Cynwyl Elfed (; sometimes Conwyl and formerly anglicised as Conwil Elvet or Conwil in Elvet) is a village and

community A community is a social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic, such as place, set of norms, culture, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given g ...

in the county of

Carmarthenshire Carmarthenshire (; or informally ') is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the county town and administrative centre. ...

, Wales. The community includes the villages of Cynwyl Elfed, Blaenycoed and Cwmduad. It is situated about north of

Carmarthen Carmarthen (, ; , 'Merlin's fort' or possibly 'Sea-town fort') is the county town of Carmarthenshire and a community (Wales), community in Wales, lying on the River Towy north of its estuary in Carmarthen Bay. At the 2021 United Kingdom cen ...

and had a population of 953 in 2001, increasing to 1,044 at the 2011 Census. The area around the village has yielded a significant number of Roman artefacts, including a statue of

Diana Diana most commonly refers to: * Diana (name), given name (including a list of people with the name) * Diana (mythology), ancient Roman goddess of the hunt and wild animals; later associated with the Moon * Diana, Princess of Wales (1961–1997), ...

. It was the most important centre of the

commote A commote (, sometimes spelt in older documents as , plural , less frequently )'' Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru'' (University of Wales Dictionary), p. 643 was a secular division of land in Medieval Wales. The word derives from the prefix ("together" ...

of Elfed in the Middle Ages. Standing Stone and Pasture - geograph

Cynwyl Elfed transmitting station stands on high ground to the north of the village.

Governance

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected t ...

of the same name exists. This ward stretches south to Newchurch and Merthyr. There is a

community council A community council is a public representative body in Great Britain. In England they may be statutory parish councils by another name, under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007, or they may be non-statutory bodies. ...

of the same name and also the ward is represented by one councillor in

Carmarthenshire County Council Carmarthenshire County Council ( or ''Cyngor Sir Gaerfyrddin'') is the local authority for the county of Carmarthenshire, Wales. It provides a range of services including education, planning, transport, social services and public safety. The co ...

. The total population of this ward taken at the 2011 Census was 3,018. The community is bordered by the communities of: Llangeler; Llanfihangel-ar-Arth;

Llanpumsaint Llanpumsaint (; Welsh "Llan" church + "pum" five + "saint" saint(s)) is a village and community in Carmarthenshire, Wales. In the 2001 UK Census, Llanpumsaint community had a population of 595. It is not to be confused with Pumsaint, a small v ...

; Bronwydd; Newchurch and Merthyr; Abernant; Trelech; and

Cenarth Cenarth () is a village, parish and community in Carmarthenshire, on the border between Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire, and close to the border with Pembrokeshire, Wales. It stands on the banks of the River Teifi, east of Cardigan and west o ...

, all being in Carmarthenshire.

River

The

River Gwili : ''For the river which flows into the River Loughor see Afon Gwili (Loughor)'' The River Gwili () in Carmarthenshire, is a tributary of the River Towy, the longest river entirely in Wales. Its headwater is found east of Llanllawddog, in the ...

() is a

tributary A tributary, or an ''affluent'', is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream (''main stem'' or ''"parent"''), river, or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries, and the main stem river into which they ...

of the

River Towy The River Towy (, ; also known as the River Tywi) is one of the longest rivers flowing entirely within Wales. Its total length is . It is noted for its sea trout and salmon fishing. Route The Towy rises within of the source of the River Teif ...

, the longest river entirely in Wales. Rising to the east of Llanllawddog, in the

Brechfa Forest The Brechfa Forest is a forest in Carmarthenshire, south Wales. Brechfa Forest is the 'modern' name for part of the ancient Glyn Cothi Forest. From before records began in the 6th century the communities in the 15 villages which encircle Glyn C ...

, it runs west, through

, to its confluence with the

River Duad A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of its course if it ru ...

, just south of Cynwyl Elfed village. Then its course turns to the southeast, running through Bronwydd before joining the River Towy at

Abergwili Abergwili () is a village and community (Wales), community in Carmarthenshire, Wales, near the confluence of the rivers River Towy, Towy and River Gwili, Gwili, close to the town of Carmarthen. It is also an Abergwili (electoral ward), electoral ...

Railway

The

Gwili Railway The Gwili Railway () is a Welsh heritage railway, that operates a preserved standard gauge heritage railway, railway line from the site of Abergwili Junction (near Carmarthen) in South West Wales, southwest Wales along a section of the former ...

( Welsh: ''Rheilffordd Gwili'') is a Welsh standard gauge

heritage railway A heritage railway or heritage railroad (U.S. usage) is a railway operated as living history to re-create or preserve railway scenes of the past. Heritage railways are often old railway lines preserved in a state depicting a period (or periods) ...

from the former

Junction, near

, along a short section of the former Carmarthen to Aberystwyth railway that closed for passenger traffic in 1965. Based at

Bronwydd Arms railway station Bronwydd Arms railway station, originally a stop on the now closed Carmarthen to Aberystwyth Line, is the headquarters of the preserved Gwili Railway, in Wales, United Kingdom. The station first opened on 3 September 1860 as part of the Carma ...

, the Gwili Railway currently owns of the old railway line, which once ran past Cynwyl Elfed.

Roads

The A484 is an A road from

Swansea Swansea ( ; ) is a coastal City status in the United Kingdom, city and the List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, second-largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of ...

to Cardigan, and runs through Cynwyl Elfed affording connections to

and the A40.

Amenities

The

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), 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 com ...

of St Cynwyl of the Church in Wales, founded in the 6th century, contains 14th century elements and a

barrel roof A barrel roof is a curved roof that, especially from below, is curved like a cut-away barrel. They have some advantages over dome roofs, especially being able to cover rectangular buildings, due to their uniform cross-section. Barrel vaults are ...

. It is a grade II* listed building. Cynwyl Elfed has a primary school.

Notable people

* Howell Elvet Lewis (1860–1953), the Independent minister, hymn-writer, poet, known as Elfed. The house where he was born, 'Y Gangell' is to the west of Cynwyl Elfed near Blaenycoed and contains a small exhibition of his life. * David Lyn (1927–2012), a Welsh television, film and stage actor; raised on a smallholding in Cynwyl Elfed *

Denzil Davies David John Denzil Davies (9 October 1938 – 10 October 2018) was a Welsh Labour Party politician. He served for 35 years as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Llanelli from 1970 to 2005. He was a Treasury Minister (1975–1979); a member of ...

(1938–2018), Welsh Labour Party politician, Member of Parliament (MP) for

Llanelli ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Carmarthenshire and the Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is on the estuary of the River Loughor and is the largest town in the Principal areas of Wales, ...

from

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 1970 Tonghai earthquake, Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli ...

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

, and a member of the Privy Council.

External links

:
Photos of Cynwyl Elfed and surrounds
at Geograph.org.uk

Notes

{{authority control Communities in Carmarthenshire Villages in Carmarthenshire