England Origin of Place Names - International Institute

Personal Names
The nature of Old English personal names is difficult to explain, but they do form part of the general Germanic stock and are of two kinds, simple ones with one element, and compound ones containing two elements.

The simple ones can be further divided into:


 * Short forms of compound names
 * Nouns, including animal and bird names, or adjectives
 * A name-forming element plus a suffix
 * Names ending in -ing which may originally have been patronymics
 * Racial origin

The compound names could be formed by reference to family connections, for example by:


 * Alliteration, especially in aristocratic families, and the most frequent relationship indicator
 * Combining one element of the father’s name with one of the mother’s

Since so many personal names were ordinary nouns and adjectives, it is often difficult to determine whether a compound place name containing such a word describes the place or alludes to an individual. If the particular word is found in regular combination with a topographical term, then it is more likely to be a word than a personal name. Gelling says ‘most reference books over-estimate the number of topographical settlement-names in which the first element is a personal name rather than a significant word.’

It should be noted that the county volumes produced by the English Place Names Society are primarily intended to make collections of early spellings available. They also provide a tentative list of place name etymologies upon which further research may build. It is unfortunate that the spurious authority that the printed word conveys has deluded later authors into quoting these as final definitions.

Individuals’, including some Saints,’ names have been perpetuated in the names of places in many ways:

*By adding a habitation suffix to a personal name, for example


 * byrig (now -bury) meaning ‘X’s manor house’
 * cot meaning ‘X’s cottage’
 * häm meaning ‘village or estate’
 * tün (now -ton) meaning ‘X’s town’
 * wïc (now -wick) meaning ‘X’s settlement’
 * worð (now -worth) meaning ‘X’s farm’


 * Place names formed from a personal name and ending in -ingtün (now -ington) denote an association of the person with the place, but not necessarily ownership of it. However, to complicate matters, there are place names formed from an ordinary word with an –ing ending which have later had -tün added as a further suffix.


 * By adding a topographical word as a suffix as in:


 * dün (now -don or -down) meaning hill
 * feld (now -field) meaning field
 * ford meaning a ford over a river
 * lëah (now -lea, lee or ley) meaning woodland clearing or meadow.

Habitative place names were also formed from the manorial owner’s title and a suffix, for example Kingston, Knighton, Preston (priest’s town) or Bishopsdown (bishop’s hill).

Occupations in Place Names
The title of King has been given to many royal estates and is usually obvious. Queens had fewer possessions but the title remains in such names as Quinton (‘queen’s manor’). Other women are commemorated in forms such as Westow (‘woman’s place’), Wyton (‘wife’s settlement’), Maidenhead (‘landing place (for a convent) of maidens’), and Brid(e)well (‘Bride’s well’) although Bridestowe refers to ‘St. Bridget’s holy place.’ There are several terms for hero and warrior, and old terms for earl and yeoman are frequently found. Even the humbler ranks are represented by servant, knave, and groom.

Anglo-Saxon words for baker occur in Bexterley, shoemaker in Sutterton, and merchant in Capernray and Copmanthorpe. Metalworkers were important villagers and are shown in Smethwick and Smeaton. The name Woodmancote is from woodmen, Colsterdale from charcoal burners, Cockfosters from foresters and the hunters appear in Huntley. Reavely preserves the memory of a bailiff, and Shroton a sheriff, whilst the beekeeper is found in Bickerton. These are just a sampling of many others to be found if we dig deep enough into the earliest spellings of place names.

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Information in this Wiki page is excerpted from the online course English - Understanding Names in Genealogy offered by The National Institute for Genealogical Studies. To learn more about this course or other courses available from the Institute, see our website. We can be contacted at [mailto:wiki@genealogicalstudies.com wiki@genealogicalstudies.com]

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