The Cambridge History of Welsh Literature

The Cambridge History of Welsh Literature
Author: Geraint Evans
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 857
Release: 2019-04-18
Genre: Literary Criticism
ISBN: 1107106761

This book is a comprehensive single-volume history of literature in the two major languages of Wales from post-Roman to post-devolution Britain.

Arthur in Medieval Welsh Literature

Arthur in Medieval Welsh Literature
Author: Oliver James Padel
Publisher: University of Wales Press
Total Pages: 121
Release: 2013-05-30
Genre: History
ISBN: 0708326587

Although the legends of Arthur have been popular throughout Europe from the Middle Ages onwards, the earliest references to Arthur are to be found in Welsh literature, starting with the Welsh-Latin Historia Brittonum dating from the ninth century. By the twelfth century, Arthur was a renowned figure wherever Welsh and her sister languages were spoken. O. J. Padel now provides an overall survey of medieval Welsh literary references to Arthur and emphasizes the importance of understanding the character and purpose of the texts in which allusions to Arthur occur. Texts from different genres are considered together, and shed new light on the use that different authors make of the multifaceted figure of Arthur – from the folk legend associated with magic and animals to the literary hero, soldier and defender of country and faith. Other figures associated with Arthur, such as Cai, Bedwyr and Gwenhwyfar, are also discussed here.

A Bibliography of Welsh Literature in English Translation

A Bibliography of Welsh Literature in English Translation
Author: S. Rhian Reynolds
Publisher:
Total Pages: 296
Release: 2005
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN:

A Bibliography of Welsh Literature in English Translation is a groundbreaking volume that maps for the first time the translation history of Wales's two languages. This is also the first listing of Welsh-English literary translations and should be an indispensable tool not only for scholars but also for lay readers and for students of Celtic and Welsh literatures. As a resource that opens up for the first time one of the richest fields of translation in the British context, this bibliography is also a pioneering Welsh contribution to the burgeoning academic field of translation studies. The Centre for Research into the English Literature and Language of Wales (CREW), directed by Professor M. Wynn Thomas, received a prestitgious research grant from the Arts and Humanities Research Board for a one-year project in 2001 that was to culminate in a web-based database, an international conference and this published volume. S. Rhian Reynolds was employed as the postdoctoral research officer for the project, which grew far beyond the expected lifespan due to the wealth and quantity of the material uncovered. Translation practice has encompased the whole wealth of Welsh-language literature and among the thousands of translations recorded here are the acknowledged classics of European culture---The Mabinogion, the work of Dafydd ap Gwilym, the hymns of William Williams Pantycelyn and the plays, fiction, and political writings of Saunders Lewis. Ever since Welsh-English translation was first instigated in the eighteenth century it has provided an invaluable interface between Wales and the wider world (even non-anglophone cultures usually discover Welsh-language literature through the medium of English), between Wales and the other countries of the British Isles and (most importantly of all, perhaps) between the two cultures of Wales itself.

The Arthur of the Welsh

The Arthur of the Welsh
Author: Rachel Bromwich
Publisher:
Total Pages: 334
Release: 1991
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN:

Publisher description: This volume is unique in offering a comprehensive discussion of the Arthurian legend in Medieval Welsh literature. Little, if anything, is known historically of Arthur, yet for centuries the romances of Arthur and his court dominated the imaginative literature of Europe in many languages. The roots of this vast flowering of the Arthurian legend are to be found in early Welsh tradition and this volume gives an account of the Arthurian literature produced in Wales, in both Welsh and Latin, during the Middle Ages. The distinguished contributors offer a comprehensive view of recent scholarship relating to Arthurian literature in early Welsh and other Brythonic sources.

The Welsh Language

The Welsh Language
Author: Janet Davies
Publisher: University of Wales Press
Total Pages: 224
Release: 2014-01-15
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1783160209

The existence of the Welsh-language can come as a surprise to those who assume that English is the foundation language of Britain. However, J. R. R. Tolkien described Welsh as the 'senior language of the men of Britain'. Visitors from outside Wales may be intrigued by the existence of Welsh and will want to find out how a language which has, for at least fifteen hundred years, been the closest neighbour of English, enjoys such vibrancy, bearing in mind that English has obliterated languages thousands of miles from the coasts of England. This book offers a broad historical survey of Welsh-language culture from sixth-century heroic poetry to television and pop culture in the early twenty-first century. The public status of the language is considered and the role of Welsh is compared with the roles of other of the non-state languages of Europe. This new edition of The Welsh Language offers a full assessment of the implications of the linguistic statistics produced by the 2011 Census. The volume contains maps and plans showing the demographic and geographic spread of Welsh over the ages, charts examining the links between words in Welsh and those in other Indo-European languages, and illustrations of key publications and figures in the history of the language. It concludes with brief guides to the pronunciation, the dialects and the grammar of Welsh.

The Oxford Companion to the Literature of Wales

The Oxford Companion to the Literature of Wales
Author: Meic Stephens
Publisher: Oxford [Oxfordshire] ; New York : Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 714
Release: 1986
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN:

For a small land, Wales has produced an extraordinarily large and accomplished body of literature. The Oxford Companion to the Literature of Wales provides an excellent guide to Welsh literary heritage, ranging from the Druids and the days of King Arthur to the present-day flowering of Welsh national consciousness. In a little less than 3,000 entries, it captures the complexities of Welsh poetic art, the lives and achievements of its greatest writers, the myths, legends and colorful folktales, and the events and movements that have informed its history. A wealth of detailed information, the Companion is indispensable for anyone interested in the literature and culture of Wales.

A Guide to Welsh Literature: c. 1900-1996

A Guide to Welsh Literature: c. 1900-1996
Author: Alfred Owen Hughes Jarman
Publisher:
Total Pages: 324
Release: 1992
Genre: Literary Criticism
ISBN:

This is the sixth in a series of volumes outlining the history and development of Welsh literature from its beginnings in the sixth century to the present day. This book provides a detailed critical introduction to the literature of the Welsh language in the twentieth century. The opening chapter discusses the literary revival which began towards the end of the nineteenth century and which had a crucial influence on twentieth-century literature. It is followed by chapters on the literature of the First World War, the rich poetic tradition, the novel, the short story, and drama. The volume closes with a survey of the contemporary situation. No period can compare with the twentieth century in terms of quantity or quality of literature. This abundance is assessed by a team of experts who write with critical authority on the state of modern Welsh literature. The result is an informative guide which shows what is both excellent and distinctive in twentieth-century Welsh literature.