William Saunders (January 17, 1806 – June 30, 1851) was a poet and writer in Welsh, whose work won prizes at

eisteddfod In Welsh culture, an ''eisteddfod'' is an institution and festival with several ranked competitions, including in poetry and music. The term ''eisteddfod'', which is formed from the Welsh morphemes: , meaning 'sit', and , meaning 'be', means, a ...

au in

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 elsewhere. He was a printer by trade.Dictionary of Welsh Biography. Retrieved 16 October 2019.
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Birth and education

William Saunders was born on 17 January 1806 at Gwarcwm, Llanllwni,

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. ...

, the son of a farmer, Evan Saunders. He went to school in the local village of Castellhywel and then to

Carmarthen Grammar School Queen Elizabeth Grammar School Carmarthen was a selective boys' secondary school in Carmarthen, Carmarthenshire. It was founded in 1576 and closed in 1978. Former students Among the school's former pupils were the educationalist Griffith Jones ( ...

. After completing school, he became apprenticed to a printer in Carmarthen. He later joined the workforce of Samuel Williams, a printer in

Aberystwyth Aberystwyth (; ) is a University town, university and seaside town and a community (Wales), community in Ceredigion, Wales. It is the largest town in Ceredigion and from Aberaeron, the county's other administrative centre. In 2021, the popula ...

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 ...

Poetry and printing

While working in Aberystwyth, Saunders gained prominence for his nature poems and for metrical translations. He won eisteddfod prizes in Carmarthen and other places. His titles included "Y Gwanwyn" (Spring), "Yr Haf" (Summer), "Yr Hydref" (Autumn), "Y Gaeaf" (Winter), "Y Daran" (Clap) and "Y Môr" (The Sea). In 1830 Saunders moved to the printing and publishing firm of William Rees (1808–1873) in the smaller market town of

Llandovery Llandovery (; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Carmarthenshire, Wales. It lies on the River Tywi and at the junction of the A40 road, A40 and A483 road, A483 roads, about north-east of Carmarthen, north of Swansea and w ...

, Carmarthenshire. He continued to work there until his death, on 30 June 1851.

Namesake

Another poet and author named William Saunders, not known to be related to him, wrote in English in the mid-20th century.Mothering Sunday. Retrieved 16 October 2019.
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saunders, William (poet) 1806 births 1851 deaths Welsh-language poets 19th-century Welsh poets Welsh male poets Welsh translators People from Carmarthenshire Writers from Aberystwyth People from Llandovery 19th-century British translators