What's in a name? Pont

As discussed in our previous edition, many Welsh place-names refer either to geography or to man-made features of significance built into the landscape. A perfect example of this is places that include the prefix Pont at the beginning of their names.

There are more than a dozen towns, villages and hamlets in the three counties that begin with the word Pont, such as Pontfaen and Pontyglasier in Pembrokeshire, Pont Rhyd y Groes and Pontsian in Ceredigion and Pontarsais, Ponthenri and Pontiets in Carmarthenshire. There are hundreds more across the length and breadth of Wales.

Pont, of course, means Bridge.

What follows Pont in a place-name is often the name of the river being crossed – Pontfaen (a mutation of Pont Gwaun or Bridge over the River Gwaun), Pontyberem (a contraction and mutation of Pont Aber Beran or Bridge over the Mouth of the River Beran); the name of a person, presumably who lived near the bridge when it was originally built – Ponthenri (Henry’s Bridge), Pontsian (Sian’s Bridge); or some nearby feature – Pontiets (Bridge of the Gates), Pont Rhyd y Groes (Bridge at the Ford of the Cross). Pontyglasier, a small village in the northern Pembrokeshire, means Bridge of the Glacier, although its origins remain unclear.

Interestingly, West Wales’ most famous bridge is generally referred to by its English name, Devil’s Bridge. In Welsh, the nearby village – and the bridge itself – is known as Pontarfynach (Bridge over the River Mynach). It is thought that Mynach – meaning Monk – was adopted as the name of the river because the land through which it ran was then owned by a monastery. The first written reference to the bridge at Pontarfynach as Devil’s Bridge came in 1734.

Devil's Bridge. Picture: Keith Morris

There are in fact three bridges at Pontarfynach – built on top of each other, the most recent being erected in 1901.

The name Devil’s Bridge refers back to the Middles Ages, when – according to legend – an old woman spotted her cow grazing on the far side of the valley. When she proved unable to rescue the beast, the Devil appeared and offered to build her a bridge – but only if she agreed that he could claim the soul of the first living thing to cross. The woman accepted the deal, but once the bridge had been completed she threw a crust of bread over the river, which her dog went over the bridge to retrieve - earning the Devil the soul of a dog and nothing more.