Understanding English place names

[Deleted]

THE ORIGINS OF SOME ENGLISH PLACE NAMES

BURY, BOROUGH

Is usually a corruption of burh, which meant a fort of fortified place. Aylesbury was Aegel's burh or burgh. Boarhunt was burh funta the spring by the fort.

BY

Was the Danish word for village. Derby was Deor By the deer village.

CASTER, CESTER AND CHESTER

Are derived from the Saxon word ceaster, which meant a Roman fort or town. Lancaster was Lune ceaster. Chichester was Cissa's ceaster.

CLOPP

Clopp meant a short hill. Clapham in London was clopp ham the village by the short hill.

COOMB OR COMBE

Is usually derived from the Saxon word 'cumb', which meant valley. Compton a common village name was cumb tun or valley farm.

COTT OR COTE

Place names ending in cott or cote are usually derived from the Saxon word for house 'cott'.

DEAN OR DENE

Is usually a corruption of denu, which meant a little valley.

DEN

At the end of the place name is usually derived from denn, which meant pasture, usually for pigs.

DON

Is usually derived from the word 'dun', which meant hill. (The South Downs were the South Duns). Swindon was swine dun or swine hill.

ESSEX

The land of the East Saxons.

EY OR EA

Is usually derived from the Saxon word 'eg', which meant either island or promontory. (It could also mean an area of dry land surrounded by marshy land). Swansea was Swain's eg or Swain's promontory.

FARN

Is usually a corruption of fern as in Farnham

FIELD

Is usually a corruption of 'feld' which meant open land (without trees). Sheffield was Sheaf feld.

FLEET

Was an old word for a stream.

FRITH

A forest where the right to hunt animals was reserved for the king or a noble.

HAM

Meant village or estate. Fareham was ferne ham or the village by the ferns.

HOLM OR HOLME

Comes from the Scandinavian word for island 'holmr'. (It often meant an 'island' of dry land surrounded by marshy land).

HOLT

Meant wood in the Saxon language.

HURST

Meant a wooded hill.

ING

At the end of a place name 'ing' is usually derived from 'ingas', which meant the people of e.g. Reading was Reada ingas, the people of Reada. However in the middle of a name ing usually comes from 'inga', which meant belonging to e.g. Nottingham was Snotta inga ham, the village belonging to Snotta.

KIRK

Is the Scandinavian word for church.

LY, LEY, LEIGH

Are usually derived from the word leah, which could mean either a wood or more often a clearing in a wood. Crawley was crow leah

MERE OR MORE

The old word mere meant a pond e.g. Swanmore was swan mere or swan pond.

MIDDLESEX

The land of the middle Saxons.

NORTHUMBRIA

Is derived from words meaning 'the people who live north of the Humber'. It was once a kingdom.

PEN

Occurs in many Cornish names. The Cornish word 'penn' meant headland. Penzance was Penn Sans, which means holy headland.

PREST

Is usually a corruption of the priest's. Preston was priest's tun (farm or estate).

RIVER NAMES

Avon is a common river name in England. Avon is the old Celtic word for river. Beck usually comes from the Scandinavian word for stream bekkr. Rith as in Penrith comes from the Scandinavian word for little stream. Stour probably meant strong (strongly flowing).

STED OR STEAD

Is usually derived from the word stede, which meant place. East Grinstead was east green place.

STOKE

Is usually derived from the word 'stoc', which meant a hamlet or little settlement, which depended on a bigger settlement nearby. Meonstoke was the stoc of the Meon people. The Danish word Thorpe meant the same thing.

STOW

Is usually derived from stowe, which meant meeting place. Bristol was brigg stowe, the meeting place by the bridge.

SUTTON

Is a common place name in England. It is usually derived from the Saxon words sud tun, which meant south farm.

SUSSEX

The land of the South Saxons.

THWAITE

Is derived from a Scandinavian word, which meant clearing.

TOFT

Is an old Scandinavian word for house.

TON

Is usually a corruption of 'tun', which meant farm or hamlet. Taunton was Tone tun.

WALD

Was the Saxon word for forest. I was often corrupted to weald and it appears in many place names as 'wold'.

WESSEX

The land of the West Saxons.

WHITCHURCH

Is a common place name. It means white church e.g. because the church was made of white stone.

WICK

Has several meanings. At the beginning of a name, like Wickham, it is usually derived from the Roman word 'vicus', which meant vicinity. At the end of a name wick sometimes meant trading place e.g. Norwich was the north wick. It could also mean a port like Greenwich. Or it could mean a specialised farm e.g. Gatwick was a goat farm and Chiswick was a cheese farm.

WORTH

Meant an enclosure or an enclosed settlement (enclosed by a wall of wooden stakes). Tamworth was Tame worth

[bixaorellana]

The first one is interesting. I used to live in North Carolina and it seemed as though every other town ended in -bury or -berry. After all, that's where Mayberry was supposed to be located.

The second syllable of my paternal last name apparently means "hill". I'd thought it mean "down", but I'm not sure exactly what downs are. Hill is fine though, especially since I live in a country where -tepec is a common suffix in place names -- the Nahuatl word for hill.

[tillystar]

I like this:

I live close to Greenwich where Henry VIII lived. Across the river is a place called the Isle of Dogs apparently because it is where Henry kept his hunting hounds. About 2 miles down the road is a place called Barking as you could still hear the dogs barking there.

Now Barking is on the underground line and its a well-used local phrase to refer to someone who is a bit crazy as "two stops short of Barking".

[Deleted]

Explains the origin of most of the towns and hamlets where I grew up in N.Y. (the town of Southampton being the first English Settlement in N.Y.). All the other towns are Native American in origin i.e. Montauk,Amagansett,and Sagaponack or "place where the large ground-nuts grow"where my family settled.

[gyro]

Cromer, where I live, comes from the fact that there used to be many crows and ravens flying around the cliffs and town years ago. It was originally 'Crows-Mere', the mere bit being a derivative of the fench word for sea.