The Welsh Valentine

                        

Happy 'Valentines' Day! 

However, did  you know that the Welsh Valentine's Day is actually 25th January - St Dwynwen's Day? (Although not too many people celebrate it these days.)

There are several legends about St Dwynwen, this is one of the most popular: Dwynwen was the beautiful daughter of Brychan Brycheiniog. She fell in love with a prince called Maelon Dafodrill, but unfortunately her father had already arranged that she should marry someone else.

Dwynwen was so upset that she could not marry Maelon that she begged God to make her forget him. After falling asleep, Dwynwen was visited by an angel, who appeared carrying a sweet potion designed to erase all memory of Maelon and turn him into a block of ice. He then gave three wishes to Dwynwen. Her first wish was that Maelon be thawed; her second that God meet the hopes and dreams of true lovers; and third, that she should never marry. Dwynwen became a nun, fulfilling her wish to never marry, and left for the island of Anglesey to build a Church. This is referred to as Llanddwynwen, literally meaning 'Church of Dwynwen'.

Isn't that a romantic (if rather sad) story?

The lighthouse and cross at Llanddwynwen

(Picture courtesy of Wikipaedia)

The remains of St Dwynwen's Church today

For insider news and subscriber-only info, subscribe to my occasional Newsletter. I promise not to spam and your in-box will only see an email from me every 3 or 4 months or so - unless of course I have something really Newsworthy to share!
I also promise that I never have and never will share your information or email address with anyone or any organisation.  http://madmimi.com/signups/196357/join

St Dwynwen's Day

                        

Happy 'Valentines' Day! No, I haven't got my dates mixed up, January 25th is St Dwynwen's Day - the Welsh Valentine's Day! There are several legends about St Dwynwen, this is one of the most popular: Dwynwen was the beautiful daughter of Brychan Brycheiniog. She fell in love with a prince called Maelon Dafodrill, but unfortunately her father had already arranged that she should marry someone else.

Dwynwen was so upset that she could not marry Maelon that she begged God to make her forget him. After falling asleep, Dwynwen was visited by an angel, who appeared carrying a sweet potion designed to erase all memory of Maelon and turn him into a block of ice. He then gave three wishes to Dwynwen. Her first wish was that Maelon be thawed; her second that God meet the hopes and dreams of true lovers; and third, that she should never marry. Dwynwen became a nun, fulfilling her wish to never marry, and left for the island of Anglesey to build a Church. This is referred to as Llanddwynwen, literally meaning 'Church of Dwynwen'.

Isn't that a romantic (if rather sad) story?

Happy St Dwynwen's Day!

The lighthouse and cross at Llanddwynwen

(Picture courtesy of Wikipaedia)

The remains of St Dwynwen's Church today

Oh, and of course Happy Burns Night to our friends North of the Border!

For insider news and subscriber-only info, subscribe to my occasional Newsletter. I promise not to spam and your in-box will only see an email from me every 3 or 4 months or so - unless of course I have something really Newsworthy to share! http://madmimi.com/signups/196357/join Every new subscriber will get a FREEdownload of my fantasy novella 'Dancing With Fate' (If this doesn't arrive within two days just email me at hywelalyn@btinternet.com)

The story of the giant' s stones - Monday's Welsh Legend

In North Wales lies an ancient road, stretching between the Island of Anglesey in the west and the Welsh border towns to the east.One summer's day, two red faced, ginger haired giants, trudged along the road. As is the wont with giants, they were ill tempered and quarrelled as they walked along. They intended to build a large house for themselves on the island of Anglesey. (some variations of the legends say they were going to build a bridge.) One of the gaints carried a large stone under each arm, which would form the window frame of the house. His wife held in her apron a bundle of smaller rocks to be used for the walls of their new home.

They  set out at sunrise from Chester but had lost their way on the tricky narrow pathways. When they finally found the right road, it was steep and stony, climbing and winding into the mountains, and by now the giants had spent a long day walking under the hot summer sun and were becoming weary. Grumbling and complaining, they eventually reached the highest point of a pass between the mountain ranges and looked out toward the Island of Anglesey.

They were stopped in their tracks by the sight of a young man coming toward them,  carrying a sackful of worn out leather shoes and  sandals.
The giants stared down at  the young man and asked him how far it was to Anglesey.
 "Well," the mischievous cobbler said, opening his sack, not at all afraid of the giants, "all these shoes were new when I left there!" Of course this was not really the case and he intended to repair the shoes and sell them at the next market town.

Dismayed by the belief that they still had  a long journey ahead of them, the giant cursed and threw down his boulders, which stuck upright in the soft earth on either side of the track. The giantess also emptied her apron full of rocks and tipped them out on the side of the path, where they can still be seen if you walk along the old Roman Road, through Bwlch y Ddeufaen the Pass of Two Stones.

I imagine there are many similar legends from around the world - do you know of a similar one referring to the area where you live?