Robert Williams Parry (6 March 1884 – 4 January 1956) was one of
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
's most notable 20th-century poets writing 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 ...
.
Life
R. Williams Parry was born in
Tal-y-sarn, in
Dyffryn Nantlle
The Nantlle Valley ( cy, Dyffryn Nantlle, ) is an area in Gwynedd, North Wales, characterised by its numerous small settlements.
The area is also historically important geologically, and featured in one of the most contentious disputes of the 1 ...
, a first cousin to the writers
T. H. Parry-Williams
Sir Thomas Herbert Parry-Williams (21 September 1887 – 3 March 1975) was a Welsh poet, author and academic.
Parry-Williams was born at Tŷ'r Ysgol (''the Schoolhouse'') in Rhyd Ddu, Caernarfonshire, Wales. He was educated at the University ...
and Sir
Thomas Parry. He studied at Tal-y-sarn elementary school, then at
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 ...
county school from 1896 to 1898, and for one year at the new
Pen-y-groes county school, then becoming a pupil-teacher from 1899 to 1902. He went to the
University College of Wales, Aberystwyth
, mottoeng = A world without knowledge is no world at all
, established = 1872 (as ''The University College of Wales'')
, former_names = University of Wales, Aberystwyth
, type = Public
, endowment = ...
, from 1902 to 1904, and left having taken part of the degree course and trained as a teacher. After working as a teacher at various schools until 1907, he completed his degree at the
University College of North Wales, Bangor
, former_names = University College of North Wales (1884–1996) University of Wales, Bangor (1996–2007)
, image = File:Arms_of_Bangor_University.svg
, image_size = 250px
, caption = Arms
...
, then from 1908 to 1910 taught Welsh and English at
Llanberis
(; ) is a village, community and electoral ward in Gwynedd, northwest Wales, on the southern bank of the lake and at the foot of Snowdon, the highest mountain in Wales. It is a centre for outdoor activities in Snowdonia, including walking ...
county school. He returned to college at Bangor and spent some months in
Brittany
Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...
working towards an MA degree, which he was awarded in 1912 for a dissertation on points of contact between Welsh and
Breton, subsequently resuming his teaching work at
Cefnddwysarn, then at
Barry Barry may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Barry (name), including lists of people with the given name, nickname or surname, as well as fictional characters with the given name
* Dancing Barry, stage name of Barry Richards (born c. 19 ...
county school, and was appointed English master at
Cardiff High School for Boys in 1916. Parry served in the army from 1916 to 1918, returning on demobilization to Cardiff, and in 1921 was appointed headmaster of Oakley Park School in
Montgomeryshire
, HQ= Montgomery
, Government= Montgomeryshire County Council (1889–1974)Montgomeryshire District Council (1974–1996)
, Origin=
, Status=
, Start=
, End= ...
. He left early in 1922 having been appointed a lecturer in the Welsh and Extra-Mural Studies Departments at the university college in Bangor, where he remained until his retirement in 1944.
Work
Parry earned widespread recognition as a poet when he won the
chair at the 1910
National Eisteddfod for his poem "Yr Haf" ('The Summer'), which has been described as "the best known and admired of all the eisteddfod
awdl
In Welsh poetry, an ''awdl'' () is a long poem in strict metre (i.e. ''cynghanedd''). Originally, an ''awdl'' could be a relatively short poem unified by its use of a single end-rhyme (the word is related to ''odl'', "rhyme"), using cynghanedd; ...
au of the 20th century". He published two collections of poetry: ''Yr Haf a cherddi eraill'' (1924) and ''Cerddi'r Gaeaf'' (1952).
Some of his most notable works include "Y Llwynog" ('The Fox'), "Eifionydd" and "Englynion coffa Hedd Wyn". In the latter he uses the traditional four-line verse or ''
englyn
(; plural ) is a traditional Welsh and Cornish short poem form. It uses quantitative metres, involving the counting of syllables, and rigid patterns of rhyme and half rhyme. Each line contains a repeating pattern of consonants and accent ...
'' and ''
cynghanedd
In Welsh-language poetry, ''cynghanedd'' (, literally " harmony") is the basic concept of sound-arrangement within one line, using stress, alliteration and rhyme. The various forms of ''cynghanedd'' show up in the definitions of all formal Welsh ...
'' to lament the death of the poet
Ellis Humphrey Evans at the
Battle of Passchendaele in 1917. Evans was posthumously awarded the chair at the
National Eisteddfod of Wales.
:"The chair ... today stretching out its arms in a long peace of silence for the one who hasn't come."
There is a fine short biography and appreciation of Parry's work by his cousin, Sir Thomas Parry, in the ''
Dictionary of Welsh Biography''.
Bibliography
Books by R. Williams Parry
*''Yr Haf a cherddi eraill'' (1924)
*''Cerddi'r Gaeaf'' (1952)
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Parry, Robert Williams
1884 births
1956 deaths
Welsh World War I poets
20th-century male writers
People educated at Ysgol Dyffryn Nantlle
Welsh-language poets