That's a good question, Visitor. I see a number of songbooks that attribute the translation to David Owen, but none give a date for the song. I found several songbooks with the song that were published during the period 1899-1909, but nothing earlier. The 1784 Edward Jones translation is not the one we're familiar with nowadays. Here's the Traditional Ballad Index on the song, not that it's particularly helpful:

All Through the Night (Ar Hyd Y Nos)

DESCRIPTION: "Sleep, my child, and peace attend thee, All through the night. Guardian angels God will send thee, All through the night." The singer watches over the child while the world sleeps. (The (dying?) child/lover is wished to heaven)
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1784 (Edward Jones, "Musical and Poetical Relicks of the Welsh Bards")
KEYWORDS: lullaby death love
FOUND IN: Wales
REFERENCES (3 citations):
Silber-FSWB, p. 410, "All Through the Night" (1 text)
Fuld-WFM, p. 410, "All Through the Night"
DT, THRUNITE* THRUNIT2*
RECORDINGS:
Shannon Four, "All Through the Night" (Victor 19413, 1924)
NOTES: That this song is originally Welsh is not doubted. The English translation is sometimes credited to Sir Harold Boulton, but Fuld notes that there is no standard English translation. The 1784 version in Jones is not by Boulton. Also, at least one version seems to have been folk processed -- at least, I've seen a text which is about 95% identical to the one I knonw (too close to be an independent translation), but with some different words. - RBW
There seem to be several versions of the song with various plots. In one, the child -- or possibly a dead lover -- is mourned; another is a Christmas carol. - PJS
File: FDWB410B

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