Schedule of place names: G - M

Cardiff Records: Volume 5. Originally published by Cardiff Records Committee, Cardiff, 1905.

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'Schedule of place names: G - M', in Cardiff Records: Volume 5, (Cardiff, 1905) pp. 369-394. British History Online https://www.british-history.ac.uk/cardiff-records/vol5/pp369-394 [accessed 19 April 2024]

G - M

GABALFA, Y; or Caubalfa, (the ferry.) A hamlet and a mansion in the parish of Llandaff, on the left bank of the river Taff, near Llandaff ford and bridge. In 1612 "Cabalva, 5 acres" was found to be concealed land and was demised to Oliver Robotham.

GALLOWS FIELDS, The. Two meadows on the north-eastern boundary of the Borough, at the west side of the junction between Crwys Road, Castle Road and Albany Road (1803.) Their site is now intersected by Richmond Road, which, at its junction with the above roads, apparently runs along the boundary between the two Gallows Fields. These were oblong, their eastern ends abutting on the junction between Crwys Road and Castle Road (plan of 1820.) The name reminds us that this was anciently the place of public executions. The fields were originally in four plots, known as 1. Gallows Pit, 2. Pwll-halog ("Defiled Pool") or Plwca-halog ("Defiled Pleck"), 3. Cut-throats, and 4. Cae-pudr ("Putrid Close.") These measured one acre each, and were a portion of the Little Heath, near the site of Woodville.

GALLOWS PIT. One of the Gallows Fields.

GALLOWS YARD (1821.) That part of the former Gaol in which public executions took place. It was a court off Saint Mary Street, about opposite the London and Provincial Bank. In older records the place is called the Gall House (1715.)

GARDD-Y-CRUG, "Carthcreke" (the hillock garden.) A garden in the lordship of Whitchurch, scheduled in 1492.

GARTH, The. (The round, untilled hill-top.) A round, bare mountain at the entrance to the Taff Vale, on the river's right bank, eight miles north-west from Cardiff and chiefly in the parish of Pentyrch.

GARTH COURT (1878.)

GASCOIN. Mr. Corbett marks with this name a small piece of land south of Portmanmoor and just south-west of the Tharsis Copper Works, on the shore of the East Moors.

GELLI, Y (the grove.) A farm in the chapelry of Whitchurch.

GELLI-GRON, Y (the round grove.) A piece of land in the parish of Llantrisant (1655.)

GILFACH-WEN, Y (the white nook.) A tenement in the parish of Saint Fagan (c. 1670.)

GLAMORGAN. Welsh Gwlad Morgan, or Gwladforgan (the land of Morgan.) Anciently a Cambro-British princedom extending from Neath eastward to Usk; now one of the Welsh counties, lying between the shires of Carmarthen, Brecknock and Monmouth. The name is traditionally ascribed to Morgan, a prince of this territory, who was a kinsman of King Arthur.

GLAN-ELY (recteGlan Elai,) "the bank of the Ely river." A house and grounds a little to the west of Ely and Fairwater.

GLAN-Y-NANT (the bank of the brook.) A house on a little stream near Fairwater (1885.)

GLAN-YR-AFON (the bank of the river.) A house near the right bank of the Taff, in the parish of Radyr.

GLASSPOOL, "Glaspole" (probably from Welsh pwll glas, green pool.) Another name for the little manor of Plas-Turton (1438.)

GLOUCESTER, The Honour of. The superior Norman lordship palatine which included the old native principalities of Gwent and Morganwg. Though for a long period it was held by one lord, the Honour was afterwards divided among two and more marcher lords; of whom the Lord of Glamorgan held Cardiff Castle and the manors which were subject to it.

GLYN, Y (the valley.) A piece of land in the lordship of Pentyrch (1492.)

GLYN-TAF (the vale of the Taff.) The narrow mouth of the river's valley, in the parish of Eglwysilan. The forest or uncultivated portion of this valley was in 1307 appurtenant to the lordship of Llantrisant.

GOBBINS' MILL. A grist-mill in the parish of Pentyrch in the bedelry of Miscyn (1547.)

GOCKET, Cocket, The; "Gockid." A tenement in Pentyrch (c. 1670, 1763.) This name is found also in Monmouthshire and West Herefordshire, and near Swansea.

GOETRE, Y; "Goytre" (the habitation in the wood.) A tenement in the parish of Radyr and lordship of Miscyn (1666.)

GOFER-Y-MARCHOG (the rivulet of the knight.) A piece of land near Pont-Lleici, in the parish of Roath and manor of RoathKeynsham (1702.)

GOLATE. A lane leading from Saint Mary Street westward down the left bank of the old bed of the river Taff to Westgate Street. It was sometimes called the Golly Gate (1786), and the Goleet. The name is a variant of Gully-yat, i.e., gully passage, in allusion to a stream which ran down here into the Taff. There is a certain historical interest in the popular but erroneous derivation which attributed the name to the fact that this lane afforded an opportunity to procrastinating mariners to "go late" aboard their vessels as these swung down the river from the Quay. It is called Golate in a document of 1738, the Gall Gate 1748, Gollyate and Gollgate in 1750, Gullate 1779, and "The Goo-late" from 1840 to 1850.

GOLDENHOOK, "Gouldenhoke," Great and Little. Two pieces of pasture land measuring twelve and eleven acres respectively, in the lordship of Roath (1492.)

GOLDEN LION COURT. A part of Barry Lane, adjoining the Golden Lion inn (1880.)

GOLDSLAND. Welsh Tregold. A manor held by a branch of Mathew of Llandaff, under the manor of Wenvoe (1583.)

GOOSE ACRE. A piece of pasture land in the parish of Llandaff, belonging to the Archdeacon and Chapter of the Cathedral (c. 1560.)

GOOSELEAS, "Goslyu's." A parcel of land in the lordship of Roath (1542.) It is the pasture land between Roath church and the Deri farm. In the Roath-Keynsham Survey of 1703 it is called Goose Lease.

GORSLON, The. A field of eight acres in the parish of Leckwith (1717.)

GORSWG (the boggy place.) A small house in the parish of Llanedern, on the west bank of the river Rhymny, north of Lanrumney.

"GOVOA." A common in the parish of Leckwith (1725.)

GOWER. A place in the parish of Leckwith, south of the village.

GOWT, The. A fishery in the lordship of Roath (1542.)

GRACE'S HOUSE. This was property of the Corporation. The lease was lost as long ago as 1738, and from about 1750 no rent was paid for the premises; but it figures in the Rentals down to 1817, by which time the very identity of the house was forgotten.

GRAIG, Y (the rock.) A farmhouse between Fairwater and St. Fagan's (1886.)

GRAIG-FACH, Y (the little rock.) A farm in the parish of Lisvane.

GRANGE DE MORE, Moor Grange, or simply Grange. An ancient monastic tithe-barn in the parish of Llandaff, on the Moors west of Cardiff, which belonged to the abbot and monks of Margam Abbey. The old barn, which was lately a farm-house, is still standing and gives its name to Cardiff's south-western suburb, Grangetown, built in the seventies of the 19th century. The Grange Farm, as it is called, shews some slight remains of mediaeval architecture, and many fragments of Gothic windowtracery lie about. This house stands, with a small marketgarden, at the north-west corner of Stockland Street, close to the east side of Clive Street, Grangetown. In the memory of persons yet living, it was the only house between Cardiff and Penarth.

GRANGETOWN. The south-western suburb of Cardiff, built on the West Moors between Cardiff and Penarth. So called from the ancient Grange which, until about the year 1870, was the only building in that vicinity. (Vide Grange de More.) This part of the town lies in the parish of Llandaff.

GREAT FRIARS' CLOSE. A field at the Grey Friars (c. 1540.)

GREAT HOSTRY, The. A burgage to which adjoined twelve acres of meadow in Robertscroft, within the franchise of the town of Cardiff (1555.)

GREAT WESTERN APPROACH. The wide road rising to the level of the departure platform of the Great Western Railway Station, Cardiff, from the south end of Saint Mary Street. It is a private road in the possession of the Company, and was constructed in 1866, after filling in the old bed of the river Taff.

GREAT WESTERN LANE. A narrow thoroughfare leading from Wood Street southwards to Great Western Approach, parallel with the west side of Saint Mary Street. For its whole length this lane crosses the site of old Saint Mary's churchyard.

GREEN LANE. The name by which Broadway, Roath, was known until 1875.

GREENMEADOW. A mansion in the hamlet of Tongwynlais, in the chapelry of Whitchurch ; the residence of Henry Lewis, esq., J.P.

GREENMEADOW COURT. A secluded square court, with six small houses and a walled garden, off the west side of a narrow lane forming the southernmost continuation of Baker's Row.

GREENSAYS. A tenement west of Cogan.

GREENWARD, "Greneourde." Certain pastures in the marshlands of the lordship of Roath (1492, 1542.)

GREEN WAY, "Grenewey." A road forming the northern boundary of Pensisli Isaf, in the parish of Llandaff (1543.) Also a homestead in the parish of Rumney (1731.)

GREYFRIARS. The convent of Franciscans, or mendicant friars. It was situate on the north side of Crockherbtown, and its remains may still be seen in Lord Bute's garden, adjoining Cathays Park on the south. The convent was founded 1280. At the Suppression it was granted to the Herbert family, who rebuilt the house for their residence and called it "The Friars." It was then regarded as the mansion of a manor called "Kibbor and Cardiff otherwise Friars," and, more recently, "White Friars and Kibbor."

GRIFFIN'S FARM. A farmhouse on Ely Common, on the north side of Cowbridge Road.

GRIFFITHSMOOR. A lordship under that of Whitchurch, consisting mainly of the flat land along the Severn shore, from Cardiff to the Rhymny bridge, parcel of the possessions of Gruffydd ap Rhys, confiscated to the Lord of Glamorgan circa 1266. It is apparently identical with Pengam. The name occurs in 1702, but is now obsolete.

GROES-LLWYD, Y (the grey, hoary or venerable cross.) Between the city of Llandaff and the hamlet of Fairwater (1592.)

GROES-WEN, Y (the white or blessed cross.) A place in the parish of Radyr (1708.)

GUILDHALL, The. Anciently called the Booth Hall. It stood in the middle of High Street, between the High Cross and the Castle Gate. After being several times rebuilt, it was finally demolished in 1861.

GWAELOD-Y-GARTH (the bottom of the round, untilled hill.) A farm and hamlet in the parish of Pentyrch, at the eastern base of the Garth mountain.

GWAUN-DYLLGOED (the meadow of the holed trees.) A close in Llandaff parish. "Gwayne dulcoyd" (1647.) "Gwayne Killgoed" (1612.) Fairwater Mead, on the south side of the road from Llandaff to Fairwater.

GWAUN-FEIBION-SION, "Gwayne Veibon Shone" (the meadow of the sons of Joan.) A tenement in the parish of Pentyrch and lordship of Miscyn (1666.)

GWAUN-GALED (the hard meadow.) Near Llanishen (1653.)

GWAUN-MAELOG, "Gwain y Mailloch" (Maeloc's mead.) A meadow bordering on the south-west of Pengam (1702.) Also described as a tenement and six acres in Roath Moor, in the manor of Llystalybont (1653.)

GWAUN-SION-HYWEL (John Howel's mead.) A piece of land on the shore of the East Moor (1764.)

GWAUN-SYR-HARI (Sir Henry's meadow.) Two acres in the parish of Llandaff belonging to the Chapter (1673.)

GWAUN-TRE-ODA (the meadow of the habitation of Oda.) The Welsh name for Whitchurch Common, now inaccurately applied also to the old farmhouse of Treoda.

GWAUN-Y-CEFN-COED, "Gwain-y-Kinkod" (the meadow of the ridge of the wood.) In the parish of Llantrisant (1761.)

GWAUN-Y-GWAYW-COCH (the meadow of the red spear.) A tenement holden by Sir Trevor Williams in the parish of Saint Fagan, manor of Pentyrch and Clun (c. 1670.)

"GWAUN-Y-PENTRAHAND." A place on the Great Heath, on the boundary of Roath-Keynsham (1702.)

GWAUN-Y-PWLL (the meadow of the pool.) In the parish of Roath and manor of Roath-Keynsham. It was holden with Pengam in 1702.

GWELYDD-COCHION (red walls.) Nine acres of land in the parishes of Leckwith and Llandaff, adjoining to Canton Common. A will of 1712 refers to it as "Gwynith Cochen." Mr. J. S. Corbett's map shews "Gwynydd Cochion" as lying between Canton Common and Rusham.

GWELYDD-GWYNION (white walls.) A piece of land at Canton, on the south side of Cowbridge Road, near the Commons of Ely and Leckwith.

GWENT. An ancient Cambro-British kingdom in South Wales, adjoining Glamorgan on the east and separated from it by the river Rhymny. At various times and according to different computations, the dividing river has been stated to be the Taff, the Rhymny, the Usk and the Afon-llwyd; but these discrepancies may be accounted for on the supposition that the territory named Gwentllwg (which was bounded by the Taff or the Rhymny on the west and the Usk or the Afon-llwyd on the east) was not a portion of the kingdom of Gwent but of Glamorgan—in which case the Usk or the Afon-llwyd would be the western boundary of Gwent proper. Gwent was anciently considered as extending eastward to the bridge of Gloucester. In its modern signification, Gwent is the county of Monmouth and so lies between the rivers Rhymny and Wye. (Vide Monmouthshire.) Gwent was a part of the territory of the Silures, who offered such a long resistance to the force of imperial Rome; and in the early middle ages it was regarded as forming a portion of the Welsh kingdom of Morganwg—but there is very great confusion in the nomenclature of this region.

GWENTLLWG. A Hundred and lordship in south-west Monmouthshire, lying along the Severn shore from the Usk westward to the Rhymny. Anciently it was sometimes considered as extending to the Taff, and was held under the Lord of Glamorgan and Morganwg. The derivation of both halves of the name is as yet unknown. (fn. 1)

GWERN-GWLADYS (the alder-trees of Gladys.) A tenement in Pentyrch (c. 1670.)

GWERN-LLEWELYN-GOCH (the alder-trees of Llewelyn the redhaired.) A parcel of ground in the parish of Llanishen (1583.)

HAMS, Hames, The. Certain pasture lands just north of Cardiff.

HANER-CNAP (the half knob.) Half an acre at Canton (1713.)

HANER-FACH (the little half-acre.) A field in Canton (1713.)

"HANNEREG, The." (?Haner-erw, half-acre, or Haner-ddeg, halften.) A close in the city of Llandaff (1755.)

HARP-ACRE (the harp-shaped piece of land.) A meadow in the lordship of Leckwith (1492.)

HAYES, The; "le heys." A part of the town near the east wall. To describe it in terms of the present day, it is a street running from south to north, from the north end of Bute Street to the Free Library. In 1550—1610 the Hayes (as its name implies) was open ground, largely consisting of gardens, with small detached tenements interspersed; yet it lay within the town wall. The name was applied particularly to one cottage and piece of ground (1817), approach to which was by a footpath and a stone stile (1820.) The Hays Close is named in a document of 1786. These premises were situate about where is now the Batchelor statue.

HAYES STILE, The. This figures as a gate at the north end of the Hayes, between it and Working Street, in Speed's map of 1610. The name was afterwards borne by a house and garden which stood here (1829.)

HAYWARD'S PLOT, The. A meadow in the lordship of Roath, named in a Minister's Account of 1492. It belonged to the office of Prevost of Cardiff.

HAYWOOD. A piece of pasture land in the lordship of Llantrisant (1307.)

HEATH, The; or Cardiff Heath. A wide tract of once uncultivated land lying immediately north of Cardiff. It is divided into two portions, called in English the Great Heath, and the Little Heath, the latter lying nearest the town. The entire Heath extends from the boundary of Saint John's parish northward to the foot of Cefn-on. Common rights in the Heath were granted in ancient times to the burgesses of Cardiff, but were gradually extinguished until, early in the 19th century, the whole remainder of the common land was divided among private owners by the Enclosure Awards of 1802 and 1809. A large share fell to the Corporation, but was eventually sold. The Heath Farm lands, close to the old Race Course, were sold in 1849, to raise funds for building a new Town Hall. The remainder was disposed of circa 1863, to obtain the purchase-money for the new Cemetery. On the north of Ton-yr-ywen, the Heath may be seen in its original state, clad in gorse, fern and moss.

HEATH, THE GREAT, but in Welsh Mynydd Bychan ("the Little Heath.") A wide tract of once uncultivated land lying to the north of Cardiff. The English name distinguishes it from the Little Heath, in Welsh Waun Ddyfal ("the waste mead,") which lies between the Great Heath and the town. The Great Heath was divided under the Enclosure Award of 1809, the Corporation of Cardiff receiving a large share in fee, which they sold to various persons between 1809 and 1849. The name Mynydd Bychan is particularly that of a small farm three miles north north-west of Cardiff, on the east side of the road to Cefn-on.

HEATH, THE LITTLE. In Welsh Waun Ddyfal ("the waste mead.") A tract of land, mostly pasture, lying immediately north of Cardiff. The English name distinguishes it from the Great Heath, in Welsh Mynydd Bychan ("the Little Heath,") which extends further to the north. Sold to various persons, 1803–1835.

HEATHLANDS. A house near Maendy and Mynachdy, on the North Road.

HEAVES, The. Certain marshes, part of Cardiff Moor (1649.)

HENDRE (the old homestead.) A house in the city of Llandaff, on the south side of the street leading to Radyr. This interesting Welsh word denotes the permanent country-house, as opposed to the Hafoty (Havotty) or summer house; which last was a mere shieling among the hills, inhabited only during the warm months while the cattle were being pastured. The name Hendre is also borne by a pasture containing 4½ acres, held by a free tenant in the lordship of Roath (1542.) Prior to the Dissolution, it belonged to Margam Abbey.

HENDRE-DENY (the old habitation of Denis.) A hamlet in the parish of Eglwysilan (1793.)

HEN MEADOWS, The. Marked on Mr. Corbett's map as situate close to the south side of the G.W.R., north-west of the Dumballs.

HEOL-COSTIN, "Hewl y Coston" (Costin's lane.) In the parish of Lavernock (1726.)

HEOL-DON (the lane to the layland.) A house in the parish of Whitchurch, on the west of Velindre (1886.)

HEOL-GOED (the lane of the wood.) Running north and south on Cardiff Heath (1653.)

HEOL-HIR (the long lane.) In the parish of Llanishen (1653, 1756.) Also a farm in the manor of and near Llystalybont (1818.)

HEOL-HOISCYN (Hoskin's lane.) In the manor of Llystalybont, on the western slope of the Cefn-coed (1653.)

HEOL-ISAF (lower lane.) A house near the right bank of the Taff, in the parish of Radyr.

HEOL-RHIW'R-CYRPH (the lane at the slope of the corpses.) In the parish of Whitchurch (1605.)

HEOL-WILYM (William's lane.) A place in or near the parish of Llanishen (1583.)

HEOL-Y-CAWL. The Welsh name for Wharton Street. It means "Crock-herb Street," or "Worten Street." It occurs, as the only name for Wharton Street, in a conveyance of 1830.

HEOL-Y-CEFN-COED, Cefn-coed Lane, runs from the new Merthyr Road (now Albany Road) northwards across the Nant-mawr at Pont-Lleici and along the top of the ridge called Cefn-coed. It is now called Pen-y-lan Road till it reaches the summit.

HEOL-Y-PARC (park lane.) In the parish of Pentyrch (1738.)

HERMITAGE, The. A house and small chapel built on Cardiff Bridge (1492.) The hermit had charge of the bridge, and was supported, as was the bridge chapel, by the pious alms of the people and by various grants from the lord. A burgage called the Hermitage, at Cardiff Bridge, is mentioned in a document of 1542.

HEYN, The. A place in the Treasurer's Manor of Llandaff (1535.)

"HIEN TOR" (possibly Hen-dwr, the old tower.) A place in the fee of Llystalybont, and west of Dobbinpits, referred to in a private charter of 1326.

HIGH CORNER HOUSE. A seventeenth-century tenement with two overhanging stories, situate at the north-west corner of Duke Street, where a short lane led up to the Castle entrance. It was the office of Lord Bute's Solicitor, Mr. Edward Priest Richards, and was demolished 1877. Roberts' draper's shop occupies the adjacent site.

HIGH CROSS, The. The cross-ways at the meeting of High Street, Saint Mary Street, Church Street and Quay Street (1798.) The site of the ancient Market Cross of the borough.

HIGHLANDS. A dwelling-house above Cogan Pill, in the parish of Llandough.

HIGHMEAD. A house and grounds on the west side of the road from Ely towards Cowbridge.

HIGH STREET. The main thoroughfare in the northern part of the old town of Cardiff, forming a northward continuation of Saint Mary Street, to the Castle gate. It is first mentioned, under its Latin form alta strata, in the municipal charter of circa 1331.

HILL-UCHAF, and Hill-isaf (? the upper and lower hills.) Places in the manor of Spital in the lordship of Roath, near the Roath Road (1666.)

HOLLYBUSH. An interesting 16th-century farmhouse, with thatched roof and chimney-stacks of curious shape, near the west side of Roath Park, and a little east of the Heath Farm.

HOLMEAD, Holemead, Great and Little. Two meadows in the lordship of Roath (1492.) Mr. Corbett marks Great Holmead as lying in Roath Moor, on the south-east of the G.W.R., adjoining Brundon Lands on the north ; with a smaller Holmead adjoining it on the south-east corner.

HOLMS, The. Two small islands in the Bristol Channel, named respectively the Flat Holm and the Steep Holm.

HORSE-FAIR, The. The land immediately outside the South Gate (c. 1820.)

HUNGRY HILL, in or near Llandaff (1535.)

ISLAND, The. A name given to the middle row in Smith Street (1849.) Also a piece of pasture-land for sheep, in the Severn marshes in the lordship of Roath (1492.) Mr. Corbett's map shews this as the land between Newport Road and Richards Terrace, with Stacey Road running across the middle of it.

ISLWYN (below the bush.) A tenement in the parish of Leckwith, between the village and the river Ely.

JOHN SAUNDERS' HOUSE, "Sauners House." In 1803 a messuage bearing this name was property of the Corporation, who sold the materials of it in 1823.

JONES' PILL. Mr. Corbett's map gives this name to a tidal inlet on the shore of Portmanmoor.

"KAE BIMSALLOG." A close in the parish of Lisvane (1597.)

"KAE Y GOBOYE." A close in the Treasurer's Manor of Llandaff (1535.)

"KAE-YR-GAYLL." A meadow near the Wattrell, on the highway from Llandaff to Plas-mawr, belonging to the Treasurer's Manor of Llandaff (1649.)

"KAE-YR-GWYFILL-Y-WAYN-ADAM" (?Gwyrfil's (fn. 2) close in Adam's mead.) Land at Cefn-coed in the parish of Llanedern and manor of Roath-Keynsham (1702.)

"KAE-YR-OVEN" (perhaps Cae-yr-ofn, the close of fear; but more likely Cae-yr-oen, the lamb's close.) A close of arable land in the Treasurer's Manor of Llandaff (1649.)

"KAYBARRY." Certain lands in Cibwr referred to in a Minister's Account of 1492. In a record of 1550 these seem to be referred to under the name "Keynerrey."

"KEGDWOW" (?Caeau duon, the black closes.) Lands in the parish of Roath and manor of Roath-Keynsham (1702.)

KENNEL, The. A piece of land on the north side of Whitmoor Lane. It was also called Southgate Field (1822.)

KETCHCROFT, Casecroft. A big piece of pasture land close to the east side of Pengam house (1900.) It is named Catch Croft in a document of 1809. Mr. Corbett marks as "Kechcroft or Casecroft" a piece of land on the Rhymny river's right bank, north-east of Pengam farmhouse.

KETTLE COURT. Off the north side of Barry Lane, parallel with the Hayes. Demolished circa 1899.

KING STREET. A thoroughfare in the eastern part of the town, between Duke Street and the East Gate. It ran from east to west, parallel with Smith Street, on the south side of the latter.

KING'S CASTLE. An ancient and very solidly-constructed house in the hamlet of Canton, on the north side of the Cowbridge Road. (1710, 1796, 1823.) The name and origin of the place are involved in obscurity. It had a garden between it and the road, and was demolished 1892 to make way for the Davies Memorial Hall. Little King's Castle was an old tenement on the north side of the Cowbridge Road, further west than the King's Castle, at the corner of King's Road, where the King's Castle Hotel now stands. This inn, lately rebuilt, was known as the King's Castle public-house in 1866.

KNAP, The. An alternative name for Allen's Bank, according to an Allotment Map of Cardiff Heath, of the commencement of the 19th century. Welsh cnap, a "knob" or tump.

KNOCKER'S HOLE. A tenement situated at the south-east corner of Barry Lane (1715, 1777, 1786, 1815.) It was a small tworoomed dwelling-house facing north, with a walled garden in front. In 1821 it was in tenure of Alderman Thomas Mathews. Demolished 1900.

KYMIN, The; recte Cymyn (the common.) The low land sloping to the shore at the beach, west of Penarth Head (1730.) A hill near Monmouth bears the same name.

KYTTE, The. Certain land which was demised with the Severn marshes within the lordship of Roath (Minister's Account, 1492.)

LAMBY MOOR. The marshy land on the east side of the Rhymny estuary.

LANCROSS (?the long cross.) A place in the parish of Rumney (1731.)

LANCROSS WOOD. In the parish of Leckwith, south of the village.

LANDMEAD, quære Longmead? Two acres of meadow at Adamsdown, named in a Minister's Account of 1492, and then lately occupied by the Gatekeeper of Cardiff Castle.

LANDORE COURT. On the west side of Saint Mary Street, between Golate and the Queen's Hotel. Sometimes called "Irish Row." It was demolished circa 1889.

LANGBY (Danish for "long village.") A place in or near the lordship of Rumney, referred to in a Minister's Account of 1402.

"LANRUMNEY," recte Glanrhymny (the bank of the Rhymny.) A manor in the parishes of Rumney and Saint Mellon in Monmouthshire, and Llanedern, Glamorgan (1653.) It is also called the manor of "Wentloog alias Keynsham." Lanrumney (often sounded Landrumney) is also the name of the mansion, which is on the river's bank in the parish of Saint Mellon.

LAVERNOCK (in Welsh Llanwernog, the church by the alder-trees; or, perhaps, Llanfrynach, the church of Saint Brynach.) A village and parish on the coast of the Vale of Glamorgan, just west from Penarth.

LAZARHOUSE, Lazarus or Leper-house, The (Latin Domus Leprosum.) A hospital situate within the liberties of Cardiff borough (1550.) Probably the Spital.

LECKWITH. Y Llechwedd (the slope.) A village and parish three miles west of Cardiff, in the Hundred of Dinas Powys. It gives its name to the Leckwith Hills, a picturesque, wooded range extending from Caerau southwards and terminating with Penarth Head. The Manor of Leckwith has always belonged to the Lord of Cardiff. The name occurs towards the end of the 12th century as that of a chapelry.

LECKWITH BOTTOM. The flat land between Cock Hill and the river Ely.

LECKWITH TOP. A hill just south of the village.

LEWIS STREET. This name was given to the northern portion of Bute Street, when first constructed circa 1835; but is now seldom used, the term Bute Street being applied to the entire length of Cardiff's principal southern thoroughfare, from the Hayes to the Pier Head.

LINCHES, The. A piece of land on Pengam Moor (1809.) Mr. Corbett marks this on his map as a series of plots of land just above ordinary high-water mark, on the East Moors, and as being the lowest marsh on this shore.

LISVANE, Llys-faen (stone court.) A village and parish in the Hundred of Cibwr, five miles north from Cardiff. It was anciently a chapelry of Roath-Tewkesbury.

LITTLE BRIDEWELL, Little Bridgewell. The Archivist has not been able to fix the locality which bore this name. It seems to have been east of Cathays garden. The name occurs from 1738 to 1786.

LITTLECROFT. 2½ acres of land in the lordship of Roath (1492.)

LITTLEHAM. Two parcels of land by the New Mill pond and the Grey Friars, within the liberties of the town of Cardiff (1492.)

LITTLEHILL, "Litelhull." In the lordship of Cogan (1492.)

LITTLE PARK. An earlier name for the Cardiff Arms Park (1886.)

LITTLE TREDEGAR. A tenement near Roath parish church (1809.)

LITTLE TROY. A garden on the west side of Working Street, on part of the site of the Free Library buildings. Its name was afterwards applied to a group of small tenements there erected (1738-1835.) So called after a maze or "Troy Town" which stood in the Trinity Garden and belonged to Saint John's church.

LLANDAFF. Welsh Llandâf (the church on the Taff.) The ecclesiastical capital of the ancient kingdoms of Glamorgan, Gwent and Ergyng. A cathedral city, a parish, a manor, a commote and a diocese. The city is about two miles northwest of Cardiff; the parish adjoins that of Saint Mary, Cardiff; the manor was anciently a marcher lordship, with a castle, held by the Bishop; the commote is divided from that of Cibwr by the river Taff on the east; the diocese comprises, practically, Glamorgan and Monmouthshire. The ecclesiastical traditions of Llandaff go back to the earliest days of the British Church ; but as a fixed see it owes its origin to Saint Teilo, its greatest bishop, who died 566. (fn. 3) The city is now joined to the town of Cardiff by a chain of dwellinghouses.

LLANDAFF, THE TREASURER'S MANOR OF. This comprises lands which from ancient times have belonged to the Treasurer for the time being of the Cathedral. The mansion, known as the Treasurer's House, stood near the Cathedral and the Bishop's Castle. Its ruins still remain. In 1291 the manor contained 32 acres.

LLANDAFF COMMON. The lands on the south of Pensisli Isaf, near Ely and Canton (1543.)

LLANDAFF COURT. The ancient mansion of the family of Mathew of Llandaff, formerly called Bryn-y-gynen, and now the palace of the Bishop of Llandaff.

LLANDAFF FIELDS. The meadows lying between Llandaff Cathedral and the Canton streets near Pont-Canna. These fields are the lands composing the most ancient grants to the see of Llandaff. They were lately conveyed by the ecclesiastical authorities to the Corporation of Cardiff as a public park.

LLANDAFF FORD. Welsh Rhyd Llandaîf. Across the river Taff just south of Llandaff Bridge. At the end of the 18th century the river's banks at this place were steepened, to render the ford impassable and so increase the bridge-toll.

LLANDAFF GREEN. A large square of grassy space in the city of Llandaff, on the west side of the Cathedral.

LLANDAFF HOUSE. A large old mansion in the city of Llandaff, at the north-east corner of the road to Saint Fagan's.

LLANDAFF YARD. A portion of the parish of Llandaff lying on the left or east bank of the river Taff.

LLANDOUGH, recté Llandoch. (The church of Saint Docheu, or Oudoceus, the third Bishop of Llandaff.) A village, parish and manor in the Hundred of Dinas Powys, 2½ miles west from Cardiff, on the eastern slope of the Leckwith hills. It is often called Llandough-juxta-Penarth, to distinguish it from Llandough near Cowbridge.

LLANEDERN (fn. 4) (the church of Saint Eternus.) A village and parish in the Hundred of Cibwr, three miles north-east from Cardiff, on the main Roman road. The name-saint founded here a choir of monks, in the 7th century.

LLANFAIR (Saint Mary's church.) A farm in the chapelry of Llanilltern; doubtless the site of a dismantled chapel.

LLANFAIR-FACH (Little Saint Mary-church.) A tenement in the parish of Saint Fagan (c. 1670.)

LLANFEDW (the church of the birch-grove.) A chapelry or township in the parish of Llanfihangel-y-fedw. The greater part of this parish lies in Monmouthshire; but the chapelry is divided from it by the river Rhymny, and is in Glamorgan.

LLANFORDA, (fn. 5) "Lambordan." An ancient chapel at Coed-y-gores, in the parish of Roath. It is referred to in a Minister's Account of 1392. It is now a cottage, called Ty'r-capel, "the chapel house."

LLANGATWG (the church of Saint Cadoc.) A farm in the parish of Llanedern; doubtless the site of a dismantled chapel.

LLANISHEN (Llan-Nisien.) A village and parish in the Hundred of Cibwr, on the right bank of the river Rhymny, four miles north from Cardiff. There was a large monastery of the ancient British Church here, presided over by Saint Nisien, or Isan.

LLANMAES (the church in the field.) A farm in the parish of Saint Fagan.

LLANTRISANT (the church of three saints.) An ancient parish and borough in the Hundred of Miscyn. The church, castle and town are picturesquely situate on a steep hill. The borough is a sister to Cardiff, and unites with her in returning a Member to Parliament. The church is dedicated in the names of Saints Illtyd, Gwyno and Tyfodwg. The castle was destroyed by Owain Glyndwr in 1404, and was probably never afterwards rebuilt. (fn. 6)

LLAN-Y-WRAICH (? llan y wrach, "the hag's enclosure.") A field on the north of Llandaff Cathedral.

LLEST-OWEN. A tenement of lands in the parish of Llantrisant (1660.)

LLOYD'S COURT. Off Camp Lane (1821.)

LLWYD-COED (grey wood.) Land in the parish of Llantrisant (1547.)

LLWYN-CELYN (Hollybush.) A farm on the Nant-mawr in the parish of Roath, on the eastern boundary of the manor of Llystalybont (1653.)

LLWYN-CRWN (the round bush.) A free tenement in the parish of Llanishen and manor of Roath-Keynsham (1702.)

LLWYN-CYNFYN, "Lloyne Convyn" (Cynfyn's bush.) A tenement in the parish of Pentyrch and lordship of Miscyn (1666), divided into Uchaf and Isaf, Higher and Lower.

LLWYN-DA-DDU, "Lloyne Da dee" (the good, black bush.) A tenement in the parish of Pentyrch and lordship of Miscyn (1666.)

LLWYN-FWYALCH, "Lloyne Vowalch" (the blackbird's bush.) A tenement in the parish of Saint Fagan and lordship of Miscyn (1666.)

LLWYN-IOLE, Llwynyoli, "Lloyn-yole." A farm in the chapelry of Llanilltern, in the parishes of Saint Fagan and Pentyrch (1568.)

LLWYN-MALLT (Maud's bush.) A farm in Whitchurch parish (1886.)

LLWYN-Y-BRAIN (the crows' bush.) A tenement in the parish of Pentyrch and lordship of Miscyn (1666.)

LLWYN-Y-GRANT, Llwyn Grawnt (Grant's bush.) The name of three farms, Upper, Lower and Middle, in the parish of Roath. Called after the surname of a Norman-Welsh family long extinct.

LLWYN-Y-PIA (the pye's bush.) A piece of land between Allen's Bank and Pen-y-waun, two furlongs east of the northern boundary of the Borough (map of 1850.) Also a farm in the parish of Lisvane.

LLWYN-YR-EOS (the nightingale's bush.) A farm in the parish of Pentyrch.

LLYN-FRAITH (the motley lake.) A place in the river Taff at Whitchurch (1760.)

LLYS-DU (the black court.) Also called Ty-mawr, Great House. A picturesque old house adjoining Roath churchyard on the south-east, between it and Cwrt-bach.

LLYS-TAL-Y-BONT (the court at the head of the bridge.) A manor, mansion and hamlet a mile north of Cardiff, on the left bank of the river Taff. It is now separated from the river by the Glamorganshire canal. The place was of very great importance in the 13th century and earlier.

LONG CLOSE. A meadow near Adamsdown (1542.)

LONGCROSS. A tall stone cross erected by a man named Payn, (fn. 7) on the eastern boundary of Saint John's parish, Cardiff, where it touches Roath. It was anciently termed Payn's Cross in legal documents, and is so described in the Cardiff municipal charter of 1340. In later times a house called Longcross House was erected near the cross. It was demolished 1844, to make way for Artillery Barracks, but a new house stood near in 1863. This in turn was pulled down c. 1880, to make room for the Glamorgan and Monmouthshire Infirmary. Longcross Street retains the old name. At the cross-ways here suicides used to be interred. Longcross House, cottage and garden stood where is now the Children's Ward of the Infirmary. There was a piece of waste land between it and the road to Adamsdown Farm (1835); which said road is now called Glossop Road and leads in a short distance to Longcross Street. Longcross is incorrectly written "Lancross" in some documents, including the Heath Enclosure Award of 1809.

LONG DIKE, The. A dike for draining the moors immediately east of the Bute Docks, in the parish of Saint John Baptist. A house near there bore the same name (1844, 1857.)

LORD'S HENGE, The. A fishery on the sea shore in the lordship of Roath, between "Pulkye" on the east and the "Weydram" on the south. Mentioned in the Account of 1542 as having been leased to Rawlyn White (fn. 8) by Edmund Turnor deceased, and theretofore belonging to the King.

LOWER LAYER, The. A place below the town of Cardiff, referred to in the Glamorganshire Canal Act, 1796.

MACKENZIE SHOAL. Between the Flat Holm and the Steep Holm, in the Bristol Channel.

MAELOC'S LODERS ("Maillokes-lodirs.") Pasture land in the manor of Rumney, referred to in a Minister's Account of 1402.

MAELOG'S FEE. A tenement held in conjunction with Llystalybont and Wysam by Sir William Maelog, temp. Hen. III. (1216-72.)

MAENDY (corruptly Maindy,) "stone house." A farm-house and hamlet on the North Road, about a mile north of Cardiff, in the manor of Llandaff. The name probably dates from a time when timber or wattle houses were the only others in the vicinity. The bounds of the parishes of Saint John (Cardiff) and Whitchurch run through Maendy Farm. There is a farm called Maendy Bach ("Little Maendy"), a short distance south of the other.

MAERDY (the steward's house.) A farm in the parish of Lisvane.

MAES-TRE-WERN (the field of the habitation by the alder-trees.) A tenement in the parish of Saint Fagan (c. 1670.)

MAES-Y-BRYN (the field on the hill.) A homestead in the parish of Llanedern (1702.)

MAES-Y-DRE (the field of the homestead.) Three quarters of land in the parish of Llandaff, the property of the Chapter (1609.)

MAES-Y-FELIN (the field of the mill.) A farm in the parish of Lisvane.

MAES-Y-LLECH (the field of the flat stone.) A farm a little west of Radyr village (1796.)

MAES-YR-EGLWYS (the church field.) Close to Lisvane church, containing three acres, parcel of the manor of Llystalybont (1653.)

MAES-Y-SAESON (the field of the Saxons.) A tenement in the parish of Peterston-super-Ely (1591.)

MALLOCK'S HOLD, Maelog's Fee. A small manor in the parish of Rumney, under the lordship of Gwentllwg. It consisted, in 1610, of 40 acres of land and seven "coveries."

MARGERY'S LAND. In the lordship of Roath (1492.) Mr. Corbett marks this as lying in three detatched portions; one south-east of Broadway, on the north-west side of the South Wales Railway; another on the other side of the line and a little further north-east; and a third further south-east, just north of the Splot.

MATTHEWS' BUILDINGS. A row of small connected dwellinghouses in New Town (1825.)

MELIN-FACH (Little Mill), also called Gibbon's Mill. A water gristmill in the parish of Pentyrch and lordship of Miscyn (1666.)

MELINGRIFFITH, recte Melin Gruffydd (Griffith's mill.) A place in the Taff Vale, at the foot of the Garth, about six miles north of the town of Cardiff. Best known by the tin-plate works which long flourished here.

MERCHES, The. A large piece of land on the West Moors, immediately west of the Dumballs (J.S.C.)

MERRY HILL. A close containing forty-seven acres, on the Great Heath (1820.)

"MEWESLESE." Certain pasture land in the lordship of Roath (1492.)

MIDDLE PINNAM, Pinion, or Pine-end, The. A burgage at the south end of the middle row in Saint Mary Street. It was the Vicarage of Saint Mary's parish. First found mentioned in 1542.

MIDDLE ROW. This name was applied to isolated blocks of houses standing in the middle of a broad street, or rather, between two narrow lanes. Thus " the Middle Row to Crockherbtown" separated Smith Street and King Street. The principal Middle Row was the one in Saint Mary Street. That which separated Castle Street from Angel Street was the last one demolished, in 1877.

MIDDLEWEIR. A fishery in the lordship of Leckwith (1492.)

MILKMAID'S BRIDGE, or Stone Bridge. Across the canal at the Hayes. Demolished 1849.

MILL-GATE, "Myllegate." A thoroughfare in the town of Cardiff, referred to in a Minister's Account of 1492. It was situate close to the west wall of the town, near the Castle.

MILL-LAND ("Mullelond.") Four acres in the manor of Rumney, referred to in a Minister's Account of 1402. There is still a water-mill on the river, between Rumney and Llanedern.

MILL LANE. The street leading from the south end of Saint Mary street in a north-easterly direction to the Hayes, along the canal. So called from the Little Steam Mill which stood on the north side of the lane. There was a tramway thence across the lane to the canal (1860.)

MILLPARROCK, "Milleparrok." A parcel of land lying between the two millstreams, just outside the west wall of Cardiff. It is mentioned in a Minister's Account of 1492.

MILLSMEAD. Two acres of meadow in the lordship of Cogan (1492.)

MILLSTREAM, The. Ran from the lord's mill, under the west wall of Cardiff Castle, into the river Taff.

MILL STREET, "Mylstret." A place in or near Llandaff (1535.)

MISCYN (in English spelling "Miskin",) anciently Meisgyn. A commote of Glamorgan, west and north of the Commote of Llandaff.

MONK-STONE, The. A big rock, with a beacon, off Lavernock Point. It is forty feet above high-water mark.

MONMOUTHSHIRE, a county of Wales; on the right bank of the Severn estuary, between Gloucestershire on the east and Glamorgan on the west, and Herefordshire and Brecknockshire north. A Welsh name for Monmouthshire is Gwent (q.v.), but it was originally applied to a wider territory, one of the Cambro-British kingdoms. The county town is Monmouth; which, though it is identified with the Roman Blestium, is an Anglo-Norman burgh. The Romano-British capital of the ancient Gwent was Caerleon, now a mere village, whose commercial importance has been transferred to Newport. The Welsh language was spoken in every parish of Monmouthshire down to the early part of the 18th century, when it began to recede westward from the Wye. During the latter half of the 19th century it finally disappeared from the parishes east of the river Usk, and, in this county, is now practically confined to the Blaenau Gwent (the West Monmouthshire hills) and the district between Newport and Cardiff. The local dialect is the Gwenhwyseg. A subdivision of this dialect is the Cerniweg (Cornish), closely akin to the extinct language of the county of Cornwall; it is spoken in the neighbourhood of Saint Mellon's. The modern notion that Monmouthshire is no longer a part of Wales is a popular error (fn. 9), founded on the irrelevant fact that this county was annexed to the Oxford Assize Circuit in the reign of Charles II.

"MON' PUPIT." This very curious and as yet unexplained placename is given, in a Minister's Account of 1537, to a tenement in the lordship of Llystalybont. In a deed of 1516 it is called "a builded tenement situate at Listallapont, commonly called Puppit." In 1811 there was a toll-gate at Popett Lane, on the high road leading from Caerphilly to Bedwas bridge.

MOOR GATE, The. The end of the road to the Cardiff Moors (1796.)

MOOR HENGE, The. A fishery on the sea shore in the lordship of Roath (1542.)

"MOREWLESE." A close of meadow land in the lordship of Cardiff and Roath, referred to in a Minister's Account of 1392.

MORFA-BACH (the little marsh.) A close in the parish of Llandaff (1756.) In 1612 "the Morva Bagh by Ely, on the other side of the water," was found to be concealed land and was demised to Oliver Robotham.

MORGAN'S FARM. An old thatched farmhouse in the parish of Penarth.

MORGANSTOWN. A cluster of workmen's dwellings on the west side of the river Taff, south of the Garth mountain.

MORGANWG. The Welsh name for the county of Glamorgan, and anciently for the united Cambro-British kingdoms of Glamorgan and Gwent. The earliest known form is Morcantuc. The etymology is similar to that of Glamorgan (q.v.), and -wg is a frequent territorial suffix.

MOUNT, The. An old house standing end-on to the east side of the Heath Road, near the Wedal Farm.

MUCHEL HETH (The Great Heath.) The name given to the Mynydd Bychan in the municipal charter of 1340.

MYNACHDY (less correctly Monachty), "the monastery." An old farmhouse in the manor of Llandaff and chapelry of Whitchurch, on the site of a pre-Norman religious foundation, the history whereof is lost but of which a memory is preserved in the Latin name for Whitchurch, viz., Album Monasterium, "the white minster." Mynachdy Bach is the name of a smaller holding, a thatched house with extensive out-buildings, a little west of Mynachdy and on the other side of the T.V.R. line.

MYNACHLOG (the monastery.) An ancient ecclesiastical building the site of which is indicated by some mounds at Ely Racecourse (1893.) The late John Storrie unearthed many Roman remains at this spot.

Footnotes

  • 1. The names Morganwg, Gwentllwg, Esyllwg, Gwehelwg &c. show that the suffix -wg meant a territory.
  • 2. Gwyrfil is an old Welsh female name.
  • 3. The Editor may be permitted to refer the reader to his brochure " The Life and Memorials of Saint Teilo" (Preston, 1893), for a brief summary of particulars relative to this important character in local history.
  • 4. The spellings "Llanedeyrn" and "Llanedarne" are alike erroneous; the first is founded on mistaken etymology, the second a barbarism.
  • 5. There is a place of the same name in the parish of Llangatoc-feibion-Afel, near Monmouth. Its name is thus pronounced, though the maps spell it "Llanfawrdref."
  • 6. The key of Llantrisant Castle was found, some years ago, on cleaning out the well. It is now in the Editor's possession.
  • 7. Probably Sir Payn de Turberville, at the beginning of the 14th century.
  • 8. "Rawlyn ffysher" is named in the same document as the tenant of half a burgage in West Street. These two are the only allusions the Archivist has met with in the records, to the Cardiff Protestant martyr immortalised by John Foxe.
  • 9. It is probably connected with the curious belief that "England takes a county from Wales every hundred years," that Monmouthshire was the last so annexed, and that Glamorgan will follow. As a statement of the gradual extinction of the Welsh language, this would be roughly correct.