Clynnog Fawr, often simply called "Clynnog", 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, villag ...

on the north coast of Llŷn Peninsula in Gwynedd, north-west

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 is in the historic county of Caernarfonshire. The community includes Pant Glas. Clynnog Fawr lies on the

A499 road The A499 road is the major road of the Llŷn peninsula in North Wales. Its northern terminus is a roundabout with the A487 trunk road between Llanwnda and Llandwrog It then runs south-westerly along the northern coast of the peninsula, throu ...

between Caernarfon and Pwllheli, at , between the coast and a mountainous area including

Bwlch Mawr Bwlch Mawr is a hill near the northeastern corner of the Llŷn Peninsula in the community of Clynnog in the county of Gwynedd in North Wales. Its name is an odd one for a hill, as it means "big pass" in English. It forms the eastern half of a wi ...

. It had a

population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using ...

of 130 in 1991, which had increased to 997 at the 2011 Census. The

covers an area of . The main feature of the village is the

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activitie ...

, dedicated to Saint Beuno, which is much larger than would be expected in a village of Clynnog's size. The site is said to be that of a Celtic

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone ( hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whic ...

founded by Beuno in the early 7th century. Clynnog means 'the place of the holly-trees': compare Breton ''

Quelneuc Quelneuc () is a former commune in the Morbihan department of Brittany in north-western France. On 1 January 2017, it was merged into the commune Carentoir. It developed into an important foundation and some Welsh law manuscripts specify that the Abbot of Clynnog was entitled to a seat at the court of the king of Gwynedd. Ffynnon Beuno Clynnog Fawr - geograph

Deial Haul Eglwys Beuno Sant Clynnog Fawr Sundial - geograph

The church is recorded as having been burnt in 978 by the

Vikings Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

and later burnt again by the

Normans The Normans ( Norman: ''Normaunds''; french: Normands; la, Nortmanni/Normanni) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norse Viking settlers and indigenous West Franks and Gallo-Romans. T ...

. By the end of the 15th century it was a collegiate church, one of only six in Wales. The church was an important stopping place for pilgrims heading for Bardsey Island and contains ''Cyff Beuno'', an ancient wooden chest hollowed out of a single piece of ash and used to keep alms given by the pilgrims. ''Maen Beuno'' or "Beuno's Stone" has markings reputed to be those of Beuno's fingers. Outside in the churchyard there is a canonical sundial dated between the late 10th century and the early 12th century. ''Ffynnon Beuno'' (St Beuno's Well) is a Grade II* listed structure at the south-west end of the village. The church is a major location on the North Wales Pilgrims Way. The church is open from 10am to 4pm every day. The area has been the site of a number of battles, including the Battle of Bron yr Erw in 1075 when Gruffudd ap Cynan's first bid to become king of Gwynedd was defeated by Trahaearn ap Caradog, and the Battle of Bryn Derwin in 1255 when Llywelyn ap Gruffudd defeated his brothers Owain and Dafydd to become sole ruler of Gwynedd.

Modern era

Clynog Golf Club (now defunct) appeared only briefly after World War I. It had disappeared by the mid-1920s. Clynnog's population was 997, according to the 2011 census; this was a 15.9% increase since the 860 people noted in

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a multi-national coalition in an invasion of Afghanistan ...

. The 2011 census showed 73.2% of the population could speak

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 ...

, a rise from 67.2% in 2001. The Clynnog electoral ward elects one councillor to sit on Gwynedd Council. Clynnog is covered by a Neighbourhood Policing Team based in the nearby village of Penygroes.

Notable people

* Morus Clynnog (ca. 1525 - 1581), Welsh Roman Catholic priest and recusant exile. * St. John Jones (ca. 1530 - 1598), a Franciscan friar, Roman Catholic priest, and martyr. * Ebenezer Thomas (1802–1863), a Welsh teacher and poet, bardic name of ''Eben Fardd'', moved to the village in 1827, where he lived opposite the church.

References

{{authority control Villages in Gwynedd Clynnog