For Edwina
‘ngwas i: (colloquially) my lad
gwas bach: literally ‘little servant’. A term reserved for the youngest or most junior servants.
Banc Yr Eithin: gorse bank
tŷ unnos: literally ‘one-night house’
tai unnos: the plural form of t ŷ unnos
crachach: gentry or upper classes
Duw: God
smwglin: a dockside drinking den where ale was brewed without a licence and smuggled spirits were sold.
betgwn: the outer garment of most Cardiganshire working women in the nineteenth century. It featured a tight, low-cut bodice and a long back, sometimes gathered up into a ‘tail’. It would have been worn over a blouse and petticoats with an apron over the top.
Mamgu: grandmother
Arglwydd annwyl: Dear Lord
bara brith: a light fruitcake or tea loaf
’machgen i: my boy
trist: sad
hiraeth: a longing for times or places past