Swallow Falls
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Swallow Falls | |
|---|---|
| |
 Swallow Falls near Betws-y-Coed | |
 Interactive map of Swallow Falls | |
| Location | Conwy County Borough, Wales, United Kingdom |
| Coordinates | 53°06′09″N 3°50′48″W / 53.1024°N 3.8468°W |
| Type | Cascade |
| Total height | 42 m (138 ft) |
| Watercourse | Through limestone hard rock |
Swallow Falls (Welsh: Rhaeadr y Wennol; 'the waterfall of the swallow'; or Rhaeadr Ewynnol; 'the foaming waterfall') is a multiple waterfall system in Wales, located on the River Llugwy near Betws-y-Coed, in Conwy County Borough.
The name Rhaeadr y Wennol (Welsh for 'the waterfall of the swallow') derives from the fact that the flow of the river is separated by a prominent rock into two streams of water that look like a swallow's tail. The similar sounding Rhaeadr Ewynnol (Welsh for 'the foaming waterfall') is a later coinage based on the adjective ewynnol 'foaming', which itself seems to have been coined at the end of the eighteenth century.
It has been suggested that this name was 'prompted by a desire to demonstrate W[elsh] linguistic ownership of a popular tourist attraction and a concern that Rhaeadr y Wennol would be perceived as a deferential translation of what came to be the better known name Swallow Falls'. The name, in its variant forms, is attested from the 1770s onwards.[1]
