Evan James

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For the colonial administrator with the same name, see Evan James I.C.S..

Evan James (also known by the bardic name Ieuan ap Iago) (1809 - September 30, 1878), a weaver and poet from Pontypridd, Rhondda Cynon Taff, wrote the lyrics of Hen Wlad fy Nhadau ("Land of my Fathers"), the national anthem of Wales.

Evan James was a weaver by trade, and employed several people at his mill on the river Rhondda. According to family legend, his son, James James, was walking one day in January 1856 on the banks of the river when the melody for Hen Wlad fy Nhadau came to him. When he told his father of the tune, Evan James was able to compose words for the tune which is the present-day Welsh national anthem. However, it is likely that James senior was inspired by the fact that two of his brothers had emigrated to the United States and had written in praise of their adoptive country and urging him to join them.

A memorial to Evan James and his son, in the shape of two figures representing Poetry and Music, stands in Ynys Angharad Park, Pontypridd. Evan's face is shown alongside his son's, but appears younger because the photographs available to the sculptor, Goscombe John, were taken many years apart.