Talebolyon

Talebolyon is a commot associated in the tales with two sharply different moments: the settlement of Matholwch’s compensation and the return from the war in Ireland, when Branwen died on its coast. Its brief appearances give the place both an origin story, tied to a payment of horses and colts, and a place in the sorrowful aftermath of the war.

Setting and Name

Talebolyon is named during the accounting of the compensation owed to Matholwch. The trained horses were paid first; when they ran out, the company went to another commot and continued the payment with colts until the whole debt had been met. The tale says that, from then on, that commot was called Talebolion. The canonical place-name is Talebolyon; the account links its name to this particular settlement rather than describing its boundaries or other features.

Branwen’s Landing

Later, after Bendigeid Fran’s death, seven surviving men carried his severed head on the journey he had commanded, and Branwen travelled with them as the eighth. They came ashore at Aber Alaw, in Talebolyon, and stopped to rest. Looking toward Ireland and the Island of Britain, Branwen lamented that both islands had been destroyed because of her. She groaned, her heart broke, and her companions made a four-sided grave for her on the banks of the Alaw River.

Narrative Significance

The two episodes make Talebolyon a place of contrasting recollections. Its name is explained through the completion of a material payment; its later appearance locates Branwen’s death amid the consequences of a war that has devastated both sides. The narrative distinguishes the broader setting, Talebolyon, from the specific landing place at Aber Alaw and Branwen’s burial beside the Alaw River. Through that sequence, the commot becomes a point on the bearers’ route and the scene of the final loss that interrupts their journey with Bendigeid Fran’s head.