Cader Idris
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
Cader in Welsh is "chair," and Idris is the name of one of the old Welsh giants. The legend is that anyone who passes the night sitting in this "chair" will be either a poet or a madman.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Cader Idris” mean?
Cader in Welsh is "chair," and Idris is the name of one of the old Welsh giants. The legend is that anyone who passes the night sitting in this "chair" will be either a poet or a madman.
Is “Cader Idris” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.