Dechreuwn drafod bardd Cymraeg enwocaf yr Oesau Canol y bennod hon – Dafydd ap Gwilym. Nid yw hanes ei fywyd yn gwbl sicr, ond tybir iddo gael ei eni tua 1315 a marw o gwmpas y flwyddyn 1350 – o bosibl oherwydd y Pla Du. Ond mae’n sicr bod oes a gwaith Dafydd yn cydfynd â dechrau oes y cywydddwyr – a chewch beth o hanes y cywydd yn y bennod hon hefyd felly. Mae gwaith Dafydd ap Gwilym yn arwyddo cyfnod newydd yn hanes llenyddiaeth Gymraeg mewn sawl ffordd, ac mae’n bosib awgrymu mai fo oedd ‘y dyn iawn yn y lle iawn ar yr adeg iawn’, yn fardd talentog a beiddgar ar adeg pan oedd cymdeithas yn newid a phosibliadau barddol yn ymagor o’r herwydd. Mae’n cael ei gofio’n bennaf heddiw am ei ganu search a natur (pwnc ein pennod nesaf!). Mae canrifoedd o Gymry wedi dotio at ei ffresni, ei newydd-deb, ei hiwmor a’i feiddgarwch ond nodwn ei fod hefyd yn fardd traddodiadol ar un wedd, yn canu mawl ac yn cyfansoddi cerddi crefyddol dwys yn ogystal â’r gwaith hwyliog a ffraeth a gysylltir â’i enw heddiw. Craffwn ar un o’i gywyddau, sef cân o fawl i dref Niwbwrch. Awgryma’r gerdd hon fod Dafydd yn claddu medd yn y dref – yn wir, ‘mynwent medd Môn’ oedd Niwrbwrch yn ei eiriau’i hun! – ac mae’r cywydd hwyliog hwn hefyd yn sôn am yfed gwin, cwrw a methyglyn (medd wedi’i drwytho â pherleisiau). Drinking in Niwbwrch: Dafydd ap Gwilym (part 1) We start discussing the most famous Welsh poet of the Middle Ages in this episode – Dafydd ap Gwilym. The details of his life are not certain, but it is thought that he was born about the year 1315 and died about 1350, perhaps because of the Black Death. But it is certain that Dafydd’s life and work are part and parcel of the beginning of the age of the cywyddwyr – and thus you’ll also get some of the history of the cywydd metre in this episode. Dafydd ap Gwilym’s work signifies a new period in the history of Welsh literature in several ways, and it’s possible to suggest that he was ‘the right man yn the right place at the right time’, a talented and adventurous poet at a time when society was changing and poetic possibilities were opening up as a result. He is remembered today mostly for his love and nature poetry (the subject of our next episode!). Centuries of Welsh people have taken to his freshness, ingenuity, his humour and his boldness, but we note that he was also a traditional poet in some ways, composing praise poetry and serious religious verse as well as the light and witty work which is connected with his name today. We look in detail at one of his poems, a song of praise to the town of Niwbwrch in Anglesey. This poem suggests that Dafydd ‘buried’ a lot of mead there – indeed, it was ‘Angelsey’s graveyard of mead’ according to his own words! – and this light-hearted cywydd also mentions drinking wine, beer and methgelyn (mead flavoured with herbs). Cyflwynwyd gan: Yr Athro Jerry Hunter a'r Athro Richard Wyn Jones Cynhyrchwyd gan: Richard Martin Cerddoriaeth: Might Have Done gan The Molenes Dilynwch ni ar Trydar: http://www.twitter.com/YrHenIaith Tanysgrifwch yn eich hoff ap podlediadau neu ar YouTube i derbyn y pennod nesaf ar cyhoeddiad. Darllen pellach / further reading: - Thomas Parry, Gwaith Dafydd ap Gwilym - Dafydd ap Gwilym.net: https://dafyddapgwilym.net/index_cym.php - Huw Meirion Edwards, Dafydd ap Gwilym: Influences and Analogues
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