Nefyn (, archaically anglicised as Nevin) is both a small town and a

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 ...

on the northwest coast of the

Llŷn Peninsula The Llŷn Peninsula ( cy, Penrhyn Llŷn or , ) extends into the Irish Sea from North West Wales, south west of the Isle of Anglesey. It is part of the historic county of Caernarfonshire, and historic region and local authority area of Gwynedd. Mu ...

Gwynedd Gwynedd (; ) is a county and preserved county (latter with differing boundaries; includes the Isle of Anglesey) in the north-west of Wales. It shares borders with Powys, Conwy County Borough, Denbighshire, Anglesey over the Menai Strait, and C ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

. Nefyn is popular with visitors for its sandy beach, and has one substantial hotel. The

A497 road List of A roads in Great Britain, A roads in List of A roads zones in Great Britain, zone 4 in Great Britain starting north of the A4 road (Great Britain), A4 and south/west of the A5 road (Great Britain), A5 (roads beginning with 4). __TOC__ ...

terminates in the town centre. The community includes Edern and

Morfa Nefyn Morfa Nefyn is a village on the northern coast of the Llŷn Peninsula in Gwynedd, Wales. It lies on the crossroads of the B4417 and B4412. The village has seen a rise in popularity as house prices in nearby villages on the Llŷn Peninsula such a ...

. In 2011, the population was 2,602, with Nefyn itself having 1,373 people.

History

The history of the area can be traced back to 300 BC with the

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

hillfort A hillfort is a type of earthwork used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze Age or Iron Age. Some were used in the post-Roma ...

Garn Boduan Garn Boduan is an Iron Age hillfort and hill near Nefyn, on the Llŷn Peninsula in Wales. In a survey in the 1950s the traces of over 170 round houses were identified on this site, and around 100 round houses are still visible on the ground.

overlooking Nefyn. The remains of 170 round stone huts and ramparts are still visible on top of the hill. The earliest known reference to Nefyn in documents dates from the latter part of the 11th century, when it is mentioned as a landing place of the Welsh prince,

Gruffudd 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 remembe ...

Gerald of Wales Gerald of Wales ( la, Giraldus Cambrensis; cy, Gerallt Gymro; french: Gerald de Barri; ) was a Cambro-Norman priest and English historians in the Middle Ages, historian. As a royal clerk to the king and two archbishops, he travelled widely and w ...

, writing in his account of a journey around Wales in 1188, says that he slept at Nefyn on the eve of

Palm Sunday Palm Sunday is a Christian moveable feast that falls on the Sunday before Easter. The feast commemorates Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem, an event mentioned in each of the four canonical Gospels. Palm Sunday marks the first day of Holy ...

. Nefyn was the location of the court of the

commote A commote (Welsh ''cwmwd'', sometimes spelt in older documents as ''cymwd'', plural ''cymydau'', less frequently ''cymydoedd'')''Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru'' (University of Wales Dictionary), p. 643 was a secular division of land in Medieval Wales ...

of Dinlaen: part of the cantref of Llŷn.

Edward I of England Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassa ...

held a

jousting Jousting is a martial game or hastilude between two horse riders wielding lances with blunted tips, often as part of a tournament (medieval), tournament. The primary aim was to replicate a clash of heavy cavalry, with each participant trying t ...

tournament A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concentr ...

in the town in 1284 to celebrate his victory over the Welsh, emphasising its importance at that time as a trading town. In 1355, it became a free

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...

and remained an important centre of commerce. The sea was always an important part of the economy of Nefyn; and fishing, particularly for

herring Herring are forage fish, mostly belonging to the family of Clupeidae. Herring often move in large schools around fishing banks and near the coast, found particularly in shallow, temperate waters of the North Pacific and North Atlantic Oceans, i ...

, became the prime trade for most of the 18th and 19th centuries: so much so that the town's

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central ele ...

bears three herrings. Herring were locally referred to as "Nefyn beef". In 1910, Nefyn had 40 herring fishing boats, but herring fishing ceased around the time of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. The area nurtured many ships' captains in the age of sail, and shipbuilding was also an important local industry. About 3 miles to the south-west is Madryn Castle, home of Sir Love Jones-Parry, one of the founders of the settlement of

Puerto Madryn Puerto Madryn (; cy, Porth Madryn), also known as ''Madryn'', is a city in the province of Chubut in Argentine Patagonia. It is the capital of the Viedma Department, and has about 93,995 inhabitants according to the last census in 2010. Puer ...

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

Parish church and origin of the name Nefyn

The foundations of the old St Mary's

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

date from the 6th century, although the present building was erected in 1827. It would have been an important staging post for

pilgrimage A pilgrimage is a journey, often into an unknown or foreign place, where a person goes in search of new or expanded meaning about their self, others, nature, or a higher good, through the experience. It can lead to a personal transformation, aft ...

s to

Ynys Enlli Bardsey Island ( cy, Ynys Enlli), known as the legendary "Island of 20,000 Saints", is located off the Llŷn Peninsula in the Welsh county of Gwynedd. The Welsh name means "The Island in the Currents", while its English name refers to the "Is ...

(Bardsey Island). The old church is no longer a place of worship but houses a museum dedicated to the maritime history of Nefyn. Since 2013, archaeologists have been investigating the area under the church and have uncovered a 13th–14th century brooch and the remains of a lady buried sometime between 1180 and 1250 in an older form of entombment called a cist grave. The place name is of uncertain origin. It is recorded as ''Newin'' in 1291, and as ''Nefyn'' in 1291. It may represent a personal name. The

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

recorded a tribe occupying the peninsula called the 'Gangani', who are also recorded as a tribe in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

20th century and after

Nefyn & District Golf Club Clwb Golff Nefyn Golf Club is a golf club based in Morfa Nefyn, Pwllheli, Gwynedd, North Wales. The course has 27 holes, with a view of the sea from every tee; nine holes are played on the world-famous "Point". It is set high on the sea cliffs of ...

was formed in 1907. The course added a further 9 holes in 1912 and a third set of 9 holes in 1933. The current course is made up of a front ten with a choice of two back eights. It is set high on the sea cliffs of the narrow peninsula overlooking

Porthdinllaen Porthdinllaen (''in English'' sometimes Porth Dinllaen) is a small coastal village on the Llŷn Peninsula in the Dwyfor area of Gwynedd, Wales, built on a small promontory, and historically in Caernarfonshire. It is near the larger village of Mo ...

bay. Since 1929, Nefyn has played host to a Beach Mission, which runs for two weeks at the beginning of August each year. Nefyn football club, Nefyn United F.C., was formed in 1932 and has enjoyed some success over the years, winning numerous league titles. At present, the senior team competes in the

Welsh Alliance League The Welsh Alliance Football League (formerly the ''Lock Stock Welsh Alliance Football League'', for sponsorship reasons) was a football league formed in 1984, and discontinued in 2020 following the reorganisation of the Welsh football pyramid for ...

: it was promoted from the Gwynedd League in 2005–06. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

built a

Chain Home Chain Home, or CH for short, was the codename for the ring of coastal Early Warning radar stations built by the Royal Air Force (RAF) before and during the Second World War to detect and track aircraft. Initially known as RDF, and given the off ...

radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance (''ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, w ...

station to the south-west of Nefyn. In 1977, the Llŷn Maritime Museum was opened in the Church of St Mary by a group of volunteers. It closed in 2000 on grounds of health and safety, but was redeveloped from 2007 and reopened in 2014. The area has a history of earth tremors and landslides. A tremor in the area on 12 December 1940 was reported by the '' Cambrian News'' as having caused two fatalities including John Thomas of Nefyn who died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

. On 19 July 1984, an

earthquake An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from ...

measuring 5.4 on the

Richter scale The Richter scale —also called the Richter magnitude scale, Richter's magnitude scale, and the Gutenberg–Richter scale—is a measure of the strength of earthquakes, developed by Charles Francis Richter and presented in his landmark 1935 ...

had an epicentre near Nefyn. This was one of the strongest tremors recorded in Britain in recent times but caused little structural damage. A fatal landslide occurred at Y Lôn Gam on 2 January 2001. On 19 April 2021, a

landslide Landslides, also known as landslips, are several forms of mass wasting that may include a wide range of ground movements, such as rockfalls, deep-seated grade (slope), slope failures, mudflows, and debris flows. Landslides occur in a variety of ...

resulted in a cliff collapse, which affected gardens in Rhodfa'r Môr, but there were no casualties. A further landslide on 29 October 2021 blocked vehicular access to the beach at Y Lôn Gam and the adjacent cliff path was closed. Nefyn is twinned with

, a town in

Chubut Province Chubut ( es, Provincia del Chubut, ; cy, Talaith Chubut) is a province in southern Argentina, situated between the 42nd parallel south (the border with Río Negro Province), the 46th parallel south (bordering Santa Cruz Province), the Andes ra ...

(see

Welsh settlement in Argentina Y Wladfa (, "The Colony"), also occasionally Y Wladychfa Gymreig (, "The Welsh Settlement"), refers to the establishment of settlements by Welsh immigrants in Patagonia, beginning in 1865, mainly along the coast of the lower Chubut Valley. In ...

Demographics

Welsh language

According to the 2011 Census, Nefyn is the community with the 28th highest percentage of

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 ...

speakers in Wales. 74.2% of residents aged three and over reported being able to speak Welsh in the 2011 Census, as compared to 77.9% reporting being able to do so in the 2001 Census.

Governance

There are two Nefyn

electoral wards The wards and electoral divisions in the United Kingdom are electoral districts at sub-national level, represented by one or more councillors. The ward is the primary unit of English electoral geography for civil parishes and borough and distri ...

(Nefyn and Morfa Nefyn). The population of Nefyn Ward at the 2011 census was 1,373.

Nefyn landslide, April 2021

Nefyn marine landslide - coastal erosion as a result of Climate Change - Wales 19 April 2021 09.jpg Nefyn marine landslide - coastal erosion as a result of Climate Change - Wales 19 April 2021 07.jpg Nefyn marine landslide -Nefyn, Gwynedd, Wales - looking towards yr Eifl - May 2021 03.jpg Nefyn marine landslide - coastal erosion as a result of Climate Change - Wales 19 April 2021 31.jpg Nefyn marine landslide - coastal erosion as a result of Climate Change - Wales 19 April 2021 23.jpg

Notable people

* Harpist John Parry (ca. 1710–1782), known as Parry Ddall Rhiwabon (Blind Parry of Rhiwabon). * Sir Thomas Duncombe Love Jones-Parry (1832–1891), 1st

Baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

MP and one of the founders of the

, inherited the Madryn estate near Nefyn in 1853. * Elizabeth Watkin-Jones (1887–1966), author of children's books in the

Welsh language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language family, Celtic language of the Brittonic languages, 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 colony in Chubut P ...

, was born in Nefyn on 13 July 1887. * Singer

Duffy Duffy may refer to: People *Duffy (surname), people with the surname Duffy or Duffey *Duffy (nickname) *Duffy (singer) (born 1984), Welsh singer, born Aimee Ann Duffy Places *Duffy, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra * Duffy, Ohio ...

was born in Nefyn.

References

Office for National Statistics – Neighbourhood Statistics – Welsh Language – 2011 Census

Office for National Statistics – Neighbourhood Statistics – Full List – Parish of Nefyn – 2011 Censu

External links

Former Nefyn resident's relatives in America

www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Nefyn and surrounding area
{{authority control Nefyn, Towns in Gwynedd