Englyn

An englyn on a gravestone in Christ Church, Bala:

Price anwyl, pur ei wasanaeth–diwyd
      Eang ei wybodaeth;
   Gwr o aspri, ffri a ffraeth,
   A thrwyadl mewn athrawiaeth.

Dear Price, pure in his diligent service
      Wide in his knowledge;
   A man acerbic, fearless and fluent,
   And thorough in doctrine.

Englyn (pronounced [ˈɛŋ.lɪn]; plural englynion) is a traditional Welsh short poem form, consisting of a stanza of either three or four lines. The metre involves the counting of syllables, and rigid patterns of rhyme and half rhyme. Many lines contain a repeating pattern of consonants and accent known as cynghanedd.

An englyn can be used as a poem in its own right, for example as an epitaph, or used in a series as part of a longer poem. Sometimes different types of englyn are mixed in the same poem.

The three-line englyn was common in early Welsh poetry, but about the 12th century it went out of fashion, to be replaced completely by four-line varieties.

Early history

The englyn is found in the work of the earliest attested Welsh poets (the cynfeirdd), where the main types are the three-line englyn milwr and englyn penfyr. It is the only set stanzaic metre found in the early Welsh poetic corpus, and explanations for its origins have tended to focus on stanzaic Latin poetry and hymns; however, it is as likely to be a development within the Brittonic poetic tradition. Whereas the metrical rules of later englynion are clear (and are based on counting syllables), the precise metre of the early englynion is debated and could have involved stress-counting. The earliest englynion are found as marginalia written in a tenth-century hand in the Juvencus Manuscript.

Many early englynion seem to represent moments of characters' emotional reflection in stories now lost: Canu Llywarch Hen, Canu Urien, Canu Heledd. Others survey heroic tradition, for example the Englynion y Beddau or Geraint son of Erbin, and others again are lyric, religious meditations and laments such as the famous Claf Abercuawg and Kyntaw geir.

The 24 metres

In the 14th century the various metres used in Welsh poetry were classified into 24 different types; the classification is thought to be due to Einion Offeiriad and Dafydd Ddu o Hiraddug. In Einion's grammar, the metres are divided into three groups: Englynion, Cywyddau and Awdlau. The first group contained eight types of englyn: Penfyr, Milwr, Unodl union, Unodl crwca, Cyrch, Proest dalgron, Lleddfbroest and Proest gadwynog. In the 15th century Dafydd ab Edmwnd revised the list, excluding the three-lined Penfyr and Milwr, which had become obsolete.

Three-line englynion

There are a number of types of englynion. Details of their structures are as follows; not all of these, however, are included in the Traditional Welsh poetic metres.

Englyn milwr

The "soldier's englyn". This consists of three seven-syllable lines. All three lines rhyme.

Otid eiry, gwyn y cnes;
Nid â cedwyr i'w neges;
Oer llynnau, eu lliw heb des.

("Snow falls, white is the skin (of the ground);
Warriors do not go on their errand;
Cold are the lakes, their color without warmth.")

Englyn penfyr

Also known as "the short-ended englyn". It consists of a stanza of three lines. The first line has ten syllables (in two groups of five), the second has five to six; and the third has seven. The seventh, eighth or ninth syllable of the first line introduces the rhyme and this is repeated on the last syllable of the other two lines. The fourth syllable of the second line may echo the final syllable of the first through either rhyme or consonance.

Oer gwly pysgawd yng nghysgawd iäen;
Cul hydd, cawn barfawd;
Byr diwedydd, gwŷdd gwyrawd.

("Cold is the wet fish in the shadow of ice;
Lean is the stag, the reeds are bearded (with frost);
Short is the afternoon, trees are bowing.")

Englyn byr crwca

The "crooked short englyn". This is like englyn penfyr, but orders the lines differently: seven syllables in the first, ten syllables (in two groups of five) in the second, and five to six syllables in the third. In the following example, the second line does not participate in the end-rhyme but has its own internal rhyme in the form of cynghanedd sain:

Ton tra thon toid tu tir;
Goruchel gwaeddau rhag bron bannau bre;
Braidd allan orsefir.

("The wave breaks over the land;
Loud cries before the mountain peaks;
Scarcely can one stand outside.")

Englyn cil-dwrn

The "englyn of the half closed fist". After the first two lines of ten and six syllables, there is just one more line of three or four syllables, which follows the rhyme of the first two lines.

Four-line englynion

Englyn unodl union

The "straight one-rhymed englyn", identical to englyn penfyr except that it adds a fourth, rhyming, seven-syllable line at the end. Thus it consists of four lines of ten, six, seven and seven syllables. The seventh, eighth or ninth syllable of the first line introduces the rhyme and this is repeated on the last syllable of the other three lines. The part of the first line after the rhyme is known as the gair cyrch. This alliterates or rhymes with a word or words in the first part of the second line.

This is the most common kind of englyn. The first two lines, which are in the form of a toddaid byr, are known as the paladr ("shaft"), while the third and fourth, which are identical to a couplet in the cywydd deuair hirion metre, are known as the esgyll ("wings").

This is an englyn unodl union by Alan Llwyd, written in honour of the Welsh nationalist poet R. S. Thomas:

Ym Mhorth oer y Merthyron––y merthyr
      Mwya'i werth o ddigon
   A hir-fawrha y fro hon
   Wr dewr o Aberdaron

("In the cold Port of the Martyrs —the martyr
Of by far the greatest worth,
And whom this region will long celebrate,
A brave man from Aberdaron.")

Each line is decorated with traditional cynghanedd, including cynghanedd gyrch linking the gair cyrch at the end of line one with the phrase mywa'i werth at the beginning of line 2.

Englyn unodl crwca

The "crooked one-rhymed englyn". This englyn is the reverse of the englyn unodl union, in that the two seven-syllable lines come first, followed by the toddaid byr of 10 syllables and 6. The last syllables of the first, second and last lines and the seventh, eighth or ninth syllable of the third line all have the same rhyme. It is much less common than the englyn unodl union. The following example is by Dewi Wyn o Eifion (19th century):

   Mae y gŵr yn ymguraw
   A'i dylwyth yn wyth neu naw
Dan oer hin yn dwyn y rhaw––mewn trymwaith
      Bu ganwaith heb giniaw

("The husband/man is struggling,
And his family is eight or nine,
Under cold weather bearing the spade in heavy labour,
A hundred times he has been without dinner.")

The poem is decorated with cynghanedd: cynghanedd groes in lines 1 and 3, cynghanedd sain in line 2, and finally cynghanedd gyrch, linking trymwaith and ganwaith by rhyme.

Englyn gwastad

The "even englyn", more common in the Middle Ages than later. This consists of four seven-syllable lines. All four lines rhyme. One example (showing the half-rhyme of -edd with -er) is:

Cyntefin ceinaf amser,
Dydar adar, glas calledd,
Ereidr yn rhych, ych yng ngwedd,
Gwyrdd môr, brithotor tiredd.

("Maytime, the fairest season,
Birds sing, groves are green,
Ploughs in the furrow, oxen in the yoke,
Green is the sea, lands are speckled.")

This anonymous example (found in a 13th-century manuscript but probably earlier) also has internal rhymes in each line.

Englyn cyrch

The "seeking englyn". This form has four lines of seven syllables each. The final syllables of the first, second, and last line rhyme. The final syllable of the third line rhymes with the second, third or fourth syllable of the last line. In this example by Peryf ap Cedifor (12th century), the first line has alliteration (C D F) but without matching stress, and lines 2 and 3 have cynghanedd sain:

Caradawg fab Cedifor,
Gwalch byddin gwerin goror,
Hebawg teulu cu ceinmyn,
Anawdd gennyn dy hepgor.

("Caradog, son of Cedifor,
Hawk of the army of the border-land host,
Falcon of a dear, splendid war-band,
It is hard for us to do without you.")

Caradog and the poet Peryf were sons of Cedifor Wyddel ("Cedifor the Irishman") of Gwynedd. Peryf's brother was one of those killed fighting for Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd at the battle of Pentraeth in Anglesey in 1170.

Englyn proest dalgron (gyfnewidiog)

Proest ("half-rhyme") is a kind of rhyme in which the final consonants agree but the vowels are different; the term cyfnewidiog ("exchanging") means that the vowel of the rhyme changes in each line; talcrwn (literally "round ended") is used of simple vowels as opposed to long diphthongs. In this englyn, there are four seven-syllable lines that half-rhyme with each other.

The example below by Gruffudd ap Maredudd ap Dafydd (14th century) also has cynghanedd in each line: cynghanedd sain in lines 1 and 4, combining internal rhyme and alliteration, and cynghanedd draws (alliteration only) in lines 2 and 3:

Adeiliwyd bedd, gwedd gwiwder,
F'enaid, i'th gylch o fynor:
Adeiliawdd cof dy alar
I'm calon ddilon ddolur.

Englyn lleddfbroest

This is identical to the englyn proest dalgron except that the half rhymes must use the ae, oe, wy, and ei diphthongs. The following example is attributed to Dafydd Ddu o Hiraddug (14th century).

Llawen dan glaerwen len laes,
Lleddf olwg gloyw amlwg glwys,
Llathrlun manol a foleis
Llarieidd foneddigeidd foes.

This particular example has internal rhyme in each of its lines, with cynghanedd sain in lines 1, 2, and 4, and cynghanedd lusg in line 3. There is also cymeriad llythrenol since each line begins with the same consonant.

In proest ("half-rhyme"), a lledff syllable (i.e. a syllable containing a long diphthong such as ae) cannot half-rhyme with a talgrwn syllable (i.e. one containing a simple long or short vowel).

Englyn proest gadwynog

The "chain half-rhyme englyn". In this version there are four lines of seven syllables. The first and third lines rhyme and the second and fourth also rhyme, the two rhymes being half-rhymes of each other. The following example is by Tudur Aled:

Nodi dyn nid adwaenwn
Nid adwaeniad y dynion,
Gwrda 'mhlith gwyrda mal hwn,
Gwreigdda 'mhlith gwragedd mal hon.

Each line in this example is also decorated with cynghanedd groes. There is also cymeriad cynganeddol (echoed consonants) linking the beginning of lines 1 and 2, and again linking the beginning of lines 3 and 4. (See Cynghanedd.)

Englyn toddaid

This is a hybrid between an englyn and a toddaid. The first line is as for an englyn unodl union, but followed by a nine-syllable line. There follow two more lines in the same metre. The following example is by Dafydd Nanmor (15th century):

Mab Rhys aeth o'i lys / i lawr––yr Erwig
   Mewn gro a cherrig / mae'n garcharawr.
Ban aeth gwroliaeth / ar elawr––o'r llys,
   Bu bobl 'i ynys / heb ei blaenawr.

Further examples

Here are two englynion by the 12th-century Welsh poet Cynddelw Brydydd Mawr:

Balch ei fugunawr ban nafawr ei lef
Pan ganer cyrn cydawr;
Corn Llywelyn llyw lluydfawr
Bon ehang blaen hang bloed fawr.

The second is an example of englyn proest dalgron, using half-rhyme (proest) at the end of each seven-syllable line instead of rhyme (odl). Each line is also decorated with alliteration or internal rhyme:

Corn wedi llad corn llawen
Corn llugynor Llywelyn
Corn gwyd gwydr ai can
Corn rueinell yn ol gellgwn

Grace in the form of an englyn (with cynghanedd shown) in a poem by W. D. Williams:

O, Dád, / yn deulu dédwydd––y déuwn (= cynghanedd draws)
      Â díolch / o néwydd, (= cynghanedd gyrch)
   Cans o'th láw / y dáw / bob dýdd} (= cynghanedd sain)
   Ein llúniaeth / a'n llawénydd. (= cynghanedd groes)

("O Father, as a happy family, we come
With thanks anew,
For from your hand comes every day
Our sustenance and our joy.")

English imitations

The poet Robert Graves wrote an englyn in English, included in the Juvinalia (1910–1914) of his Complete Poems

A Pot of White Heather
Thou, a poor woman's fairing, white héather,
      Wítherest from the ending
   Of summer's bliss to the sting
   Of winter's grey beginning.

Here is an English-language englyn by novelist Robertson Davies.

The Old Journalist
He types his laboured column––weary drudge!
      Senile, fudge and solemn;
   Spare, editor, to condemn
   These dry leaves of his autumn.

These lack the full cynghanedd but in terms of syllable-count and rhyme conform to the pattern of englyn unodl union.

Breton

Breton poet Padrig an Habask also writes Breton-language englynion; in 2020, he has published a collection of them called Lampreiz. (http://brezhoneg.org/en/node/11057)

See also

• Englynion y Beddau
• Englynion y Clywaid
• Cerdd dafod

References

• Rhys, John (1905), "The Origin of the Welsh Englyn and Kindred Metres", in Evans, E. Vincent (ed.), Y Cymmrodor, vol. XVIII, Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion, pp. 1–185