtful
origin. The evidence which has recently been produced at the
Royal Church Commission, whether emanating from Church or Nonconformist
sources, proves conclusively that the dialect of our populous valleys is no
longer the pure Gwenhwyseg of the days of Iolo Morganwg, when he gave it as
his Opinion that the last word of the dear Wenhywsaig would be spoken in the
Rhondda Valley, The immense wealth hidden under the surface of that majestic
valley at that time was not known or even dreamt of, and the black diamond
then only produced hobgoblins to frighten and keep people away from the
enchanted nooks, glens and fields along the banks of the Rhondda Fawr and
Rhondda Fechan but modern development and enterprise have demolished for ever
the prophecy of the old bard, and were he allowed to visit the Cwm at present
he would certainly curse the destructive elements which were at work in
disfiguring not only the language of the people, but also one of the most
picturesque valleys in God's creation. We are here tempted to quote from a description given
by a traveller who visited the Rhondda Valley more than a hundred years ago
in order that those who only know the place at present may have an idea of
the vast change which has taken place: in this neighbourhood within the last
century. Starting from Llantrisant, through the wilds on which you turn due
north, the traveller comes in view of The Mountain
Scenery of Ystradyfodwg. He finds a
gate on the road which marks the entrance of the parish, or which divides the
two parishes. The way lies at the the foot of a rocky ridge, grand in its
elevation, and most whimsical in the eccentricity of its shapes. The almost
perpendicular side is clothed nearly to the top, with dwarfed stunted oaks,
scarcely exceeding the size of garden shrubs. The descent down the long hill
brings the traveller to a little brook, abounding with fish, which joins the
Rhondda Fawr. The next object of interest is a substantial farmhouse placed
in a most pleasing solitude, as beautifully situated as anything in the whole
parish. The homestead farm is dignified with the name of Llwyn-y-pia - the
magpie's bush. It was occupied at the time (1800) by Jane Davies, a widow. On
this farm stood alone by the road-side the tallest and largest oak the
traveller had ever happened to see. On the same farm, as he passed through a
gate, the traveller noticed beyond the house a very beautiful field, with a
magnificent grove at the upper end of it, under the shelter of a towering
rock. The traveller had met with only one person of whom he could ask a question,
since he started from the town of Llantrisant, from whom he could only secure
information by the aid of the attendant, whom he had employed for the day as
his guide and interpreter. Soon afterwards he heard a clamour of voices from
some labourers in the wood, whose salutations almost startled the traveller,
who could scarcely suppose that so much voice could be collected, in the
district deserted as it appeared to be by human habitations. The people he
saw in the whole valley were very few, and to the traveller they appeared
poor. His impression of the inhabitants was, “though ignorant and unpolished,
they were far from being dull, they had enough boisterous pleasantry
exclusively their own." He left the Rhondda with the remark, “however
fastidious he may lament what seemed to him their miserable condition, he
questioned whether his pity would be justified by their complaints or
rewarded by their gratitude." The Englishman has never been able to. understand
the Welshman, and if the traveller only knew the real circumstances of the
peasant proprietors of the valley he had visited for once in his life. he
would have spared his sympathy, as there was no need for it. But I have
forsaken the subject on which I was speaking, the present dialect of the Rhondda
and other Glamorganshire Valleys' which cannot be called any other than An Inane Patois.
belonging to a degenerate oge. It is the duty of every educated man to guard
zealously the purity of his native dialect. No inheritance which can descend
to an individual or to a nation is comparable in value with a dialect which
possesses words which tell of the struggles, of the triumphs, of the motives,
of the endeavours, and above all, of the pastoral dreams of the people who
coined them. He who does aught to preserve such a dialect deserves the
gratitude of his people, as he who mars an organism of such historic worth
merits their severest displeasure. As
compared with the other dialects of Wales, the Gwenhwyseg is, perhaps, less
chaste, but far simpler in structure, and richer in symbolic than the
Gwendodeg; less subtle, but more forcible, than the dialect of Dyfed (y
Deheubartheg). It lacks the majesty of the former, and the delicacy of the
latte; but makes compensation to itself by its beautiful, if rustic, melody.
It is the language of the ear, not of the eye. In type it looks foolish and
forbidding, but on the lips it is convincing and entrancing. It is the language of ploughboy and the sick lover,
who make labour light and love warm by the exuberance of their
verbosity." In our valleys, with their God-and-Mammon cult, it has
degenerated into a nondescript jargon, but up the hills and pastoral
"twyni" it will long remain, “Mor iached a'r gyrchen." Principal Rhys of Oxford visited the Vale of Glamorgan
over 20 years ago to hear the pure dialect spoken by some of the old
inhabitants, who could speak it so gracefully, and declared that it was the
most beautiful Welsh he had ever listened to. Why has contempt been poured on the Welsh language
by people who ought to know better? Did you ever hear a man make love in
Welsh? Or a honey-throated girl speak Welsh? Shakespeare is not fair in
caricaturing the Welshman speaking English without showing as well how an
Englishman throttles Welsh. As long as Welshmen stick to the Welsh, a Saxon
dare not turn up his nose in contempt without running the risk of having it
knocked off. |
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Sumbolau: ā ǣ ē ī ō ū / ˡ
ɑ ć ɛ ɪ ɔ ʊ ə ɑˑ eˑ iˑ oˑ
uˑ ɑː ćː eː iː oː uː / ɥ / đ ɬ
ŋ ʃ ʧ θ ʒ ʤ / aɪ ɔɪ əɪ ɪʊ
aʊ ɛʊ əʊ / ә ʌ ŵ ŷ ẃ ẁ
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Y TUDALEN HWN: www.kimkat.org/amryw/1_testunau/testunau_362_cardiff-times_1908_dialect-of-gwent_cadrawd_3762k.htm
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Creuwyd: 02-07-2017
Adolygiad diweddaraf : 02-07-2017
Delweddau:
Ffynhonnell: Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru. Papurau Newydd Arlein.
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