Owen Wynne Jones (4 March 1828 – 4 April 1870), often known by his
bardic name
A bardic name (, ) is a pseudonym used in Wales, Cornwall, or Brittany by poets and other artists, especially those involved in the eisteddfod movement.
The Welsh term bardd ("poet") originally referred to the Welsh poets of the Middle Ages, who m ...
of Glasynys, was a Welsh clergyman, folklorist, poet, novelist and short-story writer.
Life
Owen Wynne Jones was born at a house called Ty'n-y-ffrwd, in the village of
Rhostryfan
Rhostryfan is a place 4 miles from Caernarfon, in the community of Llanwnda, in the principal area of Gwynedd
Gwynedd (; ) is a county and preserved county (latter with differing boundaries; includes the Isle of Anglesey) in the north-west of ...
, near
Caernarfon
Caernarfon (; ) is a royal town, community and port in Gwynedd, Wales, with a population of 9,852 (with Caeathro). It lies along the A487 road, on the eastern shore of the Menai Strait, opposite the Isle of Anglesey. The city of Bangor is ...
. At the age of eight, he began to read Welsh literature while recovering from an injury to his leg, and at the age of ten, he was sent to work in the quarry, but returned to school in the village of
Y Fron, near Caernarfon, at the age of seventeen, and later began work as a schoolmaster in
Clynnog Fawr on the
Llŷn Peninsula, and in
Llanfachreth, Merionethshire. He began to assist
Eben Fardd in arranging local
eisteddfodau.
In 1860 he was ordained as an Anglican clergyman, and worked as a deacon in
Llangristiolus
Llangristiolus is a village and community in the middle of Anglesey, Wales, southwest of Llangefni, and is named after Saint Cristiolus. The River Cefni flows through the village. The village is within a mile of the A5 and A55 roads. The vil ...
and
Llanfaethlu
Llanfaethlu is a village and community in the north west of Anglesey, in north-west Wales. The community population taken at the 2011 Census was 553. The village takes its name from the Church of Saint Maethlu. The community includes Llanfwrog ...
on
Anglesey
Anglesey (; cy, (Ynys) Môn ) is an island off the north-west coast of Wales. It forms a principal area known as the Isle of Anglesey, that includes Holy Island across the narrow Cymyran Strait and some islets and skerries. Anglesey island ...
. Then he moved to
Pontlotyn in
Monmouthshire
Monmouthshire ( cy, Sir Fynwy) is a county in the south-east of Wales. The name derives from the historic county of the same name; the modern county covers the eastern three-fifths of the historic county. The largest town is Abergavenny, with ...
, and later to
Newport
Newport most commonly refers to:
*Newport, Wales
*Newport, Rhode Island, US
Newport or New Port may also refer to:
Places Asia
*Newport City, Metro Manila, a Philippine district in Pasay
Europe
Ireland
*Newport, County Mayo, a town on the ...
, where he co-edited he periodical ''Y Glorian'' with
William Thomas (Islwyn)
William Thomas, bardic name
A bardic name (, ) is a pseudonym used in Wales, Cornwall, or Brittany by poets and other artists, especially those involved in the eisteddfod movement.
The Welsh term bardd ("poet") originally referred to the Welsh ...
. He left the periodical, moved to
Porthmadog
Porthmadog (; ), originally Portmadoc until 1974 and locally as "Port", is a Welsh coastal town and community in the Eifionydd area of Gwynedd and the historic county of Caernarfonshire. It lies east of Criccieth, south-west of Blaenau Ffest ...
, Llŷn where he married, and settled in
Tywyn, where he died at the age of forty-two.
Work
Owen Wynne Jones wrote poetry, collected in ''Fy Oriau Hamddenol'' (1854),
''Lleucu Llwyd'' (1858) and ''Yr Wyddfa'' (1877), historical novels including ''Dafydd Llwyd, neu Dyddiau Cromwel,'' articles and letters which were published in ''Y Brython,
Baner y Groes, Y Geninen'' and ''Yr Herald Gymraeg,'' and short stories, retelling folk tales and describing folk customs, which appeared in the anthology, ''Cymru Fu'' (1862).
Critical reception
An essay, 'Welsh Fairy Tales' (1900) by
John Rhys
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Second E ...
, draws freely on the work of Owen Wynne Jones, and comments on the likely extent to which he combined traditional stories from various sources with his own imaginative treatment of his material.
Saunders Lewis
Saunders Lewis (born John Saunders Lewis) (15 October 1893 – 1 September 1985) was a Welsh politician, poet, dramatist, Medievalist, and literary critic. He was a prominent Welsh nationalist, supporter of Welsh independence and was a co-found ...
, in his introduction to a selection of the short stories, ''Straeon Glasynys'' (1943), confirms that Owen Wynne Jones was an artist more than a critical scholar of folklore, but affirms his imaginative vision of a Welsh people united and enriched by folklore and customs.
Kate Roberts considers his life and accomplishments alongside those of
Richard Hughes Williams in her essay, ''Dau Lenor o Ochr Moeltryfan'' (1970), and a selection of his work is translated by Rob Mimpriss.
Works
*''Fy Oriau Hamddenol'' (1854)
*''Lleucu Llwyd'' (1858)
*''Yr Wyddfa'' (1877)
*''Dafydd Llwyd'' (1857)
*''Dafydd Gruffydd, pa beth wyt ti yn ei feddwl o'r Ddwy Fil a'r dydd hwnnw?'' (1894)
References
Sources
*Owen Wynne Jones, ''Hallowe'en in the Cwm: The stories of Glasynys.'' Edited and translated by Rob Mimpriss. Cockatrice Books, 2017. .
*Owen Wynne Jones, ''Straeon Glasynys.'' Edited by Saunders Lewis. Denbigh: Y Clwb Llyfrau Cymreig, 1943.
*John Rhys, 'Welsh Fairy Tales.' ''Y Cymmrodor.'' 5.1 (1882).
*Kate Roberts, ''Dau Lenor o Ochr Moeltryfan''. Caernarfon: Llyfrgell Sir Caernarfon, 1970.
*Meic Stephens ''(''ed)'', The Oxford Companion to the Literature of Wales.'' Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1986.
1828 births
1870 deaths
Welsh-language poets
Welsh-speaking clergy
19th-century poets
{{Wales-writer-stub