250 px, Location of Cantref Gwarthaf and its commotes (dark green) in southwest Wales Cantref Gwarthaf was the largest of the seven ''

cantref A cantref ( ; ; plural cantrefi or cantrefs; also rendered as ''cantred'') was a medieval Welsh land division, particularly important in the administration of Welsh law. Description Land in medieval Wales was divided into ''cantrefi'', which wer ...

i'' of

Dyfed Dyfed () is a preserved county in southwestern Wales. It is a mostly rural area with a coastline on the Irish Sea and the Bristol Channel. Between 1974 and 1996, Dyfed was also the name of the area's county council and the name remains in use ...

in southwest

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

. It subsequently became part of

Deheubarth Deheubarth (; lit. "Right-hand Part", thus "the South") was a regional name for the realms of south Wales, particularly as opposed to Gwynedd (Latin: ''Venedotia''). It is now used as a shorthand for the various realms united under the House o ...

in around 950. It consisted of the southeastern part of Dyfed containing most of the basin of the

River Tâf The River Taf ( cy, Afon Taf) is a river in West Wales. It rises in the Preseli Hills, Pembrokeshire, and continues through Carmarthenshire to Laugharne. It is one of the three rivers to enter the sea on the east side of Carmarthen Bay. The ot ...

, parts of modern-day Pembrokeshire and

Carmarthenshire Carmarthenshire ( cy, Sir Gaerfyrddin; or informally ') is a county in the south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the county town and administrative centre. The county is known ...

. The name means "upper-most zone". Its area was about . Unlike the other Dyfed ''cantrefi'' which were divided into two (or fewer) commotes, Cantref Gwarthaf was divided into eight commotes: Amgoed, Derllys, Efelfre, {{ill, Elfed (cymwd), lt=Elfed, cy, Elfed (cwmwd), br, Elfed (kombod), Penrhyn, Peuliniog, Talacharn, and Ystlwys. Its civil headquarters were at

Carmarthen Carmarthen (, RP: ; cy, Caerfyrddin , "Merlin's fort" or "Sea-town fort") is the county town of Carmarthenshire and a community in Wales, lying on the River Towy. north of its estuary in Carmarthen Bay. The population was 14,185 in 2011, ...

. Its ecclesiastical centre (and perhaps, in the Age of the Saints, the seat of a bishopWilliams, A. H., ''An Introduction to the History of Wales'': Volume I: ''Prehistoric Times to 1063'', UoWP, 1941, pp 120-121) was probably also Carmarthen, although the churches at

Llanddowror Llanddowror is a village and a community in Carmarthenshire, Wales situated from St. Clears. Previously on the trunk road to Pembroke Dock, the village is small, historic and relatively unspoilt. Llanddowror is famous for being the home of its ...

and Meidrim were also important. The cantref was made part of the Norman

March March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the second of seven months to have a length of 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of March ...

in the 12th century. Marcher Boroughs were established at Carmarthen,

Llansteffan Llansteffan, is a village and a community situated on the south coast of Carmarthenshire, Wales, lying on the estuary of the River Tywi, south of Carmarthen. Description The community includes Llanybri and is bordered by the communities of: ...

Laugharne Laugharne ( cy, Talacharn) is a town on the south coast of Carmarthenshire, Wales, lying on the estuary of the River Tâf. The ancient borough of Laugharne Township ( cy, Treflan Lacharn) with its Corporation and Charter is a unique survival ...

and

St Clears St Clears ( ; cy, Sanclêr) on the River Tâf in Carmarthenshire, Wales, is both a small town and a community. At the 2011 census, the population was 2,995. The community includes the small settlements of Bancyfelin and Pwlltrap. It is border ...

, and many other castles were built. The commotes of Talacharn and Penrhyn became English-speaking at the time, but was subsequently re-cymricised (except for the coastal part of Talacharn). The rest of the cantref remained

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 peopl ...

-speaking, as it continues today. At the time of the Acts of Union (1535 and 1542), the cantref was split between the newly formed counties, when Efelfre became part of Narberth

hundred 100 or one hundred (Roman numeral: C) is the natural number following 99 and preceding 101. In medieval contexts, it may be described as the short hundred or five score in order to differentiate the English and Germanic use of "hundred" to des ...

, Pembrokeshire and the rest became part of

: Amgoed, Penrhyn, Peuliniog, Talacharn, Ystlwys and part of Derllys became Derllys hundred, while Elfed and the rest of Derllys were combined with Emlyn Uwch Cuch and Gwidigada commote of Cantref Mawr to form Elfed hundred.

Notes

Cantrefs History of Carmarthenshire History of Pembrokeshire