Llanddeiniolen

Llanddeiniolen (Welsh: [ɬanðɛinɪˈɔlɛn]; Welsh pronunciationⓘ) is the name of a community area, in the county of Gwynedd, Wales, and is 124 miles (200 km) from Cardiff and 206 miles (332 km) from London. It comprises the hamlet also called Llanddeiniolen, and the villages of Deiniolen, Bethel, Dinorwig, Rhiwlas, Brynrefail and Penisarwaun. It is the third-largest community by population in Gwynedd, with 5072 people in the 2011 census.[1] Also in the community is the dispersed settlement of Fachwen, located on the north shore of Llyn Padarn. The name derives from the Welsh saint Deiniol (died 584).

Llanddeiniolen
Llanddeiniolen, from Pen Dinas Hill
Llanddeiniolen is located in Gwynedd
Llanddeiniolen
Llanddeiniolen
Location within Gwynedd
Area41.03 km2 (15.84 sq mi)
Population5,072 
• Density124/km2 (320/sq mi)
OS grid referenceSH 5476 6627
• Cardiff124.4 mi (200.2 km)
• London206.0 mi (331.5 km)
Community
  • Llanddeiniolen
Principal area
CountryWales
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townCAERNARFON
Postcode districtLL55
Post townBANGOR
Postcode districtLL57
PoliceNorth Wales
FireNorth Wales
AmbulanceWelsh

Castell

Castell Llanddeiniolen, some 900m west of Rhiwlas, is a hill of glacial drift whose sides have been dug away to give a steeper slope. It has been identified as a Norman motte but is not a typical one. It may be a medieval ringwork – approximately, a motte and bailey without a motte – but may also be a small Iron Age fort.[2]

Dinas Dinorwig

The hill-fort Dinas Dinorwig, enclosing about a hectare of land, lies 1km south-east of the hamlet centre and 3.5km from the Menai Strait. It has an inner wall, surrounded by two massive ramparts of earth and rubble, surrounded in turn by a ditch some 4 metres wide.[3]

It is thought that it was part of the territory of the Ordovices tribe, and the element -orwig, -orweg has been derived from the tribal name Ordovices;[4] although this idea was rejected by the linguist Melville Richards for lack of a sufficiently early record of a form *Orddwig..[5]

In 77 CE, at some unknown location in the territory of the Ordovices, the Roman governor Agricola led his troops up a hill to a decisive victory. He collected a force of veterans and a small body of auxiliaries; then as the Ordovices would not venture to descend into the plain, he put himself in front of the ranks to inspire all with the same courage against a common danger, and led his troops up a hill. The tribe was all but exterminated. He went on to conquer Anglesey, sending cavalry recruited in other parts of Britain swimming over the Menai Strait before the defenders of Anglesey were ready.[6]

See also

References
  1. "Custom report – Nomis – Official Labour Market Statistics".
  2. Castell, Llanddeiniolen https://coflein.gov.uk/en/site/302643/ A. N. Coward, RCAHMW, 16.01.2019
  3. Dinas Dinorwig Hillfort https://coflein.gov.uk/en/site/95283/
  4. A history of Wales from the earliest times to the Edwardian conquest. John Edward Lloyd , M.A., Longmans Green & Co. 1911 p.119 "Dinorwig, which is found as Dinorddwig" https://www.library.wales/digital-exhibitions-space/digital-exhibitions/europeana-rise-of-literacy/history-books/a-history-of-wales-from-the-earliest-times-to-the-edwardian-conquest#?c=&m=&s=&cv=146&xywh=-1453%2C-1%2C5399%2C3766
  5. Some Welsh place-names containing elements which are found in Continental Celtic. In Études celtiques Année 1972 13-1 pp. 364–410 p. 377 Actes du quatrième congrès international d'études celtiques (Rennes 18–25 juillet 1971) Volume I. Linguistique celtique "A massive hill-fort and the name of a mediaeval township. Persistent attempts have been made to equate -orwig, -orweg with the tribal name Ordovices, but these must be rejected in the absence of an early Welsh form *Orddwig. In view of the obvious importance and extent of the hill-forts of Dinorben and Dinorwig we should perhaps begin to think of a possible element *dinor, i.e. din + a collective suffix -or. The elements byn/-ben and -weg/wig must remain conjectural." https://www.persee.fr/doc/ecelt_0373-1928_1972_num_13_1_1512
  6. "Cornelius Tacitus, the Life of Cnæus Julius Agricola, chapter 18".
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