"The praise of Aneurin is proclaimed by thousands." {0j}
Such is the language in which the mediaeval Bards were accustomed to talk
of the author of the Gododin.
The basis of the present translation is a MS. on vellum apparently of
about the year 1200. In that MS. the lines are all written out to the
margin, without any regard to the measure. Capital letters are never
introduced but at the beginning of paragraphs, where they are ornamented
and coloured alternately red and green. At page 20 Gwilym Tew and Rhys
Nanmor {0k} are mentioned as the owners of the Book, but the names are
written in a hand, and with letters more modern than the MS. It at one
time belonged to Mr. Jones the Historian of Brecknockshire, and came
latterly into the possession of the late Rev. T. Price, with whose
Executrix, Mrs. E. Powell of Abergavenny, it now remains. The author of
the Celtic Researches took a transcript of it, which he communicated to
the Rev. W. J. Rees, of Cascob, who had previously copied the said
transcript by the permission of the Rev. E. Davies. Mr. Rees's copy was
afterwards collated by Dr. Meyer with Mr. Davies's transcript, and the
only inaccuracy which had crept in was by him carefully corrected. Dr.
Meyer again transcribed Mr. Rees's copy for the use of the present work,
and that version in its turn has been collated by Mr. Rees, during the
progress of the work through the press, with the transcript in his
possession. To these two gentlemen the translator is under deep
obligations.
Also to Mr. Owen Williams of Waunfawr, for the loan of three other
manuscript copies of the Gododin. Two of them occur in the same book,
which purports to have been a transcript made by the Rev. David Ellis,
the first part, A.D. 1775 of an old book, the second part, June 7, 1777,
of a book supposed to have been written by Sion Brwynog about the year
1550. In these versions the stanzas are not divided. The third version
appears in a book containing a variety of poems and articles in prose, of
which, however, the writer or copyist is not known, though one "Davydd
Thomas" is mentioned in a poor modern hand as being the owner. Our poem
is therein headed "Y Gododin. Aneurin ae cant. Gyda nodau y Parchedig
Evan Evans." These "nodau" are marginal notes, and evidently the
different readings of another version.