Mapping Mountains – Significant Name Changes – 200m Twmpau

Aber y Llyn (SH 791 580) 

There has been a Significant Name Change to a hill that is listed in the 200m Twmpau, with the summit height, bwlch height and their locations, the drop and status of the hill derived from LIDAR analysis conducted by Myrddyn Phillips. 

LIDAR image of Aber y Llyn (SH 791 580)

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

200m Twmpau – Welsh hills at or above 200m and below 300m in height that have 30m minimum drop, with an accompanying sub list entitled the 200m Sub-Twmpau, with the criteria for this sub category being all Welsh hills at or above 200m and below 300m in height with 20m or more and below 30m of drop, with the word Twmpau being an acronym standing for thirty welsh metre prominences and upward. 

The 200m Twmpau by Myrddyn Phillips

The hill is adjoined to the Carnedd Llywelyn group of hills, which are situated in the north-western part of North Wales (Region A, Sub-Region A1), and it is positioned with minor roads to its north-west and south-west, with the A5 road farther to its south-west, and the B5106 road to its east, and has the town of Betws-y-coed towards the south south-east.

The hill appeared in the original Welsh 200m P30 list on Geoff Crowder’s v-g.me website, under the transposed name of Pen-yr-allt-isaf, with an accompanying note stating; Name from buildings to the South.

Pen-yr-allt-isaf

246m

SH791580

115

17

Name from buildings to the South

                                                                         

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 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

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 12a 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 Aber y Llyn in the apportionments, with the details on the Tithe map appearing in the parish of Betws-y-coed and in the county named as Caernarfonshire. 

Extract from the apportionments

Therefore, the name this hill is now listed by in the 200m Twmpau is Aber y Llyn, and this was derived from the Tithe map. 

 

The full details for the hill are:

Group:  Carnedd Llywelyn

Name:  Aber y Llyn

Previously Listed Name:  Pen-yr-allt-isaf   

OS 1:50,000 map:  115

Summit Height:  246.8m (LIDAR) 

Summit Grid Reference:  SH 79130 58003 (LIDAR) 

Bwlch Height:  217.4m (LIDAR) 

Bwlch Grid Reference:  SH 78973 58411 (LIDAR) 

Drop:  29.4m (LIDAR) 

 

Myrddyn Phillips (November 2023)