Pryddest
Pryddest (or prydest) is a literary term used in Welsh to describe a genre of poetry in free metre. Although the earliest example of the word can be found in the work of the Poets of the Princes (meaning poem or song), and according to the University of Wales Dictionary the word is the source of the verb prydaf, meaning "to compose poetry",[1] the bardic form is mainly connected with the Eisteddfod, and in particular with the competition for the Bardic Crown at the National Eisteddfod. It corresponds to the awdl in strict metre.
The pryddest can be composed in one or more free metres, and there are no important rules about its length, nor about its form. Although the use of cynghanedd is not required, some pryddestau nevertheless use it. These relaxed rules mean that bards that compose pryddestau enjoy much more freedom in comparison with the strict verse competitions for the chair.
The competition for the pryddest was first introduced to the National Eisteddfod in 1867. A medal rather than a crown was awarded that year.[2]
References
[edit]- ^ Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru, published 1996.
- ^ Crowning the Bard (St Fagan's Museum)/