Life

She was born in Gelliffrydau farm at Baladeulyn in the Nantlle Valley

Nantlle Valley

The Nantlle Valley is an area in Gwynedd, north Wales, characterised by its large number of small settlements.Around 80% of the population of the Nantlle Valley speak Welsh as their first language. Some of the communities came into being as a result of slate quarrying in the late eighteenth or...

 on 16 July 1677. When still a young woman, she married William Prichard, a man far older than herself, who farmed Cwm Penamnen, a valley to the south of Dolwyddelan

Dolwyddelan

Dolwyddelan, Welsh language : 'the meadow of Gwyddelan', is a village and community in Conwy county borough, north Wales, on the main A470 road between Blaenau Ffestiniog and Betws-y-Coed...

. She lived in Parlwr, or Tai Penamnen, a house which had earlier been a home to the Wynn family of Gwydir

Gwydir Castle

Gwydir Castle is situated in the Conwy valley, North Wales, a mile to the west of the ancient market town of Llanrwst and to the south of the large village of Trefriw...

, for the remainder of her life, continuing to farm the valley after being widowed. The house is currently being uncovered by archaeologists.

She was buried on 25 August 1749 and is buried within the church of St. Gwyddelan in Dolwyddelan.

Arts

She was a skilled harpist who commanded her workers to dance to her playing as they returned from the milking.

She is notable as an early Welsh

Welsh language

Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...

 female poet

Poet

A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...

. Manuscripts of her work have survived and are held at the National Library of Wales

National Library of Wales

The National Library of Wales , Aberystwyth, is the national legal deposit library of Wales; one of the Welsh Government sponsored bodies.Welsh is its main medium of communication...

. They include an elegy to her son who had died when 16 and another to her husband in the form of an imaginary dialogue.