Old Welsh Dialectal Variations preserved in Toponymy

One might think that the contemporary existence of dialects is enough of a complication to make the analysis of place-names difficult for etymologists. However, contemporary dialects of a language do not complete the inventory of dialect forms found in place-names: alongside fossilised words one can also come across fossilised pronunciations that reveal a dialect landscape that is not that of today’s language. This booklet deals with the persistence of early medieval Welsh dialect forms preserved in place-names. In so doing it contributes to demonstrate the unevenness of the unfolding of language change.