David John Williams (26 June 1885 – 4 January 1970) was one of the foremost

Welsh-language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language of the Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut Province, Argentina). Historically, it has al ...

writers of the twentieth century and a prominent

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 ...

Life

Williams was born at Pen-rhiw, a farmhouse near

Llansawel Llansawel is a village and community in Carmarthenshire, Wales, about ten miles north of Llandeilo. It covers an area of . The community is bordered by the communities of: Pencarreg; Cynwyl Gaeo; Talley; Llanfynydd; Llanfihangel Rhos-y-Corn ...

Carmarthenshire Carmarthenshire ( cy, Sir Gaerfyrddin; or informally ') is a county in the south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the county town and administrative centre. The county is known as ...

, moving with his family to a smaller farm, Abernant, near Rhydcymerau in 1891. He left home in 1902 and spent four years working in the south Wales coalfield. He resumed his studies, eventually studying English 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 = ...

and

Jesus College, Oxford Jesus College (in full: Jesus College in the University of Oxford of Queen Elizabeth's Foundation) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is in the centre of the city, on a site between Turl Street, Ship S ...

. At Oxford he became friends Flora Forster, who declined his offers of marriage. For most of his life he taught English at the

grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school ...

Fishguard Fishguard ( cy, Abergwaun, meaning "Mouth of the River Gwaun") is a coastal town in Pembrokeshire, Wales, with a population of 3,419 in 2011; the community of Fishguard and Goodwick had a population of 5,407. Modern Fishguard consists of two p ...

(now

Ysgol Bro Gwaun Ysgol Bro Gwaun (formerly Fishguard County Secondary School) is a secondary comprehensive school in the town of Fishguard in north Pembrokeshire. It is a predominantly English-medium school with significant use of Welsh, and has a catchment area ...

), Pembrokeshire. He died in 1970 in Rhydcymerau.

Politics

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 ...

, he was one of the founders of

Plaid Cymru Plaid Cymru ( ; ; officially Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales, often referred to simply as Plaid) is a centre-left to left-wing, Welsh nationalist political party in Wales, committed to Welsh independence from the United Kingdom. Plaid wa ...

, the Welsh National Party, in 1925. He took part, with

Saunders Lewis Saunders Lewis (born John Saunders Lewis) (15 October 1893 – 1 September 1985) was a Welsh politician, poet, dramatist, Medievalist, and literary critic. He was a prominent Welsh nationalist, supporter of Welsh independence and was a co-founde ...

and

Lewis Valentine Lewis Edward Valentine M.A. (1 June 1893 – March 1986) was a Welsh politician, Baptist pastor, author, editor, and Welsh-language activist. He was the first leader of the Welsh political party Plaid Cymru. Early life Valentine was born ...

, in the symbolic burning of a bombing school in Penyberth in north-west Wales in 1936, for which he served nine months in

Wormwood Scrubs Wormwood Scrubs, known locally as The Scrubs (or simply Scrubs), is an open space in Old Oak Common located in the north-eastern corner of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in west London. It is the largest open space in the borough, ...

prison.

Literary career

Williams was a

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

writer of renown and also the author of two volumes of autobiography. All his work is inspired by his vision of his native locality, of a close-knit

community A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a country, village, ...

where common values give worth to all. ''Hen Dŷ Ffarm'' ("The old farmhouse") was translated into English by poet

Waldo Williams Waldo Goronwy Williams (30 September 1904 – 20 May 1971) was one of the leading Welsh-language poets of the 20th century. He was also a notable Christian pacifist, anti-war campaigner, and Welsh nationalist. He is often referred to by his f ...

in 1953 as part of a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

programme to promote minority languages to wider audiences. He held the Irish journalist and poet

George William Russell George William Russell (10 April 1867 – 17 July 1935), who wrote with the pseudonym Æ (often written AE or A.E.), was an Irish writer, editor, critic, poet, painter and Irish nationalist. He was also a writer on mysticism, and a centra ...

, who wrote with the pseudonym Æ, in high regard, publishing a pamphlet ''A.E. a Chymru'' ('A.E. and Wales') in 1929 and a translation of Æ's ''The National Being'' under the title ''Y Bod Cenhedlig'' in 1963.

Works

*''A.E. a Chymru'' (1929), concerning the Irish writer

*''Hen wynebau'' ("Old faces"), 1934. A portrait of his native locality. * ''Storïau'r tir'' ("Stories of the land"), 1936, 1941, 1949. A series of three volumes of short stories. * ''Hen dŷ ffarm'' ("The old farmhouse"), 1953. Autobiography. *''Mazzini'' (1954), concerning the Italian politician

Giuseppe Mazzini Giuseppe Mazzini (, , ; 22 June 1805 – 10 March 1872) was an Italian politician, journalist, and activist for the unification of Italy (Risorgimento) and spearhead of the Italian revolutionary movement. His efforts helped bring about the in ...

* ''Yn chwech ar hugain oed'' ("When I was twenty-six years old"). 1959. Autobiography. *''Y Bod Cenhedlig'' (1963), translation of ''The National Being'' by

*''Y Gaseg Ddu'' ("The black mare"), 1970. Short stories.

Sources

* Jenkins, Dafydd (1973), ''D. J. Williams''. ''Writers of Wales'' series. Cardiff : University of Wales Press. An English introduction to his life and work. * 'Williams, David John (1885-1970)'. In Meic Stephens (Ed.) (1998), ''The new companion to the literature of Wales''. Cardiff : University of Wales Press. . *http://www.cofiantdj.net/cyhoeddiadau-d-j.html

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, David John Williams, D. J. Williams, D. J. Williams, D. J. Williams, D. J. Williams, D.J. Williams, D.J. Williams, D. J.