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#21 Gwawdodyn hir


Tinker

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Explore the Craft of Writing Poetry
Welsh Verse
Features of the Welsh Meters
Welsh Codified Divisions

Gwawdodyn hir, gwow-dód-in heer (gwawd means poem - hir means long), the 21st codified Welsh Meters, an Awdl, is simply an elongation of the Gwawdodyn.   A toddaid or cyhydedd hir couplet preceded by 2 or more cyhydedd naw ban couplets is called long or hir.

The elements of the Gwawdodyn hir are:

  1. stanzaic, the length of which is established by the number of Cyhydedd Naw Ban couplets (more than one) followed by either a Toddaid couplet or a Cyhydedd Hir couplet. ( most often written in a sixain, with 2 Cyhydedd Naw Ban couplets followed by either a Cyhydedd Hir couplet or a Toddaid.)
  2. syllabic, assuming only 2 cyhyded naw ban couplets are used followed by either the Cyhydedd Hir or the Toddaid couplets, L1,L2,L3,L4 and L6 are 9 syllable lines and L5 is a 10 syllable line.  Obviously, if more cyhyded naw ban couplets are added L5 and L6 become L7 and L8 etc.
  3. when written with a cyhydedd hir couplet the stanza is:
    • rhymed aaaaba,
    • with L5 internal rhyme and L6 cross rhymed L5.
  4. when written with a Toddaid
    • L1 thru L4 mono-rhymed.  Or if written with more than 2 cyhyded naw ban couplets the additional couplets too would be mono-rhyme
    • L5 composed with an addendum, a gair cyrch following the main rhyme and caesura. The gair cyrch end rhyme is echoed in the first half of L6 to consonate as secondary rhyme, assonance or consonance and end rhyme would be the main rhyme.  aaaa a . . b, b a
    with Cyhydedd Hir                                
      x x x x x x x x a
      x x x x x x x x a
     x x x x x x x x a
     x x x x x x x x a
     x x x x b x x x x b
     x x x x b x x x a

     x x x x x x x x c
     x x x x x x x x c
     x x x x x x x x c
     x x x x x x x x c
     x x x x d x x x x d
     x x x x d x x x c
with Toddaid
x x x x x x x x a
x x x x x x x x a
x x x x x x x x a
x x x x x x x x a
x x x x x x x a - x b                               
x x x x b x x x a

x x x x x x x x c
x x x x x x x x c
x x x x x x x x c
x x x x x x x x c
x x x x x x c - x x d
x x x x d x x x c
with toddaid

Gwann iawn wyf o glwyf er gloyn vorwyn
Gwae a vaeth hiraeth brif arvaeth wrwyn
Gwyr vghalonn donn defnyd vyghwyn
Gwnn ar vyrr y tyrr kyn bo erwyn
Am na ddawy law y lwyn - a bwyllaf
A garaf attaf atteb addwyn.
                         Einion 15th Century

African Spectacle by Judi Van Gorder                                                    

White-capped river, crowded forest scene,
the lion's roar tumbles the ravine
and cascades over boulders unseen.
The Zambezi plunges to careen
down infamous falls, wide wilderness sprawls,
Zimbabwe calls Victoria, Queen.
(with cyhydedd hir ending)
African Spectacle by Judi Van Gorder

White-capped river, crowded forest scene,
the lion's roar tumbles the ravine
and cascades over boulders unseen.
The Zambezi plunges to careen
down famous falls, pristine. . . Zimbabwe sprawls
stretched rainbow enthralls on landscape's screen.
{with toddaid ending)

~~ © ~~ Poems by Judi Van Gorder ~~

For permission to use this work you can write to Tinker1111@icloud.com

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  • 1 month later...

Bards

I write to honor poets of old.
The ancients and their stories retold.
When poetry was magic's threshold   
One poet named, could not be controlled. 
Council to Lords,  vision bold - - - Camelot. 
Merlin was thought to fulfill the roll.
                        ~~ Judi Van Gorder

~~ © ~~ Poems by Judi Van Gorder ~~

For permission to use this work you can write to Tinker1111@icloud.com

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