James Davies (Iago ap Dewi) (1800 – 16 April 1869) was a Welsh poet, and printer. He was born and grew up at Pencader in Carmarthenshire, where he worked from a young age as a farm labourer. When about 20 years of age, he began an apprenticeship with John Evans, a local printer, at the ''

Seren Gomer ''Seren Gomer'' was the first Welsh-language weekly newspaper. The first number was published in 1814 in Swansea by the local Baptist minister and writer Joseph Harris (Gomer). Publishing history The weekly was intended to cover news from the wh ...

'' office. His poetry was encouraged by two colleagues: W. E. Jones ("Gwilym Cawrdaf") and William Thomas ("Gwilym Mai"). When, in around 1840, Davies left Carmarthen, he went to work at Josiah Thomas Jones's printing office at

Cowbridge Cowbridge ( cy, Y Bont-faen) is a market town in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, approximately west of the centre of Cardiff. The Cowbridge with Llanblethian community and civil parish elect a town council. A Cowbridge electoral ward exists for e ...

, where Jones had come from

Merthyr Tydfil Merthyr Tydfil (; cy, Merthyr Tudful ) is the main town in Merthyr Tydfil County Borough, Wales, administered by Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council. It is about north of Cardiff. Often called just Merthyr, it is said to be named after Tydf ...

. He continued with the firm for the rest of his life, moving with Jones in 1842 to Carmarthen, and in 1854 to

Aberdare Aberdare ( ; cy, Aberdâr) is a town in the Cynon Valley area of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales, at the confluence of the Rivers Dare (Dâr) and Cynon. Aberdare has a population of 39,550 (mid-2017 estimate). Aberdare is south-west of Merthyr Tyd ...

. His works include a number of poems he published under the title ''Myfyrdodau Barddonol'' (1858). He died in April 1869.

References

1800 births 1869 deaths Welsh male poets Welsh poets {{wales-bio-stub