Dewi Morgan (1877 – 1 April 1971), also known by his

bardic name A bardic name (, ) is a pseudonym used in Wales, Cornwall, or Brittany by poets and other artists, especially those involved in the eisteddfod movement. The Welsh language, Welsh term bardd ('poet') originally referred to the Welsh poets of the M ...

"Dewi Teifi", was a Welsh

bard In Celtic cultures, a bard is an oral repository and professional story teller, verse-maker, music composer, oral historian and genealogist, employed by a patron (such as a monarch or chieftain) to commemorate one or more of the patron's a ...

, scholar and journalist, who won the

Chair A chair is a type of seat, typically designed for one person and consisting of one or more legs, a flat or slightly angled seat and a back-rest. It may be made of wood, metal, or synthetic materials, and may be padded or upholstered in vario ...

at the 1925

National Eisteddfod of Wales The National Eisteddfod of Wales ( Welsh: ') is the largest of several eisteddfodau that are held annually, mostly in Wales. Its eight days of competitions and performances are considered the largest music and poetry festival in Europe. Competito ...

Pwllheli Pwllheli ( ; ) is a market town and community on the Llŷn Peninsula (), in Gwynedd, north-west Wales. It had a population of 4,076 in 2011, which declined slightly to 3,947 in 2021; a large proportion (81%) were Welsh language, Welsh speaking. ...

with his important

awdl In Welsh poetry, an ''awdl'' () is a long poem in strict metre (i.e. ''cynghanedd''). Originally, an ''awdl'' could be a relatively short poem unified by its use of a single end-rhyme (the word is related to ''odl'', "rhyme"), using cynghanedd; ...

recounting the legend of

Cantre'r Gwaelod , also known as or , is a legendary ancient sunken kingdom said to have occupied a tract of fertile land lying between Ramsey Island and Bardsey Island in what is now Cardigan Bay to the west of Wales. It has been described as a "Welsh Atla ...

Biography

Born David Morgan at 'Bryndderwen',

Dôl-y-Bont Dol-y-bont ("bridge meadow") is a village in Ceredigion, Wales; It lies near Borth, to the north of Llandre. Dôl is Welsh for "meadow", Pont is Welsh for "bridge". The village was the birthplace of Welsh bard and scholar Dewi Teifi (1877–19 ...

Cardiganshire Ceredigion (), historically Cardiganshire (, ), is a county in the west of Wales. It borders Gwynedd across the Dyfi estuary to the north, Powys to the east, Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire to the south, and the Irish Sea to the west. Ab ...

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

, opposite Capel y Babell, he was the son of William Morgan (1842–1917) and Jane James (1846–1922). He later claimed that his ancestry stretched back to Sir Gruffudd Fychan of

Denbigh Denbigh ( ; ) is a market town and a community (Wales), community in Denbighshire, Wales. It was the original county town of the Denbighshire (historic), historic county of Denbighshire created in 1536. Denbigh's Welsh name () translates to ...

, who had been knighted in the field at the

Battle of Agincourt The Battle of Agincourt ( ; ) was an English victory in the Hundred Years' War. It took place on 25 October 1415 (Saint Crispin's Day) near Azincourt, in northern France. The unexpected victory of the vastly outnumbered English troops agains ...

by Henry V in 1426. Dewi Morgan moved with his family to Pen-y-garn when he was two years old, after his father built and opened a grocer’s shop there called Garn House. The sign above the door of the shop read “William Morgan, General Merchant”, and as well a being a grocer, Dewi’s father sold coal and carried goods. Dewi Morgan was largely self-taught, having had little formal education, becoming a master of the form of strict-meter Welsh poetry known as

Cynghanedd In Welsh-language poetry, ''cynghanedd'' (, literally "harmony") is the basic concept of sound-arrangement within one line, using Stress (linguistics), stress, alliteration and rhyme. The various forms of ''cynghanedd'' show up in the definitions ...

. He regularly competed at regional and local eisteddfodau, winning his first eisteddfod Chair at the age of twenty-two. Following his success at Pwllheli, he said that one of the two greatest influences on his life was the headmaster of Rhydypennau School, John Evans; the other was his great friend T. Gwynn Jones. Through his friendship with the latter Morgan not only deepened his understanding and appreciation of Welsh literature, but also broadened his knowledge to encompass the wider European literary tradition. Amongst his other friends could be counted many Welsh scholars and academics, including

T. H. Parry-Williams Sir Thomas Herbert Parry-Williams (21 September 1887 – 3 March 1975) was a Welsh poet, author and academic. Parry-Williams was born at Tŷ'r Ysgol ('the Schoolhouse') in Rhyd Ddu, Caernarfonshire, Wales. He was educated at the University C ...

T. E. Nicholas Thomas Evan Nicholas (6 October 1879 – 19 April 1971), who used the bardic name , was a Welsh language poet, preacher, radical, and champion of the disadvantaged of society. Early life Nicholas was born at ''Blaunwaun Felen'' in Llanfyrnach ...

and Eifion Wyn. He encouraged many young poets and writers, particularly the young Tom Macdonald who lived across the road from Dewi in Pen-y-garn. Tom Macdonald, who knew him as “Dewi Garnhouse”, makes reference to Dewi's influence upon him in his writings. For many years Dewi Morgan was sub-editor for the Welsh language newspaper ''

Baner ac Amserau Cymru The ''Baner ac Amserau Cymru'' (established in 1857) was a weekly Welsh language newspaper, distributed throughout Wales and in the Liverpool area. It contained local and national news and information. It was formed by the amalgamation of ''Baner ...

'', under Prosser Rhys, as well as being on the staff of '' Y Tyst'' and the Welsh editor at the ''

Cambrian News The ''Cambrian News'' is a weekly newspaper distributed in Wales. It was founded in 1860 and is based in Cefn Llan Science Park, Aberystwyth. Cambrian News Ltd was bought by media entrepreneur Sir Ray Tindle in 1998. History The paper was f ...

''.Jones, Gwilym R., 'Ledled Cymru: Marw Prifardd', ''Baner ac Amserau Cymru'', 15 Ebrill 1971

Family

Dewi Morgan was married three times, first to Minnie Davies on 22 September 1909; then to Olwen Eluned Jones on 9 September 1931 (who died on 2 November 1947 aged only 47 years); and finally to Sarah Margaretta Morgan in 1950 (1877–1957). His second son is Lord Elystan Morgan. His grandchild is author Lleucu Roberts.

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Morgan, Dewi 1877 births 1971 deaths 19th-century Welsh poets 20th-century Welsh poets Chaired bards Welsh Eisteddfod winners People from Ceredigion Welsh journalists Welsh-language poets