University of Wales Literary Awards
The University of Wales Y Werin Legacy Fund has awarded its annual prizes.
Dr Sara Elin Roberts received the 2022 Hywel Dda Award for her book The Growth of Law in Medieval Wales, c.1100–c.1500 (Boydell & Brewer, 2022). The 2022 Sir Ellis-Griffith Memorial Prize was awarded to Dr Gareth Evans-Jones for his book ‘Mae’r Beibl o’n tu’: Ymatebion crefyddol y Cymry yn America i gaethwasiaeth (1838–1868) (University of Wales Press, 2022).
Dr Sara Elin Roberts (DPhil Oxon) is a historian specializing in Welsh law and the culture of Wales and the March from the twelfth to the fifteenth centuries. As well as her study of the laws, she has also worked on Dafydd ap Gwilym, the most renowned of the medieval Welsh poets. As well as contributing to the new edition of his poems published in 2010, she has also published individual studies on aspects of his work. Some of her notable publications on Welsh law include Llawysgrif Pomffred: An Edition and Study of Peniarth MS 259B ( ‘Medieval Law and its Practice Series’, Brill, 2010), The Legal Triads of Medieval Wales (University of Wales Press, 2007; second edition 2011), and The Growth of Law in Medieval Wales, c.1100–c.1500 (Boydell & Brewer, 2022). She was elected a Fellow of the Learned Society of Wales in 2023.
Dr Roberts said: “I am delighted to receive this year’s Hywel Dda Award, and it is a privilege to follow in the footsteps of so many distinguished scholars in the field of Welsh law. Many thanks to the committee for their kind words and for all their support.”
The prize is provided from the fund raised by public subscription to commemorate the millenary celebrations of Hywel Dda in 1928.
This year’s Sir Ellis-Griffith Memorial Prize goes to Dr Gareth Evans-Jones who is a lecturer in Philosophy and Religious Studies at Bangor University. He studied for a BA in Welsh and Religious Studies and an MA in Welsh and Creative Writing at Bangor University. His PhD thesis, which he undertook under the supervision of Professor Jerry Hunter and Emeritus Professor Eryl Wynn Davies, was published as ‘Mae’r Beibl o’n tu’: Ymatebion crefyddol y Cymry yn America i gaethwasiaeth, 1838–1868’ (University of Wales Press, 2022). As well as being an academic, Gareth writes prose, drama and poetry.
He has published two novels, Eira Llwyd (Gwasg y Bwthyn, 2018) and Y Cylch (Gwasg y Bwthyn, 2023), as well as a micro story and photo book, Cylchu Cymru (Y Lolfa, 2022), which won the 2023 Book of the Year Creative Non-Fiction Award; he also edited the first LGBTQ+ anthology of Welsh literature: Curiadau (Barddas, 2023). He has won awards for scriptwriting, including the National Eisteddfod Medal for Drama in 2019 and 2021, and has written plays including Adar Papur (2020) and Ynys Alys (Frân Wen, 2022).
Dr Evans-Jones said: “It was a huge shock to receive this important award. Compiling the doctoral thesis that formed the basis of the book under the guidance of two exceptional scholars, and then working together with the University of Wales Press and Aled Llion Jones, was a privilege, and hearing that the Trust has deemed ‘Mae’r Beibl o’n tu’ worthy of the award was a feeling beyond words. Thank you from the bottom of my heart to everyone who was part of the adjudication process. This is a huge boost and I am extremely grateful.”
The Award is presented annually in the name of the University of Wales from the Ellis-Griffith Fund and goes to the best Welsh-language publication focusing on Welsh authors, artists or artisans or their work. The Prize is provided from a Fund raised in memory of the late Right Honourable Sir Ellis Jones Ellis-Griffith MA KC PC (1860–1926), former Member of Parliament for the County of Anglesey.
On behalf of the University of Wales Dr Stuart Robb said: “The Sir Ellis-Griffith Memorial Prize and The Hywel Dda Award remain a significant way of encouraging, nurturing, and celebrating academic research into our shared history and heritage. We are very pleased that this year the prizes have recognized important contributions to the understanding of Welsh legal history and the history of the Welsh diaspora. On behalf of the Trustees, I would like to congratulate both Dr Gareth Evans-Jones and Dr Sara Elin Roberts on their success.”
Professor Elin Haf Gruffydd Jones, Director of the University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies, said: “We would like to warmly congratulate Dr Sara Elin Roberts and Dr Gareth Evans-Jones on winning these prestigious awards which recognize their valuable contributions to scholarship in Wales and internationally. I would like to thank our judges for their thorough work and the Trustees for their continued support.”
The 2022 Vernam Hull Memorial Prize/Award was withheld.
Note to Editor
Contact: Dr Angharad Elias (Admin Officer) a.elias@wales.ac.uk
1. The Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies (CAWCS) was established by the University of Wales in 1985 as a dedicated research centre conducting team-based projects on the languages, literatures, culture and history of Wales and the other Celtic countries. It is located in Aberystwyth, adjacent to the National Library of Wales, which is an internationally renowned copyright library with excellent research facilities.
2. CAWCS offers unique opportunities for postgraduate students to work alongside specialists in a dynamic and supportive environment. We welcome enquiries about MPhil/PhD topics in any of our research areas. For more information about research opportunities, or for an informal chat about possible topics, contact our Head of Graduate Studies, Dr Elizabeth Edwards: e.edwards@wales.ac.uk
3. CAWCS is the home of the Dictionary of the Welsh Language.
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