Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900/Jones, John (1792-1852)
JONES, JOHN (1792–1852), Welsh poet and antiquary, second son of Henry and Catherine Jones of Bala, is known as Tegid, from the Welsh name of the lake near Bala in Merionethshire, where he was born 10 Feb. 1792. He was educated at private schools at Carmarthen, was admitted into Jesus College, Oxford, 13 Dec. 1814, and held a clerkship there from 1814 to 1817; he graduated B.A. in 1818, after taking a second class in mathematics, and proceeded M.A. in 1821. He became chaplain at Christ Church in 1819, precentor in October 1823, and on 21 Oct. of the same year perpetual curate of St. Thomas at Oxford. During his incumbency the church was not only repaired, but in part rebuilt, and schools for boys and girls were established in connection with it. On 27 Aug. 1841 Lord Cottenham presented him to the living of Nevern in Pembrokeshire, and in 1848 he was made prebendary of St. David's Cathedral. He held both preferments until his death, 2 May 1852.
Jones was a good Hebrew scholar, and in 1830 published ‘The Book of the Prophet Isaiah,’ Oxford, 12mo, 2nd edit. Oxford, 1842, an independent translation from the Hebrew text of Van der Hooght, which was commended by Gesenius, Ewald, and other Hebrew scholars. He also completed a Welsh translation of the same book, but it was never published. While in residence at Oxford he transcribed the ‘Mabinogion’ and other Welsh romances in the ‘Red Book of Hergest’ at Jesus College for Lady Charlotte Guest (afterwards Schreiber), who adopted his transcript as the text of her edition of the ‘Mabinogion,’ Llandovery, 1838–49, 3 vols. roy. 8vo. This was faulty in parts (see Zeuss, Grammatica Celtica, 2nd ed. p. 139), but it was by far the best text of the ‘Mabinogion’ until the original was reproduced in the Oxford series of ‘Welsh Texts,’ vol. i., edited by Rhŷs and Evans (Oxford, 1887, 8vo). Jones was co-editor with the Rev. Walter Davies (Gwallter Mechain) [q. v.] of ‘The Poetical Works of Lewis Glyn Cothi,’ 2 parts, Oxford, 1837–9, 8vo, published for the Cymmrodorion Society. Davies was responsible for the pedigrees and most of the notes, while Jones transcribed the poems, unfortunately transforming them into his own orthography instead of preserving that of his originals, and he also contributed to pt. ii. an ‘Historical Sketch of the Wars between the Rival Roses.’ He belonged to the etymological, as opposed to the phonetic, school of orthography, and in 1828 he superintended, for the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, an edition of the New Testament in Welsh, into which he introduced his own system of spelling to supersede that of previous editions. This aroused much adverse criticism, to which he replied in ‘A Defence of the Reformed System of Welsh Orthography’ and in a ‘Reply to the Rev. W. B. Knight's Remarks on Welsh Orthography,’ &c., London, 1831, 8vo. Knight issued a rejoinder (1831, 8vo). The best exposition of Jones's system is to be found in his ‘Traethawd ar Iawn-Lythyreniad, neu Lythyraeth yr Iaith Gymraeg’ (a prize essay), Carmarthen, 1830, 8vo. Petitions signed by one hundred and fifty Welsh clergymen against the adoption of his system were presented to the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, and were so far successful that the old orthography was adopted in the society's Welsh editions of the Old Testament. After his return to Wales in 1841 Jones took an active part in the Eisteddfod and other literary gatherings, particularly the brilliant series held at Abergavenny, which resulted in the formation of the Welsh MSS. Society. His poetical compositions have been published under the title ‘Gwaith Barddonawl … Tegid,’ with a biography of the author by the Rev. Henry Roberts, Llandovery, 1859, 8vo. Some of the hymns and the shorter lyrical poems in this collection possess high merit. Jones was also the author of ‘Traethawd ar Gadwedigaeth yr Iaith Gymraeg,’ Carmarthen, 1820, 12mo, and translated into Welsh a portion of the government blue-book of 1847 on Welsh education, including the counties of Brecon, Cardigan, and Radnor (London, 1848, 8vo). He frequently contributed to both Welsh and English magazines, generally on questions of Welsh literature, and at the time of his death was engaged on a commentary on the Epistle to the Galatians for publication in ‘Yr Haul,’ but only a portion was completed.
[See a Biography in Gwaith Barddonawl … Tegid, ut supra; Gent. Mag. for 1852, pt. ii. pp. 96, 97; Rhŷs and Evans's Mabinogion, Preface, pp. i, ii; M. Henri Gaidoz in the Academy for 28 Jan. 1888; Yr Haul for 1855, pp. 376 sqq.]