Gareth Alban Davies (30 July 1926 – 9 February 2009) was a Welsh poet, educator and
Hispanist who was
Cowdray Professor of Spanish at the
University of Leeds
, mottoeng = And knowledge will be increased
, established = 1831 – Leeds School of Medicine1874 – Yorkshire College of Science1884 - Yorkshire College1887 – affiliated to the federal Victoria University1904 – University of Leeds
, ...
. Davies translated many Spanish texts into English and Welsh, and was a noted expert on the works of
Fernando Arrabal
Fernando Arrabal Terán (born August 11, 1932) is a Spanish playwright, screenwriter, film director, novelist, and poet. He was born in Melilla and settled in France in 1955. Regarding his nationality, Arrabal describes himself as "desterrado", ...
and
Federico García Lorca
Federico del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús García Lorca (5 June 1898 – 19 August 1936), known as Federico García Lorca ( ), was a Spanish poet, playwright, and theatre director. García Lorca achieved international recognition as an emblemat ...
.
Biography
Davies was born in
Ton Pentre
Ton Pentre () is a village in the Rhondda Valley in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. Historically part of Glamorgan, Ton Pentre, a former industrial coal mining village, is a district of the community of Pentre. The old district of ...
in the
Rhondda
Rhondda , or the Rhondda Valley ( cy, Cwm Rhondda ), is a former coalmining area in South Wales, historically in the county of Glamorgan. It takes its name from the River Rhondda, and embraces two valleys – the larger Rhondda Fawr valley ('' ...
in 1926. His father was
The Reverend
The Reverend is an style (manner of address), honorific style most often placed before the names of Christian clergy and Minister of religion, ministers. There are sometimes differences in the way the style is used in different countries and c ...
T. Alban Davies, a
Congregationalist preacher who practised at Bethesda Church in
Ton Pentre
Ton Pentre () is a village in the Rhondda Valley in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. Historically part of Glamorgan, Ton Pentre, a former industrial coal mining village, is a district of the community of Pentre. The old district of ...
. His father was a
Welsh speaker and an early member 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 Nationalist political party of Wales.
His father was a large influence on Davies' moral viewpoint, and instilled in him a nationalistic and
egalitarian
Egalitarianism (), or equalitarianism, is a school of thought within political philosophy that builds from the concept of social equality, prioritizing it for all people. Egalitarian doctrines are generally characterized by the idea that all hum ...
ethos.
While still a schoolboy, Davies was introduced to the
Cadwgan Circle
Rhondda , or the Rhondda Valley ( cy, Cwm Rhondda ), is a former coalmining area in South Wales, historically in the county of Glamorgan. It takes its name from the River Rhondda, and embraces two valleys – the larger Rhondda Fawr valley ('' ...
, a group of writers and thinkers from the Rhondda, who met at the house of
J. Gwyn Griffiths
John Gwyn Griffiths (7 December 1911 – 15 June 2004) was a Welsh poet, Egyptologist and nationalist political activist who spent the largest span of his career lecturing at Swansea University.
Early life
Born in 1911 in Porth in the Rhondda ...
and his wife
Käte Bosse-Griffiths. Although the youngest of the group, he contributed poems to an anthology published by the movement, and used his time with the group to discuss the
French and
Spanish literature
Spanish literature generally refers to literature ( Spanish poetry, prose, and drama) written in the Spanish language within the territory that presently constitutes the Kingdom of Spain. Its development coincides and frequently intersects wit ...
he was studying at
Porth Grammar School
Porth Community School is a Community School located in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. The school was formed in 1973 by the amalgamation of two leading grammar schools, ''Porth County Girls'' and ''Porth County Boys'', along wit ...
.
At the age of 18, and with Britain still at war, Davies was conscripted as a
Bevin Boy
Bevin Boys were young British men Conscription in the United Kingdom, conscripted to work in coal mines between December 1943 and March 1948, to increase the rate of coal production, which had declined through the early years of World War II ...
, which saw him working as a coal miner rather than serve active military duty. He continued his studies during this period, relying on discounted books from London's foremost specialised antiquarian book-seller of
Catalan
Catalan may refer to:
Catalonia
From, or related to Catalonia:
* Catalan language, a Romance language
* Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia
Places
* 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...
and
Castilian language
In English, Castilian Spanish can mean the variety of Peninsular Spanish spoken in northern and central Spain, the standard form of Spanish, or Spanish from Spain in general. In Spanish, the term (Castilian) can either refer to the Spanish languag ...
,
Joan Gili
Joan Gili i Serra (), also known as John Gili (1907 – 6 May 1998), was a Catalan people, Catalan antiquarian book-seller, publisher and translator.
Joan Gili was born in Barcelona in 1907. His father, Lluis Gili, ran a religious publishing house ...
.
Despite his educated background, and his chaste values of refraining from smoking, drinking and womanising, in sharp contrast to many of his collier work-mates, Davies enjoyed his three years spent as a coal miner, believing it brought him closer to the working-class man of the Rhondda.
In 1948 Davies was released from service in the coal mines, and won a scholarship to
The Queen's College, Oxford
The Queen's College is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford, England. The college was founded in 1341 by Robert de Eglesfield in honour of Philippa of Hainault. It is distinguished by its pred ...
.
At Oxford he studied Romance Languages and received an
MA and a
DPhil
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...
, after which he was appointed to an Assistant Lectureship at the
University of Leeds
, mottoeng = And knowledge will be increased
, established = 1831 – Leeds School of Medicine1874 – Yorkshire College of Science1884 - Yorkshire College1887 – affiliated to the federal Victoria University1904 – University of Leeds
, ...
. In 1953, whilst in Leeds he married
Catherine "Caryl" Glyn Jones, who like Davies was originally from the Rhondda and was also a linguist.
Davies settled near
Otley
Otley is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish at a bridging point on the River Wharfe, in the City of Leeds metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. Historic counties of England, Historically a part of the West Ridi ...
and he and Caryl had four children: Eleri, Catrin, Gwen and Rhodri.
Although the couple spent thirty years in Yorkshire, they kept a strong connection to
Welsh culture
The culture of Wales (Welsh: ''Diwylliant Cymru'') is distinct, with its own language, customs, politics, festivals, music and Art. Wales is primarily represented by the symbol of the red Welsh Dragon, but other national emblems include the leek ...
and taught all their children to speak
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 ...
.
After his retirement, Davies moved back to Wales, settling in
Llangwyryfon
Llangwyryfon is a village and community in the county of Ceredigion, Wales. It lies on the B4576 about 8 miles to the south and east of Aberystwyth. The village lies in the valley of the River Wyre and contains the roadbridge where the B4576 cross ...
in Ceredigion.
[University of Leeds, Obituary](_blank)
/ref> He died in Aberystwyth
Aberystwyth () is a university and seaside town as well as a community in Ceredigion, Wales. Located in the historic county of Cardiganshire, means "the mouth of the Ystwyth". Aberystwyth University has been a major educational location in ...
in 2009, having survived Caryl who died in 2007.
Academic career
Davies joined the University of Leeds
, mottoeng = And knowledge will be increased
, established = 1831 – Leeds School of Medicine1874 – Yorkshire College of Science1884 - Yorkshire College1887 – affiliated to the federal Victoria University1904 – University of Leeds
, ...
as an Assistant Lecturer in Spanish in 1952. He was promoted to Lecturer in 1955 and to Senior Lecturer
Senior lecturer is an academic rank. In the United Kingdom, Ireland, New Zealand, Australia, Switzerland, and Israel senior lecturer is a faculty position at a university or similar institution. The position is tenured (in systems with this concep ...
in 1968. During his time at Leeds he held visiting appointments at the University of Cardiff
, latin_name =
, image_name = Shield of the University of Cardiff.svg
, image_size = 150px
, caption = Coat of arms of Cardiff University
, motto = cy, Gwirionedd, Undod a Chytgord
, mottoeng = Truth, Unity and Concord
, established = 1 ...
in Wales, Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...
in the United States and at Australian National University
The Australian National University (ANU) is a public research university located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton encompasses seven teaching and research colleges, in addition to several national academies and ...
in Canberra. In 1975 he was appointed Cowdray Professor of Spanish and Head of the Department of Spanish and Portuguese Languages and Literatures at Leeds
Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...
. He retired in 1986 with the title emeritus professor
''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 ...
.
Literary work
Davies main field of study was the Golden Age
The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology, particularly the ''Works and Days'' of Hesiod, and is part of the description of temporal decline of the state of peoples through five Ages of Man, Ages, Gold being the first and the one during ...
of Spanish poetry, but was also interested in nineteenth-century Spanish literature, the Spanish songbooks of the German Romantics and other Spanish and Argentine works, having himself visited Welsh Patagonia. As a translator, Davies found the works of fellow countryman David Rowland of interest. Rowland had translated the anonymous Spanish text, '' La vida de Lazarillo de Tormes y de sus fortunas y adversidades'', in 1586, and Davies edited a 1991 version published by Gregynog Press
The Gregynog Press, also known as Gwasg Gregynog, is a printing press and charity located at Gregynog Hall near Newtown in Powys, Wales.
Early years
Founded in 1922 by the sisters and art patrons Margaret and Gwendoline Davies, guided by Thom ...
.
Works of note
Poetry
* Baled Lewsyn a'r Mor (1964)
* Trigain (1986)
* Galar y Culfor (1992)
Factual work
* A Poet at Court: Antonio Hurtado de Mendoza, 1586–1644 (1971)
* Tan Tro Nesaf (1976)
* Dyddiadur Awstralia (1986)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davies, Gareth Alban
1926 births
2009 deaths
Welsh miners
Academics of the University of Leeds
Alumni of The Queen's College, Oxford
Welsh-language writers
People from Pentre
Bards of the Gorsedd
British Hispanists
Spanish–English translators
Translators to Welsh
Bevin Boys
20th-century translators
20th-century Welsh poets