John Humphreys Davies was a Welsh lawyer, bibliographer and educator.

Born at Llangeitho

Llangeitho

Llangeitho is a village and community in Ceredigion, Wales situated on the upper river Aeron about 6 km due west of Tregaron and 11 km north of Lampeter. It has a population of 874....

, Ceredigion

Ceredigion

Ceredigion is a county and former kingdom in mid-west Wales. As Cardiganshire , it was created in 1282, and was reconstituted as a county under that name in 1996, reverting to Ceredigion a day later...

, he received his education at the University College of Wales, Aberystwyth and Lincoln College, Oxford

Lincoln College, Oxford

Lincoln College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is situated on Turl Street in central Oxford, backing onto Brasenose College and adjacent to Exeter College...

, before being called to the bar at Lincoln's Inn

Lincoln's Inn

The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn. Although Lincoln's Inn is able to trace its official records beyond...

. His interest in Welsh literature is accredited to his association with O. M. Edwards at Oxford and his brother-in-law, T. E. Ellis

T. E. Ellis

Thomas Edward Ellis , usually known as T. E. Ellis, was a Welsh politician who was the leader of Cymru Fydd, a movement aimed at gaining home rule for Wales.-Life:...

. Along with Sir John Williams, who would be his President while Principal at Aberystwyth

Aberystwyth

Aberystwyth is a historic market town, administrative centre and holiday resort within Ceredigion, Wales. Often colloquially known as Aber, it is located at the confluence of the rivers Ystwyth and Rheidol....

, he was involved in the movement to establish a National Library for 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...

.

In 1905 he became Registrar

Registrar (academic)

In education outside the United Kingdom, a registrar or registrary is an official in an academic institution who handles student records. Typically, a registrar processes registration requests, schedules classes and maintains class lists, enforces the rules for entering or leaving classes, and...

 of his alma mater

Alma mater

Alma mater , pronounced ), was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, especially Ceres or Cybele, and in Christianity for the Virgin Mary.-General term:...

, and principal in 1919, a position which he held until his death.