Gwerful Mechain facts for kids

Gwerful Mechain (who lived around 1460–1502) was a very important Welsh poet. She is the only female poet from medieval Wales whose many poems have survived until today. This makes her work very special and helps us learn about women's voices from that time.

Who Was Gwerful Mechain?

Gwerful Mechain lived in a place called Mechain in Powys, Wales. We don't know a lot about her daily life. However, people believe she came from a noble, or important, family in Llanfechain.

Her father was Hywel Fychan, and her mother was Gwenhwyfar. She had at least four brothers and sisters. Gwerful married a man named John ap Llywelyn Fychan. They had at least one child, a daughter named Mawd.

Her Amazing Poems

Gwerful Mechain is one of the most famous female poets who wrote in the Welsh language. Another well-known poet was Ann Griffiths, who lived much later. Gwerful wrote her poems using traditional Welsh styles. These styles are called "strict metres," and they have very specific rules for rhythm and rhyme. Two examples of these styles are cywyddau and englynion.

She was very active in the poetry world of her time. Many of her poems that we still have are part of something called ymrysonau. This means they were like poetic battles or friendly competitions. She would exchange poems with other famous poets of her day. Some of these poets included Dafydd Llwyd of Mathafarn, Ieuan Dyfi, and Llywelyn ap Gutun.