''The Myvyrian Archaiology of Wales'' is a printed collection of
medieval Welsh literature, published in three volumes by the
Gwyneddigion Society
The Gwyneddigion Society ( cy, Cymdeithas y Gwyneddigion) was a London-based Welsh literary and cultural society. The original society was founded in 1770 and wound up in 1843. It was briefly revived in 1978. Its proceedings were conducted through ...
between 1801 and 1807. Until
John Gwenogvryn Evans
John Gwenogvryn Evans (20 March 1852 – 25 March 1930) was a Welsh palaeographic expert and literary translator.
Early life
Evans was born at Llanybydder in Carmarthenshire. He was apprenticed to a grocer, but returned to school, one of his teac ...
produced
diplomatic
Diplomatics (in American English, and in most anglophone countries), or diplomatic (in British English), is a scholarly discipline centred on the critical analysis of documents: especially, historical documents. It focuses on the conventions, p ...
editions of the important medieval Welsh manuscripts, the ''Myvyrian Archaiology'' provided the source text for many translators of medieval Welsh material.
[Mary Jones]
"Y Myvyrian Archaiology"
''Jones' Celtic Encyclopedia'', 2003, accessed 10 June 2009 It was founded, and funded, by
Owen Jones
Owen Jones (born 8 August 1984) is a British newspaper columnist, political commentator, journalist, author, and left-wing activist. He writes a column for ''The Guardian'' and contributes to the ''New Statesman'' and ''Tribune.'' He has two w ...
, who engaged
William Owen Pughe
William Owen Pughe (7 August 1759 – 4 June 1835) was a Welsh antiquarian and grammarian best known for his ''Welsh and English Dictionary'', published in 1803, but also known for his grammar books and "Pughisms" (neologisms)."The Inventio ...
as editor, and Edward Williams, better known as
Iolo Morganwg
Edward Williams, better known by his bardic name Iolo Morganwg (; 10 March 1747 – 18 December 1826), was a Welsh antiquarian, poet and collector.Jones, Mary (2004)"Edward Williams/Iolo Morganwg/Iolo Morgannwg" From ''Jones' Celtic Encyclopedi ...
, to search Wales for manuscripts.
The first volume, published in 1801, attempted to collect all Welsh poetry prior to 1370, with the exception of the work of
Dafydd ap Gwilym, which had already been published. Volume two, also published in 1801, contained the
Welsh Triads, the chronicles (versions of the ''
Brut y Brenhinedd'' and ''
Brut y Tywysogion'') and other prose documents of a historical nature. Volume three, which did not appear until 1807, contained didactic literature, laws and music. All three were reprinted in a single volume, with some additional material, in 1870.
The majority of its material is genuine, although it does contain some of Iolo's forgeries, including the "third series" of Triads and two chronicles, the ''Brut Aberpergwm'' and the ''Brut Ieuan Brechfa'', in volume two, and the ''Doethineb y Cymry'' ("wisdom of the Welsh") in volume three.
''The Myvyrian Archaiology of Wales'' (1801-1807)
iolomorganwg.wales.ac.uk, accessed 11 June 2009
References
External links
* (all 3 volumes, with an index in English, and additional material)
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1801 books
Book series introduced in 1801
Medieval Welsh literature
Welsh-language literature
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