Afon Braint ( en, River Braint) is a small tidal

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of w ...

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 ...

, North Wales. There is a series of stepping stones near the village of Dwyran, and a Grade II bridge near

Penmynydd Penmynydd (; ), meaning "top of the mountain" in Welsh, is a village and community on Anglesey, Wales. It is known for being the birthplace of the Tudors of Penmynydd, which became the House of Tudor. The population according to the United Kingd ...

. Until recently, there was an electoral ward named after the river.

Description

Afon Braint is a river in the south of the island of

, North Wales. Its primary source is Llyn Llwydiarth, (''coordinates
53.283884, -4.178133
'), a lake on Mynydd Llwydiarth, within the Pentraeth Forest, east of Penraeth, and south-west of

Llanddona Llanddona (; ); ) is a village and community noted for its sandy beach in the Welsh county of Anglesey. Located between Benllech and Beaumaris, it is popular as a holiday destination, particularly for families. Llanddona has no shops; however, ...

. This river is unusual, in so far as it has two widely separated mouths, both on the Menai Strait on the south coast of the island. The river splits near

Llanfairpwllgwyngyll Llanfairpwllgwyngyll, or Llanfair Pwllgwyngyll (), is a large village and local government community on the island of Anglesey, Wales, on the Menai Strait next to the Britannia Bridge and across the strait from Bangor. Both shortened (Llanf ...

(''at coordinates
53.219124, -4.228168
'), where one branch flows briefly eastwards, then south into the Menai Strait at Pwllfanogl (''at coordinates
53.215660, -4.202717
'). The other main branch of Afon Braint flows south westward from

, towards Brynsiencyn, parallel and to the north of the A4080 road until Dwyran, where it turns south-west, passing beneath the road, flowing into the Menai Strait at Traeth Abermenai, east of Newborough Warren, near Pen-Lôn. At this terminus, Afon Braint is a tidal river (''coordinates
53.147763, -4.336195
'). In modern

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 ...

, the word 'braint' means, 'privilege, prerogative, birthright; honour, dignity, blessing; status, position, rank, value, state; right, freedom, liberty', however the river name is thought to derive from Brigantia, a goddess in Celtic (

Romano-British The Romano-British culture arose in Britain under the Roman Empire following the Roman conquest in AD 43 and the creation of the province of Britannia. It arose as a fusion of the imported Roman culture with that of the indigenous Britons, ...

and

Gallo-Roman Gallo-Roman culture was a consequence of the Romanization of Gauls under the rule of the Roman Empire. It was characterized by the Gaulish adoption or adaptation of Roman culture, language, morals and way of life in a uniquely Gaulish context ...

) religion of

Late Antiquity Late antiquity is the time of transition from classical antiquity to the Middle Ages, generally spanning the 3rd–7th century in Europe and adjacent areas bordering the Mediterranean Basin. The popularization of this periodization in English ha ...

. The prehistoric

Bryn Celli Ddu Bryn Celli Ddu is a prehistoric site on the Welsh island of Anglesey located near Llanddaniel Fab. Its name means 'the mound in the dark grove'. It was archaeologically excavated between 1928 and 1929. Visitors can get inside the mound thr ...

, considered to be one of Wales's finest

passage grave A passage grave or passage tomb consists of one or more burial chambers covered in earth or with stone, and having a narrow access passage made of large stones. These structures usually date from the Neolithic Age, and are found largely in Wester ...

s,, RCAHMW, accessed 12 June 2014 is located from the river. Near to the village of Dwyran, there is a series of large

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

stepping stones across the river. There is a Grade II listed bridge in close proximity to

. In 2004, the river flooded causing disruption to the train services on the Holyhead to Chester line at the

crossing. A

tugboat A tugboat or tug is a marine vessel that manoeuvres other vessels by pushing or pulling them, with direct contact or a tow line. These boats typically tug ships in circumstances where they cannot or should not move under their own power, su ...

has been named after the river; the '' Afon Braint'' was delivered to the Holyhead Towing Company in April 2005.

Description

Notes

References

External links