By the time we are dealing with the country enclosed by the sea, the estuaries of the Dee and Severn, and by Offa's Dyke, had come to be known as Cymru, the name which it has borne among Welshmen ever since. The land was divided into districts called _cantrefs_ and _cymwds_, the boundaries of which had long been fixed. Of these two divisions the _cymwd_ is by far the more important; for it was the real unit of organization and local government. The _cantref_ was probably an area over which an _Arglwydd_ (Lord) ruled. This Lord was appointed by the King. Occasionally we find several _cantrefs_ ruled by the same Lord, who then assumes the more high-sounding title of _Tywysog_ (Prince); and sometimes even _Brenin_ (King). Within the _cantref_ would be two or more _cymwds_, in each of which would be certain officials appointed by the lord of the _cantref_. These officials were in charge of the various governmental functions; and the most important of them were the _Maer_ (Mayor), and the {51} _Canghellor_ (Chancellor). In each _cymwd_ also there was a court of law, over which a judge presided. To avoid confusion it must be borne in mind that these territorial divisions, and these officials, were governmental, and that side by side with them other divisions, based upon kindred, existed. Thus the Laws speak not only of the Lord of a _cantref_, but also of a _Pencenedl_. The Lord was an officer appointed by the King, while the _Pencenedl_ was the head of his own tribe or clan, and owed his appointment to no one. When we turn to consider the ranks into which the people were divided, we find that status counts for everything. The main division was that between tribesmen and non-tribesmen, between Cymry and men of alien birth. The tribesmen themselves were divided as follows: (1) Men of royal or princely caste. (2) Men of noble birth. (3) Ordinary free tribesmen. (4) Unfree persons corresponding to the villeins of English law. (5) Slaves in the strict sense of the term. The alien, however high his birth in his own land, could never find a way into the ranks of the Cymry except by long residence, or sometimes by inter-marriage stretching over several generations. The kindred (_cenedl_) was a self-governing {52} unit, having at its head a _Pencenedl_, a personage who, as we have seen, was born and not made. Below was an aggregate of families each under its own head of the household (_Penteulu_) who bore a strong resemblance to the _paterfamilias_ of Roman law. The _cenedl_, or kindred, consisted of all descendants from a common ancestor down to the ninth generation.