Dafydd Arwyn Jenkins (christened David; 1 March 1911 – 5 May 2012) was a Welsh barrister, activist, and legal scholar and historian. He was Professor of Legal History and Welsh Law 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 = ...

(later Aberystwyth University), from 1975 to 1978.

Life and work

Born in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

to Welsh parents, William and Elizabeth Jenkins, he was educated at

Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge Sidney Sussex College (referred to informally as "Sidney") is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England. The College was founded in 1596 under the terms of the will of Frances Sidney, Countess of Sussex (1531–1589), wife ...

, and

called to the bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and Wale ...

in 1934.Richard W. Ireland
"Jenkins, David Arwyn (Dafydd) (1911–2012)"
''

Dictionary of Welsh Biography The ''Dictionary of Welsh Biography'' (DWB) (also ''The Dictionary of Welsh Biography Down to 1940'' and ''The Dictionary of Welsh Biography, 1941 to 1970'') is a biographical dictionary of Welsh people who have made a significant contribution to ...

'' (13 December 2018). Retrieved 17 December 2018.Meic Stephens
"Professor Dafydd Jenkins: Barrister and authority on the laws of medieval Wales"
''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', 28 May 2012. Retrieved 17 December 2018. A "

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

, a

man of letters An intellectual is a person who engages in critical thinking, research, and reflection about the reality of society, and who proposes solutions for the normative problems of society. Coming from the world of culture, either as a creator or a ...

, a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

-language publisher ... and a

nationalist Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...

","Professor Dafydd Jenkins"
''

Aberystwyth University , 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 = ...

''. Retrieved 17 December 2018. Jenkins practised as a

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...

on the South Wales circuit. In the late 1930s, he campaigned for Welsh to be recognised in courts (as secretary to the National Language Petition); he wrote for the left-wing, Welsh nationalist publication ''

Heddiw ''Heddiw'' (English: ''Today'') was a television news programme in the Welsh language, broadcast by BBC Television between 1961 and 1982. The programme ended when all Welsh-language programming was transferred to the new channel S4C. Annie Davi ...

'' from 1936 to 1942, and produced an account of the Tan yn Llyn incident in 1937. He ceased practising as barrister in 1938. A

conscientious objector A conscientious objector (often shortened to conchie) is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, or religion. The term has also been extended to object ...

during 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 ...

, he farmed in Trawsnant,

Ceredigion Ceredigion ( , , ) is a county in the west of Wales, corresponding to the historic county of Cardiganshire. During the second half of the first millennium Ceredigion was a minor kingdom. It has been administered as a county since 1282. Cere ...

, and helped to establish farming cooperatives in Wales. He also began teaching about agriculture with the Extra-Mural Department of the

, where he was appointed to a

lectureship Lecturer is an academic rank Academic rank (also scientific rank) is the rank of a scientist or teacher in a college, high school, university or research establishment. The academic ranks indicate relative importance and power of individuals ...

in the Law Department in 1965. Ten years later, he was appointed to the chair in legal history and Welsh law, serving until his retirement in 1978 after which he was an

emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

professor. Described by ''

'' as "the major authority on the laws of the 10th century Hywel ap Cadell, or

Hywel Dda Hywel Dda, sometimes anglicised as Howel the Good, or Hywel ap Cadell (died 949/950) was a king of Deheubarth who eventually came to rule most of Wales. He became the sole king of Seisyllwg in 920 and shortly thereafter established Deheubarth ...

", Jenkins produced a composite of his laws from surviving, later manuscripts. He translated and commented widely upon medieval Welsh legal texts and Welsh-language law books. His entry in the ''

'' concludes that Jenkins "remains a significant figure in modern Welsh history, not least because he revealed so much about that history itself". Jenkins had married Gwyneth Owen in 1942; she died ten years later. Their son, Rhys, is an academic. Jenkins continued to write into his retirement. He died on 5 May 2012 at Blaenpennal and was buried at Joppa.

Honours and awards

In 1946, Jenkins won the Prose Medal of the

National Eisteddfod The National Eisteddfod of Wales (Welsh: ') is the largest of several eisteddfodau that are held annually, mostly in Wales. Its eight days of competitions and performances are considered the largest music and poetry festival in Europe. Competitors ...

for his history of the '' Hanes y Nofel Gymraeg''. In 1986, he was presented with a

festschrift In academia, a ''Festschrift'' (; plural, ''Festschriften'' ) is a book honoring a respected person, especially an academic, and presented during their lifetime. It generally takes the form of an edited volume, containing contributions from the h ...

, ''Lawyers and Laymen: Studies in the History of Law''. In 2009, the

British Academy The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the same year. It is now a fellowship of more than 1,000 leading scholars span ...

awarded Jenkins the Derek Allen Prize for Celtic Studies."Derek Allen Prize"
''British Academy''. Retrieved 17 December 2018. He also received a

doctor of letters Doctor of Letters (D.Litt., Litt.D., Latin: ' or ') is a terminal degree in the humanities that, depending on the country, is a higher doctorate after the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree or equivalent to a higher doctorate, such as the Doctor ...

degree (DLitt) from the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

, and an

honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hon ...

from the

University of Würzburg The Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg (also referred to as the University of Würzburg, in German ''Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg'') is a public research university in Würzburg, Germany. The University of Würzburg is one of ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jenkins, Dafydd 1911 births 2012 deaths 20th-century Welsh historians Welsh lawyers Welsh legal scholars Alumni of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge Academics of Aberystwyth University Members of Gray's Inn