Yma Mae Dreigiau - Here Be Dragons

Chwedl am Lyn Tegid yw'r olaf gennyf yn y gyfres yma. Gobeithio gwnewch chi ei fwynhau a chawn ni wneud hyn eto cyn bo hir.

Mae rhan helaeth o hanes Cymru ar goll o dan ein traed. Wedi dweud hynny mae'n beth hynod pan mae chwedl a chynhanes go iawn yn cydymffurfio fel hyn.

Having had so many warnings in this series about dealing with the Fairies I thought it would be good if my last fairy story was a little more positive. At least more positive than some. At least a jolly miller managed to get a little reward for helping the fairies have a good wash!

Pam mai'r straeon mwyaf gwaedlyd yw'r rhai sydd yn ymwneud â phobl go iawn? Rhedwch am eich bywydau! Mae Gwylliaid Cochion Mawddwy yn dod!!!

Wales is full of water spirits of various kinds, from the water horse to the lady of the lake. This is an unusual one, the cyhyrraeth.

Byddwch yn ofalus gyda pwy rydych yn eistedd lawr am êm gyfeillgar. Mae nhw'n galw deck o gardiau yn Llyfr Darlun y Diafol am reswm wyddoch chi?!

The devil has a long history in Wales, but he is usually trounced by Welsh cunning. Hear how an old woman beat the old boy at his own game.

A magical tale of (possibly) ancient origin. Strange fairies abducting knights with hints of an odyssey about it. Meet Einion, the son of one of Arthur's knights and a strange figure in white, is it Merlin? Or Gandalf?

The 3rd of August (yesterday) is the feast day of St Garmon or Germain. A local legend to us has this Gaulish bishop turning back a whole army but is it a miracle or a clever trick. Listen and have a think... 

Dyma chi un arall o ffiniau'r Mabinogi sydd a chyswllt personol i mi gan fy mod i'n dod o'r fro sydd yn y stori. Ac mae gennym Macsen acw cofiwch!

There are versions of this story all over the world, but at I was surprised to find at least two from Wales! This is a mashup of the different Welsh versions of the story I have heard so don't take it a the only version but look it up yourselves.

Chwedl gyntaf o ddwy sydd gydag Afanc ynddynt, ond â yw hon yn wir chwedl o'r oesoedd canol, neu clwyddau noeth gan Iolo Morgannwg? Beth ydych chi'n meddwl?

They say that children, madmen and artists can all see the fairies. Well this could be true of our story this week as it features a fiddler who plays at a most unusual party. 

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Judge a man not by his size but by his character. And don't think you can put one over on someone just because they happen to be smaller than you!

Bad luck can plague you, and curse you. Sometimes the Fairies can help lift such a curse, especially if they put it on you in the first place, but you must do them a favour first.  But what favour can you do for a fairy?

Halfway there, everyone. Thank you for your support so far!

What happens when the fairies make a mistake? What happens if they mistake the most miserable and unpleasant soul for a good person and reward them with magic? Stick cotton wool in your ears, it is going to be a bumpy ride.

Halfway there, everyone. Thank you for your support so far!

In Wales we do an interesting line in mythical creatures. Often they don't have to be harpies, or griffons or even dragons! Sometimes they are just ordinary animals that have achieved a great age (and often prodigious size to go with it). This story is, for this reason, often called the the Ancients of Britain or Ancient Animals of Britain. I have decided to name it for its main character, an ancient and enormous Eagle. 

Gwyrth fach teuluol o Eryri sydd gennym heddiw. Un digon ddiniwed ond sy'n haeddu cael ei ddarlledu'n bellach.  Diolch i'r ddiweddar John Owen Huws am ei gasglu. 

A drover meets a magician, finds a fortune and a sleeping king with his retinue. What would you do if you had access to a fortune in gold, but could only take out a handful at a time, for fear of large men in armour with big swords? 

Hanes go iawn heddiw, allan o lyfr hanes gan Gerallt Gymro. Mi ddwedais i fob fy straeon i gyd yn wir, yn do?

A hare-raising (Groan!) tale from Wales. The 27th of May is the Feast of St Melangell, patron saint of Hares and by extension all hunted animals in Wales.  Enjoy this recipe for Welsh Rarebit to celebrate her day... 

Mae heddiw, y 21ain o Fai, yn ddiwrnod Sant Collen, a dyma hanes sut fu iddo guro brenin y Tylwyth Teg, Gwyn ap Nudd.

This is my favourite story as it is the one I once told to the great Taffy Thomas. Beware strange creatures in the undergrowth.

Byddwch yn ofalus o anifeiliad Cymru, weithiau maent yn fwy hudol Byddwch yn ofalus o anifeiliaid Cymru, weithiau maent yn fwy hudol na'r Tylwyth Teg eu hunain. Dyna fu i Cadwaladr ddarganfod un diwrnod ar ôl cam-drin ei hoff afr, Jeni. 

Morforynion da neu drwg? Roedd yr un oedd gan Hans Christian Anderson yn dda ond mae'r gweddill yn fwy llwyd eu gwedd. Dwi ddim yn siwr os oedd Morforwyn Conwy yn haeddu eu ffawd, ond falle bod pobl y dre, y Jac y Dos am y ffordd ddaru nhw ei thrin hi. 

Shorter story today, as my voice may be on the way out.  Witches and Witch trials are the order of the day so soon after May Day.

Pwy oedd Gwyddno Garanhir, a pham ei fod yn ochneidio! Dyma hanes am damwain naturiol sydd, efallai, gyda mwy o wir ynddi nag unrhyw stori arall o'r canol oesoedd. Dyma hanes Cantre'r Gwaelod.

We have finally arrived at one of the greats, possibly the best know story from Wales. Or is it?

Gelert, the faithful hound via medieval Europe, and the creation of a cunning, marketing guru. Hear the story of Wales' most famous dog! 

(Oh, and the dog in the picture is Mr Johnson. He is a Korthal's Griffon and my sister belongs to him)

Chwedl arall am y brenin Arthur gyda diwedd cymharol hapus tro yma! Mae'r Carreg yn y stori ar ochr yr A494 rhwng Gwernymynydd a Loggerheads. 

While the rest of Europe suffered a dark age, Wales enjoyed something of a renaissance. This was a time of magic and miracles, Oes y Seintiaid, the Age of the Saints. 

This is published on the 21st of April, St Beuno's day (20th R.C.) and this Saint has enough stories to keep us all going for a good while at least! Come and find out more. 

Mae nifer o streaon am y Tylwyth Teg a sut mae pobl yn diflannu yn eu cylchoedd. Dyma un o'r gorau sy'n digwydd yn nepell o Bala yn Llanycil.  Mi ddois ar draws hon yn hen, hen lyfr (dyna lle mae'r straeon gorau!) gan Hugh Evans, ei enw? Y Tylwyth Teg. 

Catrin of Berain, a strong Welsh woman wasn't going to take any nonsense from anyone, even the Devil himself.  

Hen chwedl sy'n dod i Gymru o wlad Groeg ac maen siwr bod gan bob wlad bron ei fersiwn o hyn. Dyma un y ni yng Nghymru. 

To hear this story in English go to Tom Hughes https://youtu.be/J2gYX3VroP4. 

A story which turns up in various books, and there is even an exhibition in St Elidan's church in Llanelidan. 

Creadur bach direidus o Dylwyth Gwynn. 

Llun gan Josh Warren www.joshwarrenartist.com Picture by Josh Warren

Not the story you may already know, this one I found in the book of Welsh and Manx Folklore by John Rhys. It concerns a Giant, King Arthur and a pair of drunken kings. 

Heddiw, dyma chwedl yn y Gymraeg am fwystfil anhygoel a ddaeth i'r ardal uwchben Beddgelert. 

This is our first story, and this one is in English.  A dragon comes to a town with no name. 

 As promised in the show here is a link to Tom Hughes telling the story of the Moston Dragon.  https://www.facebook.com/tom.hughes.31508/videos/3165261850185361/