Gwinear-Gwithian

Gwinear-Gwithian is a parish in west Cornwall, formed in 1934 from the merger of the ancient parishes of Gwinear and Gwithian. The area is defined by the striking landscape of the Towans, a system of coastal sand dunes composed of shell-sand that stretches from Hayle to Godrevy. The dunes have buried medieval settlements and preserve a vast archaeological record. The parish includes Gwithian Beach, popular with surfers, and the village of Gwinear inland. The area has a sense of layered history, with evidence of settlement from the Mesolithic through to the post-medieval period sealed within the sands.

History: Gwithian takes its name from Saint Gwithian or Gocianus, whose church and relics, built in 490, were uncovered from the beach and dunes in the early 19th century before being reclaimed by the shifting sands. The village was recorded as Egglosbrec in 1140, with the name derived from the Cornish for "church" combined with the saint's name. The area was once the site of Connerton, the paramount manor of the Penwith hundred, which was also buried by sand. Archaeological excavations led by Charles Thomas between 1949 and 1969 revealed Bronze Age settlements and post-Roman workshop centers. In the 18th and 19th centuries, tin streaming and later large-scale sand extraction took place in the dunes. From the late 1800s to the First World War, areas of the Towans were used for the manufacture of dynamite, giving the area the nickname "Dynamite Towans." Today, the Towans are designated as Sites of Special Scientific Interest for their botanical and geological importance, and Gwithian Beach remains a popular destination for surfers and beachgoers.