Early Welsh Manuscripts, Part III

A famous quote (translation from Dal:Yma/Nawr) from Y Gododdin shows Aneurin's underlying criticism of the battle and his skill at both praising and condemning simultaneously:

Warriors went to Catraeth,
a ready host,
Green mead was their drink,
and it proved bitter.
Three hundred in ranks under orders:
And after the tumult, silence.
They could have gone to churches
or penance,
but it was certain that death
would have them.

Both Aneurin and Taliesin followed an existing tradition of poetry that praised their rulers and preserved history and legend. This tradition continued in centuries to come, and the rules of cynghanedd which derive from their compositions can be seen in Welsh poetry throughout the centuries up to the modern day, including Dylan Thomas, who wrote in English. Small wonder that the Welsh poetic tradition is regarded so highly around the world.

Sources of further information:

Dal:Yma/Nawr home page.
Dal:Yma/Nawr is a movie featuring Welsh poetry from a 2,000-year period being read aloud by poets and performers from Wales. Don't miss the reading from Aneirin's "The Gododdin"-you can listen to the audio file online.

Four Ancient Books of Wales by William F. Skene
Sacred-texts.com has an electronic version of this book from 1868, which contains translations of the poems in the Books of Aneirin and Taliesin.

Gathering the Jewels: Llyfr Aneirin
Gathering the Jewels-the website for Welsh cultural history-has 44 images of the pages of the Book of Aneirin manuscript.

Go Britannia! Welsh Literature: Heroic Poetry
Peter Williams' excellent summary of Welsh literature begins with a look at Aneurin and Taliesin.

National Library of Wales Digital Mirror: The Book of Taliesin
Information and image files of the Book of Taliesin.

Ty'r Beirdd
Information, transcriptions, and translations of several famous Welsh manuscripts compiled by Mary Jones of Paley Library, Temple University.

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