Rowen is a small village on the western slopes of the Conwy valley in Conwy county borough, north Wales. It lies off the B5106 road, between Dolgarrog and Conwy.
In recent times the name of the village has been variously spelt as "Rowen", "Ro-wen" and "Roewen". Although the Religious Census of 1851 records the name "Ro-wen", most early 20th century maps simply use the name "Y Ro", Welsh for "gravel" or "pebbles". Wen means "white", or could mean "holy".
The Afon Roe, a tributary of the River Conwy, flows through the village. A tributary of Afon Roe is Afon Tafolog, which drains the eastern slopes of Drum, a mountain in the Carneddau mountains.
The village has a shop, a pub and a small primary school. There is a youth hostel a mile to the west of the village.
In the past, however, the village had a greater significance; it had three mills, and several ale houses and inns. It also had a pandy or fulling mill, so woollen cloth must have been made nearby.
The village is a popular starting point for hillwalking in the northern Snowdonia, especially in the Carneddau mountains.[1]
Nearby are the Roman road route through Bwlch-y-Ddeufaen, with its cromlech Maen-y-Bardd, the neolithic dwelling site Caer Bach and the ancient 12th century church of Llangelynnin.
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