Penmain or Penmaen is a hamlet and community in Caerphilly county borough,

south South is one of the cardinal directions or Points of the compass, compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Pro ...

Wales, within the historic boundaries of

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 ...

. It is situated in the Sirhowy valley, East of

Blackwood Blackwood may refer to: Botany * African blackwood ('' Dalbergia melanoxylon''), a timber tree of Africa * African blackwood (''Erythrophleum africanum''), ('' Peltophorum africanum'') also Rhodesian blackwood, trees from Africa * Australian bla ...

. It is contiguous with, if not completely encompassed by, the larger village of Oakdale, which forms most of the community urban area. Penmain is an

anglicisation Anglicisation is the process by which a place or person becomes influenced by English culture or British culture, or a process of cultural and/or linguistic change in which something non-English becomes English. It can also refer to the influen ...

of the Welsh language name ''Penmaen'', meaning quite simply "headland" or "outcrop" (a common element in Welsh placenames: literally, ''rock/stone hill''). Both spellings are found locally, with the English spelling predominant throughout the majority of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, but the Welsh spelling is the one now more generally used.

History

In 1845, the district of Penmain became an ecclesiastical parish, formed out of the parish of

Mynyddislwyn Mynyddislwyn was a civil parish and urban district in Monmouthshire, south east Wales. It was abolished in local government reorganisation in 1974. It is named for the Mountain in its centre MynyddIslwyn (Islwyn Mountain or Islwyn's Mountain, Islwy ...

, and in 1855 the Church of St. David was built, having seating for 300 worshippers. Its registers started from 1866. A National School was built there in 1845 for 250 pupils. In 1870 Penmain was described as:
A Vision of Britain The chapel he describes is the Congregational chapel. It was started by Henry Walter, who had been curate of Mynyddislwyn and, later, vicar of St. Woolos

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 ...

. In 1618, King James issued the "Book of Sports", which relaxed the previous attitudes to Sunday amusements, and set out which times were to be allowed on the

Sabbath In Abrahamic religions, the Sabbath () or Shabbat (from Hebrew ) is a day set aside for rest and worship. According to the Book of Exodus, the Sabbath is a day of rest on the seventh day, commanded by God to be kept as a holy day of rest, as G ...

. There was much opposition to this by the clergy, and it continued up to the Civil War. Afterwards, in 1660, when Charles II came to the throne, he re-introduced it. Many clergymen refused to obey, including Henry Walter, who was dismissed from his position in the Church. He then set up the Independent Chapel at Penmain, although the

Nonconformist Nonconformity or nonconformism may refer to: Culture and society * Insubordination, the act of willfully disobeying an order of one's superior *Dissent, a sentiment or philosophy of non-agreement or opposition to a prevailing idea or entity ** ...

chapel building was not completed until 1691. Services were held in

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 ...

. It was rebuilt in 1828, renovated in 1888, and is the second oldest existing Independent Chapel in Wales. No longer used for worship, the building is now the 'home' of the Mynyddislwyn Male Choir.

Politics

Penmaen ward is an

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to t ...

district in the County Borough of Caerphilly, covering the village of Oakdale, and the hamlets of Penmaen, Pen-y-fan and Woodfieldside. It is currently represented by two Plaid Cymru councillors.

References

External links

www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Penmaen and surrounding area
{{authority control Villages in Caerphilly County Borough History of Monmouthshire