Friday 22 November 2019

Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau


Y Pedwarau – Significant Name Changes

Y Pedwarau are the Welsh hills at and above 400m and below 500m in height that have a minimum drop of 30m.  Accompanying the main P30 list are five sub lists; these are the 500m Sub-Pedwar, 500m Double Sub-Pedwar, 400m Sub-Pedwar, 390m Sub-Pedwar and 390m Double Sub-Pedwar category’s, with their criteria detailed in the respective Change Registers that have been created and which are linked in their above titles, with the Introduction to this list being published on Mapping Mountains on the 30th January 2017.

The list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and the posts that have appeared on Mapping Mountains detailing the significant name changes to hills in the main P30 list and the sub lists appear below presented chronologically in receding order.

Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

Lan Ucha Ty’n y Wern (SN 996 423) - 59th significant name change

Summit Relocations post for Lan Ucha Ty'n y Wern

 

There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales and the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill derived from LIDAR analysis initially conducted by Aled Williams and subsequently by Myrddyn Phillips. 

LIDAR image of Lan Ucha Ty'n y Wern (SN 996 423)

The criteria for the lists that this name change applies to are:

Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales – Welsh hills at or above 300m and below 400m in height that have 30m minimum drop, with an accompanying sub list entitled the Sub-Trichant, with the criteria for this sub category being all Welsh hills at or above 300m and below 400m in height with 20m or more and below 30m of drop.  The list is authored by Myrddyn Phillips with the Introduction to the list and the renaming of it appearing on Mapping Mountains on the 13th May 2017, and the Introduction to the Mapping Mountains publication of the list appearing on the 1st January 2022. 

Y Trichant - The 300m Hills of Wales by Myrddyn Phillips

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales – Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 30m minimum drop, accompanying the main list are five categories of sub hills, with this hill listed in the 390m Sub-Pedwar category.  The criteria for this category are all Welsh hills at or above 390m and below 400m in height that have 30m minimum drop.  The list is co-authored byMyrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

Y Pedwarau - The 400m Hills of Wales by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams

The hill is adjoined to the Mynydd Epynt group of hills, which are situated in the central part of South Wales (Region B, Sub-Region B1), and it is positioned with the B4519 road to its north-east and a minor road to its south, and has the small community of Capel Uchaf (Upper Chapel) towards the south-east.

The hill appeared in the original 300m height band of Welsh P30 hills compiled by Myrddyn Phillips and published on GeoffCrowder’s v-g.me website, under the invented and transposed name of Twyn y Mynachdy, with an accompanying note stating; Name from buildings to the West.


Twyn y Mynachdy398mSN996423147/160188Included by contour configuration. Name from buildings to the West


During the original compilation Myrddyn Phillips thought it appropriate to either invent a name for a hill, or use a name that appeared near to the summit of the hill on Ordnance Survey maps of the day.  His preference was to use farm names and put Pen, Bryn or Moel in front of them or as in this instance transpose a name of a farm and add the words Twyn y to it.  This is not a practice that is now advocated as with time and inclination place-name data can be improved either by asking local people or by examining historic documents, through this form of research an appropriate name for the hill can usually be found. 

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

As the summit of this hill comprises bounded land the details for it were examined on the Tithe map.  The term Tithe map is generally given to a map of a Welsh or English parish or township and which was prepared after the 1836 Tithe Commutation Act.  This act allowed tithes to be paid in cash rather than goods.  The Tithe maps gave names of owners and occupiers of land in each parish and importantly for place-name research they also included the name of enclosed land.  This enclosed land is usually based on a field system, however not every field is given a name, but many are and especially so in Wales. 

Extract from the Tithe map

The enclosed land where the summit of this hill is situated is given the number 1909 on the Tithe map, this can be cross referenced against the apportionments; it is these apportionments that give the name of the owner or occupier of the land as well as the name of the land.  The land where the summit of this hill is situated is named as Lan Ucha (of the farm) Ty’n y Wern in the apportionments, with the details on the Tithe map appearing in the parish of Merthyr Cynog and in the county named as Brecon. 

Extract from the apportionments

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales and the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales is Lan Ucha Ty’n y Wern and this was derived from the Tithe map. 

 

The full details for the hill are: 

Group:  Mynydd Epynt 

Name:  Lan Ucha Ty’n y Wern 

Previously Listed Name:  Twyn y Mynachdy 

OS 1:50,000 map:  147, 160

Summit Height:  396.7m (LIDAR)                                                           

Summit Grid Reference:  SN 99632 42324 (LIDAR)                                         

Bwlch Height:  362.65m (LIDAR) 

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SN 99601 42833 (LIDAR) 

Drop:  34.1m (LIDAR) 

 

Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (July 2024)




Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

Cefn Uchaf (SJ 249 402) - 58th significant name change

 

There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales and Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill derived from detail on contemporary maps produced from Ordnance Survey data. 

The criteria for the two listings that this name change applies to are: 

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 30m minimum drop, accompanying the main Y Pedwarau list are five categories of sub hills, with this hill being listed in the 390m Double Sub-Pedwar category.  The criteria for 390m Double Sub-Pedwar status being all Welsh hills at or above 390m and below 400m in height that have 20m or more and below 30m of drop.  The list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

Y Pedwarau - The 400m Hills of Wales by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams

Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales – Welsh hills at or above 300m and below 400m in height that have 30m minimum drop, with an accompanying sub list entitled the Sub-Trichant, with the criteria for this sub category being all Welsh hills at or above 300m and below 400m in height with 20m or more and below 30m of drop.  The list is authored by Myrddyn Phillips with the Introduction to the list and the renaming of it appearing on Mapping Mountains on the 13th May 2017, and the Introduction to the Mapping Mountains publication of the list appearing on the 1st January 2022. 

Y Trichant - The 300m Hills of Wales by Myrddyn Phillips

The hill is adjoined to the Craig Berwyn group of hills, which are situated in the eastern part of North Wales (Region A, Sub-Region A3), and it is positioned encircled by minor roads with the A5 road farther to its north and the B4500 road farther to its south, and has the town of Llangollen towards the west north-west. 

When the original 300m height band of Welsh P30 hills were published on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website, this hill was not included in the Hills to be surveyed sub list, as it was considered not to meet the criteria then used for this sub category. 

After the sub list was standardised, and interpolated heights and drop values also included the details for this hill were re-assessed and it was listed under the point (Pt. 395m) notation with an estimated c 21m of drop, based on the 395m summit spot height that appears on the Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger map and an estimated c 374m bwlch height, based on interpolation of 5m contouring between 370m – 375m, with the 395m summit height also given on the interactive mapping hosted on the WalkLakes website. 

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger map

Since publication of these P30 lists on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website there have been a number of Ordnance Survey maps made available online, some of these are historic such as the series of Six-Inch maps on the National Library of Scotland website, whilst others are current and digitally updated such as the old Vector Map Local hosted on the Geograph website and which was entitled the Interactive Coverage Map and the interactive mapping available on the Magic Maps and WalkLakes websites.  Two of the historic maps now available online are the Ordnance Survey Draft Surveyors map which formed the basis for the first publicly available Ordnance Survey One-Inch ‘Old Series’ map, and it is these maps that form the basis for the change in the listed name of this hill. 

The Draft Surveyors maps consist of the preliminary drawings made by the Ordnance Survey surveyors between the 1780s and 1840 and formed the basis for the first publicly available One-Inch map.  They were drawn at scales of six inches to the mile for areas considered of particular military significance and down to two inches to the mile for other areas.  Fair copies were then produced from these preliminary drawings to one inch to the mile and then copper plates were prepared for printing.  The Draft Surveyors maps for the whole of Wales are now available online and they form an important part in the study of Welsh upland place-names as they bridge the time frame between the late 18th century and the mid-19th century when the Ordnance Survey produced their first One-Inch maps, and importantly for this hill and its listed name, it is this map that names the hill as Cefn Uchaf. 

Extract from the Ordnance Survey Draft Surveyors map

The One-Inch ‘Old Series’ map was the first map that Ordnance Survey produced, and their publication culminated from the whole of Britain being surveyed between 1791 and 1874 and the detail gathered therein produced at a scale of one inch to the mile and published in sheet format between 1805 and 1874.  The One-Inch ‘Old Series’ maps for the whole of Wales are now available online; they are also available in map format as enlarged and re-projected versions to match the scale and dimensions of the Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger series and are published by Cassini.  This series of maps form another important part in the study of Welsh upland place-names and bridge the timeframe leading up to the production of the Ordnance Survey base map of the Six-Inch series, and importantly for this hill and its listed name, it is this map that also gives the name of Cefn Uchaf. 

Extract from the Ordnance Survey One-Inch 'Old Series' map

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales and Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales is Cefn Uchaf, and this was derived from the Ordnance Survey Draft Surveyors map and the Ordnance Survey One-Inch ‘Old Series’ map. 

 

The full details for the hill are: 

Group:  Craig Berwyn 

Name:  Cefn Uchaf 

Previously Listed Name:  Pt. 395m 

OS 1:50,000 map:  117 

Summit Height:  395m (spot height)                                                           

Summit Grid Reference:  SJ 24921 40228 (spot height) 

Bwlch Height:  c 374 (interpolation) 

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SJ 24502 40242 (interpolation) 

Drop:  c 21m (spot height summit and interpolated bwlch) 

 

Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (April 2022)




Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

Ffridd Ddu (SH 769 075) - 57th significant name change

 

There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales and Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill derived from LIDAR analysis initially conducted by Aled Williams and subsequently by Myrddyn Phillips. 

LIDAR image of Ffridd Ddu (SH 769 075)

The criteria for the two listings that this name change applies to are: 

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 30m minimum drop, accompanying the main Y Pedwarau list are five categories of sub hills, with this hill being listed in the 390m Sub-Pedwar category.  The criteria for 390m Sub-Pedwar status being all Welsh hills at or above 390m and below 400m in height that have 30m minimum drop.  The list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

Y Pedwarau - The 400m Hills of Wales by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams

Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales – Welsh hills at or above 300m and below 400m in height that have 30m minimum drop, with an accompanying sub list entitled the Sub-Trichant, with the criteria for this sub category being all Welsh hills at or above 300m and below 400m in height with 20m or more and below 30m of drop.  The list is authored by Myrddyn Phillips with the Introduction to the list and the renaming of it appearing on Mapping Mountains on the 13th May 2017, and the Introduction to the Mapping Mountains publication of the list appearing on the 1st January 2022. 

Y Trichant - The 300m Hills of Wales by Myrddyn Phillips

The hill is adjoined to the Aran Fawddwy group of hills, which are situated in the south-western part of North Wales (Region A, Sub-Region A3), and it is positioned with a minor road to its north-west, the A487 road to its west and the A489 road to its south-east, and has the village of Corris towards the west. 

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

The hill appeared in the original Welsh 300m P30 list published on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website, under the name of Mynydd TÅ·-mawr, which is a prominent name that appears beside the summit of this hill on the contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger and 1:25,000 Explorer map.  This is also the name the hill was listed by in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013.


Mynydd Ty-mawr390mSH77007612423/215aka Mynydd Fron-felen

 

During my early hill listing I paid little regard to name placement on the map, or the meaning of names and to what feature the name was appropriately applied to.  Therefore, I prioritised names for listing purposes that I now understand are either inappropriate or where another name is viewed as being more appropriate. 

This is not a practice that I now advocate as with time and inclination place-name data can be improved either by asking local people or by examining historic documents, through this form of research an appropriate name for the hill can usually be found. 

As the summit of this hill comprises bounded land the details for it were examined on the Tithe map.  The term Tithe map is generally given to a map of a Welsh or English parish or township and which was prepared after the 1836 Tithe Commutation Act.  This act allowed tithes to be paid in cash rather than goods.  The Tithe maps gave names of owners and occupiers of land in each parish and importantly for place-name research they also included the name of enclosed land.  This enclosed land is usually based on a field system, however not every field is given a name, but many are and especially so in Wales. 

Extract from the Tithe map

The enclosed land where the summit of this hill is situated is given the number 228 on the Tithe map, this can be cross referenced against the apportionments; it is these apportionments that give the name of the owner or occupier of the land as well as the name of the land.  The land where the summit of this hill is situated is named as Ffridd Ddu in the apportionments, with the details on the Tithe map appearing in the parish of Llanwrin and in the county named as Montgomery.  With the enclosed land to the north of the boundary fence named on the Tithe map as the sheepwalk (land referred to as Mynydd) of the farm of TÅ·-mawr. 

Extract from the apportionments

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales and Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales is Ffridd Ddu, and this was derived from the Tithe map. 

 

The full details for the hill are: 

Group:  Aran Fawddwy 

Name:  Ffridd Ddu 

Previously Listed Name:  Mynydd TÅ·-mawr 

OS 1:50,000 map:  124 

Summit Height:  390.9m (LIDAR) 

Summit Grid Reference:  SH 76983 07552 (LIDAR) 

Bwlch Height:  335.9m (LIDAR) 

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SH 77180 07763 (LIDAR) 

Drop:  55.0m (LIDAR summit and bwlch) 

 

Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (February 2022)






Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

Cnepyn Cerrig (SN 706 460) - 56th significant name change

Survey post for Cnepyn Cerrig

 

There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales and Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill derived from a Trimble GeoXH 6000 survey conducted by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams. 

Cnepyn Cerrig (SN 706 460)

The criteria for the two listings that this name change applies to are: 

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 30m minimum drop, accompanying the main Y Pedwarau list are five categories of sub hills, with this hill being listed in the 390m Sub-Pedwar category.  The criteria for 390m Sub-Pedwar status being all Welsh hills at or above 390m and below 400m in height that have 30m minimum drop.  The list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

Y Pedwarau - The 400m Hills of Wales by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams

Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 300m and below 400m in height that have 30m minimum drop, with an accompanying sub list entitled the Sub-Trichant with the criteria for this sub category being all Welsh hills at or above 300m and below 400m in height with 20m or more and below 30m of drop.  The list is authored by Myrddyn Phillips, with the Introduction to the list and the renaming of it appearing on Mapping Mountains on the 13th May 2017. 

Y Trichant - The 300m Hills of Wales by Myrddyn Phillips

The hill is adjoined to the Elenydd group of hills, which are situated in the central part of the Mid and West Wales Region (Region B, Sub-Region B2), and it is positioned with minor roads to its west and south-east, and the A482 road farther to its south-west, and has the small community of Cwrtycadno towards the south-west. 

The hill appeared in the original Welsh 400m P30 list published on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website under the name of Cefn Branddu, which is a prominent name that appears to the north-east of this hill’s summit on the contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger and 1:25,000 Explorer map.  This is also the name the hill was listed by in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

Prior to visiting this hill I contacted Irwel Jones; the farmer from Aber Branddu (SN 708 455) to ask permission to park at his farm and use the track leading north-westward from it to visit this hill, during the conversation Irwel named this hill as Cnepyn Cerrig, with its summit named as Pen Cerrig. 

After visiting this hill we descended to Aber Branddu and met Irwel and his father; Eirwyn.  With the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map opened on the roof of my car and the hill directly above us, Aled proceeded to ask questions about this hill and others where Irwel grazes sheep on.  Many upland place-names proceeded to be given, including that of Cnepyn Cerrig for this hill. 

Irwel and Eirwyn Jones

Once back home Aled scrutinised a number of old maps and with the information given by Eirwyn and Irwel he detailed a timeline including that of field boundaries and the history of what land the name of Cefn Branddu applied to.  With the field boundaries confirming that Cefn Branddu applies to the entire mountain, including that of the higher adjacent hill positioned at SN 699 452,  Aled’s conclusion was to use the prioritised name that both Irwel and his father; Eirwyn gave us for this hill, and that is Cnepyn Cerrig. 

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales and Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales is Cnepyn Cerrig, and this was derived from local enquiry. 

 

The full details for the hill are: 

Group:  Elenydd 

Name:  Cnepyn Cerrig 

Previously Listed Name:  Cefn Branddu 

OS 1:50,000 map:  146, 147 

Summit Height:  399.3m (converted to OSGM15) 

Summit Grid Reference:  SN 70687 46081 

Bwlch Height:  353.6m (converted to OSGM15) 

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SN 70185 46118 

Drop:  45.7m 

 

Aled Williams and Myrddyn Phillips (November 2021)

 

 



Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

 Pen Carn Llwyd (SO 244 125) - 55th significant name change


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill confirmed via LIDAR analysis conducted by Aled Williams.

LIDAR image of Pen Carn Llwyd (SO 244 125)

The criteria for the list that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 30m minimum drop, accompanying the main Y Pedwarau list are five categories of sub hills, with this hill being listed in the 400m Sub-Pedwar category.  The criteria for 400m Sub-Pedwar status being all Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 20m or more and below 30m of drop.  The list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

The hill is adjoined to the Cymoedd Gwent group of hills, which are situated in the north-eastern part of South Wales (Region C, Sub-Region C2), and it is positioned with the A465 road to its north and the B4246 road to its east, and has the town of Y Fenni (Abergavenny) towards the east north-east.

The hill appeared in the original Welsh 400m P30 list published on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website under the name of Gilwern Hill, which is a prominent name that appears to the north-west of this hill’s summit on contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger and 1:25,000 Explorer maps.  This is also the name the hill was listed by in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

Since publication of the 1st edition of Y Pedwarau there are now a number of Ordnance Survey maps made available online, some of these are historic such as the series of Six-Inch maps on the National Library of Scotland website, whilst others are current and digitally updated such as the Vector Map Local hosted on the Geograph website and which is entitled the Interactive Coverage Map.  One of the historic maps now available is the Ordnance Survey Draft Surveyors map which formed the basis for the first publicly available Ordnance Survey One-Inch ‘Old Series’ map and it is this map that formed the basis for the change in this hill’s listed name.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey Draft Surveyors map

The Draft Surveyors maps consist of the preliminary drawings made by the Ordnance Surveyor’s surveyors between the 1780s and 1840 and formed the basis for the first publicly available One-Inch map.  They were drawn at scales of six inches to the mile for areas considered of particular military significance and down to two inches to the mile for other areas.  Fair copies were then produced from these preliminary drawings to one inch to the mile and then copper plates were prepared for printing.  The Draft Surveyors maps for the whole of Wales are now available online and they form an important part in the study of Welsh upland place-names as they bridge the time frame between the late 18th century and the mid-19th century when the Ordnance Survey produced their first One-Inch maps, and importantly for this hill and its listed name, it is the Draft Surveyors map that name the hill as Pen Carn Llwyd.

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales is Pen Carn Llwyd, and this was derived from the Ordnance Survey Draft Surveyors map.


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Cymoedd Gwent

Name:  Pen Carn Llwyd

Previously Listed Name:  Gilwern Hill

OS 1:50,000 map:  161

Summit Height:  441.6m (LIDAR)

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 24427 12563 (LIDAR)

Bwlch Height:  416.3m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SO 24363 11890 (LIDAR)

Drop:  25.3m (LIDAR)


Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (January 2020)







Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

 Mynydd Rhymni (SO 126 089) - 54th significant name change


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill confirmed via LIDAR analysis conducted by Aled Williams.

LIDAR image of Mynydd Rhymni (SO 126 089)

The criteria for the list that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 30m minimum drop, the list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

The hill is adjoined to the Cymoedd Gwent group of hills, which are situated in the north-eastern part of South Wales (Region C, Sub-Region C2), and it is encircled by roads with the A465 to its north-west, the B4257 and A469 to its west, the B4256 to its south and the A4048 to its east, and has the town of Tredegar towards the north-east and Rhymni (Rhymney) towards the south-west.

The hill appeared in the original Welsh 400m P30 list published on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website under the name of Rhymney Hill, which is a prominent name that appears beside the summit of this hill on contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger and 1:25,000 Explorer maps.  The composition of this name was changed to Rhymni Hill when the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau was published by Europeaklist in May 2013.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

The intricacies of language and prioritising one in favour of another for listing a hill is fraught with complication, with originating Cymraeg names being anglicised and also originating English names being cymricised, examples such as these are more common in border country and especially so for anglicised forms.  There is no steadfast rule that fits all, but as a standard a name that has its origins in the Welsh language should be prioritised in favour of a contemporary anglicised or English version of the name, and ideally for this to be substantiated by either historic documentation and / or contemporary usage.  Likewise, if a name exists where an element of it is in English and if this name applies to a hill that is situated in a Welsh speaking part of Wales it is standard practice to use a full Welsh term for the name.  It is also standard practice to use a Welsh name for a hill if another name exists that has originated in a different language.

Since publication of the 1st edition of this list by Europeaklist in May 2013 there has been a thorough review of all hill names where a full Welsh term has not been used.  Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales is Mynydd Rhymni, with the full Welsh term for the name favoured over that of the mixed language version previously used.  This keeps uniformity with other hill names in the area which use the term Mynydd.


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Cymoedd Gwent

Name:  Mynydd Rhymni

Previously Listed Name:  Rhymni Hill

OS 1:50,000 map:  161

Summit Height:  457.1m (LIDAR)

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 12603 08983 (LIDAR)

Bwlch Height:  379.1m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SO 14083 07664 (LIDAR)

Drop:  78.0m (LIDAR)


Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (January 2020)







Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

 Cefn Sarnau (SO 014 341) - 53rd significant name change


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales and Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill confirmed by LIDAR analysis initially conducted by Aled Williams and subsequently by Myrddyn Phillips.

LIDAR image of Cefn Sarnau (SO 014 341)

The criteria for the two listings that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 30m minimum drop, accompanying the main Y Pedwarau list are five categories of sub hills, with this hill being listed in the 390m Sub-Pedwar category.  The criteria for 390m Sub-Pedwar status being all Welsh hills at or above 390m and below 400m in height that have 20m or more and below 30m of drop.  The list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales – Welsh hills at or above 300m and below 400m in height that have 30m minimum drop, with an accompanying sub list entitled the Sub-Trichant with the criteria for this sub category being all Welsh hills at or above 300m and below 400m in height with 20m or more and below 30m of drop.  The list is authored by Myrddyn Phillips, with the Introduction to the list and the renaming of it appearing on Mapping Mountains on the 13th May 2017.

The hill is adjoined to the Mynydd Epynt group of hills, which are situated in the south-eastern part of Mid and West Wales (Region B, Sub-Region B2), and it is positioned with the Afon Honddu and the B4520 road to its east, and has the small community of Capel Isaf (Lower Chapel) towards the north-east.

The hill appeared in the original Welsh 300m P30 list published on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website, under the name of Battle Hill, which is a prominent name positioned near the summit of this hill on contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger and 1:25,000 Explorer maps.  This is also the name the hill was listed by in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

Since publication of the 1st edition of Y Pedwarau there have been a number of Ordnance Survey maps made available online, some of these are historic such as the series of Six-Inch maps on the National Library of Scotland website, whilst others are current and digitally updated such as the Vector Map Local hosted on the Geograph website and which is entitled the Interactive Coverage Map. 

Extract from the Ordnance Survey series of Six-Inch maps

These and other maps enable research in to the use of names recorded by Ordnance Survey, and as the Ordnance Surveys series of Six-Inch maps and the historic 1:25,000 map only records the name of Cefn Sarnau it is evident that the name of Battle Hill is a relatively recent addition, with the land where the summit of this hill is situated also being confirmed as a part of Cefn Sarnau.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey historic 1:25,000 map

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales and Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales is Cefn Sarnau, and this was derived from contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger and 1:25,000 Explorer maps, with the use of the name Battle Hill confirmed a relatively recent addition through the Ordnance Surveys series of Six-Inch maps and the historic 1:25,000 map and the position of the summit in relation to the name now used confirmed via the Tithe map.


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Mynydd Epynt

Name:  Cefn Sarnau

Previously Listed Name:  Battle Hill

OS 1:50,000 map:  160

Summit Height:  397.6m (LIDAR)

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 01415 34161 (LIDAR)

Bwlch Height:  355.65m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SO 01482 34779 (LIDAR)

Drop:  42.0m (LIDAR)


Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (January 2020)







Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

 Mynydd Epynt (SN 961 464) - 52nd significant name change

 Survey post for Mynydd Epynt

 Significant Height Revisions post for Mynydd Epynt


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales and Y Trechol – The Dominant Hills of Wales, with the summit height and position derived from initial LIDAR analysis conducted by Aled Williams and a subsequent Trimble GeoXH 6000 survey conducted by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams, and the bwlch height and its location, the drop, dominance and status of the hill determined from map contour interpolation.

Mynydd Epynt (SN 961 464)

The criteria for the two listings that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height with 30m minimum drop, the list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

Y Trechol - The Dominant Hills of Wales - Welsh P30 hills whose prominence  equal or exceed half that of their absolute height.  With the criteria for Lesser Dominant status being those additional Welsh P30 hills whose prominence is between one third and half that of their absolute height.  The list is authored by Myrddyn Phillips, with the Introduction to the Mapping Mountains publication of this list appearing on the 3rd December 2015, and which is now available in its entirety on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

The hill is adjoined to the Mynydd Epynt group of hills, which are situated in the south-eastern part of Mid and West Wales (Region B, Sub-Region B2), and it is positioned with the B4519 road to its north-east, and has the small community of Garth to the north and Capel Uchaf (Upper Chapel) to the south-east.

The hill appeared in the original Welsh 400m P30 list on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website, under the name of Mynydd Epynt, which is a prominent name on contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger and 1:25,000 Explorer maps and which is associated with this hill range.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger map

The hill was listed in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013 under the name of Clepyn Melyn with an accompanying symbol giving that this name was sourced from local enquiry.

The name Clepyn Melyn applies to a patch of land near to the summit of this hill, and as such this name was used for that of the hill as it was considered its main named feature.  However, since publication of the 1st edition of Y Pedwarau by Europeaklist a number of names have been under review, including this one, and as the summit of this hill is the highest part of the entire mountain known as Mynydd Epynt this name is now preferred to that previously used.

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales and Y Trechol – The Dominant Hills of Wales is Mynydd Epynt, and this was derived from contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger and 1:25,000 Explorer maps.


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Mynydd Epynt

Name:  Mynydd Epynt

Previously Listed Name:  Clepyn Melyn

OS 1:50,000 map:  147

Summit Height:  475.7m (converted to OSGM15)

Summit Grid Reference:  SN 96124 46428

Bwlch Height:  c 278m (interpolation)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SN 84063 43279 (interpolation)

Drop:  c 198m (Trimble summit and interpolated bwlch)

Dominance:  41.62% (Trimble summit and interpolated bwlch)


For details on the summit survey of this hill

Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (January 2020)







Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

 Mynydd yr Ychen (SN 768 794) - 51st significant name change

 1st Hill Reclassification post for Mynydd yr Ychen

 2nd Hill Reclassification post for Mynydd yr Ychen


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill confirmed by 1m DSM LIDAR analysis conducted by Aled Williams.

LIDAR image of Mynydd yr Ychen (SN 768 794)

The criteria for the list that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 30m minimum drop, accompanying the main Y Pedwarau list are five categories of sub hills, with this hill being listed in the 400m Sub-Pedwar category.  The criteria for 400m Sub-Pedwar status being all Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 20m or more and below 30m of drop.  The list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

The hill is adjoined to the Elenydd group of hills, which are situated in the northern part of Mid and West Wales (Region B, Sub-Region B2), and it is positioned with the A4120 road and the Afon Rheidol to its west, and the A44 road to its north, and has the small community of Pontarfynach (Devil’s Bridge) towards the south-west and the village of Ponterwyd towards the north-west.

The hill was listed in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013 under the point (Pt. 459m) notation, as the authors could not substantiate either from local enquiry and / or historic research the land applicable to Mynydd yr Ychen, which is a prominent name that appears close to the summit of this hill on contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger and 1:25,000 Explorer maps, and which can be traced back to the Ordnance Survey One-Inch ‘Old Series’ map. 

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

The One-Inch ‘Old Series’ map was the first map that the Ordnance Survey produced, and their publication culminated from the whole of Britain being surveyed between 1791 and 1874 and the detail gathered therein produced at a scale of one inch to the mile and published in sheet format between 1805 and 1874.  The One-Inch ‘Old Series’ maps for the whole of Wales are now available online; they are also available in map format as enlarged and re-projected versions to match the scale and dimensions of the Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger series and are published by Cassini.  This series of maps form another important part in the study of Welsh upland place-names and bridge the timeframe leading up to the production of the Ordnance Survey base map of the Six-Inch series.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey One-Inch 'Old Series' map

Since publication of the 1st edition of Y Pedwarau the Tithe maps for Wales have become available online.  The term Tithe map is generally given to a map of a Welsh or English parish or township and which was prepared after the 1836 Tithe Commutation Act.  This act allowed tithes to be paid in cash rather than goods.  The Tithe maps gave names of owners and occupiers of land in each parish and importantly for place-name research they also included the name of enclosed land.  This enclosed land is usually based on a field system, however not every field is given a name, but many are and especially so in Wales.

It is the Tithe map that confirms the adjacent pieces of enclosed land adjoined to the summit of this hill and positioned north of Nant Gwynion were once as one, and this confirms the placement of the name of Mynydd yr Ychen on the Ordnance Survey One-Inch ‘Old Series’ map as being appropriate to use for the name of this hill.

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales is Mynydd yr Ychen, and this was derived from contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger and 1:25,000 Explorer maps, with its placement on the Ordnance Survey One-Inch ‘Old Series’ map confirmed via the Tithe map.  


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Elenydd

Name:  Mynydd yr Ychen

Previously Listed Name:  Pt. 459m

OS 1:50,000 map:  135, 147

Summit Height:  459.92m (LIDAR)

Summit Grid Reference:  SN 76846 79456 (LIDAR)

Bwlch Height:  439.92m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SN 77052 79547 (LIDAR)

Drop:  20.0m (LIDAR)


Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (January 2020)







Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

 Mynydd Erw Barfau (SN 759 783) - 50th significant name change


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill confirmed by LIDAR analysis conducted by Aled Williams.

The criteria for the list that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 30m minimum drop, accompanying the main Y Pedwarau list are five categories of sub hills, with this hill listed in the 400m Sub-Pedwar category.  The criteria for 400m Sub-Pedwar status being all Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 20m or more and below 30m of drop.  The list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

The hill is adjoined to the Elenydd group of hills, which are situated in the northern part of Mid and West Wales (Region B, Sub-Region B2), and it is positioned with the A4120 road and the Afon Rheidol to its west, and the B4574 road and the Afon Mynach to its south, and has the small community of Pontarfynach (Devil’s Bridge) towards the south-west.

The hill appeared in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013 under the name of Erw Barfau, which is a prominent name that appears beside the summit of this hill on contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger and 1:25,000 Explorer maps.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

Since publication of the 1st edition of Y Pedwarau a number of place-name books have been accessed to either find or substantiate locally known and / or historic names for hills.  One of the books accessed is The Place-names of Cardiganshire, published in 2004 in three volumes by the British Archaeological Reports Ltd and researched by Iwan Wmffre.  It is this book that documents the name of Mynydd Erw Barfau from local information recorded by Iwan Wmffre, with the name of Erw Barfau being that of a farm which is situated to the west of this hill’s summit.

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales is Mynydd Erw Barfau and this was derived from The Place-names of Cardiganshire, published in 2004 in three volumes by the British Archaeological Reports Ltd and researched by Iwan Wmffre.


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Elenydd

Name:  Mynydd Erw Barfau

Previously Listed Name:  Erw Barfau

OS 1:50,000 map:  135, 147

Summit Height:  417.0m (LIDAR)

Summit Grid Reference:  SN 75904 78309 (LIDAR)

Bwlch Height:  394.5m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SN 75878 78084 (LIDAR)

Drop:  22.5m (LIDAR)


Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (January 2020)







Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

 Cerrig Blaen Cletwr Fawr (SN 707 925) - 49th significant name change


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales, with the summit height and its location confirmed by LIDAR analysis conducted by Aled Williams, and the bwlch height and its location, the drop and status of the hill determined by contour interpolation from the OS Maps website.

The criteria for the list that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 30m minimum drop, the list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

The hill is adjoined to the Pumlumon group of hills, which are situated in the northern part of Mid and West Wales (Region B, Sub-Region B2), and it is positioned with the A487 road and the Afon Dyfi (River Dovey) to its north-west, and has the small community of Furnace towards the north-west.

The hill appeared in the original Welsh 400m P30 list published on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website under the name of Esgair Foel-ddu, which is a prominent name that appears beside the summit of this hill on contemporary Ordnance Survey maps.  This is also the name the hill was listed by in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

Since publication of the 1st edition of Y Pedwarau there have been a number of Ordnance Survey maps made available online, some of these are historic such as the series of Six-Inch maps on the National Library of Scotland website, whilst others are current and digitally updated such as the Vector Map Local that used to be hosted on the Geograph website and which is entitled the Interactive Coverage Map. 

Two of the better Ordnance Survey maps for name placement are the series of Six-Inch maps and the historic 1:25,000 map, and as the name of Cerrig Blaen Cletwr Fawr also appears adjacent to the summit of this hill on contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer maps, these maps were examined for clarification.  However, as one name is seemingly applied to a ridge and the other name seemingly applied to the stony ground taking in the summit of this hill, the Tithe map was consulted.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey series of Six-Inch maps

Extract from the Ordnance Survey historic 1:25,000 map

Since publication of the 1st edition of Y Pedwarau the Tithe maps for Wales have become available online.  The term Tithe map is generally given to a map of a Welsh or English parish or township and which was prepared after the 1836 Tithe Commutation Act.  This act allowed tithes to be paid in cash rather than goods.  The Tithe maps gave names of owners and occupiers of land in each parish and importantly for place-name research they also included the name of enclosed land.  This enclosed land is usually based on a field system, however not every field is given a name, but many are and especially so in Wales.

Extract from the Tithe map

The enclosed land where the summit of this hill is situated is given the number 768 on the Tithe map, this can be cross referenced against the apportionments; it is these apportionments that give the name of the owner or occupier of the land as well as the name of the land.  The land where the summit of this hill is situated is named as Cerrig Sheepwalk in the apportionments, with the details on the Tithe map appearing in the parish of Llangynfelyn and in the county named as Cardigan.

Extract from the apportionment

The sheepwalk named on the Tithe map is adjoined to the farm of Blaencletwr-fawr, which is situated to the south-west of this hill’s summit.  As the land where the summit of this hill is situated is named as a part of Blaencletwr-Fawr and as the summit feature is named as Cerrig Blaen Cletwr Fawr this name is now preferred to that of the ridge name.

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales is Cerrig Blaen Cletwr Fawr, and this was derived from the contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map, and also named on the Ordnance Survey series of Six-Inch maps and the historic 1:25,000 map.  With the name of the land taking in the summit of this hill named at the time of the Tithe as Cerrig and it being the sheepwalk of the farm of Blaencletwr-fawr.


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Pumlumon

Name:  Cerrig Blaen Cletwr Fawr

Previously Listed Name:  Esgair Foel-ddu

OS 1:50,000 map:  135

Summit Height:  479.1m (LIDAR)

Summit Grid Reference:  SN 70765 92570 (LIDAR)

Bwlch Height:  c 433m (interpolation)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SN 71076 92278 (interpolation)

Drop:  c 46m (LIDAR summit and interpolated bwlch)


Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (January 2020)







Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

 Y Glog (SO 222 690) - 48th significant name change


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill derived from a survey with the Trimble GeoXH 6000 conducted by Myrddyn Phillips on the 8th April 2016 and subsequently confirmed by LIDAR analysis conducted by Aled Williams.

The criteria for the list that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 30m minimum drop, the list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

The hill is adjoined to the Elfael group of hills, which are situated in the eastern part of Mid and West Wales (Region B, Sub-Region B1), and it is positioned with the B4356 road to its north and the A488 road to its south and east, and has the village of Llangunllo towards the north north-west and the town of Trefyclo (Knighton) towards the east north-east.

The hill appeared in the original Welsh 400m P30 list published on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website under the name of Glog Hill, which is a prominent name that appears beside the summit of this hill on contemporary Ordnance Survey maps.  This is also the name the hill was listed by in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

When the original Welsh 400m P30 list was published on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website I paid little regard to the use of language, name placement on the map, or the meaning of names and to what feature the name was appropriately applied to.  Therefore, I prioritised names for listing purposes that are now considered inappropriate or where another name is viewed as being more appropriate.   

The intricacies of language and prioritising one in favour of another for listing a hill is fraught with complication, with originating Cymraeg names being anglicised and also originating English names being cymricised, examples such as these are more common in border country and especially so for anglicised forms.  There is no steadfast rule that fits all, but as a standard a name that has its origins in the Welsh language should be prioritised in favour of a contemporary anglicised or English version of the name, and ideally for this to be substantiated by either historic documentation and / or contemporary usage.  Likewise, if a name exists where an element of it is in English and if this name applies to a hill that is situated in a Welsh speaking part of Wales it is standard practice to use a full Welsh term for the name.  It is also standard practice to use a Welsh name for a hill if another name exists that has originated in a different language.

Extract from the Parochial Queries returned to Edward Lhwyd

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales is Y Glog, with the Welsh originating name for this hill recorded as a mountain under the parish of Bledhvach by E. Lhwyd in 1696, and therefore prioritised over the part English version that appears on contemporary Ordnance Survey maps, which for listing purposes is standard practice.


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Elfael

Name:  Y Glog

Previously Listed Name:  Glog Hill

OS 1:50,000 map:  137, 148

Summit Height:  406.8m (LIDAR)

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 22272 69087 (LIDAR)

Bwlch Height:  357.2m (converted to OSGM15)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SO 20956 69962

Drop:  49.6m (LIDAR summit and Trimble bwlch)


Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (December 2019)







Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

 Y Fan (SO 162 587) - 47th significant name change


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill confirmed by LIDAR analysis conducted by Aled Williams.

Y Fan (SO 162 587)

The criteria for the list that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 30m minimum drop, the list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

The hill is adjoined to the Elfael group of hills, which are situated in the eastern part of Mid and West Wales (Region B, Sub-Region B1), and it is positioned with the A44 road to its north and the A481 road to its south, and has the small community of Llandegle towards the north-west and Maesyfed (New Radnor) towards the east north-east.

The hill appeared in the original Welsh 400m P30 list published on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website under the name of Van Hill, which is a prominent name that appears beside the summit of this hill on contemporary Ordnance Survey maps.  This is also the name the hill was listed by in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

When the original Welsh 400m P30 list was published on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website I paid little regard to the use of language, name placement on the map, or the meaning of names and to what feature the name was appropriately applied to.  Therefore, I prioritised names for listing purposes that are now considered inappropriate or where another name is viewed as being more appropriate.   

The intricacies of language and prioritising one in favour of another for listing a hill is fraught with complication, with originating Cymraeg names being anglicised and also originating English names being cymricised, examples such as these are more common in border country and especially so for anglicised forms.  There is no steadfast rule that fits all, but as a standard a name that has its origins in the Welsh language should be prioritised in favour of a contemporary anglicised or English version of the name, and ideally for this to be substantiated by either historic documentation and / or contemporary usage.  Likewise, if a name exists where an element of it is in English and if this name applies to a hill that is situated in a Welsh speaking part of Wales it is standard practice to use a full Welsh term for the name.  It is also standard practice to use a Welsh name for a hill if another name exists that has originated in a different language.

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales is Y Fan, with the Welsh originating name for this hill prioritised over the anglicised version, which for listing purposes is standard practice.


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Elfael

Name:  Y Fan

Previously Listed Name:  The Van

OS 1:50,000 map:  148

Summit Height:  465.0m (LIDAR)

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 16261 58766 (LIDAR)

Bwlch Height:  389.2m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SO 16320 59189 (LIDAR)

Drop:  75.8m (LIDAR)


Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (December 2019)







Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

 Clogau (SJ 184 462) - 46th significant name change

 Hill Reclassifications post for Clogau


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is now listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill estimated from contour interpolation using the 5m contours on the OS Maps website.

Clogau (SJ 184 462)

The criteria for the list that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 30m minimum drop, accompanying the main Y Pedwarau list are five categories of sub hills, with this hill being added to the 400m Sub-Pedwar category.  The criteria for 400m Sub-Pedwar status being all Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 20m or more and below 30m of drop.  The list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

The hill is adjoined to the Moel y Gamelin group of hills, which are situated in the north-eastern part of North Wales (Region A, Sub-Region A2), and it is positioned with the A542 road to its north-east, the A5104 road to its north-west and the A5 road to its south, and has the town of Llangollen towards the south-east.

When the original 400m height band of Welsh P30 hills were published on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website this hill was not included in the Hills to be surveyed sub list that accompanied the main P30 list, as it did not meet the criteria then used in this sub category.

The sub list was standardised and interpolated heights and drop values also included, but it was only when compiling The Welsh P15s that this hill was listed with 17m of drop based on the 455m summit spot height that appears on the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map and the 438m spot height that appears in the vicinity of this hill’s bwlch on the Ordnance Survey Vector Map Local hosted on the Geograph website and which is entitled the Interactive Coverage Map, and therefore this hill was not included in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013. 

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

The hill was originally listed in The Welsh P15s by the name of Berwyn Quarry, which is a name that appears adjacent to this hill’s summit on the contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map.

Since publication of the 1st edition of Y Pedwarau there have been a number of Ordnance Survey maps made available online, some of these are historic such as the series of Six-Inch maps on the National Library of Scotland website, whilst others are current and digitally updated such as the Vector Map Local hosted on the Geograph website and which is entitled the Interactive Coverage Map.  Two of the historic maps now available are the Ordnance Survey Draft Surveyors map which formed the basis for the first publicly available Ordnance Survey One-Inch ‘Old Series’ map and it is the series of Ordnance Survey Six-Inch maps that form the basis for the change in this hill’s listed name.

Extract from the series of Ordnance Survey Six-Inch maps

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales is Clogau and this was derived from the series of Ordnance Survey Six-Inch maps, with the Welsh name for the quarry being prioritised over the English name which for listing purposes is standard practice.


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Moel y Gamelin

Name:  Clogau

Previously Listed Name:  Berwyn Quarry

OS 1:50,000 map:  116

Summit Height:  c 460m (interpolation)

Summit Grid Reference:  SJ 18455 46229 (interpolation)

Bwlch Height:  c 439m (interpolation)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SJ 18304 46343 (interpolation)

Drop:  c 21m


Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (December 2019)







Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

 Parc Mawr (SO 057 720) - 45th significant name change


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill confirmed by LIDAR analysis conducted by Aled Williams.

LIDAR image of Parc Mawr (SO 057 720)

The criteria for the list that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 30m minimum drop, accompanying the main Y Pedwarau list are five categories of sub hills, with this hill being listed in the 400m Sub-Pedwar category.  The criteria for 400m Sub-Pedwar status being all Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 20m or more and below 30m of drop.  The list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

The hill is adjoined to the Hirddywel group of hills, which are situated in the north-eastern part of Mid and West Wales (Region B, Sub-Region B1), and it is encircled by minor roads, with the B4518 road further to its west, the A44 road further to its south and the A483 road further to its east, and has the small community of Abaty Cwm-hir (Abbeycwmhir) towards the south.

When the original 400m height band of Welsh P30 hills were published on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website this hill was not included in the Hills to be surveyed sub list that accompanied the main P30 list, as it did not meet the criteria then used in this sub category.

After the sub list was standardised, and interpolated heights and drop values also included the hill was listed by the name of Pt. 438m, Great Park in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013.  The point notation was applied as Ordnance Survey spot heights give this hill 1m lower than its adjacent hill positioned at SO 05947 71717, with both hills a part of land named as Great Park on contemporary Ordnance Survey maps.   

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

Since publication of the 1st edition of Y Pedwarau the Tithe maps for Wales have become available online.  The term Tithe map is generally given to a map of a Welsh or English parish or township and which was prepared after the 1836 Tithe Commutation Act.  This act allowed tithes to be paid in cash rather than goods.  The Tithe maps gave names of owners and occupiers of land in each parish and importantly for place-name research they also included the name of enclosed land.  This enclosed land is usually based on a field system, however not every field is given a name, but many are and especially so in Wales.

Extract from the Tithe map

The enclosed land where the summit of this hill is situated is given the number 2 on the Tithe map, this can be cross referenced against the apportionments; it is these apportionments that give the name of the owner or occupier of the land as well as the name of the land.  The land where the summit of this hill is situated is named as Parc Mawr in the apportionments, with the details on the Tithe map appearing in the parish of Llanbister and in the county named as Radnor.

Extract from the apportionments

The intricacies of language and prioritising one in favour of another for listing a hill is fraught with complication, with originating Cymraeg names being anglicised and also originating English names being cymricised, examples such as these are more common in border country and especially so for anglicised forms.  There is no steadfast rule that fits all, but as a standard a name that has its origins in the Welsh language and where this is substantiated by either historic documentation and / or contemporary usage should be prioritised in favour of a contemporary anglicised or English version of the name.  Likewise, if a name exists where an element of it is in English and if this name applies to a hill that is situated in a Welsh speaking part of Wales it is standard practice to use a full Welsh term for the name.

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales is Parc Mawr, and this was derived from the Tithe map, with the Welsh name for this hill prioritised over its English counterpart, which for listing purposes is standard practice.  The use of the point notation for lower heighted hills where the same name is also applicable to higher heighted adjacent hills is also now dispensed with if both share the same name.


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Hirddywel

Name:  Parc Mawr

Previously Listed Name:  Pt. 438m, Great Park

OS 1:50,000 map:  136, 147

Summit Height:  439.7m (LIDAR)

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 05765 72091 (LIDAR)

Bwlch Height:  414.5m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SO 05903 72253 (LIDAR)

Drop:  25.2m (LIDAR)


Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (December 2019)




Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

 Parc Mawr (SO 059 717) - 44th significant name change


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill confirmed by LIDAR analysis conducted by Aled Williams.

Parc Mawr (SO 059 717)

The criteria for the list that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 30m minimum drop, accompanying the main Y Pedwarau list are five categories of sub hills, with this hill being listed in the 400m Sub-Pedwar category.  The criteria for 400m Sub-Pedwar status being all Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 20m or more and below 30m of drop.  The list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

The hill is adjoined to the Hirddywel group of hills, which are situated in the north-eastern part of Mid and West Wales (Region B, Sub-Region B1), and it is encircled by minor roads, with the B4518 road further to its west, the A44 road further to its south and the A483 road further to its east, and has the small community of Abaty Cwm-hir (Abbeycwmhir) towards the south-west.

When the original 400m height band of Welsh P30 hills were published on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website this hill was not included in the Hills to be surveyed sub list that accompanied the main P30 list, as it did not meet the criteria then used in this sub category.

After the sub list was standardised, and interpolated heights and drop values also included the hill was listed by the name of Great Park in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013.  This is a name that appears adjacent to this hill’s summit on contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger and 1:25,000 Explorer maps. 

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

Since publication of the 1st edition of Y Pedwarau the Tithe maps for Wales have become available online.  The term Tithe map is generally given to a map of a Welsh or English parish or township and which was prepared after the 1836 Tithe Commutation Act.  This act allowed tithes to be paid in cash rather than goods.  The Tithe maps gave names of owners and occupiers of land in each parish and importantly for place-name research they also included the name of enclosed land.  This enclosed land is usually based on a field system, however not every field is given a name, but many are and especially so in Wales.

Extract from the Tithe Map

The enclosed land where the summit of this hill is situated is given the number 2 on the Tithe map, this can be cross referenced against the apportionments; it is these apportionments that give the name of the owner or occupier of the land as well as the name of the land.  The land where the summit of this hill is situated is named as Parc Mawr in the apportionments, with the details on the Tithe map appearing in the parish of Llanbister and in the county named as Radnor.

Extract from the apportionments

The intricacies of language and prioritising one in favour of another for listing a hill is fraught with complication, with originating Cymraeg names being anglicised and also originating English names being cymricised, examples such as these are more common in border country and especially so for anglicised forms.  There is no steadfast rule that fits all, but as a standard a name that has its origins in the Welsh language and where this is substantiated by either historic documentation and / or contemporary usage should be prioritised in favour of a contemporary anglicised or English version of the name.  Likewise, if a name exists where an element of it is in English and if this name applies to a hill that is situated in a Welsh speaking part of Wales it is standard practice to use a full Welsh term for the name.

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales is Parc Mawr, and this was derived from the Tithe map, with the Welsh name for this hill prioritised over its English counterpart, which for listing purposes is standard practice.


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Hirddywel

Name:  Parc Mawr

Previously Listed Name:  Great Park

OS 1:50,000 map:  136, 147

Summit Height:  439.3m (LIDAR)

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 05947 71717 (LIDAR)

Bwlch Height:  413.5m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SO 05957 71955 (LIDAR)

Drop:  25.8m (LIDAR)


Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (November 2019)







Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

 Parc Bach (SO 051 717) - 43rd significant name change


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill confirmed by LIDAR analysis conducted by Aled Williams.

Parc Bach (SO 051 717)

The criteria for the list that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 30m minimum drop; with the list being co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

The hill is adjoined to the Hirddywel group of hills, which are situated in the north-eastern part of Mid and West Wales (Region B, Sub-Region B1), and it is encircled by minor roads, with the B4518 road further to its west, the A44 road further to its south and the A483 road further to its east, and has the small community of Abaty Cwm-hir (Abbeycwmhir) towards the south.

The hill appeared in the original Welsh 400m P30 list on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website under the name of Little Park, which is a name that appears adjacent to the summit of this hill on contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger and 1:25,000 Explorer maps.  This is also the name the hill was listed by in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013. 

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

Since publication of the 1st edition of Y Pedwarau the Tithe maps for Wales have become available online.  The term Tithe map is generally given to a map of a Welsh or English parish or township and which was prepared after the 1836 Tithe Commutation Act.  This act allowed tithes to be paid in cash rather than goods.  The Tithe maps gave names of owners and occupiers of land in each parish and importantly for place-name research they also included the name of enclosed land.  This enclosed land is usually based on a field system, however not every field is given a name, but many are and especially so in Wales.

Extract from the Tithe map

The enclosed land where the summit of this hill is situated is given the number 50 on the Tithe map, this can be cross referenced against the apportionments; it is these apportionments that give the name of the owner or occupier of the land as well as the name of the land.  The land where the summit of this hill is situated is named as Parc Bach in the apportionments, with the details on the Tithe map appearing in the parish of Llanbister and in the county named as Radnor.

Extract from the apportionments

The intricacies of language and prioritising one in favour of another for listing a hill is fraught with complication, with originating Cymraeg names being anglicised and also originating English names being cymricised, examples such as these are more common in border country and especially so for anglicised forms.  There is no steadfast rule that fits all, but as a standard a name that has its origins in the Welsh language and where this is substantiated by either historic documentation and / or contemporary usage should be prioritised in favour of a contemporary anglicised or English version of the name.  Likewise, if a name exists where an element of it is in English and if this name applies to a hill that is situated in a Welsh speaking part of Wales it is standard practice to use a full Welsh term for the name.

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales is Parc Bach, and this was derived from the Tithe map, with the Welsh name for this hill prioritised over its English counterpart, which for listing purposes is standard practice.


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Hirddywel

Name:  Parc Bach

Previously Listed Name:  Little Park

OS 1:50,000 map:  136, 147

Summit Height:  427.2m (LIDAR)

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 05193 71775 (LIDAR)

Bwlch Height:  396.5m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SO 05219 72085 (LIDAR)

Drop:  30.7m (LIDAR)


For details on the visit to this hill

Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (November 2019)







Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

 Gwastedyn (SN 986 661) - 42nd significant name change


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales and Y Trechol – The Dominant Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop, dominance and status of the hill confirmed by LIDAR analysis initially conducted by Aled Williams.

LIDAR image of Gwastedyn (SN 986 661)

The criteria for the two listings that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height with 30m minimum drop, the list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

Y Trechol - The Dominant Hills of Wales - Welsh P30 hills whose prominence  equal or exceed half that of their absolute height.  With the criteria for Lesser Dominant status being those additional Welsh P30 hills whose prominence is between one third and half that of their absolute height, with the Introduction to the Mapping Mountains publication of this list appearing on the 3rd December 2015.

The hill is adjoined to the Hirddywel group of hills, which are situated in the north-eastern part of Mid and West Wales (Region B, Sub-Region B1), and it is positioned with the A44 road to its north-east and the A470 road to its south-west, and has the town of Rhaeadr Gwy (Rhayader) towards the north-west.

The hill appeared in the original Welsh 400m P30 list on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website under the name of Gwastedyn Hill, which is a prominent name that appears beside the summit of this hill on contemporary Ordnance Survey maps.  This is also the name the hill was listed by in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

Since publication of the 1st edition of Y Pedwarau there have been a number of Ordnance Survey maps made available online, some of these are historic such as the series of Six-Inch maps on the National Library of Scotland website, whilst others are current and digitally updated such as the Vector Map Local hosted on the Geograph website and which is entitled the Interactive Coverage Map.  Two of the historic maps now available are the Ordnance Survey Draft Surveyors map which formed the basis for the first publicly available Ordnance Survey One-Inch ‘Old Series’ map and the latter map and the Ordnance Survey Six-Inch map form the basis for the change in this hill’s listed name.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey One-Inch 'Old Series' map

The One-Inch ‘Old Series’ map was the first map that the Ordnance Survey produced, and their publication culminated from the whole of Britain being surveyed between 1791 and 1874 and the detail gathered therein produced at a scale of one inch to the mile and published in sheet format between 1805 and 1874.  The One-Inch ‘Old Series’ maps for the whole of Wales are now available online; they are also available in map format as enlarged and re-projected versions to match the scale and dimensions of the Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger series and are published by Cassini.  This series of maps form another important part in the study of Welsh upland place-names and bridge the timeframe leading up to the production of the Ordnance Survey base map of the Six-Inch series, and it is these two maps that use the form of this hill’s name without the word Hill, which is a relatively recent map addition.

Extract from the Ordnance Surveys series of Six-Inch maps

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales and Y Trechol – The Dominant Hills of Wales is Gwastedyn and this form without the superfluous use of the word Hill was derived from the Ordnance Survey One-Inch ‘Old Series’ map and the Ordnance Survey series of Six-Inch maps and substantiated by the 1865 Enclosure Map.


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Hirddywel

Name:  Gwastedyn

Previously Listed Name:  Gwastedyn Hill

OS 1:50,000 map:  136, 147

Summit Height:  477.2m (LIDAR)

Summit Grid Reference:  SN 98679 66145 (LIDAR)

Bwlch Height:  233.1m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SN 99395 68804 (LIDAR)

Drop:  244.1m (LIDAR)

Dominance:  51.15% (LIDAR)


Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (November 2019)







Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

 Garreg y Noddfa (SN 930 761) - 41st significant name change

 Survey post for Garreg y Noddfa


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales, with the summit height and its location determined by a Leica 530 survey conducted by John Barnard, Graham Jackson and Myrddyn Phillips on the 26th February 2009, and the bwlch height and its location, the drop and status of the hill confirmed by LIDAR analysis conducted by Aled Williams.

The Trimble GeoXH 6000 gathering data at the summit of Garreg y Noddfa

The criteria for the list that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 30m minimum drop; with the list being co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

The hill is adjoined to the Hirddywel group of hills, which are situated in the north-eastern part of Mid and West Wales (Region B, Sub-Region B1), and it is positioned with the A470 road and the Afon Gwy (River Wye) to its west and the B4518 road to its east, and has the town of Llanidloes towards the north and the town of Rhaeadr Gwy (Rhayader) towards the south-east.

The hill appeared in the original Welsh 400m P30 list on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website under the name of Bryn Titli, which is a name that appears close to the summit of this hill on contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger and 1:25,000 Explorer maps. 

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

The listed name of this hill was revised to Fawnog Gnapiog in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013.  With this revised name being one of the main named features of the hill as opposed to that of Bryn Titli which has been placed consistently by Ordnance Survey adjacent to a 492.7m high hill positioned at SN 93383 75719.  

Extract from the Ordnance Survey series of Six-Inch maps

Since publication of the 1st edition of Y Pedwarau the Tithe maps for Wales have become available online.  The term Tithe map is generally given to a map of a Welsh or English parish or township and which was prepared after the 1836 Tithe Commutation Act.  This act allowed tithes to be paid in cash rather than goods.  The Tithe maps gave names of owners and occupiers of land in each parish and importantly for place-name research they also included the name of enclosed land.  This enclosed land is usually based on a field system, however not every field is given a name, but many are and especially so in Wales.

Extract from the Tithe map

The enclosed land on Tithe maps is given a number that can be cross referenced against the apportionments; it is these apportionments that give the name of the owner or occupier of the land as well as the name of the land.  However, in this instance it is the actual Tithe map that gives the name of Garreg y Noddfa beside the summit of this hill.  With the details on the Tithe map appearing in the parish of Llangirrig [sic] and in the county named as Montgomery.

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales is Garreg y Noddfa, and this was derived from the Tithe map.


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Hirddywel

Name:  Garreg y Noddfa

Previously Listed Name:  Fawnog Gnapiog

OS 1:50,000 map:  136, 147

Summit Height:  495.7m (Leica 530, converted to OSGM15)

Summit Grid Reference:  SN 93041 76174 (Leica 530)

Bwlch Height:  436.7m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SN 93730 74216 (LIDAR)

Drop:  59.0m (LIDAR)


For details on the Trimble GeoXH 6000 survey of this hill

Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (November 2019)







Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

 Carreg y Frân (SO 184 790) - 40th significant name change


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales and the Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill confirmed by LIDAR analysis conducted by Aled Williams.

LIDAR image of Carreg y Frân (SO 184 790)

The criteria for the two listings that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 30m minimum drop, accompanying the main Y Pedwarau list are five categories of sub hills, with this hill being listed in the 390m Double Sub-Pedwar category.  The criteria for 390m Double Sub-Pedwar status being all Welsh hills at or above 390m and below 400m in height that have 20m or more and below 30m of drop.  The list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 300m and below 400m in height that have 30m minimum drop, with an accompanying sub list entitled the Sub-Trichant with the criteria for this sub category being all Welsh hills at or above 300m and below 400m in height with 20m or more and below 30m of drop.  The list is authored by Myrddyn Phillips, with the Introduction to the list and the renaming of it appearing on Mapping Mountains on the 13th May 2017.

The hill is adjoined to the Maelienydd group of hills, which are situated in the north-eastern part of Mid and West Wales (Region B, Sub-Region B1), and it is positioned with the B4355 and the River Teme to its north-east, and has the village of Beguildy towards the north-east.

The hill appeared in the original Welsh 300m P30 list on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website under the name of the Birches which is a name that appears beside the summit of this hill on the contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map.  This is also the name this hill was listed by in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

The name Carreg y Frân was taken from local and historical sources.  The previously listed name of Birches, which the Ordnance Survey apply to the summit of the hill, strictly refers to enclosed land on the northern side of the ridge (see extract from Tithe map below); refer to 'Upland Place Names in North-East Radnorshire:  Beacon Hill' by A. Williams, Trans. Rad. Soc. (2016) for further details.

Extract from the Tithe map

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales and the Y Trichant – The 300m Hills of Wales is Carreg y Frân, and this was derived from local and historical sources.


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Maelienydd

Name:  Carreg y Frân

Previously Listed Name:  Birches

OS 1:50,000 map:  136, 148

Summit Height:  393.5m (LIDAR)

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 18443 79055 (LIDAR)

Bwlch Height:  369.2m (LIDAR)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SO 17773 79089 (LIDAR)

Drop:  24.3m (LIDAR)


Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (November 2019)




Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

 Lower House Bank (SO 142 790) - 39th significant name change


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales, with the summit height and its position taken from Ordnance Survey map data and hand-held GPS grid references supplied to the DoBIH respectively, and the drop ascertained from a basic levelling survey of the bwlch conducted by Myrddyn Phillips on the 17th September 2003.

The criteria for the list that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height with 30m minimum drop, the list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

The hill is adjoined to the Maelienydd group of hills, which are situated in the north-eastern part of Mid and West Wales (Region B, Sub-Region B1), and it is positioned with the B4355 road to its east and north, the A483 road to its west and the B4356 to its south, and has the village of Felindre towards the north-east and the village of Llanbadarn Fynydd towards the west south-west.

The hill appeared in the original Welsh 400m P30 list on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website under the name of Ty’n-y-ddôl Hill, which is a prominent name that appears beside the summit of this hill on contemporary Ordnance Survey maps.  This is also the name the hill was listed by in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

Since publication of the 1st edition of Y Pedwarau there have been a number of Ordnance Survey maps made available online, some of these are historic such as the series of Six-Inch maps on the National Library of Scotland website, whilst others are current and digitally updated such as the Vector Map Local hosted on the Geograph website and which is entitled the Interactive Coverage Map, and it is the series of Ordnance Survey Six-Inch maps that name the area taking in the summit of this hill as Lower House Bank, with this name being substantiated on the 1857 Enclosure Map, and in use on contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger and 1:25,000 Explorer maps, with the name of Ty’n-y-ddôl Hill applicable to adjacent land to the north of this hill’s summit.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey series of Six-Inch maps

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales is Lower House Bank and this was derived from the Ordnance Survey series of Six-Inch maps and substantiated by the 1857 Enclosure Map as well as appearing on contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger and 1:25,000 Explorer maps.


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Maelienydd

Name:  Lower House Bank

Previously Listed Name:  Ty’n-y-ddôl Hill

OS 1:50,000 map:  136, 148

Summit Height:  484m (spot height)

Summit Grid Reference:  SO 14240 79030 (hand-held GPS via DoBIH)

Bwlch Height:  c 432m (based on drop value)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SO 12679 79964 (interpolation)

Drop:  c 52m (basic levelling survey of bwlch)


Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (November 2019)







Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

 Pen y Ffridd Glap (SH 728 339) - 38th significant name change


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales, with the summit height and its position taken from data on the Harvey 1:40,000 British Mountain Map and the drop ascertained from a basic levelling survey conducted by Myrddyn Phillips on the 11th July 2003.

The criteria for the list that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height with 30m minimum drop, accompanying the main Y Pedwarau list are five categories of sub hills, with this hill being listed in the 400m Sub-Pedwar category.  The criteria for 400m Sub-Pedwar status being all Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 20m or more and below 30m of drop.  The list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

The hill is adjoined to the Arenig group of hills, which are situated in the south-western part of North Wales (Region A, Sub-Region A3), and it is positioned with the A4212 road and the Afon Prysor to its north and the A470 road to its west, and has the village of Trawsfynydd towards the north-west.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

The hill appeared in the original Welsh 400m P30 list on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website under the name of Ffridd Wen, which is a name that appears beside the summit of this hill on contemporary Ordnance Survey maps.  The name of Ffridd Wen is also the name this hill was listed by in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013.


Ffridd Wen
410c
SH728339
124
18
MP survey: 26.7m / 87.5'


Since publication of the 1st edition of Y Pedwarau the Tithe maps for Wales have become available online and as this hill comprises bounded land these were consulted.  The term Tithe map is generally given to a map of a Welsh or English parish or township and which was prepared after the 1836 Tithe Commutation Act.  This act allowed tithes to be paid in cash rather than goods.  The Tithe maps gave names of owners and occupiers of land in each parish and importantly for place-name research they also included the name of enclosed land.  This enclosed land is usually based on a field system, however not every field is given a name, but many are and especially so in Wales.

Extract from the Tithe map

The enclosed land where the summit of this hill is situated is given the number 1330 on the Tithe map, this can be cross referenced against the apportionments; it is these apportionments that give the name of the owner or occupier of the land as well as the name of the land.  The land where the summit of this hill is situated is named as Ffridd Glap in the apportionments, with the details on the Tithe map appearing in the parish of Trawsfynydd and in the county named as Merioneth.

Extract from the apportionments

Importantly the Tithe map names the bounded land to the south and below the highest ffridd as Ffridd Wen, with the contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map and the series of Ordnance Survey Six-Inch maps naming land that would comprise the summit as Pen y Ffridd Glap.

Extract from the Tithe map showing detail on the Ordnance Survey series of Six-Inch maps

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales is Pen y Ffridd Glap, and this was derived from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map and the series of Ordnance Survey Six-Inch maps with the name of the bounded land substantiated by the Tithe map.


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Arenig

Name:  Pen y Ffridd Glap

Previously Listed Name:  Ffridd Wen

OS 1:50,000 map:  124

Summit Height:  417m (Harvey 1:40,000 British Mountain Map)

Summit Grid Reference:  SH 72800 33956 (spot height)

Bwlch Height:  390m (based on drop value)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SH 73041 33734 (interpolation)

Drop:  27m (basic levelling survey)


Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (October 2019)







Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau

 Graig Fawr (SJ 197 588) - 37th significant name change


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales, with the summit height and its position confirmed from LIDAR analysis conducted by Aled Williams.

Graig Fawr (SJ 197 588)

The criteria for the list that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height with 30m minimum drop, accompanying the main Y Pedwarau list are five categories of sub hills, with this hill being listed in the 400m Sub-Pedwar category.  The criteria for 400m Sub-Pedwar status being all Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height that have 20m or more and below 30m of drop.  The list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

The hill is adjoined to the Moel y Gamelin group of hills, which are situated in the north-eastern part of North Wales (Region A, Sub-Region A2), and it is positioned with the A494 road and the Afon Alun (River Alyn) to its north-west and the B5430 road to its south, and has the town of Rhuthun (Ruthin) towards the west.

As the authors did not know an appropriate name for this hill either from local enquiry or historic documentation it was listed under the point (Pt. 403m, Bryn Alyn) notation in the 1st edition of the Y Pedwarau published by Europeaklist in May 2013, with the Bryn Alyn component being a name that appears relatively close to the summit of this hill on contemporary Ordnance Survey maps.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

Since publication of the 1st edition of Y Pedwarau there are now a number of Ordnance Survey maps made available online, some of these are historic such as the series of Six-Inch maps on the National Library of Scotland website, whilst others are current and digitally updated such as the Vector Map Local hosted on the Geograph website and which is entitled the Interactive Coverage Map.  One of the historic maps now available is the Ordnance Survey Draft Surveyors map which formed the basis for the first publicly available Ordnance Survey One-Inch ‘Old Series’ map and it is this map that formed the basis for the change in this hill’s listed name.

The Draft Surveyors maps consist of the preliminary drawings made by the Ordnance Surveyor’s surveyors between the 1780s and 1840 and formed the basis for the first publicly available One-Inch map.  They were drawn at scales of six inches to the mile for areas considered of particular military significance and down to two inches to the mile for other areas.  Fair copies were then produced from these preliminary drawings to one inch to the mile and then copper plates were prepared for printing.  The Draft Surveyors maps for the whole of Wales are now available online and they form an important part in the study of Welsh upland place-names as they bridge the time frame between the late 18th century and the mid-19th century when the Ordnance Survey produced their first One-Inch maps, and importantly for this hill and its listed name, it is the Draft Surveyors map that name the hill as Graig Fawr.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey Draft Surveyors map

Although the name of Bryn Alyn appears close to the summit of this hill on contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger and 1:25,000 Explorer maps it is applicable to a farm and not necessarily the hill, as evidenced by its position given on the Ordnance Surveys series of Six-Inch maps.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey series of Six-Inch maps

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales is Graig Fawr, and this was derived from the Ordnance Survey Draft Surveyors map.


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Moel y Gamelin

Name:  Graig Fawr

Previously Listed Name:  Pt. 403m, Bryn Alyn

OS 1:50,000 map:  116

Summit Height:  403.7m (LIDAR)

Summit Grid Reference:  SJ 19712 58866 (LIDAR)

Bwlch Height:  c 377m (interpolation)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SJ 19939 58832 (interpolation)

Drop:  c 27m


Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (October 2019)







Mapping Mountains - Significant Name Changes - Y Pedwarau
Craig yr Ywen (SJ 200 587) - 36th significant name change


There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill confirmed by a Leica 530 survey conducted by John Barnard, Graham Jackson and Myrddyn Phillips which took place on the 17th January 2012.

Craig yr Ywen (SJ 200 587)

The criteria for the list that this name change applies to are:

Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales.  Welsh hills at or above 400m and below 500m in height with 30m minimum drop, the list is co-authored by Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams and is published on Mapping Mountains in Google Doc format.

The hill is adjoined to the Moel y Gamelin group of hills, which are situated in the north-eastern part of North Wales (Region A, Sub-Region A2), and it is positioned with the A494 road and the Afon Alun (River Alyn) to its north-west and the B5430 road to its south, and has the town of Rhuthun (Ruthin) towards the west.

The hill appeared in the original Welsh 400m P30 list on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website, under the transposed name of Pen-y-coed, with an accompanying note stating; Name from buildings to the East.
Pen-y-coed
408m
SJ200587
117
256/265
Name from buildings to the East.


During my early hill listing I thought it appropriate to either invent a name for a hill, or use a name that appeared near to the summit of the hill on Ordnance Survey maps of the day.  My preference was to use farm names and put Pen, Bryn or Moel in front of them or as in this instance transpose the name of what I presumed to be a farm and use it for that of the hill.  This is not a practice that I now advocate as with time and inclination place-name data can be improved either by asking local people or by examining historic documents, through this form of research an appropriate name for the hill can usually be found.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer map

The name of this hill was re-evaluated and listed as Bryn Alyn in the Y Pedwarau publication by Europeaklist in May 2013, and this is a name that appears relatively close to the summit of this hill on contemporary Ordnance Survey maps.

Since publication of these P30 lists on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website there have been a number of Ordnance Survey maps made available online, some of these are historic such as the series of Six-Inch maps on the National Library of Scotland website, whilst others are current and digitally updated such as the Vector Map Local hosted on the Geograph website and which is entitled the Interactive Coverage Map.  Two of the historic maps now available are the Ordnance Survey Draft Surveyors map which formed the basis for the first publicly available Ordnance Survey One-Inch ‘Old Series’ map and it is these maps that formed the basis for the change in this hill’s listed name.

The Draft Surveyors maps consist of the preliminary drawings made by the Ordnance Surveyor’s surveyors between the 1780s and 1840 and formed the basis for the first publicly available One-Inch map.  They were drawn at scales of six inches to the mile for areas considered of particular military significance and down to two inches to the mile for other areas.  Fair copies were then produced from these preliminary drawings to one inch to the mile and then copper plates were prepared for printing.  The Draft Surveyors maps for the whole of Wales are now available online and they form an important part in the study of Welsh upland place-names as they bridge the time frame between the late 18th century and the mid-19th century when the Ordnance Survey produced their first One-Inch maps.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey Draft Surveyors map

The One-Inch ‘Old Series’ map was the first map that the Ordnance Survey produced, and their publication culminated from the whole of Britain being surveyed between 1791 and 1874 and the detail gathered therein produced at a scale of one inch to the mile and published in sheet format between 1805 and 1874.  The One-Inch ‘Old Series’ maps for the whole of Wales are now available online; they are also available in map format as enlarged and re-projected versions to match the scale and dimensions of the Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger series and are published by Cassini.  This series of maps form another important part in the study of Welsh upland place-names and bridge the timeframe leading up to the production of the Ordnance Survey base map of the Six-Inch series, and importantly for this hill and its listed name, it is these two maps that name the hill as Craig yr Ywen.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey One-Inch 'Old Series' map

Although the name of Bryn Alyn appears close to the summit of this hill on contemporary Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger and 1:25,000 Explorer maps it is applicable to a farm and not necessarily the hill, as evidenced by its position given on the Ordnance Surveys series of Six-Inch maps.

Extract from the Ordnance Survey series of Six-Inch maps

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the Y Pedwarau – The 400m Hills of Wales is Craig yr Ywen, and this was derived from the Ordnance Survey Draft Surveyors map and the Ordnance Survey One-Inch ‘Old Series’ map.


The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Moel y Gamelin

Name:  Craig yr Ywen

Previously Listed Name:  Bryn Alyn

OS 1:50,000 map:  117

Summit Height:  408.3m (converted to OSGM15, Leica 530)

Summit Grid Reference:  SJ 20079 58749

Bwlch Height:  307.4m (converted to OSGM15, Leica 530)

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SJ 21155 56206

Drop:  100.8m



Myrddyn Phillips and Aled Williams (October 2019)



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