Arowry
Encyclopedia
Arowry is a small village in the community
of Hanmer
in the rural south-east of Wrexham county borough, Wales
, near the border with England. The origin of its name is unclear but is thought to have a Welsh-language root. It has also been referred to as "Big Arowry", or "Great Arowry", in order to distinguish it from the hamlet of Little Arowry around a mile to the north near Horseman's Green
.
Alfred Palmer, the Wrexham historian, noted that the area called Arowry, before enclosure, was a "great heath
" sometimes given the Welsh name "Yr owredd", and colloquially referred to as "the Rowrey", or "the Arowry". Thomas Gwynn Jones
suggested that the name Owredd was originally derived from a Welsh pronunciation of the English name "Overheath".
The nineteenth-century philologist Alexander John Ellis
studied the dialect
of a native of Arowry, John Heatley, as part of his work, published in On Early English Pronunciation, on English dialects. The unusual dialect of the Hanmer area was later studied in the Survey of English Dialects
.
The village is near the A539 road and is 10 kilometres (6 mi) west of the nearest major town, Whitchurch
in Shropshire
.
Community (Wales)
A community is a division of land in Wales that forms the lowest-tier of local government in Wales. Welsh communities are analogous to civil parishes in England....
of Hanmer
Hanmer
Hanmer is a village and a local government community, the lowest tier of local government, part of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. At the 2001 Census the population of the Hanmer community area, which includes Hanmer village itself, Horseman's Green and Arowry along with a number of small hamlets,...
in the rural south-east of Wrexham county borough, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, near the border with England. The origin of its name is unclear but is thought to have a Welsh-language root. It has also been referred to as "Big Arowry", or "Great Arowry", in order to distinguish it from the hamlet of Little Arowry around a mile to the north near Horseman's Green
Horseman's Green
Horseman's Green is a village in the County Borough of Wrexham, Wales. The village, also simply called "the Green" by locals, is situated in the rural south-east of the borough in the community of Hanmer, close to the border with Shropshire....
.
Alfred Palmer, the Wrexham historian, noted that the area called Arowry, before enclosure, was a "great heath
Heath (habitat)
A heath or heathland is a dwarf-shrub habitat found on mainly low quality acidic soils, characterised by open, low growing woody vegetation, often dominated by plants of the Ericaceae. There are some clear differences between heath and moorland...
" sometimes given the Welsh name "Yr owredd", and colloquially referred to as "the Rowrey", or "the Arowry". Thomas Gwynn Jones
Thomas Gwynn Jones
Thomas Gwynn Jones or T. Gwynn Jones was a leading Welsh poet, scholar, literary critic, novelist, translator, and journalist who did important work in Welsh literature, Welsh education, and the study of Welsh folk tales in the first half of the twentieth century...
suggested that the name Owredd was originally derived from a Welsh pronunciation of the English name "Overheath".
The nineteenth-century philologist Alexander John Ellis
Alexander John Ellis
Alexander John Ellis FRS was an English mathematician and philologist. He changed his name from his father's name Sharpe to his mother's maiden name Ellis in 1825, based on a condition for receiving significant financial support from a relative on his mother's side.- Biography :He was born...
studied the dialect
Dialect
The term dialect is used in two distinct ways, even by linguists. One usage refers to a variety of a language that is a characteristic of a particular group of the language's speakers. The term is applied most often to regional speech patterns, but a dialect may also be defined by other factors,...
of a native of Arowry, John Heatley, as part of his work, published in On Early English Pronunciation, on English dialects. The unusual dialect of the Hanmer area was later studied in the Survey of English Dialects
Survey of English Dialects
The Survey of English Dialects was undertaken between 1950 and 1961 under the direction of Professor Harold Orton of the English department of the University of Leeds. It aimed to collect the full range of speech in England and Wales before local differences were to disappear...
.
The village is near the A539 road and is 10 kilometres (6 mi) west of the nearest major town, Whitchurch
Whitchurch, Shropshire
Whitchurch is a market town in Shropshire, England on the border between England and Wales. It is the oldest continuously inhabited town in Shropshire. According to the 2001 Census, the population of the town is 8,673, with a more recent estimate putting the population of the town at 8,934...
in Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
.