Welsh Journals

A WELSH CLASSICAL DICTIONARY. By Peter C. Bartrum, The National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth, 1993. Pp. 649. £ 35.00 This book has, as its sub-title, 'People in History and Legend up to about A.D. 1000'. Anyone familiar with the field will realize immediately the immensity of the task that Mr Bartrum chose to tackle. The immensity of the task, formidable as it is, is overshadowed by its complexity. Most texts which purport to refer to the period are later than the period, and assigning dates to the personae of, say, Geoffrey of Monmouth's works-could well have been one of the Impossible Labours a modern Giant Ysbaddaden would have imposed on any suitor seeking to marry his daughter. However, Mr Bartrum is not just any suitor: he has spent many years working on the materials from which he has compiled this dictionary, and is well-known as the foremost authority on Welsh pedigrees. The book based on Welsh materials that is most similar to this one is Rachel Bromwich's Trioedd Ynys Prydein (The Triads of the Isle of Britain), in which old lists cataloguing the lore of medieval Welsh literature in threes are published. This triadic catalogue is probably a mnemonic device which was used by storytellers and poets. Dr Bromwich's introduction to the triads and her annotation of them was a notable scholarly achievement: this book is a worthy successor to it. The amount of detailed research, cross-checking, cross-referencing, and consulting of authorities involved in the production of this dictionary is staggering. Its presentation is exemplary. We are told that a person is historical, mythical, legendary, fictitious or, as in the case of Custennin Goronog, for example, that he is a 'Literary error'. In addition to providing information about characters, connections between them and their families are made, persons of the same name are differentiated, references to persons in various sources are indicated, illuminating comparisons with texts in other Celtic languages are provided, and-as has been indicated-dates are offered. Every page of this work shows that it is indispensable for all scholars working in the field of early British medieval literary and historical studies. And for any layman interested in the past it is a treasure trove of fascinating information. This magisterial work is presented with the kind of modesty that is achieved only by the knowledge, and the consequent realization of what there is to know, that comes of a lifetime of dedicated study. Mr Bartrum hopes that his notes 'may be of use to non- professionals in the various fields, by giving fundamental information and pointing to further sources. They could perhaps be the nucleus of a more professional dictionary.' This is a tour de force and the National Library of Wales has done itself proud in publishing it. GWYN THOMAS Bangor