[gwelf] 
| 1. | a member of the political party in medieval Italy and Germany that supported the sovereignty of the papacy against the German emperors: opposed to the Ghibellines. |
| 2. | a member of a secret society in Italy in the early 19th century that opposed foreign rulers and reactionary ideas. |
[gwelf] | a city in SE Ontario, in S Canada. 71,207. |
| Guelph 1 (gwělf) A city of southern Ontario, Canada, west of Toronto. It is an industrial center in a farming area. Population: 115,000. |
| Guelph 2 also Guelf (gwělf) n. A member of a strong faction in medieval Italy that supported the power of the pope and the city-states in a struggle against the German emperors and the Ghibellines. [Italian Guelfo, from Middle High German Welf, name of the founder of a German princely family.] |
Guelph
city, seat (1838) of Wellington county, southeastern Ontario, Canada. It lies along the Speed River, 40 miles (65 km) west-southwest of Toronto. Founded in 1827 alongside the falls on the river by John Galt, a Scottish novelist and colonizer, it was named after the Guelfs (Welfs), the family name of the British royal house of Hanover. Guelph is now a major manufacturing, agricultural, and educational centre in one of Canada's most densely populated areas. Its varied manufactures include clothing, cigarettes, electric transformers, glass yarn, and saw chains. The Ontario Agricultural College (established in 1874) and Ontario Veterinary College (1862), now both part of the University of Guelph (1964), contribute to the city's importance as a centre for research and training in scientific agriculture. Inc. village, 1851; town, 1856; city, 1879. Pop. (2006) 114,943.
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