Graianrhyd, also spelt ''Graeanrhyd'', is a small, scattered village in the

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, tow ...

Llanarmon-yn-Iâl Llanarmon-yn-Iâl is a village, and local government community, in Denbighshire, Wales, lying in limestone country in the valley of the River Alyn. The community is part of an electoral ward called Llanarmon-yn-Iâl/Llandegla. The population o ...

Denbighshire Denbighshire ( ; cy, Sir Ddinbych; ) is a county in the north-east of Wales. Its borders differ from the historic county of the same name. This part of Wales contains the country's oldest known evidence of habitation – Pontnewydd (Bontnewy ...

, Wales, lying in hilly

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

country around to the east of Llanarmon-yn-Iâl village, and just to the south of

Eryrys Eryrys (; alternate spelling ''Erryrys)'' is a village in Denbighshire, Wales, located at approximate grid reference SJ203578, five miles south of Mold. The village is built on the limestone formation of Bryn Alyn and many limestone outcrops c ...

. The name is likely derived from the

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 ...

''graean'', "gravel", and ''rhyd'', "

ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

": there is still a ford across the

River Terrig The River Terrig ( cy, Afon Terrig) is a small river in north-east Wales. The river rises at Llyn Cyfynwy near Graianrhyd village in the community of Llanarmon-yn-Ial, Denbighshire, about three miles from the source of the River Alyn.''Cambr ...

on a minor road east of the village. There are several limestone and

silicate In chemistry, a silicate is any member of a family of polyatomic anions consisting of silicon and oxygen, usually with the general formula , where . The family includes orthosilicate (), metasilicate (), and pyrosilicate (, ). The name is al ...

quarries in the immediate area, which is on the borders of the

Clwydian Range and Dee Valley , iucn_category =V , iucn_ref = , photo =Sunny Hillside, Frosty Valley Dee Valley Wales (11014647076).jpg , photo_width = , photo_alt =Image of the view of the Dee Valley from Moel Y Gamelin , photo_caption = ...

Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB; , AHNE) is an area of countryside in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, that has been designated for conservation due to its significant landscape value. Areas are designated in recognition of thei ...

; the

Clwydian Way The Clwydian Way () is a waymarked long-distance footpath in north-east Wales, mostly running through Denbighshire. Distance The waymarked circular walk runs for a total of . It was established by the North Wales area of the Rambler's Associat ...

footpath runs nearby. The area is predominantly agricultural with a landscape of woods and pastureland. There was no church in the village, though there was a nonconformist ( Congregationalist) chapel, built in 1843 and rebuilt in 1859 in a simple

vernacular A vernacular or vernacular language is in contrast with a "standard language". It refers to the language or dialect that is spoken by people that are inhabiting a particular country or region. The vernacular is typically the native language, n ...

style. The chapel is now closed, though in 1905 it was recorded as having a congregation of 192. The former Graianrhyd

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...

ceased to operate in 2002, after its intake for the year fell to only 3 pupils,Disposal of the former C.P. School at Graianrhyd
Denbighshire County Council though the village has retained its pub, the Rose & Crown.

References

{{authority control Villages in Denbighshire Llanarmon-yn-Iâl