Partrishow, also known asPatricio,Patrishow, or by itsWelsh namesMerthyr Isw andLlanisw, is a small village and historicparish in thecounty ofPowys (historicallyBrecknockshire), close to its border withMonmouthshire. It is in the valley of theGrwyne Fawr, in theBlack Mountains ofSouth Wales, within theBrecon Beacons National Park.
The earliest recorded form of the name, as found in theBook of Llandaf (c.1120s), ismerthir issiu. This is the Welsh wordmerthyr ('burial site, shrine, church') and what is probably a personal name which in modern Welsh would beIsiw orIsw.Melville Richards givesMerthyr Isw as a modern form of the parish's name.[1]
In 1555 the name appears asLlanysho.[2] In this case, the elementllan ('enclosure, church') has replacedmerthyr, as has happened in a number of similar names.[3] The name appears asPertrissw in the list of parishes inNational Library of Wales,Peniarth MS.147 (c.1566).
The modern English form is nowPartrishow. In Welsh, the formLlanisw andMerthyr Isw may be found.
The village is noted for its outstanding grade I listed 11th-centuryChurch of St Issui[4][5][6] with an intricately carved 16th-centuryrood screen,[7]mediaeval mural paintings,[8] and one of the oldestfonts in Wales. The churchyard also contains a grade II* listed cross. The church was originally calledMethur Issui ("Saint Issui the Martyr"), a corruption ofMerthyr Ishaw orIshow. It is now known asSt Patrico. It avoidedVictorian restoration, and its conservation was undertaken byW. D. Caröe in 1908–09, with further work on the churchyard in 1919.[4]
51°53′44″N3°02′58″W / 51.89556°N 3.04944°W /51.89556; -3.04944
