Gruffudd or Gruffydd ( or , in either case) is 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 ...

name, originating in

Old Welsh Old Welsh ( cy, Hen Gymraeg) is the stage of the Welsh language from about 800 AD until the early 12th century when it developed into Middle Welsh.Koch, p. 1757. The preceding period, from the time Welsh became distinct from Common Brittonic ...

as a given name and today used as both a given and surname. It is the origin of the

Anglicised Anglicisation is the process by which a place or person becomes influenced by English culture or British culture, or a process of cultural and/or linguistic change in which something non-English becomes English. It can also refer to the influen ...

name '' Griffith[s]'', and was historically sometimes treated as interchangeable with the etymologically unrelated Germanic name '' Galfrid'' ( Latinised as ''Galfridus''). The Welsh form evolved from the

Common Brittonic Common Brittonic ( cy, Brythoneg; kw, Brythonek; br, Predeneg), also known as British, Common Brythonic, or Proto-Brittonic, was a Celtic language spoken in Britain and Brittany. It is a form of Insular Celtic, descended from Proto-Celtic, a ...

''Grippiud'' or ''Gripuid''.Morgan, T.J., Welsh Surnames, Qualitex Printing Limited, Cardiff, 1985, The ''Orthography of Welsh Surnames 5-8'', ''Gruffydd'' pgs 103–105, ''first element gruff as a noun means 'magic wand' and second element iudd as a noun means 'lord', found on page 160 entry for Maredudd''

Evolution and history

One of the oldest forms which gave rise to all other variations is ''Grippiud'' or ''Gripuid'', which evolved into

''Griffudd''. The second element of the name, ''iudd'', as a noun has a meaning of 'lord' and is found in other Welsh names such as '' Meredith'' (''Mared dd'') and ''Bleidd dd''. In North Wales ''Griffudd'' evolved into ''Gruffudd''. “When u came to have the same quality as the clear y (the y of monosyllables and final syllables) the name generally became Gruffydd, and this is now regarded as the standard form,” according to

T.J. Morgan Thomas John Morgan (22 April 1907 – 9 December 1986), better known as T. J. Morgan, was a Welsh academic. He was Professor of Welsh at Swansea University from 1961 to 1975. Life Morgan was born at "Ynys-y-mwn", in the village of Glais, nea ...

and Prys Morgan. ''Gruffudd'' of Old Welsh became spelt as ''Gruffydd'' in Middle Welsh and Modern Welsh of today. The high central vowel sound of ''u/y'' was lost entirely in South Wales and replaced by the ''i'' sound, and the form ''Griffidd'' became standard in the south, the region to first be encountered by Anglo-Norman scribes.

Variations

Anglo-Norman scribes rendered ''Griffidd'' and ''Gruffydd'' as ''Griffith'', with both ''Gruffydd'' and ''Griffith'' becoming the standardized forms for the same name since the

High Middle Ages The High Middle Ages, or High Medieval Period, was the periodization, period of European history that lasted from AD 1000 to 1300. The High Middle Ages were preceded by the Early Middle Ages and were followed by the Late Middle Ages, which ended ...

and into the modern era. The form of the name encountered in Latin texts is ''Griffith'', ''Griffini'' and ''Gruffin''. Many variations have evolved since the Middle Ages and Tudor period, with many springing from abbreviated forms such as ''Griff''. ''Griffri, Griffith, Griffyn, Griffei, Griffies, Griffitte, Griffits, Griffitts, Griffes, Griffyths, Gripthis, Gripphes, Griffithi, Griffen, Griffee, Griffey, Gruffudd, Gruffydd'' Patronymics evolving from ''Griffith'' include ''

Griffiths The surname Griffiths is a surname with Welsh origins, as in Gruffydd ap Llywelyn Fawr. People called Griffiths recorded here include: * Alan Griffiths (born 1952), Australian politician and businessman * Alan Griffiths (cricketer) (born 1957), ...

'' and ''Griffyths'', ''son of Griffith''.

Hypocoristic forms

Hypocoristic forms, or “pet names”, included ''Guto, Gutyn, Gitto, Getyn, Gitton,'' and ''Gutta'', with many of these becoming surnames themselves. Derivations of Gruffydd by way of Guto/Gitto include ''Gittos, Gittose, Gittoss, Gittas, Gyttes, Gitts, Gytts, Gittus, Gitthouse, Gyttors, Gittonce, Gittal, Gittall, Gyttall, Gittall, Gethyn.'' The name ''Gatehouse'' may have originated in some parts of Wales and the March from ''Gittose'' or a variant as a conscious effort to further anglicize the name.

Names

The name may refer to the following people, often with either spelling used, among other variants such as Gruffuth, Griffudd, etc. :

As a given name

Gruffudd ab Adda Gruffudd ab Adda (fl. mid 14th century) was a Welsh language poet and musician. Gruffudd was a contemporary of Dafydd ap Gwilym, whose death he mourned in elegy An elegy is a poem of serious reflection, and in English literature usually a lame ...

(fl. mid 14th century) was a Welsh language poet and musician *

Gruffudd ab Owain Glyndŵr Gruffudd ap Owain Glyndŵr (c. 1375-c. 1412) was the eldest son of Margaret Hanmer and Owain Glyndŵr, who led a major revolt in Wales between 1400 and about 1416. Early life Little is known about any of the children of Owain Glyndŵr. Gruffud ...

(c. 1375 – c. 1412) led a major revolt in Wales *

Gruffudd ab yr Ynad Coch Gruffudd ab yr Ynad Coch ( fl. 1277–1282) was a Welsh court poet. Gruffudd composed a number of poems on the theme of religion. His greatest fame however, lies with his moving elegy for Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, Prince of Wales Prince of Wal ...

(1277–1282), Welsh court poet *

Gruffydd ap Cynan Gruffudd ap Cynan ( 1137), sometimes written as Gruffydd ap Cynan, was King of Gwynedd from 1081 until his death in 1137. In the course of a long and eventful life, he became a key figure in Welsh resistance to Norman rule, and was rememb ...

Gruffudd ap Cynan ab Owain Gwynedd Gruffudd ap Cynan ab Owain Gwynedd was the grandson of Owain Gwynedd a famous king of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd and ruler of most of Wales in the 12th century. The longer patronymic form of his name is usually used to distinguish him from the ea ...

, the grandson of the king of Gwynedd * Gruffudd Fychan I *

Gruffudd Fychan II Gruffudd Fychan II was Lord of Glyndyfrdwy and Lord of Cynllaith Owain c.1330–1369. As such, he had a claim to be hereditary Prince of Powys Fadog. Ancestry The epithet 'Fychan' implies that his father was also called Gruffudd. However c ...

Gruffudd Gryg Gruffudd Gryg (fl. c.1340–1380) was a Welsh poet from Anglesey, North Wales. A number of Gruffudd's poems have survived including poems to a wave during his pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela and to an April moon. Also extant are the debate ...

(1340–1380), Welsh poet from Anglesey, North Wales * Gruffydd ap Gwenwynwyn *

Gruffudd Hiraethog Gruffudd Hiraethog (died 1564) was a 16th century Welsh language poet, born in Llangollen, north-east Wales. Gruffudd was one of the foremost poets of the sixteenth century to use the cywydd metre. He was a prolific author and gifted scholar. Tho ...

(died 1564), Welsh language poet * Gruffydd ap Llywelyn * Gruffydd ap Llywelyn Fawr (c. 1198 – March 1, 1244), son of Llywelyn the Great *

Gruffudd Llwyd Gruffudd Llwyd (fl. c.1380–1410) was a 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 colo ...

(1380–1410), Welsh language poet *

Gruffydd ap Madog Fychan Gruffydd ap Madog Fychan was according to some sources the son of Madog Fychan the hereditary Prince of Powys Fadog between 1304 and c. 1325. Biography It seems unlikely that Gruffydd ap Madog Fychan ever inherited the throne of Powys Fadog and he ...

* Gruffydd II ap Madog, Lord of Dinas Bran * Gruffydd Maelor *

Gruffudd ap Nicolas Gruffudd ap Nicolas or Gruffudd ap Nicholas (fl. ca. 1425–1456) was a powerful nobleman in Carmarthenshire, Wales. He organised several bardic eisteddfods in the county during the 1450s. Background Gruffudd is believed to be the son of Nico ...

Gruffydd Robert Gruffydd Robert (1527–98) was a Welsh Catholic priest and humanist scholar who in 1567 wrote a pioneering Welsh grammar while in exile in Italy with his uncle and fellow-writer Morys Clynnog. Life Gruffydd Robert was born in Caernarfonshire (G ...

, Welsh priest *

Gruffydd ap Rhydderch Gruffydd ap Rhydderch (d. AD 1055) was a king of Gwent and part of the kingdom of Morgannwg in south Wales and later king of Deheubarth. Gruffydd was the son of Rhydderch ab Iestyn who had been able to take over the kingdom of Deheubarth from 10 ...

Gruffydd ap Rhys Gruffydd ap Rhys (c. 1090 – 1137) was Prince of Deheubarth, in Wales. His sister was the Princess Nest ferch Rhys. He was the father of Rhys ap Gruffydd, known as 'The Lord Rhys', who was one of the most successful rulers of Deheubarth duri ...

* Gruffydd ap Rhys II *

Gruffudd Vychan Sir Gruffudd Vychan ( 1395 – 1447), also spelt in English sources as Griffith Vaughan, was a Welsh knight who supported the rebellion of Prince Owain Glyndŵr against the English, and captured the Lollard John Oldcastle, who was later immorta ...

, (born 1395), Lord of Burgedin, Treflydan, Garth and Gearfawr, Wales

As a surname or patronymic

* Ioan Gruffudd (born 1973), Welsh actor * Rhodri ap Gruffudd (1230–1315), the third or fourth son of Gruffydd ap Llywelyn Fawr

References

{{Reflist Welsh masculine given names Surnames of Welsh origin