A Conversation for Beddgelert, Snowdonia, Wales
Not so much a legend, more an 'urban' myth
Cheerful Dragon Started conversation Sep 1, 2000
Although the legend of the dog Gelert and his grave is well known, the idea that the village gets its name from this source has been proved to be nonsense. I don't know how old the village is (I have been there, but it's hard to judge these things), but no evidence of the 'Gelert' legend has been found before Victorian times. The whole thing was probably made up by somebody as a 'marketing' exercise.
I read the legend when I was a child, and loved it, though I thought it was sad. It's a shame that it never happened. C'est la vie, as they say.
Not so much a legend, more an 'urban' myth
Huw B Posted Sep 2, 2000
I believe that the village and name are both quite old, but that the Gelert referred to is not a dog at all but (presumably) a local ruler/saint/whatever whose identity is lost in the mists of time.
The dog story is thought to have been invented in Victorian times by a local publican.
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Not so much a legend, more an 'urban' myth
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