Simwnt Fychan was a Welsh language

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...

 poet and genealogist, probably born in Llanfair Dyffryn Clwyd

Llanfair Dyffryn Clwyd

Llanfair Dyffryn Clwyd is a village in Denbighshire, Wales, situated in the Vale of Clwyd about one mile south of the town of Ruthin. By the 2001 census, it had 1048 residents and 50.6% of them could speak Welsh. The age group with the highest percentage of Welsh speakers was the 15 year olds where...

 in north-east 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...

.

He was a colleague of the poet and scholar Gruffudd Hiraethog

Gruffudd Hiraethog

Gruffudd Hiraethog was a Welsh language poet, born in Llangollen, north-east Wales.Gruffudd was one of the foremost poets of the sixteenth century to use the cywydd metre. He was a prolific author and gifted scholar...

.

In 1568 Queen Elizabeth I of England

Elizabeth I of England

Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...

 appointed a commission to control the activities of "minstrels, rhymers and bards", in Wales. They were summoned to meet at Caerwys

Caerwys

Caerwys is a town in Flintshire, Wales. It is situated just under two miles from the A55 North Wales Expressway and one mile from the A541 Mold-Denbigh road. At the 2001 Census, the population of Caerwys civil parish was 1,315, with a total ward population of 2,496.Caerwys is mentioned in the...

and Simwnt Fychan was appointed "pencerdd", ie. the senior bard .