It flows down Cwm Meillionen, a small valley which lies on the north-eastern side of Moel yr Ogof (655m).
Much of the river's catchment area lies within Beddgelert Forest.
The first recorded use of the name Afon Meillionen being used to refer to the river was between 1898-1908.
"Meillionen" is also the name of a farmhouse in the Cwm[2] and of a small halt on the Welsh Highland Railway between Caernarfon and Porthmadog.
This article related to a river in Wales is a stub.