Welsh Place Names E-G

EBBW VALE / GLYNEBWY (Gwe) Ebboth Fawr (1296). Earliest record: Eboth (river name) (1101-20). Meaning: Ebbw Vale, ‘the vale of River Ebwy', is an artificial 19^th century name. Ebwy comes from WELSH eb- ‘horse' and either gwyth ‘anger' or gwydd ‘wild'. WELSH glyn means ‘glen'.

ELLESMERE (Shr) Ellesmere (1200). Earliest record: Ellesmeles (1086). Meaning: Elli's OE mere ‘lake'.

ERBISTOCK (Clw) Erbystok (1291). Earliest record: Erpestoch (1086). Meaning: probably "Erp's stoc"; from OE stoc ‘place'.

EVENJOBB (Pow) Emynghop (1303). Meaning: "Emma's valley"; from OE -ing ‘associated with, belonging to' and hop ‘valley'.

EWENNY (MGl) Ewenny Meaning: from Aventi (a Celtic goddess). The abbey was founded in the 12^th century

EWLOE (Clw) Ewloe Meaning: possibly from OE iw ‘yew tree' and hlaw ‘hill'. The Welsh castle was completed by Llywelyn ap Gruffudd.

EWYAS LACY (Her) Ewyas Lascy (13^th century). Earliest record: Ewias (1086). Meaning: see Euuias Haraldi. It was held by Roger de Laci in the Domesday Book.

EWYAS HAROLD (Her) Euuias Haraldi (1177). Earliest record: Ewias (1086). Meaning: from a WELSH word for sheep, related to ewig ‘doe', and -as ‘district'. It was held by Harold, a great-nephew of Edward the Confessor.

FFESTINIOG (Gwy) Ffestynyok (1419-20). Meaning: from WELSH ffestiniog ‘stronghold'. "Ffestyn's territory" from WELSH -iog ‘territory of' is a less probable alternative.

FISHGUARD / ABERGWAUN (Dyf) Fissingard (13^th century) / Aber gweun (1210). Earliest record: Fissigart (1200). Meaning: from OLD NORSE fiskigarthr "enclosure for catching or holding fish". Welsh Meaning: from WELSH aber ‘mouth' and the river name Gwaun, itself derived from gwaun ‘marsh, water-meadow'.

FLINT / Y FFLINT (Clw) Flynt (1277). Meaning: from MIDDLE ENGLISH flint ‘flint, hard rock' on which the castle was built (just after the date of this map). In FRENCH it was le Chaylou (1277) from caillou also meaning ‘flint'.

FORDEN / FFORTUN (Clw) Forton (1322). Earliest record: Furtune (1086). Earliest Welsh record: fortun (14^th century). Meaning: OE ford ‘ford' and tun ‘farm, settlement'.

GELLIGAER (MGl) Gelligaer Meaning: from WELSH gelli ‘small wood', y ‘the' and caer ‘fort'.

GLADESTRY (Pow) Claudestre (c. 1250). Meaning: from an unknown personal name and OE treo ‘tree'.

GLASBURY (Pow) Classebury (1322). Earliest record: Clastbyrig (1056). Earliest Welsh record: Y Klas ar Wy (1566). Meaning: from WELSH clas ‘monastic community, precinct belonging to a church' and OE burh ‘fortified manor, fort'.

GLASCWM (Pow) Glascwm Meaning: WELSH glas ‘green' and cwm ‘shallow valley'.

GOLDCLIFF (Gwe) Goldeclive (1290). Earliest record: Goldclive (c. 1191). Meaning: OE gold and clive ‘cliff', a description supported by Gerald of Wales.

GOODRICH (Her) Godrich (1307). Earliest record: castellum Godric (1102). Meaning: an ‘elliptical' name derived from the name of the builder.

GOODWICK / WDIG (Dyf) Wdig Meaning: OSCAN gothr ‘good' and vik ‘bay' (hence Viking) or OE vic ‘port'. Originally it must have been simply the name of the bay and is shown as such on the map. Welsh Meaning: translation of the above.

GRESFORD (Clw) Gresford (1291). Earliest record: Gretford (1086). Meaning: from OE græs ‘grass' and ford.

GROSMONT (Gwe) Grossemont (1278). Earliest record: Grossomonte (1186). Meaning: OFRENCH ‘great hill', where the castle was built in the period after 1201.

GUMFRESTON (Dyf) Gunffreyston (14^th century). Earliest record: Villa Gunfrid (1291). Meaning: Gunfrid's OE tun ‘farm, settlement'.

GWENDDWR (Pow) Gwenddwr Meaning: WELSH ‘fair water'.

GWESPYR (Clw) Westbury (1332). Earliest record: Wesberie (1086). Meaning: OE west burh ‘fort, fortified manor'.