Aberffraw is a village and

community A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a country, village, ...

on the south west coast of the

Isle of 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, ...

( cy, Ynys Môn), in

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 ...

, by the west bank of the Afon Ffraw (Ffraw River). The community includes Soar and Dothan. Located near the A4080 and the nearest rail station is

Bodorgan Bodorgan is a village and community on the Isle of Anglesey, Wales, United Kingdom. According to the 2001 Census, there were 1,503 residents in the now former electoral ward, 72.7% of them being able to speak Welsh. This increased to 1,704 at t ...

History

In the early

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

, Aberffraw was the capital of the

Kingdom of Gwynedd The Kingdom of Gwynedd (Medieval Latin: ; Middle Welsh: ) was a Welsh kingdom and a Roman Empire successor state that emerged in sub-Roman Britain in the 5th century during the Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain. Based in northwest Wales, th ...

from c.860 AD until c.1170. Under the House of Aberffraw it came to be the most important political centre in

medieval Wales {{Commons category Period 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 t ...

. The '' Llys'' remained the symbolic throne of the Kings of Gwynedd from the 9th century to the 13th century. The Royal Annals of

Edward I of England Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vas ...

show the Llys was dismantled in 1315 to provide building materials for nearby

Beaumaris Castle Beaumaris Castle ( ; cy, Castell Biwmares ), in Beaumaris, Anglesey, Wales, was built as part of Edward I's campaign to conquer north Wales after 1282. Plans were probably first made to construct the castle in 1284, but this was delayed d ...

...appeared to demonstrate the presence of a two-phase, round-angled, rectangular enclosure, at least 70m NNE-SSW, thought to represent a Roman military work, refurnished in the early medieval period as a llys (Princely court) enclosure; although a radio-carbon date centring on the period 27-387AD, appears to support this thesis, the identification of a Roman work is currently out of favour: the site of the llys, whose (partial?) dismantling is recorded in 1317, is regarded as uncertain: two sculptured heads, of apparent C13 style, are known from the village (White 1978): the putative curving angle of the enclosure has been suggested to hint at the former presence of a motte: excavations at the traditional site of the llys, about 650m to the WSW, recorded only C18 remains. Excavation, 1973-4 (White 1979).

Aberffraw village

At the 2011 census, Aberffraw had a population of 620, of which 67.5% speak Welsh. Attractions near Aberffraw village include Llyn Coron,

Barclodiad y Gawres Barclodiad y Gawres ( Welsh for "The Giantess's Apronful") is a Neolithic burial chamber between Rhosneigr and Aberffraw on the south-western coast of the island of Anglesey in North Wales. It is an example of a cruciform passage grave, a nota ...

, a

neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several p ...

burial chamber and the tidal island of Cribinau with church of Saint Cwyfan perched on top. The church still holds services in the summer and is sometimes used for weddings. The village has a sandy beach, which was awarded the Blue flag rural beach award in 2005, and is on the Anglesey Coastal Path. There is a

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional ser ...

in the village.

St Beuno's Church, Aberffraw St Beuno's Church, Aberffraw is a 12th-century parish church in Anglesey, north Wales. A church was established in Aberffraw in the 7th century by St Beuno, who became the abbot of Clynnog Fawr, Gwynedd. St Beuno's may have been used as a roya ...

, dates from the 12th century and is a Grade II* listed building. The village also has an

association football team Association may refer to: *Club (organization), an association of two or more people united by a common interest or goal *Trade association, an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry *Voluntary associatio ...

. The village school, Ysgol Aberffraw, closed in 2011.

Governance

Until the 2012 Isle of Anglesey electoral boundary changes an electoral ward in the same name existed. This ward also included part of the community of Llanfaelog. The total population was 1,370. Since the boundary changes Aberfrraw has been part of a larger Bro Aberffraw ward which elects two county councillors to the

Isle of Anglesey County Council The Isle of Anglesey County Council ( cy, Cyngor Sir Ynys Môn) is the local authority for the county of Anglesey, one of the principal areas of Wales. Since 2022 the council has 35 councillors who represent 11 multi-member electoral wards. Hi ...

Demographics

Aberffraw's population was 620, according to the 2011 census; a 1.97% increase since the 608 people noted in 2001. The 2011 census showed 67.5% of the population could speak Welsh, a fall from 80.8% in 2001.

In mythology

Welsh mythology Welsh mythology (Welsh: ''Mytholeg Cymru'') consists of both folk traditions developed in Wales, and traditions developed by the Celtic Britons elsewhere before the end of the first millennium. As in most of the predominantly oral societies Celti ...

, Aberffraw features as the site of

Branwen Branwen, Daughter of Llŷr is a major character in the Second Branch of the ''Mabinogi'', which is sometimes called the "Mabinogi of Branwen" after her. Branwen is a daughter of Llŷr and Penarddun. She is married to Matholwch, King of Ireland, ...

and

Matholwch Matholwch, King of Ireland, is a character in the Second Branch of the '' Mabinogi'', the tale of Branwen ferch Llŷr. The story opens with Bendigeidfran (Bran the Blessed), giant and king of Britain, sitting on a rock by the sea at Harlech an ...

's wedding festival, where

Efnysien Efnisien fab Euroswydd (also spelled Efnissien or Efnysien) is a sadistic anti-hero in Welsh mythology, appearing prominently in the tale of ''Branwen ferch Llŷr'', the second branch of the Mabinogi. Described by Will Parker as "a study in the psy ...

maimed Matholwch's horses.''

The Mabinogion The ''Mabinogion'' () are the earliest Welsh prose stories, and belong to the Matter of Britain. The stories were compiled in Middle Welsh in the 12th–13th centuries from earlier oral traditions. There are two main source manuscripts, create ...

:'
Branwen the Daughter of Llyr
translated by

Lady Charlotte Guest Lady Charlotte Elizabeth Guest (née Bertie; 19 May 1812 – 15 January 1895), later Lady Charlotte Schreiber, was an English aristocrat who is best known as the first publisher in modern print format of the '' Mabinogion'', the earliest prose l ...

. Online a
www.sacred-texts.com

Notes

External links

A Vision of Britain Through Time

British Listed Buildings
*
Geograph

Office for National Statistics

Ysgol Aberffraw
{{Celtic mythology (Welsh) Former wards of Anglesey