Dolgellau is a market town as well as community in Gwynedd, north-west Wales, resting on the River Wnion, a tributary of the River Mawddach. It is traditionally the county town of the historic region of Merionethshire (Welsh: Meirionnydd, Sir Feirionnydd), which shed its management status when Gwynedd was created in 1974. Dolgellau is the major base for mountain climbers of Cadair Idris. Although really tiny, it is the second biggest settlement in Southern Gwynedd after Tywyn. The neighborhood includes Penmaenpool. The name of the community is of unpredictable origin, although dôl is Welsh for "meadow" or "dale", and (y) gelli (soft mutation of celli) suggests "grove" or "spinney", as well as is common locally in names for farms in protected spaces. This would appear to be one of the most likely derivation, offering the translation "Grove Meadow". It has actually also been recommended that the name can originate from words cell, meaning "cell", converting consequently as "Meadow of [monks'] cells", but this appears less most likely considering the background of the name. The earliest taped spelling (from 1253, in the Survey of Merioneth) is "Dolkelew", although a punctuation "Dolgethley" dates from 1285. From then up until the 19th century, many punctuations were along the lines of "Dôlgelly" "Dolgelley", "Dolgelly" or "Dolgelli" (Owain Glyndwr's scribe wrote "Dolguelli"). Thomas Pennant made use of the form "Dolgelleu" in his Tours of Wales, as well as this was the kind used in the Church Registers in 1723, although it never had much currency. In 1825 the Registers had "Dolgellau", which create Robert Vaughan of Hengwrt taken on in 1836. While this kind might originate from a false etymology, it became conventional in Welsh and also is currently the standard type in both Welsh and English. It was taken on as the official name by the regional country area council in 1958. Quickly prior to the closure of the community's railway station it displayed indicators reviewing otherwise Dolgelly, Dolgelley and Dolgellau.
