Gwenan Jones (3 November 1889 – 12 January 1971) was 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 ...

cultural historian, and was the first woman to stand in a general election for

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 ...

. Jones studied for a master's degree at the

University of Wales , latin_name = , image = , caption = Coat of Arms , motto = cy, Goreu Awen Gwirionedd , mottoeng = The Best Inspiration is Truth , established = , , type = Confederal, non-member ...

, then received a doctorate from the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...

in 1918, both in Welsh literature. She then became a lecturer at

University 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 = ...

, settling in

Llandre Llandre, or Llanfihangel Genau'r Glyn, is a village in Ceredigion, Wales. It lies 5 miles north of Aberystwyth in the north-west of the county, on the road from Rhydypennau to Borth. To the north of the community lies the village of Dôl-y-bo ...

. Jones became prominent in the Undeb Cymru Fydd, and on behalf of it, was a founder of the Wales International Society. At the

1945 general election The following elections occurred in the year 1945. Africa * 1945 South-West African legislative election Asia * 1945 Indian general election Australia * 1945 Fremantle by-election Europe * 1945 Albanian parliamentary election * 1945 Bulgarian ...

, Jones stood for the

constituency, taking 24.5% of the vote, was the first female Plaid candidate at a general election, and the only Plaid Cymru candidate in 1945 to hold her deposit. Despite this relative success, Jones felt disappointed at the party's lack of progress, and did not stand for election again. However, she remained involved with the party; in 1949, she chaired the launch of Plaid's "Parliament for Wales in Five Years" campaign. Jones also became the president of the Welsh teachers' union,

Undeb Cenedlaethol Athrawon Cymru Undeb Cenedlaethol Athrawon Cymru ( Welsh, the sole official name, meaning 'National Union of Teachers of Wales') commonly referred to as UCAC, was formed in Wales from a split from the NUT in the late 1940s over the issue of the Welsh language ...

. In 1948, Jones took in a Latvian family from a

displaced persons camp A refugee camp is a temporary settlement built to receive refugees and people in refugee-like situations. Refugee camps usually accommodate displaced people who have fled their home country, but camps are also made for internally displaced peop ...

in Germany. The mother of the family initially worked as Jones' housekeeper, but later became a teacher and artist.Andris Lielmanis,
Welsh-Latvian ties
, ''

The Baltic Times ''The Baltic Times'' is an independent monthly newspaper that covers the latest political, economic, business, and cultural events in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The paper was formed from a merger in 1996 of the ''Baltic Independent'' and '' ...

'', 10 November 2004

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Gwenan 1889 births 1971 deaths Academics of Aberystwyth University Alumni of the University of Wales Plaid Cymru parliamentary candidates University of Minnesota alumni Welsh expatriates in the United States