how did pen y ghent get its name
Pen-y-ghent In the Cumbric language, exactly as in today's Welsh, Pen meant 'top' or 'head', and y is most likely the definite article (the), exactly as in Modern Welsh y. These elements are common in placenames throughout the island, and especially in Wales (compare Penyberth 'end of the hedge/copse', or Penyffordd 'head of the road/way', etc.). The element ghent is more obscure, however: it could be taken to be 'edge' or 'border'.[7] The name Pen-y-ghent could therefore mean 'Hill on the border' (compare Kent).[8] Alternatively, ghent could mean 'wind' or 'winds' â€“ from the closest Welsh transliteration, gwynt ('wind'). Thus it might mean simply 'Head of the Winds'. It is also possible that ghent may have been a tribal name and that the hill may have once been an important tribal centre. It is also acceptable to write the name as Pen y Ghent rather than Pen-y-ghent.