Alwyn David Rees (1911-1974) was a Welsh geographer, social anthropologist and

Welsh nationalist Welsh nationalism ( cy, Cenedlaetholdeb Cymreig) emphasises and celebrates the distinctiveness of Welsh culture and Wales as a nation or country. Welsh nationalism may also include calls for further autonomy or self determination which includes ...

, who wrote as Alwyn D. Rees. After studying geography and anthropology at the

University College of Wales, Aberystwyth , mottoeng = A world without knowledge is no world at all , established = 1872 (as ''The University College of Wales'') , former_names = University of Wales, Aberystwyth , type = Public , endowment = ...

, he was a tutor in the College's External Department from 1936 to 1946. He was a lecturer in the Department of Geography and Anthropology until 1949, when he was appointed Director of the External Studies Department. Rees pioneered the

rural sociology Rural sociology is a field of sociology traditionally associated with the study of social structure and conflict in rural areas. It is an active academic field in much of the world, originating in the United States in the 1910s with close ties ...

of Britain with ''Life in a Welsh countryside'' (1950), a community study of the Welsh village of Llanfihangel yng Ngwynfa. From 1966 until his death he edited the Welsh magazine ''

Barn A barn is an agricultural building usually on farms and used for various purposes. In North America, a barn refers to structures that house livestock, including cattle and horses, as well as equipment and fodder, and often grain.Allen G. ...

''.

Early life

Alwyn D. Rees was born in Llanarel, Coalbrook,

Gorseinon Gorseinon is a town within the City and County of Swansea, Wales, near the Loughor estuary. It was a small village until the late 19th century when it grew around the coal mining and tinplate industries. It is situated in the north west of Swa ...

on 27 March 1911. His father was a winder in the Mynydd (Mountain) colliery in Gorseinon. Alwyn was the oldest of four children, including

Brinley Rees Brinley Roderick Rees (27 December 1919 – 21 October 2004) was a Welsh academic. He wrote extensively on Classics, particularly the study of the Greek language. His early work was devoted to Greek papyri; a later publication was devoted to ...

. After attending primary school in Penyrheol and Gowerton County School, he continued to the

, gaining a first-class degree in geography and anthropology in 1933. In 1934 he gained a diploma in education and a teachers' certificate. Granted a Sir John Williams studentship to study Welsh literature, he gained an MA in 1937 with research on pagan survivals in early

Celtic Christianity Celtic Christianity ( kw, Kristoneth; cy, Cristnogaeth; gd, Crìosdaidheachd; gv, Credjue Creestee/Creestiaght; ga, Críostaíocht/Críostúlacht; br, Kristeniezh; gl, Cristianismo celta) is a form of Christianity that was common, or held ...

''Life in a Welsh Countryside'' and community studies

From 1936 to 1946 Rees worked for the College's extramural department as a tutor in

Montgomeryshire Montgomeryshire, also known as ''Maldwyn'' ( cy, Sir Drefaldwyn meaning "the Shire of Baldwin's town"), is one of thirteen historic counties of Wales, historic counties and a former administrative county of Wales. It is named after its county tow ...

. In 1938 the College's Principal, Ifor Evans, suggested to Rees that he carry out a study of a rural Welsh-speaking community. Others encouraging Rees in the project included

Daryll Forde Cyril Daryll Forde Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland, FRAI (16 March 1902 – 3 May 1973) was a British anthropologist and Africanists, Africanist. Education and early career Forde was born in Tottenham on 16 March 1 ...

, Professor

E. G. Bowen Emrys George Bowen FRGS, FSA, also known as E. G. Bowen (28 December 1900 – 8 November 1983), was an internationally renowned geographer with a particular interest in the physical geography and social geography of his native Wales. A diminut ...

and Professor

H. J. Fleure Herbert John Fleure, (6 June 1877 – 1 July 1969) was a British zoologist and geographer. He was secretary of the Geographical Association, editor of ''Geography'', and president of the Cambrian Archaeological Association (1924–25), Roy ...

. Rees conducted fieldwork in Llanfihangel yng Ngwynfa, a Welsh-speaking rural parish, in 1939 and 1940, and continued to visit the parish regularly throughout the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. In 1946 Emrys Bowen appointed Rees to the department of geography and anthropology. Rees's own study of Llanfihangel yng Ngwynfa was published in 1950 as ''Life in a Welsh Countryside''. One anthropological emphasis was on the joking relations between the young men's group and the rest of the community, which Rees argued served to reinforce community norms. Rees and Bowen encouraged a series of studies of Welsh rural communities at the university. From 1954 to 1960 they worked to co-edit ''Welsh Rural Communities'', a published collection of community studies. Rees's student Bill Williams published ''The Sociology of an English Village: Gosforth'' in 1964.

Later activities

From 1949 to 1958 Rees edited the journal of the Guild of Graduates of the University of Wales, ''Yr Einion''/''The Welsh Anvil''. ''Celtic Heritage'' (1961), written with his brother Brinley, tried to place Celtic heritage in a wider Indo-European framework, presenting parallels between

Irish mythology Irish mythology is the body of myths native to the island of Ireland. It was originally passed down orally in the prehistoric era, being part of ancient Celtic religion. Many myths were later written down in the early medieval era by C ...

and

Indian literature Indian literature refers to the literature produced on the Indian subcontinent until 1947 and in the Republic of India thereafter. The Republic of India has 22 officially recognised languages. The earliest works of Indian literature were o ...

. Rees became a

in the late 1950s. He defended the federal structure of the

University of Wales The University of Wales (Welsh language, Welsh: ''Prifysgol Cymru'') is a confederal university based in Cardiff, Wales. Founded by royal charter in 1893 as a federal university with three constituent colleges – Aberystwyth, Bangor and Cardiff � ...

in 1960, successfully resisting the break-up of the university. In February 1966 Rees became editor of the Welsh-language literary magazine ''

'', using his editorship to articulate the Welsh nationalist cause. He was a keen supporter of the Welsh Language Association campaigns. Rees continued to wield influence on University committees. From 1968 to 1971 he was Warden of the college's Guild of Graduates. In summer 1973, he warned the University Council that he intended to bring in a minority report against University expansionism. Unwell since 1973, Rees died of a heart attack on 6 December 1974.

Reputation

The

National Library of Wales The National Library of Wales ( cy, Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru), Aberystwyth, is the national legal deposit library of Wales and is one of the Welsh Government sponsored bodies. It is the biggest library in Wales, holding over 6.5 million boo ...

holds a collection of Rees's papers. In 2019 M Wynn Thomas delivered a lecture in memory of his Rees's efforts to save the University of Wales in the early 1960s, and his role in securing Pantycelyn Hall as a Welsh-speaking

hall of residence A dormitory (originated from the Latin word ''dormitorium'', often abbreviated to dorm) is a building primarily providing sleeping and residential quarters for large numbers of people such as boarding school, high school, college or university s ...

Works

* ''Affeilion''. 1943. * ''Life in a Welsh countryside, a social study of Llanfihangel yng Ngwynfa''. Cardiff: University of Wales Press, 1950. * (ed. with Elwyn Davies) ''Welsh rural communities''. Cardiff: University of Wales Press, 1960. * (with Brinley Rees) ''Celtic heritage: ancient tradition in Ireland and Wales''. London: Thames & Hudson, 1961. * ''The magistrate's dilemma vis-à-vis the Welsh language offender''. Llandybie: C. Davies, 1968. * ''Ym Marn Alwyn D. Rees'' n the opinion of Alwyn D. Rees ed. Bobi Jones. Abertawe: Christopher Davies, 1976.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rees, Alwyn 1911 births 1974 deaths Welsh geographers Welsh anthropologists Welsh language activists