S1TY
AT LOS ANGELES
THE PLACE-NAMES OF
BERKSHIRE
» m o
BY THE
REV. WALTER W. SKEAT '
Lirr.D., D.C.L., LL.D., Ph.D., F.B.A.
ELRINOTON AND BOSWOKTH PROFESSOR OF ANGLO-SAXON
AND TELLOW OF CHRIST'S COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE
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OXFORD
AT THE CLARENDON PRESS
1911
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HENRY FKOWDE, M.A.
PDBLISHER TO THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD
LONDON, EDINBURGH, NEW YORK
TORONTO AND MELBOURNE
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® PREFATORY REMARKS
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In 1901 my essay on 'The Place-names of
Cambridgeshire ' was published for the Cambridge
Antiquarian Society, and a little later the same
0_ Society published my similar essay on ' The Place-
-names of Huntingdonshire'. In 1906 they
ec published my ' Place-names of Bedfordshire '.
In 1904 the East Herts. Archaeological Society
published for me a somewhat larger pamphlet on
1 The Place-names of Hertfordshire '.
After thus completing some account of the
^ place-names of these four counties, it occurred
to me to investigate those of Berkshire. I was
3 inclined to this by two considerations. The first,
that it is not a very large county in itself ; and
2] secondly, that Birch's edition of Anglo-Saxon
o~> Charters contains a considerable number that
refer to this county, so that the Anglo-Saxon
spellings of a rather large proportion of the names
>.are readily accessible.
j|j It is necessary to repeat here some of the con-
siderations which it is desirable for the student
^to know.
w 1 . The place-names of Berkshire are nearly all
c of native English origin ; and are formed in strict
Oaccordance with the rules of Anglo-Saxon grammar.
3 2. They are nearly all of one of two types.
Either they are significant of possession, like Spars-
holt ; or they are descriptive of position, like
Eastbury.
4 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
3. In the latter case, the place-name is formed
by composition, like cart-horse. In the former
case, possession is indicated by the use of the geni-
tive case. The possessor's name is usually mas-
culine, in which case the grammatical rules for
the formation of the genitive are quite simple ;
viz. as follows.
4. If the nominative ends (in very early times)
in -i, or (later) in -e, or in a consonant, the genitive
ends in -es. Examples : nom. Pefi, later Pefe ; gen.
Pefes. This occurs in Pusey. JEsc (Ash) ; gen.
JEsces. Hence Ashbury, short for Ash's bury. In
the modern form, the genitive ending has been
lost.
5. Nearly all other genitives end in -a, and
take a genitive in -an. Thus the genitive of Uffa
is Uffan ; whence both Uffington and Ufton. In
the former case, n has been turned into ng ; in the
latter, the suffix has disappeared.
6. If the possessor's name is feminine, the
nominative ends in a consonant or in -e. In the
former case, the genitive ends in -e ; in the latter,
in -an. Thus the genitive of Burghild is Burg-
hilde, as in the case of Bucklebury. And the
genitive of Cille is Cillan, as in the case of Chil-
drey.
It should be borne in mind that most place-
names are of rather simple, sometimes of almost
trivial origin. When the oldest or Anglo-Saxon
form can be recovered, the interpretation is often
obvious. When this cannot be done, we must
rely upon the oldest and fullest forms in Middle
English or in Domesday Book ; always bearing in
PREFATORY REMARKS 5
mind that Norman spellings are often peculiar,
and require to be rightly interpreted.
The principal authorities are the following : —
Birch, W. de Gray, Cartularium Saxonicum. London,
1885-93. 3 vols.
Chronicon Monasterii de Abingdon ; ed. Rev. J. Steven-
son (Rolls Series). 2 vols.
Duignan, \V. H., Staffordshire Place-names. London,
1902.
The same; Worcestershire Place-names. London, 1905.
Earle, Rev. J., Handbook to the Land-Charters. Oxford,
1888.
Kemble, J. M., Codex Diplomaticus Mvi Saxonici.
London, 1839-48. 6 vols.
Searle, Rev. W. G., Onomasticon Anglo-Saxonicum.
Cambridge, 1897.
Thorpe, B., Diplomatarium Anglicum. London, 1865.
Also the following, denoted by abbreviations : —
Ab.— Rotulorum Originalium in Curia Scaccarii Abbre-
viatio. London, 1805. Vol. i.
Cat.— A Descriptive Catalogue of Ancient Deeds in the
Public Record Office. London, 1890. Vol. i.
CI. R.— Close Rolls; Rotuli Litterarum Clausarum in
Turri Londinensi asservati. a.d. 1204-24. Vol. i.
Cl.R., vol. 2. The same; vol. 2. a.d. 1224-7.
D.B.— Domesdav Book ; part relating to Berkshire.
E.D.D.— The English Dialect Dictionary ; ed. J. Wright.
F. A.— Feudal Aids (Record Series) ; vol. i.
H.R.— Hundred Rolls ; Rotuli Hundredorum ; vol. i.
Index.— Index to Charters in the British Museum; ed.
H. J. Ellis and F. B. Bickley. London, 1900.
Ipm. — Calendarium Inquisitionum post Mortem, sive
Escaetarum ; ed. J. Caley. (Record Series.) Vol. i.
N.E.D.— The New English Dictionary (Oxford).
Pipe Rolls. — Great Rolls of the Pipe; ed. J. Hunter.
Vol. i (1155-8) ; vol. ii (1189-90).
P. R.— Patent Rolls ; Calendarium Rotulorum Patentium
(Henry III— Edward IV).
6 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
R.B.— Red Book of the Exchequer; ed. W. D. Selby
(Rolls Series). See the index in vol. iii.
R.C.— Calendarium Rotulorum Chartarum (John —
Henry VI).
R.T. — Rotuli Chartarum in Turri Londinensi asservati ;
ed. T. D. Hardy. London, 1837.
T.E.— Taxatio Ecclesiastiea (1291). Ed. 1802.
T.N. —Testa de Neville (Henry III— Edward I).
V.E. — Valor Ecclesiasticus ; temp. Henry VIII.
Some of these have indexes of personal names as well
as of place-names. Both should be consulted.
The place-names of Berkshire are here arranged
(in alphabetical order) under the various suffixes
which they exhibit, which are likewise arranged
in alphabetical order. The number of names in
which no suffix appears is only six ; and these are
given at the end.
All the suffixes found in Berkshire names are of
English origin or form, and may conveniently be
here enumerated. They are as follows : -bergh,
-bourn, -brook, -bury, -combe, -cot, -cross, -den,
-don (rarely -down), -ey, -Jield, -ford, -grave, -hale,
-ham (with two values), -hay, -hill, -hit he, -holt,
-hurst, -ing, -ley, -low, -marsh, -mere (with two
values), -or, -pen, -ridge, -rith, -shet {-shot), -stead,
-ham-stead, -thorn, -ton, -ware (-wer), -well, -worth.
The suffixes -combe and -don were borrowed from
Celtic ; -cross is ultimately Latin. The six names
in which no suffix appears are Beedon (notwith-
standing its appearance), Bray, Shaw, Shippon,
Speen, and Theale.
In selecting the names, I have been guided by
Kelly's Post Office Directory of Berkshire, and
have included all that seemed to be of any interest.
PREFATORY REMARKS 7
I have also made much use of the County Atlases
by Bacon and Philips ; also of an earlier one by
Pigot (1831), which gives the hundreds into which
the county is divided.
I discuss, first of all, the etymology of Berkshire
itself, and then those of a few of the hundreds
that are not now coincident with known place-
names. Perhaps it is well to warn the reader that
many of the explanations that have been offered
by some of our antiquaries are sadly mistaken,
owing to their almost total ignorance of the
phonetic laws of Old English and of Norman
French. A conspicuous example of this occurs in
the case of Speen, which has frequently been
identified with the Latin Spinae. I greatly doubt
whether it is topographically suitable ; indeed,
some authors would prefer to locate Spinae at
Newbury. But however this may be, it is not
possible to identify the names ; as is shown below.
The most helpful county history is that by
Daniel and Samuel Lysons, comprised in vol. i of
Magna Britannia; London, 1806-22; quarto.
In ten parts, forming six volumes. I have also
taken good care to consult Mr. W. H. Stevenson's
edition of Asser's Life of King Alfred, which
contains some valuable hints, and have carefully
considered The History of Berks., by Lieut. Cooper
King, though the etymologies there given are
frequently due to impossible guesses. The Victoria
County History of Berkshire contains useful notes
upon Domesday Book.
THE PLACE-NAMES OF
BERKSHIRE
Berkshire.
The etymology of Berkshire is, practically, given
in the opening sentence of Asser's Life of King
Alfred : e Anno Dominicae Incarnationis dcccxli.y
natus est Alfred, Angul-Saxonum rex, in villa
regia, quae dicitur Uuanating, in ilia paga, quae
nominatur Berrocscire : quae paga taliter vocatur
a Berroc silva, ubi buxus abundantissime nascitur.'
Giles's version has : ( In the year of our Lord's
incarnation 849, was born Alfred, king of the
Anglo-Saxons, at the royal village of Wanating
[footnote, Wantage], in Berkshire ; which country
has its name from the wood of Berroc, where the
box-tree grows most abundantly.' Here Berroc
is a sort of polite Latinised spelling of the A.S.
Bearruc ; for earr is hardly acceptable to the eye
that is accustomed to the Latin err in ferrum.
The Mercian form was Barruc. The true nomina-
tive of ' shire ' was sclr.
We find Beamicscir in Birch, C. S. iii. 75 ;
Baerrocscir in the same, ii. 378 ; Berrucscir, ii.
376 ; Barroccscir in Thorpe, Dipl. JEvi Saxonici,
p. 414. Later forms are Berrochescire, D.B., p. 1 ;
Berkesire, R.B. ; Barcssire, Robert of Gloucester.
Though there is no doubt about the etymology, it
1257 B
10 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
has been absurdly misinterpreted in various ways.
Bearruc is, formally, a diminutive of beam, a wood,
a grove. The gen. of this is bearw-es, showing
that the true stem is bearwo-, which, by the
addition of -c, became bearwoc, bearwuc ; and then,
by the assimilation of rw to rr, bearruc. The -c
made little difference to the sense, which Asser
expresses by ' silva '. He further tells us that
it abounded with box-ti-ees ; whence arose one of
the misinterpretations, viz. that Bearruc meant
1 a box-tree ' ! This is as if we were to declare that
forest means ' an oak-tree ' ; yet it is gravely
repeated by successive ' authorities '. The name
of the county merely signifies that it once
abounded with woodland ; and we further learn
from Asser that there were many box-trees. As to
this latter point, note the place-names Boxford
(originally Box-ora) and Boxgrove in the parish of
Sulham, near Reading.
Another fable was started by Brompton, the
historian, that Baroc-scir [so misspelt] meant f bare
oak shire ', so called from a polled oak in Windsor
Forest, where public meetings were held ; which
is even preserved in Bosworth's Anglo-Saxon
Dictionary. It cannot be taken seriously, being
but a poor joke ; yet it has found its way into
school-books on geography, and is industriously
taught ; for in some schools any rubbish is good
enough when English etymology is handled.
Others ' derive ' Berkshire from the British tribe
of the Bibroci ; and others from the Roman town
of Bibracte. The effect of the latter attempt is
somewhat marred by the rival assertion that
BERKSHIRE 11
Bibracte is the origin of Bray ! Any sort of
similarity between two names was held by our
older writers to prove identity. The result was
sadly embarrassing, as it provided many names
with half a dozen origins, and exalted impudent
assertions far above positive evidence.
The Berkshire Hundreds.
The hundreds into which Berkshire has been
divided have varied to some extent from time to
time. They are now twenty in number, viz.
Baynhurst, Bray, Charlton, Compton, Cookham,
Faircross, Faringdon, Ganfield, Hormer, Kintbury,
Lambourn, Moreton, Ock, Reading, Ripplesmere,
Shrivenham, Sonning, Theale, Wantage, and
Wargrave. The etymologies of these names are
all discussed below. It may be remarked that
Baynhurst, Faircross, Ganfield, Hormer, Ock, and
Ripplesmere are not now place-names. The
Charlton near Wantage has nothing to do with
the hundred, though its origin is the same. Ock
is really the name of a river ; called in A.S.
Eocca.
In the Hundred Rolls, &c, we meet with some
other names,viz. Blekebyr', Borghedeberie, Cotset-
tlesford, Rugheberg. Blekebyr' is discussed under
Blewberry ; Borghedeberie is a form of Buckle-
bury, and Rugheberg of Roborough. Cotsettlesford
(not noticed in D.B.) is explained by the A.S.
cotsctla, a cottager ; lit. a settler in a cot ; so that
the sense is l cottager's ford'.
In the Domesday Book we meet with a few
other names, some of which are merely variants
12 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
of those already mentioned. Thus Beners appears
to be Baynhurst ; Blitberie is a by-form of Blew-
berry ; Cerletone is Charlton ; Gamenesfelle is
Ganfield ; Hilleslaue is discussed under Ilsley ;
Hornimere is Hormer ; Merceham is Marcham ;
Roeberg is the Rugheberg of the Hundred Rolls ;
Sudtune and Taceham are Sutton and Thatcham.
The hundreds of Kintbury and Egley, called in
D.B. Cheneteberie and Eglei respectively, are now
united in the hundred of Kintbury, formerly called
Kintbury-Eagle. But we further meet with some
entirely new names of hundreds : Eslitesford,
Nachededorn, and Wifol, which correspond to
nothing that is now known. I make a few
remarks upon each of these.
Eslitesford. Also spelt Eletesford, D.B., p. 13;
H eslitesford, p. 2 ; but the H is of no value ;
English names beginning with SI had an E (or
He) prefixed to them to suit the Norman pro-
nunciation. Cf. Sleteford, Pipe Rolls (l Rich. I) ;
Slottesford, F.A. The prefix represents an A.S.
Slottes- or Slyttes-, the gen. case of some unknown
masculine personal name ; from a nominative
Slott or Slytt. We cannot tell. It seems to have
formed a part of Moreton hundred.
Nachededorn. This curious name evidently
arose from the A.S. phrase f aet tham nacodan
thorne ', at the Naked Thorn. As Mr. Stevenson
says, in his edition of Asser, p. 238, ' it is tempting
to identify this bare or leafless thorn with the
unica spinosa arbor' mentioned in the Life of
Alfred, ch. 39, 1. 5. This refers to the battle of
THE BERKSHIRE HUNDREDS IS
Ashdown, where Dr. Giles's translation has : —
' There was also a single thorn-tree, of stunted
growth, and Ave have with our own eyes seen it.
Around this tree the opposing armies came to-
gether with loud shouts from all sides,' &c. (p. 55).
This old hundred is now included in the hundred
of Compton.
Wifol, or Wiford. In D.B., p. 8, it appears as
Wiford, which is the more intelligible form ; but
some consonant has been lost before the J) most
likely a guttural. It may very well represent the
A.S. Wicford, modern E. Wickford. There is a
Wickford in Essex. From the A.S. ti'ic, Lat. incus,
a village. The sense would be ' ford near a village '.
I may add that Merceham and Sudtune, names of
hundreds in D.B., i. e. Marcham and Sutton, are
now both in the hundred of Ock. Taceham
(Thatcham) is in the hundred of Reading.
The boundaries of the modern hundreds are so
extremely irregular, and their shapes are so ex-
traordinary, that the position of a given place in
the hundred to which it is assigned can only be
understood by reference to a map in which these
boundaries are well defined. For example, Cook-
ham hundred consists of two portions, at some
distance apart ; and Cookham itself is in the
smaller portion of the two.
The Suffix -dergh.
Bergh is the Middle English form of the suffix
which appears in A.S. (Anglo-Saxon) as beorh,
Mercian berk, a hill; whence the modern E. barrow,
14 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
in the sense of burial-mound or tumulus. Being
little used, it was easily confused with the modern
E. borough, and appears in that form in the two
examples given below.
Farnborough. Spelt Farnborowe in V.E. (temp.
Henry VIII). But the older spelling is Farnberg,
T.E. ; or Farnebergh, Ipm. ; Fermeberge (error for
Ferneberge), D.B., p. 7. In a charter dated 931,
in Birch, Cart. Saxon, ii. 370, the boundaries of
some land at Farnborough are given ; and we
find the various forms following, viz. to Fearn-
beorgan, of Fearn-beorge, on Fearn-beorg. Hence
we may infer the nom. sing. Fearn-beorh, dat.
Fearn-beorge. The meaning is e fern-hill '.
Roborough. There is now no such place ; but
this form occurs as the name of a ' hundred ' in
S. Devon. It is the modern form of a Berkshire
hundred spelt Rughcberg in the Hundred Rolls,
vol. i, and Rubergh in Ipm. D.B. has Roeberg hun-
dred, p. 5. The late A.S. form is Ruanbergh,
Kemble, Cod. Dipl. vi. 227 ; better Ruwan-beorh,
as in Birch, Cart. Saxon, hi. 309 ; though these
examples do not refer to Berkshire. However, we
find (probably another) Ruwan-beorg in a Berks,
charter, in Birch, C.S. ii. 51 6. Another variant is
Rugan-beorh, id. i. 545, or Rugan-biorg, ii. 362 ;
and, in the line above, we find Rugan-slaed ; which
makes it likely that Rugan is the gen. of Ruga,
a personal name. The lit. sense of ruga is ' rough',
as it is a definite form of A.S. ruh, rough. If
this be right, the sense is ' Ruga's (or Ruwa's)
barrow', rather than simply ' rough hill '.
THE SUFFIX -BOURN 15
Bourn.
Bourn, bourne, or borne, represents the A.S. burn,
a small river, a stream. Examples occur in Cran-
bourn (near Winkfield), Enborne, Hagbourne,
Lambourn, Pangbourn, Shalbourne (formerly in
Berks., but now in Wilts.), and Winterbourne.
Cranbourn. The prefix represents the A.S.
cran, a crane ; a bird ' formerly abundant in Great
Britain, and prized as food, but now extinct ' ;
N.E.D. The sense is 'crane stream'; and was
at first applied to a streamlet. Cranbourn Wood
adjoins Windsor Park.
Enborne. The forms are Eneburne, F.A. (131 6) ;
Enebum, H.R. ; Enedbum, T.N. ; Enedeborne, R.C.
All from A.S. ened, cognate with Lat. anus (gen.
anal-is), a duck. The sense is ' duck-stream ' ;
originally applied to the stream which, under
the name of the river Emborne, forms a part of
the boundary between Berks, and Hants. Cf.
Enford (Wilts.), formerly Enedford, i.e. ' duck-
ford ' ; Birch, Cart. Saxon, ii. 408. It is strange
that the river itself is corruptly called the Em-
borne ; though the names are both from the same
original.
Hagbourne. East and West Hagbourne are
to the west of Wallingford. Called Hagborne in
V.E. (temp. Hen. VIII). But the older form is
Hakeburn, T.N. ; T.E. ; Hakeburne, F.A. ; D.B.
has Hachebome ; p. 1 2. A charter of King
Alfred has ' a?t Hacce-burnan, Sonon of Hacce-
broce ', &c, Birch, Cart. Saxon, ii. 206-7 ; and
16 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Hacce- answers to the later Hake- and to Hache- in
D.B. (with ch for k). But it is not the original
form, as shown by the variant Haccan-broc in the
same, p. 557 ; which alone could give Hake- and
Hag-. Haccan is the genitive case of the per-
sonal name Hacca ; and the sense is l Hacca's
stream ' ; just as Haccan-broc is ' Hacca's brook '.
Lambourn. This is the name of a stream, a
place, and a hundred. D.B,, p. 4, speaks of Lam-
borne in Lamborne hundred. The A.S. Lamb-bur-
nan occurs in King Alfred's Will • Birch, Cart.
Saxon, ii. 178. Evidently compounded of lamb,
a lamb, and burna, by-form of burn, a stream.
The sense is ' lamb-stream '. In F.A. the place
is called Chepinglamborne, i. e. Market Lam-
bourn; from the A.S. ceaping, bargaining. See
Cheaping in N.E.D. We also find the A.S. spell-
ing Lamburna in 943 ; Birch, C.S. ii. 535. This
might be explained as being from the A.S. lam,
loam ; with the a shortened before mb. It is diffi-
cult to decide ; but the spelling given above, in
a document so important as Alfred's Will, is a
strong argument in favour of the former explana-
tion. In Birch, C.S. iii. 29, Idrnburna has the a
marked long, but this may be due to the occur-
rence of lam-pyt below. Mr. M c Clure (British Place-
names, p. 289) decides that Lamb-hythe in the
A.S. Chron., an. 1041, is a late form, and corrupted
from Lam-hythe ; but he produces no evidence
beyond a statement that the latter form is found
in 1088 ! Kemble, Cod. Dipl. iv. 158, has Lambe-
hythe in a charter of Edward the Confessor ; but
THE SUFFIX -BOURN 17
the copy is late. It is difficult to see how the
long a could have been shortened before mh ;
the A.S. Lam-hythe should have become Loam-
hithe. His further argument that 'loam-hithe'
is analogous to ' chalk-hithe ', which is the mean-
ing of Chelsea, is easily met by adducing the
form Rother-hithe. And why is the b in Lambeth
so strongly pronounced even at the present day?
Paxgbourn. This is situate at the junction with
the Thames of the river Pang, formerly called the
Pangbourn. Spelt Pangeburn, T.E. ; D.B., p. 5,
has Pandebome, better spelt Pangeborne at p. 1 2 of
the same. The original form of the prefix is very
curious ; it appears in the forms Peginga-burnan
and Paegeinga-burnan in a charter of the date 833
or 834 ; Birch, Cart. Saxon, ii. 20. The shortened
form Pangan-burnan occurs in 956 ; p. 88. All
these forms are in an oblique case, from the weak
masc. nom. burna. The correct old form is
Pjeginga-burna, i. e. ' the stream of the sons of
Paaga '; since Paiginga is the gen. pi. of Pteg-ing,
'a son of Pjega,' which is a recorded personal
name. The abbreviation was easily made, because
the A.S. g represented a mere glide, like the
modern E. y in pay ; so that the original sound,
somewhat like that of paying, was shortened to
something like paing, and then to pang. This is
a good example of the difficulty of guessing the
source of a name befox-ehand. The fact that the
^-sound was sometimes written as ge explains the
form Psegeinga.
Shalbourne. Now in Wilts., but formerly in
1257 C
18 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Berks. Spelt Shalbornc, V.E. (temp. Hen. VIII) ;
but at an earlier date with ld> as in Shaldeburne,
F.A. (1316); also with and for aid, as in Scaudi-
burne, R.B. Owing to the Norman inability
to pronounce the E. Sh, it appears in D.B. as
Eseldeborne ; p. 4. The A.S. form occurs in aet
Scealdeburnan, dat. ; Birch, Cart. Saxon, iii. 404.
From the A .S. sceald, ' shallow ' ; so that the sense
is ' shallow stream '. The A.S. sceald is not in the
Dictionaries, but has been amply exemplified by
Mr. Stevenson in his paper in the Phil. Soc. Trans.,
1895-8, p. 532. The M.E. form is shald, as in
Barbour's Bruce, bk. ix, 1. 354. The a was some-
times lengthened, and so passed into long o, and
the word survives in the expression ' shoal water ',
with loss of the final d. Dryden has shoaly in
much the same sense, in his translation of Virgil,
JEn. V. 1 1 30. The same prefix occurs in Shalfleet
in the Isle of Wight, Shalford in Essex and Surrey,
and Shelford in Cambridgeshire. See my ai'ticle
on Shelford, in The Place-names of Cambs.
WiNTEnBouRNE. It lies between Chieveley and
Boxford. Spelt Winterburn, H.R. ; Wintreborne in
D.B., pp. 5, 12. The name also occurs in Gloucs.,
and several times in Dorsets. and Wilts. A.S.
Winterburna, as in Birch, Cart. Saxon, ii. 347
(a.d. 930). Still common in Hants and Sussex (see
E.D.D.), to signify an intermittent stream that
flows in the winter-time. Whoever desires a full
and exact description of a ' winter-bourn ' will find
it in Blackmore's novel entitled Alice Lorraine.
THE SUFFIXES -BROOK, -BURY 19
Brook.
Shottesbrook. There is but little difference
between bourn and brook, either in sense or use.
The only example of the latter is in Shottes-
brook, not far from Bray, where a brook from the
neighbourhood of Shottesbrook enters the Thames.
Spelt Shotesbroke, P.R. ; Schottesbroch, Pipe Rolls
(l Rich. I). But owing to the Norman difficulty
of pronouncing Sh, the usual forms are Sottcsbroc,
Ipm. ; Sottebroc, T.N. ; Sotesbroke, F.A. (1316);
Sotesbroc, R.B. ; Sotesbroc, D.B., p. 16. In such a
case, the modern English sound is a better guide
than the old Normanised spelling. The A.S. form
of the prefix is Scottes, which occurs in Scottes-
healh, lit. ' Scot's [or Shot's] haugh ', in Birch,
Cart. Saxon, hi. 2-iO (a.d. 958). Scottes is the
gen. sing, of the known name Scot (pronounced
as shot). The sense is ' Shot's brook '. Whether
this personal name was the same word as the A.S.
Scot, meaning (l) a Scot of Ireland, and (2) a Scot
of Scotland, can hardly be decided. There is no
absolute necessity for considering them identical.
Bury.
Bury represents the A.S. byrig, really the dative
case of burh, mod. E. borough. The use of the
dative arose from the old habit of prefixing (or
understanding) the preposition cet, ' at ', before
most place-names. Examples occur in Ashbury,
Badbury Hill, Blewberry, Bucklebury, Eastbury,
Grimsbury, Kintbury, Newbury.
Ashbury. It lies between Shrivenham and
20 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Lambourn. Spelt Asschebary, I pin. (1316-17).
But the A.S. name was aet iEscesbyrig ; Birch,
Cart. Saxon, ii. 548 (a.d. 944). The nom. case
occurs as iEseesburh ; id. hi. 59 (a.d. 953). This
renders it certain that the name is not derived (as
a guesser would suppose) from ash as the name of
a tree ; but from the A.S. JEsc, which was in use
as a man's name, though the original sense had
reference to the tree. One iEsc was the son of
no less a man than Hengist. Hence the sense is
' iEsc's borough ', or f Ash's borough '. Of course
the syllable -es was easily lost after the sound
of sh.
Badbury Hill. Near Faringdon. There is also
a hundred in Dorsets. called Badbury hundred.
The latter is spelt Baddebury, Ipm. The A.S. form
is Baddanbyrig ; Kemble, Cod. Dipl. vi. 214 ;
Birch, Cart. Saxon, ii. 540. The same prefix occurs
in Baddandun ; Birch, C. S. i. 1 79- Baddan is the
gen. case of Badda, a known name. Hence the
sense is 'Badda's borough'. Similarly, Baddandun
means ' Badda's down'.
Blewberry, or Blewbury. The usual Middle
English forms are Blebitry, T.E. ; Blebery, R.B. ;
H.R. ; Bleobery, R.C. It was formerly also the
name of a hundred, which appears in the curious
form Blekebyr' , H.R. D.B. has yet a third form, viz.
Blitberie in Blitberie hundred; p. 2. But the A.S.
form agrees with the M.E. forms, appearing as
Bleobyrig (dat. case), Birch, Cart. Saxon, ii. 557,
line 13. The prefix bleo is a sb. in frequent use,
with the senses of colour, hue, complexion, look,
THE SUFFIX -BURY 21
appearance ; the M.E. form being blee. The A.S.
bleo and M.E. blee were applied to things both of
disagreeable and agreeable appearance; at the
same time, we frequently find, at least in the M.E.
period, the phrase ' bright of blee ', i. e. of bright or
fair hue. This suggests that the original sense of
Bleobyrigwas literally 'show-borough', i.e. 'bright
borough ' ; compare such names as Fairfield, Fair-
ford, Fairlight, Fairsted, and the Berks. Brightwell,
as explained below. When this prefix Blee- became
unintelligible, it was supplanted by the Norman
Bleu- or Blew-, i.e. 'blue '. The variants Blekebyr
(for Blekcbyri) and Blitberie are difficult to explain,
and I can only offer a suggestion. Such spellings as
Blebcry, Bleobeiy, Blitberie, and the modern Blew-
berry suggest that, in this instance (but in no other),
the suffix was confused with the mod. E. berry, M.E.
berye, bene ; or rather that the name of the place
was confused with that of the prov. E. blaeberry
or bleabcrry, a bilberry ; and as the literal sense of
this blue was ' blue ', this may further account for
the name Blew-berry. The form Blekcbyri, how-
ever, is suggestive rather of the blackberry, A.S.
blaceberie ; of which it is just possible that the
Norman Blitberie is a poor imitation, though it
is closer in forcn to ' blithe bury '. However, we
are sure that neither Blekebyri nor Blitberie is
really due to the A.S. Bleobyrig ; nor is either
really connected with the modern name. But
that there has been an alteration from the A.S.
blco, * hue,' to the M.E. blew, ' blue,' is quite
clear ; though the two words are in no way
connected by etymology.
22 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Bucklebury. On the river Pang. The sense is
quite certain, though it could hardly have been
guessed. The form is Buckilbury, V.E. (temp.
Henry VIII). But the earlier forms are differ-
ent, viz. Burghildebur , T.E. ; Burghildeburg, F.A.
(13 16); Burhildbury, Ipm. It was formerly also
the name of a hundred ; spelt Burghildebyr , H.R. ;
Burghildebury, F.A. (1316). D.B. has Borgedeberie
in Borgedeberie hundred; p. 9- The M.E. forms can
only represent an A.S. form Burghilde byrig, where
Burghild is a known A.S. feminine name, with
the fern. gen. in -e instead of the masc. gen. in
-es. The sense is ' Burghild' s borough'; it being
borne in mind that Burghild was a woman. One
Burghild was a king's daughter, viz. a daughter of
Cenwulf, king of Mercia (796-819); see Searle's
Onomasticon Anglo-Saxonicum. We again meet
the same genitive feminine in a slightly debased
form, in the case of Burgilde treow, i.e.
' Burghild's tree ' ; Birch, C.S. ii. 207, 1. 2 ; and in
a still more debased form, in the case of Buggilde
stret, i.e. ' Burghild's street' ; id. i. 184, 1. 14.
Eastbury. Spelt Estbury, Ipm. ; Estbery, R.B. ;
Esbury, H.R. The sense is obvious, viz. ' East
borough '.
Grimsbury. Spelt Grimmesbiria, R.B. There is
mention of a Northants. Grimesbiri in Ipm., p. 11.
The sense is obvious, viz. ' Gi'im's borough '.
There is a Grimes Hill in Worcs., also a Grim's
Pits ; concerning which Mr. Duignan remarks that
' Grim was an A.S. name [originally a Norse name],
but it also meant a spectre, goblin, or evil spirit.
THE SUFFIX -BURY 23
Grimes Dyke, Grimes Graves, Grimsditch, are pre-
historic earthworks, and the probability is that
supernatural agency in their construction is
referred to '. A reference to Grimes die, ' Grim's
dyke,' occurs in Birch, C.S. iii. 110, 1. 22.
Kintbury. Also the name of a hundred. We
find Kenetbury hundred, Ipm. ; Kenetebur hundred,
H.R. ; hundreda de Kenetbury el Egg/e, F.A. (1316) ;
Kcnetebury, T.E. ; Cheneteberie in Ch. hundred, D.B.,
p. 4. The A.S. form appears in <a?t Cynetan byrig' ;
Birch, C.S. ii. 367. The sense is ' Kennet
borough ' ; the reference being to the river
Kennet, called Cyneta in Anglo-Saxon. This
river-name is certainly of Celtic origin. The A.S.
Cyneta represents an older form *Cunetio ; which
may be compared with the Latin place-name
Cunetione (abl.) in the Itinerary of Antoninus, no.
xiv, also probably due to the British name of the
same river. Cf. Kennet in my Place-names of
Cambs. For f Eagle ', see Egley, p. 73.
Newbury. The sense is simply ' new borough '.
But at the present date it is not f new' by any
means. It is spelt Newburye in Ipm., p. 242,
under the date 1310-11 ; but in the same, p. 107,
Johannes de Neubiry is referred to as possessing
land in Berks, in 1 290, which shows at once that
it is older than this latter year. The earliest re-
ference to it that I have observed belongs to the
reign of Henry I (1100-35); viz. in Stevenson's
edition of the Chronicle of Abingdon, ii. 77, where
we find the expression apud Niuueberiam ; w being
denoted by uu. The very form of the word shows
24 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
its antiquity, as it answers to A.S. niwan byrig
(dative). In the Hist, of Berks., by Lieut. Cooper
King, p. 89, we are told that the castle of Newbury
was erected by the Earl of Perche, ' probably in
the early part of the thirteenth century, and was
stormed by Stephen in 1154'; where it is obvious
that for thirteenth we must read twelfth. Perhaps
we may date it soon after 1 1 00. From Camden's
remark that ' Newburie must acknowledge Speen
as its mother ', I entirely dissent. It arose from
his identification of Speen with the Roman Spinae,
which is nothing but an unjustifiable guess. See
remarks upon Speen at p. 112. But perhaps he
only meant that Newbury would suit the position
of Spinae much better than Speen ; and this may
easily be the case ; since (as is explained below)
Spinae and Speen are independent of each other,
and refer to different places.
Combe.
Combe, spelt Coomb in the New E. Diet., means
a deep hollow or narrow valley, and is often applied
to a hollow on the flank of a hill. The A.S. form
is cumb, probably of Celtic origin ; the Welsh cwm
has the same sense, and occurs in Welsh place-
names. Whitley Stokes refers the latter to a
Celtic type *kii7tiba, a valley. This suffix occurs in
Letcombe, Ruscombe, and Whatcomb.
Letcombe. There are two places of this name,
near together, viz. Letcombe Regis (King's
Letcombe) and Letcombe Basset. The Bassets
were a Norman family, who possessed lands in
THE SUFFIX -COMBE 25
various parts of England. Lysons says that they
had the manor of Letcombe in the thirteenth
century, in succession to D'Oilly. Spelt Letc-
coumb, H.R.; but usually Ledccumbe, P.R. ; R.B. ;
R.C.; T.E. ; T.N. Also in D.B., p. 13. A fuller form
is Ledencumbe, D.B., p. 4. As to what was the A.S.
form, we have no evidence. We can only guess.
However, the prefix Leden- exactly agrees with
the A.S. Leodan, genitive of Leoda, where Leoda
may be a pet-name for one of the numerous names
beginning with Leod-, such as Leodbeald, Leod-
brand, &c. If this be right, the sense is ' Leoda's
combe '. We may compare the Middle English
Ledebury, in Ipm., the old name of Ledbury in
Herefordshire. Ledcombe became Letcombe as
a matter of course, by the influence of the unvoiced
c upon the voiced d.
Ruscombe. Near Twyford. Spelt Ruscombe,
V.E.; Roscombe, F.A. Probably the sense is 'rush
combe '. Cf. Rushden, in Herts.
Whatcomb, or Watcumbe. D.B. has Wate-
cumbe; p. 13. Lysons refers it to Watcumbe in
Great Sheffbrd. Bacon's map gives Whatcomb
Farm between Chaddleworth and S. Fawley.
Whatcombshey refers to a place in Somersets. ;
and Whetecombe is in Dorsets. ; Birch, C.S. ii. 205,
422. The prefix Wale- here represents the A.S.
hwcete, wheat, which occurs in several compounds,
such as Whatfield in Suffolk. The sense is ' wheat
combe '. See Waddon in my Place-names of
Cambs., and cf. Wheathampstead in Herts.
1257 d
26 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Cot.
Cot or Cote is the old word for a cottage or
small detached house, and is common in place-
names. From the A.S. cot, a cottage. It occurs
in Ascot, Buscot, Didcot, Dray cot, Hodcot, and
Longcott.
Ascot. Near Sunninghill. Spelt Ascote, P.R. ;
but Escot, T.N. The latter is for Estcot, i.e. 'east
cot '. Cf. the A.S. forms Eastcotun, Eastcoten,
which are in the dat. plural ; Birch, C.S. ii. 335,
iii. 621. The same substitution of As- for the A.S.
east, M.E. est, occurs in the case of Aston, p. 91-
Compare also Eastcotts, near Cardington, Beds.
Buscot. On the Thames, above Eaton Hastings.
A curious example of a much abbreviated form ;
but easily restored. Spelt Burwardcscote, Ipm. ;
Borwardcscote, F.A. ; Burwardescot, T.N. ; Bure-
wardescote, T.E. ; Burwardscott, V.E. (temp.
Henry VIII). D.B. has Boroardescote ; p. 9- All
the forms represent a Mercian form Burgwardes
cot ; where Burgward is the Mercian form of
Burgweard, a known personal name. Hence the
sense is ' Burgward' s (or Burgweard's) cot '.
Didcot. Sometimes called Dudcote (Kelly).
Spelt Dudcote, Ipm. ; Dudecote, R.B. ; V.E. ;
Doudecote, Dudecothe, T.N. The A.S. y is vari-
ously represented in later English by i and u ; so
that Did- and Dud- are both due to the personal
name Dydda, not noticed by Searle, but occurring
in Dyddan-hamm, in Birch, C. S. iii. 101, 103;
Dyddan being the gen. of Dydda. The sense is
THE SUFFIXES -COT, -CROSS 27
* Dydda's cot '. A very similar name is Dudda,
preserved in Dudley, Worcs. Cf. also Dydinc-
cotan (dative) ; Birch, C. S. iii. 486.
Dravcot. Draycot Moor is a township in Long-
worth (Kelly). Spelt Draicote, R.B. ; D.B., p. 7 ;
and in the Chronicle of Abingdon, ii. 5 (a.d.
1 066-87). The prefix is discussed under Drayton,
p. 95. The probable sense is a ' cot for shelter '.
Taylor's explanation, viz. ' dry cot ', is out of the
question, as the A.S. for ' dry ' is dryge, which is
in no way related, and would have given Drycot.
Hodcot. Situate in West Ilsley. In Ipm., p. 49,
the manors of Hodicote and West Hildesleyc are
mentioned together. D.B. also has Hodicote ; p. 11.
Hodi- is shortened from Hoden, a later form of
A.S. Hodan, gen. of Hoda, a known personal
name. The sense is therefore ' Hoda's cot '.
One Hoda was certainly a Berkshire man, as he
was buried near Sparsholt. This we learn from
Birch, C. S. iii. 359 (a.d. 963), where mention is
made in a Sparsholt charter of Hodan hlaew, i. e.
' Hoda's burial-mound '.
Longcot, or Longcott. It lies to the NE. of
Shrivenham. I find no early mention of it, and it
may be comparatively modern. The sense, viz.
c long cot ', is obvious.
Cross.
Faircro8s. One of the hundreds is called Fair-
cross hundred ; evidently named from a fair or
well-made cross, of which I find three notices.
Ballivam Belle Cruris, Ab. ; hundredum de Bella
28 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Cruce, H.R. ; F.A. (1428). Chieveley is near the
central point of this hundred.
Cross is borrowed from a Celtic form that was
itself an adaptation of Lat. crucem, ace. of crux, a
cross. See Cross in N.E.D.
Dene, Den.
The suffix -dene or -den represents the A.S. denu,
a valley, and is rather common. But Berks,
furnishes only two examples of it, viz. Basilden or
Basildon, and Yattenden, of which the usual
spelling is Yattendon. The suffixes denu, a valley,
and dun, a down, or in modern English dene and
down, often reduced to -den and -don, are very fre-
quently confused ; for wherever there is a valley
there is usually a hill or hills above, and the village
might take its name from either.
Basilden, or Basildon. Near the Thames, be-
tween Wallingford and Reading. The former is
the better spelling. Formerly spelt Basteldene,
Ipm. ; Bastildene, Ipm. ; R.C. ; Bastilesden, Ipm.
(124-1-2); Basteleden, Bastelesden, T.N. ; Bastindene,
R.B. D.B. has Bastedene ; p. 3. The best form of
the prefix is Bastehs, out of which all the rest can
be produced. This answers to the A.S. Baestles,
spelt Baestlaes in Bsestlees-ford, Birch, C. S. ii. 207,
and Bestles in Bestles-ford, on the same page. We
also find Bestles-ford in the same, i. 108, 147.
The charters connect Baestles-ford or Bestles-ford
with Bradfield (Berks.), not far from Basildon ; so
that it is clear that the personal name (and pro-
bably the person) is the same in Ba?stles-ford as in
THE SUFFIXES -DENE, -DEN 29
Basilden. The nom. case is Baestel, later Bestel ;
the latter is given in Searle, p. 105. Hence the
sense is c Baestel's dene ' or ' Baestel's valley '. Note
that the genitive of such a form as Baestel is not
Baesteles, but Baestles ; by rule. See also Bisham,
p. 55.
Yattenden, or Yattendon. In the present case
the old spellings are likewise decisive. We find
Yatindene, F.A. (1316) ; Yatendene, F.A. (1428);
Yatingeden, Yatingden, Yeti?igeden,T.N. ; Yeiingden,
P.R. ; Yatingdon, Yatinden, Ipm. ; Yatyndene, Index
to Charters (1365). D.B. has Etingedene ; p. 11.
The fullest forms of the prefix are Yatinge, Yetinge,
representing an A.S. Geatinga, gen. pi. of Geating,
a patronymic formed from the personal name
Geat. In the A.S. Chronicle, under the date
855, we find a note as to ' Godwulf Geating, Geat
Taetwaing '; meaning that Godwulf A\as the son of
Geat, and Geat was the son of Taetwa. These
names occur in the pedigree of King iEthelwulf,
lather of /Elfred the Great. Geat is by no means
a common name, and it is remarkable that it
only occurs once in a charter ; but this is a Berks.
charter, granted to Abingdon. See Birch, C. S.
iii. 68, which informs us that there was once a
place near Cumnor called Geates-cumb, or ' Geat's
combe '. Hence the meaning of Yattenden is
1 valley of the Geatings or sons of Geat'. It has
to be observed that the A.S. g was pronounced as
ay before e, and the initial sound gea- (also geci-)
would give either yc- or yd- in later forms, and
could be shortened (as it was) to ye- or yd- before
30 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
the following t ; so that the development to Yet-
tenden and Yattenden (of which only the latter
has survived) is quite regular. [N.B. Shortly
after writing the above I observed that W. H.
Stevenson expressly says of Yattenden — ' that
name must have appeared in Old English as
*Geatinga-denu ' ; Asser's Life of Alfred, ed.
W. H. Stevenson, p. 277. No other solution is
possible.]
Down, -don.
The suffix -down, often shortened to -don, repre-
sents the A.S. dun, a down or hill. It occurs in
Abingdon, Ashdown, Faringdon, Moreton (origin-
ally Mordon), and in Sinodon Hill.
Abingdon. Several place-names ending in
-ingdon or -ington exhibit a corrupt form of suf-
fix, which should rather be -indon and -inton, or
-endon and -enton. A well-known example occurs
in Newington, representing the A.S. nlwan tune
(dative), which means precisely the same thing
as the commoner Newton. The -ing has here
supplanted an older -en (for A.S. -an), which is
nothing but the sign of the dative case. Similarly,
Abingdon should rather have become Abbindon
or Abbendon ; as will appear. Old spellings are :
Abingdon, V.E. (temp. Henry VIII) ; de Abendonia,
R.B. ; Abbendon, H.R. ; Abendon, T.E. ; Ipm. In
the A.S. charters, we find f iuxta Abbendune',
C.S. i. 147 ; ' e latere montis iEbbandune ' (where
the final -e represents the Latin gen. suffix -ae),
id. 224 ; and iEbbandune (dative), id. 490. The
nominative case is jEbban-dun : where iEbban is
THE SUFFIXES -DOWN, -DON 31
the gen. of the masculine personal name JEbba,
or of the feminine name iEbbe. We cannot say
which, as both of these occur ; but the former is
perhaps more likely to have given name to a hill.
The names may also be written Abba and Abbe ;
but the fem. form Abbe has not been noted.
The prefix in Abing-ton (Cambs. and Northants)
has the same origin. I explain it as ' Abba's
down '. According to the Chronicle of Abingdon,
i. 6, /Ebban-dun was not the original name. The
previous name was Seoueces-ham, answering to
A.S. Seofeces-ham, i.e. ' Seofec's home ' ; where
Seofec is a strong masculine allied to the weak
masculine Seofeca which appears in the original
form of Seacourt. Any suggestion that Seoueces-
ham may be of British origin must be summarily
dismissed ; for ham is characteristically English.
See Seacourt, p. 107.
Ashdown. Ashdown Park lies to the SE. of
Ashbury ; and just as it has been shown at p. 20
that the Ash- in Ash-bury does not refer to the
ash-tree, but to a man's name, we find the same
to be true of Ashdown. It happens that D.B. has
Asscdone, p. 9; but this is not to be identified
with Ashdown (see p. 32). Robert of Gloucester,
in his Chronicle, has the notable fonn Assesdoune,
lines 5312 and 6004, at a later date. The true
spelling occurs as iEsces dun, in the A.S. Chroni-
cle, under the years 648, 661, and 871. Hence
the sense is ' Mscs (or Ash's) down '. No doubt
the same iEsc gave name to both places. For
further information, see the remarks at pp. 234-8
32 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
of W. H. Stevenson's edition of Asser's Life of
Alfred. It is there pointed out that the D.B. spell-
ing Assedone cited above is an error for Assedene,
and does not refer to Ashdown at all. Also,
that iEsces-dun was a range of hills, ' a district or
country rather than a town.' And it is remark-
able that Asser's Latin text (much interpolated)
has ' iEscesdun, quod Latine " mons fraxini " inter-
pretatur ', which is contrary to fact, and f not a
mistake that an Englishman in the ninth century
would be likely to make '. He adds — ' the use of
the genitive was restricted to compounds of which
the first member was a personal name.'
Faringdon. As in the case of Abingdon, the
ng is here delusive and unoriginal. Faringdon is
also the name of a hundred ; and we find mention
of Farindon hundred, H.R. ; also of Ferendonc, R.B.;
Farendone, Robert of Gloucester ; Farendon,T.N.;
but Farndon, T.E. D.B. has Ferendone ; p. 4. In
the A.S. Chronicle, anno 924, two of the MSS.
say that King Eadweard died among the Mercians
at ' Farndun or at ( Fearndun ' ; which is ex-
plained by Mr. Plummer to refer to Faringdon,
Berks. If this, as is probable, is really the case,
we must suppose that, in such spellings as Faren-
don and Farindon, the e or i after the r merely
means that the r was strongly trilled ; examples
of similar spellings are, in fact, known. A curious
example of this occurs in Ipm., p. 157, where
there is mention of ' Farendon iuxta Bowdon,
North[amp]t[onshire] ', which of course means
E. Farndon, near Little Bowden, in that county;
THE SUFFIXES -DOWN, -DON 33
and the name of ' Westfarendon ' occurs a few
lines above. If we accept this simple solution,
the Middle English spellings represent an A.S.
form fearn-d Tin, which appears in Kemble's Index,
and merely means ' fern-down '. Otherwise we
should have to assume a personal name *Faera,
gen. *Fa?ran, and to explain it as ' Faera's down'.
Faera is quite possible as a pet name, since we
find many examples of names beginning with
Far-, such as Faerbeorht, Faerhild, Fserman, Faer-
mund, &c. Note also Fsern-dun, l fern-down ' ;
Birch, C.S. hi. 432.
Moreton. N. and S. Moreton are near Walling-
ford. Morton is also the name of the hundred
in which they are situate. The suffix -ton is very
old, as it appears in D.B. ; probably it was sub-
stituted by the Normans for the original A.S. suf-
fix -dun. We find Morton, T.N. ; Morton hundred,
H.R. ; Norihmorton, Ipm. Also Mortune in Blit-
berie [Blewberry] hundred', D.B., pp. 11, 15. But
the A.S. form was Mordun, as in the grant by
King Eadweard of land at Mordun, in Birch, C.S.
hi. 323 (a. d. 962). The sense is simply ' moor-
down'; from the A.S. mor, a moor.
Sinodun Hill, or Sinodon Hill. A hill with
this strange name lies to the NW. of Wallingford.
I find no especial mention of it, but I notice it in
order to point out that there is no particular
reason why it may not simply mean f synod-down'.
Hills were often used for meetings, and it is a
eurious fact that the word synod, though of Greek
origin, was a fairly common word in A.S. times,
1257 E
34 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
and appears several times in the A.S. Chronicle,
spelt sinoth, senoth, synoth, sinath, with the sense of
'council'. Compare such expressions as ' terra
de Synod ', R.T., in the 16th year of King John ;
gemot-leah, lit. 'meeting-lea', in Birch, C.S. iii.
4-92, line 25 ; seonoth-stow, /Elfred's Beda, ii. 2.
The Suffix -ey.
The Middle English ey answers to the Anglian
eg, A.S. leg, ig, an island. It meant not only
' island ' in the modern sense, but peninsula ; or,
indeed, any piece of land wholly or partially sur-
rounded by brooks or marshy country. It occurs
in Binsey, Charney, Cholsey, Goosey, Hanney
(or Hannay), Hinksey, Mackney, Pusey, Tubney.
(But not in Childrey.)
Binsey. Not far from Oxford, and near the
Thames. I can find little mention of it ; but R.T.
has Beneseia, which is a Latinised form of it. The
-es is the genitive case-ending of strong sbs.
ending in n, or even in i (later e) if the vowel is
short ; and Benes may represent the genitive of
*Beni, or of Byni, of which only the latter form is
found. The sense is probably ' Byni's isle'. The
y is short.
Charney. Beside the river Ock, in the Vale
of the White Horse. Also known as Charney
Basset, the Bassets being a Norman family who
owned land in Berks. Spelt Cerney, T.N. ; Cernee,
T.E. D.B. has Cemei; p. 8. The A.S. form is
Ceornei ; Birch, C.S. i. 506, 1. 2. The prefix is a
river-name ; it is spelt Cern in Birch, C.S.
THE SUFFIX -EY 35
iii. 238. In the Chronicle of Abingdon, i. 29, we
find ' flumen . . Cim-ea ' ; where ea is the A.S. for
' river ' or ' stream '. In Birch, ii. 60, it is spelt
Cyrn-ea. There is a river Ceme in Dorsets., which
flows into the Frome. The name is probably Celtic ;
there is a river Cerniog in Montgomeryshire,
which flows into the river Carno ; and the latter
joins the Severn. The sense of Charney is 'Cern-
isle ', or ' isle in (or beside) the Cern '.
Cholsey. Beside a stream that joins the
Thames. Spelt Celsei in D.B. ; p. 2. The
boundaries are given in a charter of Alfred, in
Birch, C.S. ii. 206 ; where the dat. case appears
as Ceolslge; from the nom. Ceols-Ig. Here Ceols
is for Ceoles, gen. of the personal name Ceol. The
sense is ' Ceol's isle '. Of course Taylor is wrong
in explaining ceol here as meaning 'ship' or ' keel'.
The s shows that it is a man's name.
Goosey. Beside a stream that joins the river
Ock. Spelt Goseye, T.E. ; de Goseya (Latin), R.B. ;
Gosei, D.B., p. 7. The A.S. form is Gos-Ig, of
which the dative Gos-ige occurs in Birch, C.S. iii.
69 ; where the boundaries of Goosey are given.
Among the boundaries are mentioned the mcer-dic,
or boundary-ditch, a brook called Teale-burn, the
river Ock, and another stream and brook ; so that
it was once isolated. The sense is ' goose isle '.
Hanney, West and East. West Hanney lies
between two affluents of the river Ock. Spelt
Hanney, R.C. ; Hanneie, R.B. ; Hannei, D.B., p. 9.
The boundaries of Hanney are given in a
36 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
charter dated 956 ; the dative set Hannlge occurs
there, in Birch, C.S. iii. 129. The nominative is
Hann-ig ; where the prefix appears to represent
han-, the form which hana, a cock, takes in com-
pounds, as in han-cred, e cock-crow.' The sense,
accordingly, is 'cock isle' ; with reference, perhaps,
to water-hens (Taylor). Compare Goosey above,
and Hendred, p. 86.
Hinksey, North and South. Near Oxford and
the Thames. In an Abingdon charter, printed in
Birch, C.S. i. 505, we find it spelt Hengestesie ;
and in a note printed on p. 506 it appears as
Hengestes-ieg. The sense is obvious from this
form, viz. ( Hengest's isle'. Similarly, Hinxton
(Cambs.) means ' Hengest's town' ; and Hinxworth
(Herts.) means e Hengest's worth (or farm) '. The
latter is spelt Haingeste uuorde in D.B. Hengest
was a personal name, not merely (as Taylor says)
a horse.
Mackney. Near a stream that joins the Thames
at Wallingford. Spelt Mackeney, T.N. ; F.A.
(1428). The A.S. gen. Maccaniges occurs in
a grant of land near Mackney and Wallingford
dated 957 ; see Birch, C.S. iii. 184. The nom. is
Maccan-ig. The prefix Maccan is the gen. case of
the personal name Macca. The sense is ' Macca's
isle'.
Pusey. It lies between streams that unite and
flow into the Ock, just above Charney. Spelt
Pusey, Ipm., p. 159; Pesy, H.R. ; Pesey, T.N. ;
Piiftie, Chronicle of Abingdon, ii. 5 (1066-87);
THE SUFFIX -EY 37
Pesie, id. ii. 121 (1100-35). D.B. has Pesei in
Gamesfelle hundred; p. 14. It is the same name as
Pewsey in Wilts. ; the latter appears as Pevesey in
JViltes'., P.R. Both forms result from contraction.
The dat. case Pefeslgge occurs in King JElfred's
will ; see Birch, C.S. ii. 178, line 1. In the same,
ii. 469, the boundaries are given of land set
Peuesige ; where u has the sound of v. Spelt
Pevesy in the same, ii. 187, and Pefesy (with /for v),
ii. 1 82. The A.S. nom. is Pefes-Ig, where/ has the
sound of v ; and Pefes is the genitive of a strong
masculine form *Pefi, of which we have no other
record. The sense, accordingly, is ' Pen's isle '.
(The e is short.) The name Pef-i (from an older
*Pabi) can fairly be concluded from the fact that
its derivative *Pab-jon- would give the form Pebba
(since bj becomes bb in A.S.). Pebba is implied
in Pebbe-ivorthe (Ipm.), the Middle English form of
Pebworth, Glouc. ; and Pavenham, Beds., probably
represents ' Paba's home '.
Tubney. It lies to the NW. of Marcham,
beside an affluent of the river Ock. Spelt Tobbeney,
F.A. (1316); Tubbeney, T.N. The later form
Tubney occurs in V.E. (temp. Henry VIII). D.B.
has Tobenie ; p. 6. The same prefix occurs in the
A.S. Tubban-ford, which was in the same neigh-
bourhood ; see Birch, C.S. ii. 514. Tubban is here
the gen. of Tubba ; and the latter place-name
means 'Tubba's ford', just as Tubney means
'Tubba's isle'. No doubt the same Tubba is
commemorated in both names.
38 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Field.
Field, from the A.S. f eld, often signified a tract
of open country. It occurs in ArborfielcL Binfield,
Bradfield, Burghfield, Englefield, Fyfield, Ganfield,
Shinfield, Straffield, Swallowfield, Warfield, Watch-
field, Winkfield, and Wokefield.
Arbor field. This name is comparatively
modern, and hardly older than the 15th century.
It is spelt Arburfeld in V.E. (temp. Henry VIII).
The prefix is the M.E. erber or herber, from the
Anglo-French herber, Old French herbier, Lat.
herbarium, a herb-garden ; at first applied to a
garden-lawn, and afterwards transformed (after
many changes in sense and some in form) into the
modern E. arbour. See the full account in the
N.E.D., s.v. arbour.
Binfield. Spelt Bynfeld, V.E. (temp. Henry
VIII). Earlier Benefeld, F.A. (1316), Ab. ; Bene-
feud (with ud for Id), Ipm. p. 72, which is cox*rectly
described as being not far from Windsor Forest ;
Benetfeld, Ipm. p. 46, and Ipm. vol. 2 ; Bentfeld,
Ipm. vol. 2. Thus Binfield, formerly Benfeld, is
short for Bentfeld, and that again for Benetfeld.
The prefix is the A.S. beonet, noted in the A.S.
Diet, by Clark Hall, the same word as the prov. E.
bennet, bent, a kind of coarse grass ; see E.D.D. and
bent, sb. (1) in the N.E.D. The sense is ' field
containing bent-grass '.
Bradfield. Spelt Bradefeld, H.R. ; R.B. ; Brad-
feld, V.E. D.B. has Bradefelt ; p. 10. The A.S.
form appears in a Latin charter (a.d. 688-690)
as Bradanfelda ; Birch, C.S. i. 108. Here Bradan
THE SUFFIX -FIELD 39
is the weak dative of A.S. brad, broad ; and the
sense is 'broad field'. The dative of the A.S.
fe/d is not felde, but felda (as above).
Burghfield. To the SW. of Reading. Spelt
Burfcld, V.E. (temp. Henry VIII). Earlier, Burg-
feld, Burghfield, Ipm. ; Burghefelde, F.A. (131 6).
D.B. has Borgefel; p. 14. The prefix represents
the A.S. burh, a borough ; and the literal sense
is 'borough-field'. It may be remarked here that
burh was also used to denote ' a small fort ' ; which
suits better.
Englefield. Spelt Englefeld, H.R. D.B. has
Englejel, p. 1 ; and, on the same page, Inglefelle in
Radingps hundred, i. e. in the hundred of Reading.
It appears as Engla feld in the A.S. Chronicle,
under the date 871 ; which means 'field of the
Angles '. Engla is the gen. pi. ; and occurs again
in Engla land, ' the land of the Angles,' i. e.
' England'.
Fyfield. Near Marcham; to the W. of Abingdon.
Called Fifeld in V.E. (temp. Henry VIII). But in
the preceding century it was certainly called Fifhide,
as Lysons says. Spelt Fifhide in the Index to
Charters (1437) ; and so in R.B. D.B. has Fivehide
in yierceham hundred; p. 10. In an A.S. charter
dated 9^6 there is an allusion to it in the expression
to J'if hldum, meaning ' to five hides ' ; hide being
here a measure of land ; Birch, C.S. hi. 1 68. Thus
the original sense was ' five hides ' ; afterwards
altered to ' five fields ', or (in one word) 'five-field'.
Taylor remarks that ' Fifield, Essex, is Fif-hide in
Domesday '.
40 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Ganfield. This is the name of one of the
Berks, hundreds, situate between the Thames and
the Ock, and containing, for example, Pusey.
D.B. has Pesei [Pusey] in Gamesfelle hundred, p. 14;
and again, at p. 7, in Gamenesfelle hundred. Thus it
appears that Gan- is an abbreviated form of Games,
Gamenes ; and the Hundred Rolls have Gamenes-
feld. The A.S. Gamen (gen. gamenes) means f a
game' or f sport ' ; but it is hardly conceivable
that gamenes feld could have been a correct ex-
pression, any more than we should now speak of
a cart's horse. The A.S. expression for ' playfield '
would rather have been gamen-feld. The use of
the genitive in -es implies the use of a man's name ;
and, as Gamenes-feld is a form later than the
Conquest, it is tolerably certain that it was a per-
version of Gameles feld, i. e. ' field of Gamel '.
Gamel (also Gamal) is a well-established name, of
which there are at least six instances ; and it
seems to have entered freely into place-names.
Ipm. (vol. i) has the forms Gamelesby, Gameles-
ton(now Gamston), Gamelsthorp, Gamilswath; cf.
Gamblesby (from Gamelesby) in Cumberland, and
Gamelingay in Cambs. The last means 'isle of
the Gamelings, or of the sons of Gamel '. Gamel,
or gamal, or gamol was, in quite early times, a
perfectly common word, meaning simply ' old ' ;
and though it perished in England at an early
date, it is still as common in Scandinavia as the
word old is in England. In fact, the Scandina-
vians have no use for the word old at all ; in
Denmark everything old is gammel, and in Sweden
it is gammal. The sense ' field of Gamel ' is per-
THE SUFFIX -FIELD 41
fectly intelligible. It cannot mean ' field of play '.
A similar substitution of n for / in an unstressed
syllable occurs again in the case of Watchfield,
p. 43. And after all, the A.S. gamcl still'survives as
a proper name, in the forms Gammel and Gamble.
Shinfield. To the S. of Reading. Formerly
trisyllabic. Spelt Schyn?iyngfeld,V.~E. ; Shenyngfeld,
Ab.; Shenyngfelde, F.A. (1316); H.R. ; Senefeld,
R.B. ; Shy nyngf eld, Index; Schunnyngj eld, Ipm. D.B.
has Scanesfe/t ; p. 3 (which may refer to Shinfield,
but is clearly incorrect). The prefix is the same
as that which appears in the old forms of Shingay
(Carnbs.) ; formerly Skening-ay, as explained in
my Place-names of Cambs. The A.S. form of it
would be Scleninga (Sceninga, Scyninga), gen. pi.,
meaning ' of the Sclenings or sons of Selene '.
And the sense of Shinfield must have been ' field
of the Scienings '. The A.S. Selene is not recorded
as a personal name by itself, but it forms part of
the name Scen-wulf, which occurs in the Liber
Vitae of Durham. As an adj., the A.S. sciene (more
frequently scene, scyne), meaning f fair, beautiful ',
being the exact equivalent of the Ger. sch'on, is
extremely common. The variable vowel shows
that the above solution is correct. The forms
with Sheiiing- are due to scene ; and the forms
with Shynyng-, Schun(ii)yng-, are due to scyne.
Straffield, or Stratfield Mortimer. Straftield
is merely an assimilated form of Stradfield or
Stratfield. Called Stratfeld Mortymar, V.E. ;
Stratf eld Mortimer, Ipm. ; H.R. D.B. has Strad-
feld in Redinges hundred, i. e. in Reading hundred ;
1257 F
42 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
p. 14. The corresponding A.S. form is straet-feld,
and the sense is ' street-field ' ; or field near an
old high-way (often of Roman construction). The
Mortimers were a Norman family who owned
much land in various counties. The entry Ed-
mundus de Mortuo Mari (in Ipm.) shows that
Mortimer once meant the Dead Sea.
Svvallowfield. The sense is obvious. Spelt
S waif eld, H.R. ; Swalefeld, T.N. ; Swaleewefeld,
R.B. ; Solafel, D.B., p. 16. From the Mercian
smalrve, A.S. swealwe, a swallow.
Warfield. Spelt War f eld, R.C. ; Ipm. ; Ware-
felde, F.A. (131 6); Warwelt, D.B., p. 3. I take
the prefix to represent the A.S. wcer, an occasional
spelling of iver, whence modern E. weir. The
usual sense of A.S. iver was ( a fishing-pool ', as
explained in my Place-names of Cambs., s.v.
Upware. The sense was probably f field beside a
pool '. (The mod. E. war is from the Norman iverre.)
Watchfield. Near Shrivenham. The form has
been shortened. Spelt Wachenesfeld,T.T$.; D.B.,
p. 7. The A.S. forms require care. Wachenesfeld
answers to A.S. Wacenesfeld, Birch, C.S., i.
224 ; spelt Uuacenesfeld, id. i. 506. But neither
of these copies is of much authority. A far
better copy is printed in the same, ii. 360.
Here the boundaries of Watchfield are given,
headed l Mete de Wachenesfeld ', which I take to
be a later addition, on account of the use of ch ;
and Birch prints it in italics. The same spelling
occurs in the headline, which I suppose to repre-
THE SUFFIX -FIELD 43
sent a late endorsement. But in 1. 3 of the
charter itself (dated 931) we find the true old
spelling, viz. Waeclesfeld, which makes far better
sense. Waecles, variant of Wacles, is a correct form
of the gen. case of the A.S. wacol, ' wakeful,
vigilant,' here used as a proper name. Hence
the sense is l Wacol' s field '. (It may be remarked
that this is the only example hitherto noted of the
use of wacol as a personal name, but the equivalent
form wacor, with the same sense, has been noted
as so occurring twice, with the spelling Wacer.)
It is clear that the old form Waeclesfeld was
altered to Wacenesfeld by the confusion of the
old adj. wacol with the abstract sb. wacen, meaning
'vigilance' or 'keeping watch', which was not
ideally adapted for use in place-names that deal
with the concrete. And further, as the sense of
wacen was connected with the idea of watching,
the modern name Watchfield easily resulted. The
case of Wakefield is different, because the wakes
held in fields had no such abstract sense, but were
very substantial. Cf. p. 41, 1. 2.
Winkfield. Spelt Wink field, P.R. ; Winckefeld,
T.E. ; Wynekefeld, T.E. ; Wynekfeld, F.A. (131 6).
The A.S. form Winecan-felda (dative) occurs in
Birch, C.S. ii. 5l5, in a charter dated 942. The
sense is ' Wineca's field '. Wineca seems to be a
diminutive of the common personal name Wine, of
which the literal sense is ' friend '.
Wokkpield. In Stratfield Mortimer (Kelly).
Wokcfidd, Berks., is mentioned in Ab., and in the
Index to Charters (1424). The prefix Woke- is
44 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
due to the Wocc- seen in the tribal name of the
Wocc-ingas, whence the place-name Woking is
derived. The gen. case Wocc-es occurs in Wocces-
geat, for which see Birch, ii. 242, 1. 5. We must
either explain Wokefield as being from this strong
form Wocc (which should rather have given
Wokes-field), or from an allied weak form *Woeca
(gen. Woccan) of which we have no other record.
Ford.
The suffix -ford has its usual meaning. There
are several names with this ending, viz. : Appleford,
Boxford, Denford, Duxford, Frilford, Garford,
Hatford, Hungerford, Lyford, Moulsford, Sand-
ford, Sandleford, Shefford, Shellingford, Stanford,
Twyford, Wallingford, Welford.
Appleford. D.B. has Apleford ; p. 7. The A.S.
form is /Eppelford ; in Birch, C.S. ii. 224. From
A.S. ceppel, an apple. The sense is 'apple-tree
ford '. Cf. Boxford and Welford.
Boxford. On the river Lambourn, to the NW.
of Speen. Apparently the same place as Boxworth
in V.E. (temp. Henry VIII). But the older name
was Boxore ; see Lysons, Hist, of Berks, p. 245.
Spelt Boxhore (with intrusive h), Ipm. p. 4. D.B.
has Bovsore ; p. 6. Spelt Boxora in Birch, C.S. i.
506 ; iii. 221 ; which gives the A.S. spelling.
The A.S. box means ' box-tree'; and Boxford
means ' box-tree ford '. Cf. Appleford above, and
Welford. The A.S. ora means ' river-bank ' or
shore ; cf. Bagn-or, &c, p. 81. From the oblique
THE SUFFIX -FORD 45
case box-wan we may explain the form Bochesome
in D.B. ; p. 15.
Denford. Situate in Avington, near the N.
bank of the river Kennet. Spelt Deneford, Ipm. ;
but with reference to Denford in N'hants. Also
Deneford, R.C. ; apparently with reference to Den-
ford in Berks. D.B. has Dane ford, p. 11. In
Wulfgar's will, printed in Birch, ii. 366-7, we find
the dative Denforda (various reading Daenforda)
with reference to Denford, probably in Berks. ; it
is connected with Inkpen and with Cynetan-byrig
(Kintbury). The form Dam- suggests a derivation
from the A.S. dcen, variant of dcenn, derm, a den,
lair, cave, also a woodland pasture for swine ;
a word closely related to denu, a valley. In the
last sense it occurs in many local names; see
Birch, iii. 490 : 'this daen is genamod Hyringdaenn' ;
and the references in Toller's Supplement to
Bosworth's A.S. Diet., pp. 148, 149. The later
forms Deneford,Daneford mayhave been influenced
by the A.S. denu, a valley, or by Dene, pi. Danes.
Some have derived Denford from Dene, ' Danes ',
to suit certain theories, but Mr. Stevenson points
out that denu, a valley, is quite as likely ; see his
note to Asser's Life of Alfred, p. 275. But the
right source is the A.S. daen. The sense is 'ford
near the swine-pasture '.
Duxford. Situate by the Thames, near Hinton
Waldrist. Spelt Ditdochesforde in D.B., which
notes that it is in Game/el (Ganfield) hundred.
This evidently answers to' the A.S. form Duduces-
ibrd. The strange personal name Duduc occurs
46 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
at least ten times (Searle). The original sense
was ' Duduc's ford '.
Frilford. Near Marcham, on an affluent of the
Ock. Spelt F.rileford, Ipm. ; Frylesford, F.A. ;
later Fryleford, F.A. (1428). Spelt F.rileford in
Birch, C.S. hi. 428, no. 1170 ; but the copy seems
to be late. The spelling Fryles-ford suggests
that the prefix is the same as in Frils-ham. If
so, Frilford is a contraction of ( Frithel's (or
Frithuwulf s) ford '. Violent contractions of this
character are common in place-names. See
Frilsham, p. 56.
Garford. Situate near Marcham, beside the
river Ock. Spelt Gareford, T.N. ; T.E. The A.S.
form is Garan-forda (dative) in a grant of land at
Garford to the thegn Wulfric, dated 940. The
sense appears to be Gara's ford. The former a
was probably once long (Gara), since Gar- is
a common prefix in such names as Gar-beorht,
Gar-beald (Searle). It was shortened before the
consonantal combination rf; or it would now be
Goreford. The A.S. gara also means a ' gore ', or
triangular piece of land ; see E.D.D.
Hatford. To the N. of Stanford, which is in
the Vale of the White Horse, and situate beside
a small stream that flows into the river Ock.
Originally trisyllabic. Spelt Hatford, V.E. (temp.
Henry VIII); but Havedford in T.N. ; and
Hautford in the Index to the Charters (1420).
D.B. has Hevaford in Merceham (Marcham) hundred ;
p. 13. Here Heva is evidently an error for Hevad,
as the dental is still preserved. The forms haved,
THE SUFFIX -FORD 47
herad point clearly to the A.S. heqfod, ' head ',
found in M.E. as hceved, hcej'd, heved, &c. The
sense appears to be ' head-ford ' ; or c ford near the
head of the stream '.
Hungerford. Situate on the S. bank of the
river Kennet. Spelt Hungerford, Ipm. ; P.R. ;
R.C. ; Hungreford, R.T. ; Hungerforde, R.B. But
it is improbable that the prefix should be
the modern E. hunger. A simpler solution is
suggested by the fact that the older name of
Hungerhill, near Nottingham, was Hongerhill ; see
Records of Nottingham, ed. W. H. Stevenson,
vol. i. pp. 374, 434. Mr. Stevenson well derives
Honger from the A.S. hongra, variant of hangra,
whence prov. E. hanger, a hanging wood on a hill-
side ; see E.D.D. See also the examples higran
hongran and cylf hongran in Birch, C.S. ii. 206 ; and
sadol hongran in the same, iii. 589- If this be
right, the sense is 'ford near the hanging wood '.
Cf. Appleford, Welford.
Lvford. Situate beside the Ock, between
Stanford and Garford. Spelt Lvford, Ipm. p. 203 ;
Li ford, H.R. But an older form was certainly
Linford ; so that n has been lost. This is clearly
shown by the account of the boundaries of land at
Garford printed in Birch, C.S. ii. 489; where we read
that the boundary runs thus : ' Of Garan-forda
and-lang Eoccen oth thaet thaer Cilia suth ut scyt ;
thonne up and-lang Cilia rithe oth Linfordinga
gemaere ' ; i. e. from Garford along the Ock until
the stream from Childreth goes out southward ;
then along the Childreth-stream as far as the
48 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
boundary of the Linfordings, or dwellers in
Linford. It is obvious that this Linford can only
be Lyford. Again, in Birch, C.S. ii. 552, Linford
is described as lying between the Ock and the
stream from Childreth. This must of course be
Lyford. Yet again, in the Abingdon Chronicle,
ii. 192, Linford is mentioned in connexion with
Tubney. But we must go yet a step further ; for
it is unlikely that even Linfoi'd is the original
form, as it would mean '.flax ford ' ; whereas fords
are generally referred to more permanent objects.
The riddle is not difficult ; for Linford in Bucks.,
near Newport Pagnell, is referred to in Ipm. p. 30
as e Lindford maner in Neuporte fee, Bucks.'
The right form is obviously Lindford ; cf. 'on lind-
ford' in Birch, iii. 288, in the boundaries of
Ringwood, Hants. This lind is the A.S. form of
what is now called the lime-tree, by an extra-
ordinary corruption of the Shakespearian form line
(as in line-grove, Tempest, A. v. 1. 10, in the First
Folio). The fact that the A.S. form lind actually
dropped the d and lengthened the i, helps us to
see that Lyford is nothing but ' line-ford ', or ' ford
near the lime-tree .' Cf. Appleford, Welford.
Moulsford. On the Thames, to the S. ot
Wallingford. Spelt Mul les ford, Ipm. The pre-
fix is the same as in Moulsey (Surrey) ; A.S.
Mules-eg (in Kemble's Index). From the A.S.
Mules, gen. of Mul, a known personal name.
The A.S. mul (from Lat. mulus) also means 'mule';
it became moid in Middle English, and so occurs
in the Cursor Mundi, 1. 6001. But it is now ob-
THE SUFFIX -FORD 49
solete, having been superseded by the O.F. mid
(from Lat. midum, ace), which is now written
mule. Hence Moulsford means ' Mul's ford' or
' Mule's ford ' ; taking Mule to represent the per-
sonal name.
Sandford. Near Besilsleigh. The derivation
is obvious ; from sand and ford. The dat. Sand-
forda occurs in Birch, C.S. i. 490 ; and there is an
interesting allusion to the Sandfordinga gemaere,
i.e. the boundary of the Sandfordings or dwellers
in Sandford in the same, ii. 374.
Sandleford. There is a Sandleford Priory on
the N. side of the river Emborne (or Enborne)
which forms a part of the S. boundary of the
county. It is spelt Sandelford in H.R. ; R.C. ;
T.E. ; V.E. In P.R. the expression ( pro priore
de Sandlesford' occurs thrice, and furnishes a
clue, as it shows that Sandles here represents the
gen. case of a personal name. There is only one
name on record that will fit, viz. Sandwulf, or (in
a shorter form) Sandolf. Sandles clearly stands
for Sandols, and that for Sandolves, a late form of
the gen. of Sandolf. There are many examples
in which nndf, as the second element in a name,
is so attenuated as to be absolutely unrecognisable.
The present case is not stranger than that of
the A.S. Eadwulfes treow, 1 which is an old form
of Elstree in Herts. Here tvulfes is reduced to Is,
whereas, in the case of Sandleford, it is reduced
1 Even Eadwulfes seems to have arisen from Tidwulfes ;
by changing aet Tidwulfes to aet Eadwulfes,
1257 G
50 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
to le. But Sand- is much better preserved than
End-, reduced as it is to E.
Shefford. On the river Lambourne. There
is a Great or West Shefford, and a Little or East
Shefford. Spelt Shifford Magna and Parva, V.E. ;
Sipford, Cl.R. ; Sip ford (hundred de Egle), T.N. ;
Westsipford, T.N. f West Shefford, F.A. (1316).
D.B. has Siford (in Eglei hundred); p. 13. The
same name as Stafford in Oxon., A.S. Scypford,
i.e. ' sheep-ford ' ; see Kemble, CD., hi. 343. Cf.
prov. E. ship, a sheep ; and the numerous Shiptons.
Shellingford. On a stream that flows into
the river Ock from the north. Spelt Shillingford,
P.R. ; Schalinge ford, T.N. ; T.E. ; Sillingford, Ipm.;
Shallingford, F.A. (131 6); Shalingford, V.E.
(The original vowel in the first syllable was a.)
D.B. has Serengeford ; p. 8 (for Sherengeford).
An older form, Sannge ford (for Shari?igeford),occurs
in the Chronicle of Abingdon, ii. 196. The A.S.
form is Scaringa-ford ; see Birch, C.S. ii. 373, 1. 3,
and 374. At p. 372, we find the curious Norman
form Xalingeford, with X for Sh. We thus see
that Shell- has resulted from A.S. Scar-. In con-
nexion with Scaringa, we may notice the form
Scaren-dene, in a Kentish charter; see Kemble,
Cod. Dipl. iv. 81, which suggests a proper name
Scara, not otherwise known. The original sense
of Shellingford was certainly 'ford of the Searings',
since Scaringa represents a gen. pi. And it is
further probable that the Searings were 'sons of
Scara ' or e the tribe or family of Scara '.
Stanford. There is a Stanford-in-the-Vale ;
THE SUFFIX -FORD 51
i.e. in the Vale of the White Horse, and a Stan-
ford Dingley near Midgham. The church of the
latter contains a brass dated 1444, in memory of
Margaret, wife of William Dyneley, esquire to
Henry VI, which is supposed to explain Dingley
(Kelly). Spelt Stanford in D.B. ; p. 10. There
are many Stanfords ; all from the A.S. stein-ford,
i.e. 'stone ford'.
Twyford. On the Loddon, not very far from
the point where it enters the Thames. There is
here a double ford over the divided Loddon ;
and, as in the case of Twyford, Herts., the name
represents the A.S. twlford, ' double ford.' This
name-form is noticed in Beda, Eccl. Hist. bk. iv.
c. 28 (or 26) : ' in loco qui dicitur ad tidfyrdi,
quod significat ad duplex uaduni.'
Wallingford. On the Thames. The double
I is modern. Spelt Walingford, Robert of Glou-
cester; H.R. ; Walingeford, R.B. ; D.B., p. 1;
T.E. The A.S. forms are Welinga-ford, in Birch,
C.S. ii. 206, 568 ; and Wealinga-ford, in the A.S.
Chronicle, under the year 1 006 ; Walinge-ford in
the same, 1126; and Waling- ford in the same,
under 1 140. The sense is ' ford of the Wealings';
where Wealing is related to the A.S. tvealh, lit.
' foreigner ', but also used as a personal name.
We may further explain it as ' ford of the sons of
Wealh'. It need hardly be said that Walling-
ford is not derived from the c British Gua I hen-ford,
or old fort by the ford '. This is a pure invention,
as ford is an English word ; the Welsh being rhijd.
Welkoud. On the Lambourn. Spelt Welford,
52 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
V.E. (temp. Henry VIII) ; WeUeford, R.B. The
A.S. form (in a late copy) is Weliford ; Birch, C.S.
i. 506 ; but we find the true form set Weligforda,
in the same, iii. 29, in a charter dated 949- (It
is a peculiarity of ford that, like feld, it has a
dative in a ; such sbs. are few in number.) From
the A.S. welig, a willow. The sense is ' willow
ford '. Cf. Appleford, Boxford, Lyford ; also Ash-
ford (Kent), and Salford (Beds.). The last is named
from the A.S. salig, a sally-tree, or willow-tree.
Grave.
The suffix -grave represents the A.S. grcefe, dat.
of grqf, or grcef, ' a trench,' sometimes ' a grave '.
It occurs in Wargrave.
Wargrave. On the Thames. Spelt Wergrave,
R.B. ; R.C. ; Weregrave, F.A. (1316) ; Weregrauce,
Index to Charters (106 1-5). Wargrave is also the
name of a hundred ; called Weregrave hundred,
H.R. D.B. has Weregrave', p. 3. The prefix
were- represents the A.S. wera, gen. pi. of wer, a
man. Cf. Wera-horna in Birch, C.S. i. 552. The
sense is 'men's trench', or ' men's grave'. The
exact allusion is necessarily lost.
Hale.
The suffix -hale is explained in the N.E.D.
as meaning f a nook, a corner, a secret place'.
It is due to the Mercian hale, dat. of halh ; A.S.
heale, dat. of healh. The A.S. healh answers to
the modern E. haugh, a nook, corner ; so that,
grammatically, the form hale is the dative of
THE SUFFIXES -HALE, -HAM 53
haugh, which was especially used to mean ' a flat
piece of alluvial land by the side of a river, forming
part of the floor of the river valley ' ; N.E.D. It
occurs in Bracknell. (It is not related to Icel.
hallr, as Taylor says.)
Bracknell. To the E. of Wokingham, and
SW. of Winkfield. It evidently corresponds to
the A.S. Braccan heal {for healh) mentioned in
a charter relating to Winkfield, dated 942 ; see
Birch, C.S. ii. 51 6, 1. 4. The dat. Braccan heale
occurs in the next line. (There is no personal
name Bracca on record.) Braccan may well
answer to the modern E. bracken, a kind of fern.
Note that many place-names begin with Farn-,
i. e. fern ; such as Farnham, Farnborough ; and
see Faring don, p. 32. The A.S. Dictionaries give
neither 'bracken' nor 'brake'; but the former
answers to braccan (as above), which is the
combining form of a sb. *bracca or *bracce (pi.
braccan) ; and the latter occurs in fearn-braca,
lit. 'fern-brakes', in Birch, C.S. ii. 295, last line.
The sense of Bracknell is, accordingly, ' bracken-
haugh ' or ' bracken-nook '.
Ham.
There are two suffixes of this form. One of
them answers to the A.S. ham, ' home,' and the
other to the A.S. hamm, 'enclosure,' whence the
modern E. verb to hem in. It is not always pos-
sible to say to which class a given example belongs ;
but sometimes the evidence is clear. The names
containing this suffix, from either source, or from
54 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
an undetermined source, are here all taken
together, viz. Barkham, Beenham or Benham,
Bisham, Cookham, Crookham, Frilsham, Marcham,
Midgham, Remenham, Shrivenham, Sulham,
Thatcham, Waltham, Wickham, Wittenham, Wo-
kingham, and Wytham.
Barkham. To the S W. of Wokingham. Spelt
Barkam, V.E. (temp. Henry VIII) ; Berkham,
F.A. (1316) ; Bercham, H.R. ; D.B. has Bercheham;
p. 3. The A.S. form is Beorcham, in Birch, C.S.
iii. 55 ; where its boundaries are duly given in a
charter dated 952. The prefix Beorc means
' birch ' ; and the suffix most likely represents
ham, 'home.' The sense is 'birch-home', or
home near a birch-tree.
It may be remarked that the change from A.S.
^eorc to Bark- is regular ; the mod. E. birch is not
derived from beorc, but from a by-form birce. Hence
there is here no violation of phonetic laws.
Beenham (or Benham) Valence. Benham is the
preferable form ; Beenham is a curious contraction
of Be(nn)enham, which ignores the nn. Spelt
Benham, R.C. ; R.B. ; H.R. ; T.E. ; F.A. (1316);
Benham Valence, Ipm. p. 214. In Ipm. p. 312, we
find Benham manerium among the lands held by
Adomarus de Valencia (Aymer de Valence), Comes
Pembroc. ; which explains the connexion with
Valence. D.B. has Beneham; p. 6. Also spelt
Benneham, D.B., p. 16 ; Binneham,T.N. The A.S.
form is Bennanham, Birch, C.S. iii. 274; or Bennan-
hamm, as shown by the expression 'set Bennan-
hamme ', id. iii. 120 (a.d. 956). Bennan is the gen.
THE SUFFIX -HAM 55
of the personal name Benna, and hamm is here 'an
enclosure '. The sense is ' Benna' s enclosure '.
There is another Benham in the parish of Welford,
called Hoe Benham. Here Hoe represents the
A.S. hok, ' the spur of a hill.'
Bisham. On the Thames. Formerly Bisteham and
Bustleham (Lysons). Spelt Bustleham, H.R.; T.N. ;
Bustleskam, Ab.; V.E. ; F.A. (1316); Besllesham,
R. T. ; Bistlesham, R.C. (1 John) ; Cl.R. D.B. has
Bistesham in Benes hundred; p. 10. The A.S. form
does not appear, but we have the same prefix in
Bestles-ford, near Bradfield (on the Pang), Birch,
i. 108, 145, 147, ii. 206. At the last reference it is
also spelt Baestlaesford. Bsestles is the gen. of the
personal name Baestel ; and the suffix probably
means f home '. So that Bisham is ' Baestel's
home '. The same prefix occurs in Basilden, p. 28.
Cookham. On the Thames above Maidenhead.
Cookham is also the name of a hundred. Spelt
Cokam, R.B. ; Cokham hundred, H.R. ; Cocham,
Ipm. p. 29; Cucham, Ipm. p. 22. D.B. has
Cocheham in Benes hundred ; p. 2 ; where che is for
ke. In .Elfheah's will, we find aet Coccham and
aet Thaecham, before a. d. 971 ; see Birch, C.S. hi.
432. Kemble, Cod. Dipl. iii. 315, has to Cocham.
The spelling Cucham and the modern form seem
to point to the A.S. coc, 'a cook '; as if the sense
were ' cook-home'. But the older sense was
' cock-home ' ; from the A.S. cocc.
Crookham. Near Brimpton, as shown in Bacon's
Atlas. It is worth notice, as the name is old and
56 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
curious. Spelt Crokham, R.B. ; T.N. D.B. has
Crocheham ; p. 2 (with ch for k). In the boun-
daries of Brimpton, as given by Birch, C.S. ii. 559,
we find ' to Croh-hamme ', showing that the suffix
is ham?n, an enclosure. The A.S. croh is merely an
English form of the Lat. crocus, with the sense of
1 saffron '. The sense is ( saffron-enclosure '.
Frilsham. On the river Pang. Spelt Fridles-
ham, F.A. (131 6); H.R. ; Fridelesham, Pipe Rolls;
T.N. ; Ipm. ; Frydelysham, F.A. (1428); Fiy-
delsham; Index (1410). D.B. has Frilesham ; p. 9-
The prefix is possibly *Fritheles, gen. of *Frithel,
if there was such a name. Such a form seems to
be suggested by Frithelestok, Ipm. ; Frithelinga
die, Birch, C.S. ii. 260 ; Frithela byrig, id. iii.
201. But if, on the other hand, the name (as
often) has been much abbreviated, it may stand
for Fritholfes, gen. of Fritholf, a name which
occurs in Birch, C.S. iii. 369, and is a familiar
form of Frithuwulf. Thus the sense is either
' Frithel's home ' or ' Frithuwulf s home '. There
is no evidence to show which is right. See
Frilford, p. 46.
March am. Near Abingdon. It was formerly
also the name of a hundred, as in D.B. Formerly
written M'cham (Merchant), T.E. D.B. has Merce-
ham ; p. 6. The boundaries of Marcham are given
in Birch, C.S. iii. 427, where we find the dat.
Merchamme, showing that the suffix is hamm, an
enclosure. The prefix is mere, mearc, ' a march '
or boundary; and the sense is 'boundary-enclosure'.
The river Ock bounds the parish on the south,
THE SUFFIX -HAM 57
Midgham. On the Kennet ; not far from
Brimpton (see p. 93). Spelt Migham, F.A. (131 6) ;
Migeham, T.N. D.B. has Migeham in Taceham
[Thatcham] hundred; p. 12. It is either the same
as Midghale, or close to it. We find Migehala,
Migehale, R.B. ; Migehala in Bernintun [Brimpton],
Pipe Rolls. In Kemble we find Mieghjema ge-
msera ; Cod. Dipl. hi. 193, 196; which shows
that the suffix is -ham, not -hamm, because -hsema
can only result from the former. The prefix micg
is a late spelling of A.S. mycg, a midge. The
sense is ' midge home '. It must be borne in
mind that many place-names are of trivial origin.
Rf.menham. On the Thames, below Henley.
Spelt Remenham, F.A. (1316); Remnant, V.E. ;
Remeham, T.N. But also Ramenham (1321), Index ;
Rammenham, Ipm. ; and D.B. has Rameham ; p. 3.
The variation between e and a in the first syllable
suggests that the A.S. vowel is ce ; and I have
little hesitation in connecting the prefix with the
A.S. hrcemn, hremn, both common late spellings of
hraefn, a raven. The second e is intrusive ; cf. the
spelling Remnam above. In such cases, the suffix
commonly means 'home' or 'dwelling'. The
sense appears to be 'raven home'. Cf. Midgham
(above). We may also compare the form Remnes-
dun, in Birch, C.S. hi. 363 ; i. e. ' Raven's down ',
where Raven is used as a personal name.
Surivenham. Near the western boundary ot
the county. Spelt Shrivenham, F.A. (131G);
Scriveham,'R.B.; Serivenham hundred, H.R. ; Scriven-
1257 n
58 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
ham (for Shrivenhavi), D.B., p. 7 (noted as being in
a hundred of the same name). A charter in late
spelling has Scriuenham, Birch, C.S. i. 506 ; where
a variant in earlier spelling is given in a footnote
as Scrivenanhom, showing that the form has lost
a syllable. The full A.S. form is Scrifenan-hamm,
which appears in the dat. case in Kemble, Cod.
Dipl. vi. 131. As Scrifena is not a sb. in common
use, it must be a name. The sense is ' Scrifena's
enclosure '.
Sulham. To the W. of Reading. Spelt Sule-
Inrni, H.R. ; Ipm. In the Chronicle of Abingdon
I find the name of W. de Suleham ; and in the
Red Book, Rob. de Suleham. But there is also
a form Soleham, R.C. ; T.E. ; Ipm.; D.B., p. 12;
which seems to refer to the same place ; and in
D.B., p. 1 1, we find Solelut (sic) in Redinges hundred,
which must be Sulham. Another form is Soulham ;
Ipm., p. 203. The phonology offers great diffi-
culty, as it seems impossible to connect Sulham
with Sulhampstead, which is not many miles off;
for the alternative spelling of the latter is Sylhamp-
stead. The first vowel seems to be short x, for
which Norman scribes sometimes write o. In the
form Soulham, it seems to have been lengthened,
perhaps by mistake. I can find nothing to suit it
unless it be the prefix Sulan-, which occurs in
Sulangraf in a list of boundaries in Birch, C.S. ii.
384, 1. 21. The charter there printed is in late
spelling. Cf. also Sulan-ford and Sulan-broc ; id.
iii. 589- If this be correct, and if we may take
Sulan to be the gen. of an unrecorded personal
THE SUFFIX -HAM 59
name Sula, the sense will be ( Sula's home '. But
I only offer this as a guess.
Thatcham. Formerly also the name of a hundred,
as in D.B. Spelt Thachame, T.E. ; Taccham, R.T. ;
Tacham, T.N. D.B. has Taccham hundred, p. 2, and
Taccham hundred, p. 8. Norman scribes often
write T for Th, especially at the beginning of a
name. The A.S. form is Th sec-ham, Birch, C.S. iii.
4-32. As the A.S. ihcec (lit. thatch) means e roof,
the reference seems to be to a house. The pro-
bable sense is ' roofed home ', or ' thatched house'.
Waltham. There are two places of this name,
to the SW. of Bray, viz. White Waltham and
St. Lawrence Waltham. The same name as the
better known Waltham in Herts., already dis-
cussed by me in the Place-names of Herts. The
spelling is Waltham in H.R. ; and we find Waltham
Sancti Laurentii in F.A. (131 6). D.B. has Waltham,
p. 8. The A.S. form is Wealtham ; Birch, C.S.
ii. 490 (in a charter supposed to refer to White
Waltham, dated a. d. 940) ; and again, in the
same, iii. 167, with regard to a Waltham in Hants.
In a still earlier charter, dated 909, we find the
form Wealth aaminga, gen. pi. ; Birch, C.S. ii. 285 ;
where the suffix implies derivation from ham,
' home,' not hamm, ' enclosure.'
In my Place-names of Herts. I proposed an ety-
mology from *Wealtanham, as if ' home of Wealta',
a name not otherwise known. But the absence
of the suffix -an in charters so early as 909 and
940 suggests that we may regard Wealt-ham as
the right form. If we take ham to mean ' home '
60 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
or 'house', tvealt must be inferred (from the adj.
un-wealt, 'steady/ or 'firm') to mean 'unsteady',
or 'infirm', i.e. ill-built, shattered, or decayed.
Cf. Icel. valtr, ' easily upset.' If we take the com-
pound to mean ' decayed house ', it is probable
enough that it is correct. A common error is to
explain Wealt- from weald, a wood !
Wickham. Near Welford ; the latter is on the
Lambourn. Spelt Wicham, R.B. ; H.R. The A.S.
form is Wicham, in Birch, C.S. i. 506, where it is
mentioned along with several places in Berks.
There are several Wickhams, including one in
Cambs. and one in Herts. In my Place-names of
Cambs. and Herts. I have explained the name
from A.S. wic (from Lat. ulcus), 'a village,' and
ham, ' home,' relying on the form Wichjema.
But I now find that there is also a form Wic-
hamm, where hamm means ' enclosure '. The
evidence shows that Wickham, Cambs., means
' village-enclosure ' ; whilst Wickham, Hants.,
means 'village-home'. The sense of the Berks.
Wickham is left undetermined.
Wittenham. On the Thames, between Abing-
don and Wallingford. There is a Long Witten-
ham and a Little Wittenham ; the former is some-
times called West Wittenham. Spelt West Wy-
tenham, H.R. V.E. (temp. Henry VIII) has Whit-
tenham Comitis and Wittenham Abbatis ; Ipm. has
Wytenham. The A.S. form Wittanhamme occurs
in the dative in Birch, C.S. ii. 22-1, in the boun-
daries of Appleford. Hence the suffix is -hamm,
'enclosure.' The prefix is Wittan, gen. of Witta,
THE SUFFIX -HAM 61
a personal name of which there are half a dozen
examples. The sense is ' Witta's enclosure '.
N.B. Mr. Zachrisson connects the spelling Witre-
ham in the Calendar of Documents preserved in
France, ed. J. H. Round (Rolls Series), with Wyt-
ham ; but this is not possible, as will be seen by
referring to the etymology of that place-name
just below. Witreham is only a Norman spelling
of the M.E. Witenham ; and therefore really re-
presents Wittenham.
Wokingham. Also called Oakingham or Ock-
ingham (Kelly). Spelt Wokingham, F.A. ; Cl.R. ;
Wokingeham, T.N. ; Cl.R., vol. 2 ; Okyngham,
V.E. (temp. Henry VIII) ; Okingham, 1568, Index.
The loss of W is rather late. The prefix Wokinge-
represents the A.S. gen. pi. Woccinga, from
the nom. pi. Woccingas, or ' sons of Wocc ', to
whom is due the name of Woking, in Surrey.
The gen. Wocc-es occurs in Wocces-geat, i.e.
' Wocc's gate ' ; Birch, C.S. ii. 242, 1. 5. The suf-
fix probably means ( home ' ; and the sense may
be ' home of the Woccings, or sons of Wocc '.
Woking is spelt Wocking, in Cl.R. vol. 2.
Wytham. To the NW. of Oxford. Also
Wightham (Lysons). Spelt Wightham, V.E. (temp.
Henry VIII). The A.S. form is Wihtham, in the
boundaries of Hinksey, B. iii. 201, 1. 1. Also
spelt Wictham, in the Chronicle of Abingdon, ii.
312; and Uuihteham in the same, i. 270 (a.d.
968). The last suggests an original form Wihtan-
ham, where Wihtan is the genitive of Wihta, a
pet name for one of the numerous names begin-
62 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
ning with Wiht, such as Wihtbeorht, Wihtbrord,
&c. The probable sense is ' Wihta's home ' ;
though the suffix is undetermined.
If we now reconsider the above cases, we see
that ham occurs with the sense of l enclosure '
in Beenham, Crookham, Marcham, Shrivenham,
and Wittenham. The sense of ' home ' appears
in Midgham and Waltham ; perhaps also in
Cookham, Thatcham, and Wokingham. In the
remaining cases we have no indication as to the
right sense.
Hay.
The suffix -hay, meaning ' hedge ' or ' fence ',
is derived from A.S. hege, with the same meaning.
(There was also a Norman form haie, haye, of
Germanic origin, but this need not be here con-
sidered.) We must distinguish this hay from the
A.S. haga, ' a haw ' or hedge, and from the A.S.
hecg, whence the modern ' hedge ' really comes.
The only derivative is Woodhay.
Woodhay. To the S. of Kintbury. Spelt
Woodhay, V.E. (temp. Henry VIII). Also spelt
Widehay, H.R. ; Wydehay, F.A. (131 6); T.N.
From A.S. wudu, also widn, 'wood'; which ac-
counts for the double form. The sense is ' wood-
fence '.
Hill.
A well-known word. Hence Coleshill and
Sunninghill.
Coleshill. On the river Cole. Spelt Coleshull,
T.N. ; F.A. ; Coleshidle, R.B. ; T.E. The Middle
THE SUFFIXES -HILL, -HITHE 63
English forms for hill are hylle, Mile, hulle, Kentish
helle. D.B. has Coleselle in Wifol hundred ; p. 15.
It is now in Faringdon hundred. Spelt Coleshylle
once, and Colleshylle thrice, in Wynflaed's Will ;
see Thorpe, Diplomatarium, pp. 534, 535. The
suffix -es shows that the place was not named
from the stream ; the contrary is possible. The
personal names Col and Coll both occur. The
sense is < Col's hill ' or < Coil's hill '. N.B. There
is another Coleshill in Warwickshire, near which
another stream named Cole joins the river Tame.
Sunninghill. To the S. of Windsor. Spelt
Suninghull, H.R. ; Sunningehulle, R.T. The prefix
is the same as in Sunningwell, which see below.
The sense is ' hill of the Sunnings, or sons of Sun-
na '. See Sonning, p. 69-
Hithe.
Hithe means ' a port ' or ' haven ' ; Kemble ex-
plains it as ' a place that receives a ship on its
landing, a low shore, fit to be a landing-place for
boats ' ; or shortly, a landing-place. The only
example is Maidenhead.
Maidenhead. Spelt Maydenhythe, F.A. (1428) ;
* pro ponte de Maydenheth '', P.R. (1297-8). Here
heth is for hethe, a Kentish form of hithe, due to
a Kentish scribe ; the A.S. form is hyth. The
prefix is simply maiden, A.S. nuegden ; and the
sense is ' Maiden hithe '. Comically explained in
Kelly as ' midway wharf ! There is nothing extra-
ordinary about it. Cf. m&gdenne-brigce, lit. e maiden
bridge', in Kemble, Cod. Uipl. no. 680; vol. iii.
64 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
259- One curious characteristic of our old
antiquaries is the persistence with which they
refuse to regard Maiden as being an English
word. In cases like Maiden Bower and Maiden
Castle they call it ' Celtic ' ; and they would
sooner call it Egyptian than admit it to be quite
a common English word. The modern use ot
-head for -hythe is absurd ; but ' maidenhead ' was
once so common, in place of e maidenhood ', that
it was easily accepted. I take the sense ot
Maidenhithe to be 'a. landing-place for maidens',
i. e. a place where landing from a boat was very
easily accomplished. According to the E.D.D., a
Roman road is sometimes called l a maiden way ',
as being easy to traverse in the days of ill-made
roads. We have a ' Maids' Causeway ' in Cam-
bridge ; it merely means ( well-paved walk' or
1 parade '.
Holt.
Holt, also spelt holt in Anglo-Saxon, means
a wood or copse ; see N.E.D. It only occurs in
Sparsholt.
Sparsholt. To the W. of Wantage. Formerly
Spersholt, P.R. ; Ipm. ; Speresholt, R.B. D.B. has
Spersolt, p. 3 ; Spersold, p. 7. Birch has set
Speresholte (dat.), C.S. iii. 358 (a.d. 963) ; Kemble
has aet Spaeresholte, Cod. Dipl. iv. 170 (charter
no. 820). The sense is f Spser's copse ' or ' Sper's
copse '.
Hurst.
Hurst, meaning a wooded eminence, a copse,
a wood, is common in Kent ; see N.E.D. The
THE SUFFIX -HURST 65
A.S. form is hyrst. It occurs in Hui'st, and in
Baynhurst, Sandhurst, and Tilehurst.
Hurst. To the E. of Reading. We find la
Hurst, F.A. (1316) ; de la Hurst, T.E. A.S. hyrst, as
above.
Baynhurst. Now the name of a hundred that
contains Hurley and Cookham. The prefix is the
same as in Bayworth (for Baynworth, the n being
lost). The sense is ' Baega's copse ', or ' Baaga's
copse'. In D.B., p. 8, we find in Betters hundred;
where Betters appears to be merely a Normanised
form of Baynhurst ; and it appears in a still more
corrupt form in the entries of ' Cocheham [Cook-
ham] in Benes hundred ', p. 2 ; and ' Hurlei in Benes
hundred', p. 13 ; which show that Benes is really
Baynhurst. We find Benestr' Hundred in H.R. ;
apparently an error for Benerst.
Sandhurst. Spelt Sandhurst, F.A. (1316). Sand-
hyrst occurs in the dat. form Sandhyrste in Birch,
C.S. i. 366, with reference to Sandhurst in Kent.
The sense is obvious.
Tilehurst. To the W. of Reading. Spelt
Tylehurst, V.E. (temp. Henry VIII) ; but earlier
Tigelhurste, T.N. ; Tygelhurst, T.E. ; Tyghelhurst,
F.A. (131 6). The A.S. Tigelhyrst appears in the
dat. Tigelhyrste, in Kemble, Cod. Dipl. iv. 157.
The A.S. tigel (borrowed from Lat. tegula) means
' tile '. The sense is c tile copse ', whatever be the
reason. Tiles may have been made there.
1257
66 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
-ING.
The suffix -ing is very different from the rest,
having a purely personal reference. Thus 'son of
Adam' is expressed in A.S. by Adaming. The
nom. sing, ends in -ing, and the gen. sing, in
-inges. The nom. pi. ends in -ingas, and the gen.
pi. in -inga. All four endings are common. The
pi. also has the sense of ' dwellers in', when it
follows a place-name. Thus Catmer-ingas means
'dwellers in Catmere '. Place-names containing
the A.S. -ing are Balking, Ginge, Lockinge,
Reading, Sonning, Wantage, and Wasing.
Balking, or Baulking. In the Vale of the
White Horse. A contracted form. Spelt Balk-
ing, V.E. (temp. Henry VIII). Earlier Badeleking
Cl.R.; Bathelking (1286); Index. The A.S. forms
are Bedelacinge, Birch, C.S. iii. 25 ; Bathalacing,
id. iii. 358 ; Bada-lacing, id. 359 (various reading
Bathalacing). Of these, the oldest form is
Badalacing or Bathalacing (a. d. 963), which must
have lost a suffix, owing to its being already
quadrisyllabic. The full form would be Badalac-
inga, gen. pi. ; of which the sense is uncertain ;
but it probably means ' belonging to (lit. of) the
sons of Badalac'. And Badalac is probably
a Mercian form of Beadulac, a name composed of
the very common prefix Beadu (lit. ' battle '), and
the known suffix -lac (lit. ' play ') as in Guth-lac.
If this be right, Balking denotes a place where the
family of Beadulac settled. The form Bathalacing
may easily have arisen from drawingan unnecessary
THE SUFFIX -ING 67
stroke through the d ; it first appears with a D in
the form BADALACING, in capital letters ; C.S.
iii. 358. But it is Badalacing at p. 359.
Ginge. East Ginge and West Ginge are in the
parish of Hendred, to the S. of West Hendred.
There is also a stream so named, sometimes
spelt Geenge ; but it was originally a place-name.
We find Genge manerium; Ipm. p. 151; Gac/ig',
Going', Geing, T.N. ; Est Genge, F. A. ; Estgeyng
(1225); Index (where Est = East). Also spelt Gainz,
in the Pipe Rolls (1155-6). D.B. has Gainz, p. 8 ;
where z has the sound of is or dz, and only
approximately represents the English sound of
a palatalised g (like modern E. J). Also Gainz,
Geinz, R.B. The oldest recorded form is Gseging
(better Gaeginge), Birch, C.S. iii. 257; whence the
later forms Gainge, id. iii. 173, Gaincg, iii. 67, and
Geinge, i. 506. The second g in Gaeginge was
a mere glide, like y in paying, and so was easily
lost. The original form must have been Gaeginga,
gen. pi., from Gaegingas, nom. pi. ; referring to
the ' sons (or family) of Gaega '. The name Gaega
is not in Searle, but can be inferred from the
equivalent modern E. Gay in such names as
Gaydon, Gayton, and Gaywood. Moreover, in
Kemble, Cod. Dipl. vi. 137, we find Gegan-
lege ; and in the same, vi. 148, we find Gage-leage ;
both variants of Ga>gan-leage, and implying
( raegan, gen. of Gaega.
Lockinge. To the E. of Wantage. The ge is
sounded as;. There is an East Lockinge and a
West Lockinge (Kelly). It is certain that the o
68 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
is a late substitution for a. Spelt Lokinge, V.E.
(temp. Henry VIII). But earlier it is Laking,
H.R. ; T.E. ; though it is Lokinge, Lokinges in
T.N. ; Westlokyng (1459), Index. D.B. has Lach-
inges in Wanetinz hundred (with ch for k), p. 8.
Spelt Lakinge (various reading Lacinge), Birch,
C.S. ii. 139- We should particularly notice the
description of the boundaries of Drayton in Birch,
C.S. iii. 234 and 279, where Laking and Waneting
(i. e. Wantage) are mentioned in similar terms. We
find : ' thonon on Lacing; andlang Lacing on Cealc-
ford ; thonon on mser-dic ; . . . thonon on Wanet-
inge ; andlang Waneting on Oeccene ' ; i. e. thence
to Laking ; along Laking to Chalkford ; thence
to the boundary-ditch ; . . . thence to Wantage ;
along Wantage to the river Ock. This suggests
that Lacing (like Waneting) is a tribal name.
Moreover, the a was long, and passed regularly
into o, after which it was shortened before the
strong stop k. Hence Lacing was probably named
from ' the Lacings ' or ' sons of Lac '. Lac is not
found elsewhere alone as a proper name, but it is
a very common word, and occurs in Guthlac. See
Balking; p. 66. Note particularly the D.B. form
Lachinges, and the form Lokinges in T.N. The
final -es answers to A.S. -as; whence we infertile
form Lacingas, nom. pi. ; a correct form. The
modern Lockinge may have well been due to the
gen. pi. Lacinga, later Lakinge ; after which the
g was palatalised, becoming j, whilst a became o.
The shortening of a stressed vowel in the first
syllable is not uncommon. Indeed, an example
occurs in the next name that follows.
THE SUFFIX -ING 69
Reading. The ea, once long, is now short. Spelt
Radinges, R.B. ; F.A. ; Redinges, R.C. ; Radinge,
T.E. It -was also (and still remains) the name of
a hundred. Hundred de Radinge, F.A. (131 6);
H.R. D.B. has Redinges in Redinges hundred,
p. 5 ; also Radinges hundred, p. 9- The A.S. form
appears as Readingum in the A.S. Chronicle, an.
871, where it is in the dative plural; also as
RSdingan, a late form of the dat. pi., an. 1006.
We also find Readingan, dat. pi., in Birch, C.S. iii.
600 (last line). It thus appears that the old name
was Readingas, nom. pi., which the D.B. form
fairly well preserves. The sense is ' the sons (or
family, or tribe) of Read or Reada ', i. e. 'the Red'.
The adj. read, red, was very common, and is still
a common surname in the forms Read, Reid, Reade,
&c. Strangely enough, it is not in Searle's list ;
whilst, on the other hand, the unallied abstract
sb. rd'd, lit. ' advice', is common both as a prefix
and suffix, as in Rjedwulf, iElfred.
Sonning. On the Thames, below Reading.
Formerly spelt Sunninges, Pipe Rolls ; C'l.R. ; T.N. ;
Suninges, H.R. ; Sunninge, T.N. It is also the
name of a hundred; hence we find Suninge hundred,
H.R. ; hundred de Sonnynge, F.A. (1316). Also
Sonnynges (with o), T.E. The Normans wrote on
for the A.S. un, as in A.S. sunu, modern E. son.
Hence D.B. has So?iinges, p. 5. In a late copy of
an early charter we find the A.S. form given as
Sunninges, Birch, C.S. i. 56, 1. 5. For Sunningas,
i. e. ' the sons (or family) of Sunna ', rather than
'of Sunne', i.e. the sun. We must remember
70 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
that sunne, f sun,' was feminine. In either case,
we may say that Sonning took its name from ' the
Sunnings ' . We may compare Sundon, Beds., from
the A.S. Sunnan-dun ; where sunnan can either be
the gen. of a masc. surma, or of the fern, sunne.
It is just possible that both Sonning and Sundon
referred originally to sun-worship. Our present
Sunday represents an A.S. Sunnan-daeg. Cf. also
Sunninghill (p. 63) and Sunningwell (p. 105).
Wantage. The form must be somewhat modern,
as the name is still Wanting in V.E. (temp.
Henry VIII). Earlier we find Wanatinge, Wanet-
inge, R.B. ; Waneting, R.C. ; T.N. It was also (and
still is) the name of a hundred ; hence we find
Waneting hundr , H.R. D.B. has Wanetinz in
Wanetinz hundred, p. 3 ; where z represents ts or
dz, though the English sound intended was rather
that of our j (written ge). The A.S. forms are
Waneting, in Birch, C.S. ii. 178 ; hi. 279 ; Wanet-
inge, hi. 234 ; Waeneting, hi. 508. The forms
Wanetinge, R.B., Wanetinz, D.B., and the A.S.
Wanetinge, point to an original form Wanetinga,
gen. pi. The sense is ' home of the Wanetings '.
The Wanetings (A.S. Wanetingas) are a family
that cannot be traced further back. The chief's
name may have been Wanet or Waneta ; but we
have nothing to help us here.
Wasing. Between the Emborne and the county
boundary. Spelt Wausijnge,F.A.(l3l6); Wawesenge,
T.N. We usually find that au represents an older
al; indeed, D.B. has the form Wahinge, p. 15.
The D.B. suffix -inge answei's to A.S. -inga ; and
THE SUFFIXES -LAND, -LEY 71
the D.B. form Walsinge obviously represents the
A.S. gen. pi. Waelsinga, which occurs in Waelsinga-
ham (home of the Waelsings), the modern Walsing-
ham. Hence Wasing was a settlement ' of the
Waelsings ', or ' sons of Waels '. The name is very
old ; for Waels is mentioned in 1. 897 of the old
poem of Beowulf; and his son Sigemund is called
Waelsing (son of Waels) in the same, 1. 877. The
A.S. Waelsing is equivalent to the Icelandic Vol-
sungr.
Land.
There is but one Berks, name with this suffix,
viz. Buckland.
Buckland. To the NE. of Faringdon. The
same as Buckland in Herts. Spelt Bocland, H.R. ;
Ipm. D.B. has Bocheland (with ck for k), p. 6.
The A.S. form is Boc-land ; Birch, C.S. hi. 205.
Lit. ' book-land '; a name given to land granted
by a hoc or written charter to a private owner.
See Bookland in N.E.D.
Ley.
The sense is somewhat vague; see N.E.D. We
may usually take it to represent the A.S. leak,
nom., or its dat. case Icage, ' a tract of cultivated
land ' ; modern E. lea. It occurs in Bagley,
Bessilsleigh, Chieveley, Early, Egley, Fawley, Hur-
ley, Ilsley, Oakley Green, Purley, Radley, Streat-
ley, Whistley.
Bagley Wood. Not far to the S. of Oxford.
Spelt Bagelc, H.R. The A.S. form is Bacgan leah ;
72 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Birch, C.S. iii. 96 (last line). The sense is ' Bacga's
lea '. Bacga is a known personal name.
Bessilsleigh, or Besils Legh (Lysons). Near
Appleton. Not a very old name. It simply
means ' Besils' leigh (or lea) '. It is called Legh
in V.E. (temp. Henry VIII); and D.B. has
Leie, p. 6. It is said that the Besils family came
into possession of this manor in 1350 ; and held it
till the death of William Besils in 1516. Mathias
de Besyles had land in Buckland, Berks., as early
as 1295-6 ; Iprn., p. 127. This name is Norman.
Chieveley. To the N. of Newbury. Formerly
spelt Chivele, Ipm. ; F.A. (1316); T.N. ; T.E. ;
Chiveley, H.R. Latinised as Chiveleia ; R.B. Later
Cheveley, V.E. The A.S. form is Cifan-lea, Birch,
C.S. iii. 51, 274. (It has no connexion with either
Cofen-lea or Cufan-lea, as suggested by Kemble ;
and is also quite distinct from Cheveley, Cambs.)
The sense is ' Cifa's lea '. Cifa is a personal name
not otherwise known. The i was originally short,
but has been lengthened, as in E. cleave from A.S.
clifian. It is possible that Cifa may be the same
name as Ceofa, a name given by Searle ; see
Sievers, A.S. Grammar, § 107.
Early. Near Reading. Spelt Erie, Ipm. ; F.A.
(1316) ; Erlee, F.A. (1816) ; Erley, T.N. ; Arle, F.A.
(1428); Erlegh, Cl.R. ; Ipm. R.B. has the forms
Erleye, Erlega. D.B. has Erlei ; p. 5. The form Arle
shows that Early may well be the same name as
Arley ; and there are several places so called. Of
these one at least, viz. Upper Arley in Stafford-
THE SUFFIX -LEY 73
shire, is known to have been formerly named
Arnley, A.S. Earnleah ; see Duignan's Staffs.
Place-names. A variant of Arnley is Eamley ; and
Earnley (Sussex) is written Earneleagh in Birch,
C.S. i. 331. Here Earne- is for Earnan, gen. of
Earna ; cf. Earna-lea in Kemble, CD. vi. 168 ; so
that the sense is ' Earna' s lea ' ; Earna being a
pet-name for names beginning with Earn-, such
as Earnbeald, Earnbeorht, &c. All founded on
A.S. earn, which means ' an eagle '. This solution
is, of course, conjectural. N.B. Earna leah, as it
stands, might mean f field of eagles '.
Egley. This is the name of an old hundred which
was united with that of Kintbury ; and the
combined hundred is frequently called by the
rather ludicrous name of Kintbury-Eagle, by con-
fusing an English name with the Anglo-French
cglc, whence modern E. eagle. We find hundred dc
Kenetbury et Eggle, F.A. (131 6); Eggele hundred,
H.R. ; Egle, H.R. The A.S. form of the prefix is
probably Ecgan, as found in Ecgan-croft ; Kemble,
Cod. Dipl. no. 621 ; badly spelt Egcean in Egcean-
laea (i.e. Egley) in the same, no. 714 (vol. iii. p.
344). Thesense is 'Ecga'slea'. Some have confused
it with Iglea, mentioned in the A.S. Chronicle,
though the prefixes are quite different, as pointed
out by Mr. W. H. Stevenson in his edition of
Asser's Life of Alfred, p. 272. Mr. Stevenson
further shows that Egley hundred appears as
Egeslcah in the Pipe Rolls, 17 Henry II, p. 90,
and as Eggesleah, in the same, 18 Henry II, p. 15 ;
which require for their origin the A.S. form
1257 k
74 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
*Ecges-leah, meaning the ' lea of Ecg '. But the
correctness of these forms seems to me to be
doubtful, as we should expect Ecges-leah to give
a form Edgeley rather than Egley, whereas the g
remains hard, in the form Eagle, even now.
However, the name meant either ' lea of Ecga '
or ' lea of Ecg '. It is only a question as to the
weak form in -a or the strong form without it.
Fawley. Not far from Lambourn. Spelt
Falelea, R.T. ; Faleley, R.C. ; Fallele, F.A. (131 6) ;
Fa/elee, Ab. ; Faleleg , Cl.R. ; Falleygh, Ipm. ;
Falelegh, T.N. [It somewhat resembles the A.S.
Falod-leah, the name of an uncertain place men-
tioned in a Hants, charter; Birch, i. 515. Fale(5-
lea is a mistaken spelling of this, with a needlessly
crossed d, in the same, iii. 415. This prefix is the
A.S. falod, the old form of the word now spelt fold,
in the sense of f sheep-fold'.] But Falod-leah,
being near the river Meon, cannot be Fawley in
Hants. I prefer to think that our prefix Fale-
answers rather to the E. Friesic falge, sb., 'fallow
land ' ; and that the sense of Fawley is simply
' fallow-lea '.
Hurley. On the Thames, below Henley.
Spelt Hurle, P.R. ; Ipm.; F.A. (1316); Hurley,
V.E. D.B. has Herlei in Beners [Baynhurst] hun-
dred, p. 13. These forms give no sense. According
to the Index to the Charters in the British Museum,
there is a Hurley in Warwickshire which appears
in a charter as Hurnlega. If in this case likewise
we may look upon Hur- as short for Hum-, we
may explain the name from the A.S. hyme (hyrn- in
THE SUFFIX -LEY 75
composition), ' a corner, a nook ' ; so that the
sense may be l lea in a nook '. Cf. Guyhirn,
Cambs. But more evidence is desired. We find
Hurran-cumb in the Crawford Charters, p. 58,
where Hurran is the genitive of Hurra. But the
D.B. form Herlei favours the A.S. hyrne.
Ilsley. There is a West Ilsley and an East or
Market Ilsley. The name has lost both initial H
and a d. Spelt Ildesley, V.E. (temp. Henry VIII).
H ildesley, Hildesleye, Ipm. ; Est Hildesley, H.R.
D.B. has Hildeslei, p. 5. It also gives Hilleslave or
Hilleslav as the name of a hundred, answering to
an A.S. form Hildes hljew, i.e. ' Hild's low' or
burial mound ; which is actually mentioned in the
boundaries of Compton Beauchamp ; in Birch,
C.S. hi. 70. The A.S. form of the place-name would
be Hildes leah ; cf. Hildes-lege, dat., in Birch,
C.S. hi. 660. Hildes-forda, dat., occurs in the
same line. The name Hild is both masculine and
feminine ; see Searle. The sb. hild, ' battle/ is
feminine only ; so that Hild is here used merely
as a masculine personal name, without any refer-
ence to Hild, the goddess of battle, as Mr. J.
Stevenson wrongly suggests in his edition of the
Chronicle of Abingdon. When hild is feminine,
the genitive is hilde.
Oakley Green. Near Bray (Kelly). Lit. ( oak
lea '. The A.S. form is ac-leah.
Purley. On the Thames, above Reading. Spelt
Purley,Purlegh,Ipm.\ Pu de, R.B ; T.N. ; P.R.
D.B. has Porlei, p. 14. The prefix is the same as
76 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
in Pur-ton (Wilts.) ; spelt Pyn/ton, Index, answer-
ing to the A.S. ping-tun, spelt Piritun in a late
charter, in Kemble, Cod. Dipl. iv. 166. From A.S.
pirige, a pear-tree ; from peru, a pear, which is
adapted from Lat. pirum, a pear. The sense is
'pear-tree lea'. There is another Purley in
Surrey.
Radley. To the NE. of Abingdon. Spelt
Radeley, T.N. ; Raydeley, V.E. The A.S. form is
spelt Radeleage, in the dative ; Birch, C.S. iii. 85 ;
with reference to a place in Wiltshire. It is
difficult to interpret the prefix. It seems to be
the same as in Radenweg, Birch, C.S. ii. 205, 1. 6,
and to represent Radan, gen. of Rada, variant of
Rfeda, a pet-name for the numerous names
beginning with Raid-. We find rod for reed,
' advice,' in Thorpe, Ancient Laws, vol. i. p. 38,
1. 21. If this be right, the sense is ' Rada's lea'.
It would seem that the prefix Rad- sometimes
answers to A.S. read, 'red'; but it can hardly
do so here.
Streatley. On the Thames. There are several
Streatleys, and the sense is invariable, viz. f street
lea'. The A.S. form is Strait-leah, also written
Stretlea, as in Birch, C.S. i. 108, with reference to
this Streatley in Berks. The name Street com-
monly refers to a Roman road.
Whistley. In Hurst ; to the E. of Reading.
The name is ill preserved ; it should rather be
Wishley. Spelt Wisselay, P.R. ; probably Wishe-
legh, Ipm., also refers to Whistley. Latinised as
THE SUFFIXES -LEY, -LOW 77
Wisseleia, Wisckeleia in the Chronicle of Abingdon,
ii. 196, 306. The A.S. form is Wiscelea, in a
Hui'st charter; Birch, C.S. hi. 511, 1. 1. Cf.
Wise-lea, id. ii. 298, 1. 7. The prefix Wisce
is the exact equivalent of the E. Fries, wiske,
a small meadow, diminutive of the word which
appears in German as wiese, a meadow, Old High
German wisa. Related by gradation to A.S. wase,
ooze, mud, which is now spelt ooze ; so that tviscc
was more especially used with reference to moist
or low-lying ground. The sense is c meadow-lea '
Cf. Wishford in Wilts.
Low.
Low is from the A.S. Maw, hlcerv, a mound,
especially a bai*row or burial-mound ; and is com-
mon as a suffix. Two examples occur, viz. Chal-
low and Cuckhamslow.
Challow. West and East Challow lie to the W.
of Wantage. Spelt Westchallow, V.E. Earlier,
Estchaulo, F.A. (131 6) ; Chaulawe, T.N. ; Chawelaw,
R.C. ; Westchaularve, T.E. The A.S. form appears
in the dat. Ceawan-hlgewe in the boundaries of
Dench worth, Birch, C.S. ii. 601. The sense is
obviously f Ceawa's burial-mound '.
Cuckhamslow. The name of a hill near Want-
age ; also known as Scutchamfly barrow ; see
Earle, Land Charters, p. 486, col. 2, 1. 12. Called
Quichehneslewe by Robert of Gloucester. There is
no difficulty ; the A.S. form appears as Cwicelmes-
hltewe, in the dative case ; in Kemble, Cod. Dipl.
iii. 292 ; no. 693. Cwicelmes is an error for Cwic-
78 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
helmes ; and the sense is < Cwichelm' s burial-
mound '. It is alluded to in the A.S. Chronicle,
an. 1006. One Cwichelm was king of the West
Saxons, and died a. d. 636. But as he was bap-
tized shortly before his death, Mr. Stevenson re-
marks (Asser's Life of Alfred, p. 236) that 'it is
unlikely that he was buried in heathen fashion
under a barrow. It is more probably the pagan
king Cwichelm of Wessex, whose death is entered
in the Chronicle under the year 593, who is
meant.'
Marsh.
A common word. The only example of it as a
suffix is in Tidmarsh.
Tidmarsh. On the Pang, above Pangbourn.
Spelt Tydemershe, F.A. (1428) ; Tudemershe,
Ipm. ; Tedmarsh, V.E. ; Thedmarsh, Ab. ; Thed-
mersshe, F.A. (131 6). Here Th is a Norman substi-
tution for the English T. The vowels i, u, e, y, can
only result from an A.S. short y, and the middle e
in Tud-e-merske suggests the A.S. genitive suffix
-an. Hence the prefix is Tyddan, gen. of Tydda ;
and the sense is ' Tydda' s marsh '.
Mere (l).
Mere, from the A.S. mere (rarely moere), a mere,
lake, pool, is familiar to all who know the English
Lakes. It occurs in Catmore (formerly Catmere),
Peasemore (formerly Peasemere), and Ripples-
mere.
Catmore. Near Farnborough. Spelt Calmer,
V.E. (temp. Henry VIII); and Catmere in Ly-
THE SUFFIX -MERE 79
sons, Hist, of Berks. Also Catmere in D.B., p. 9 ',
Catmere, T.N. The sense is simply 'cat mere'.
(The wild guess, in Taylor, that it represents a
Welsh coed mawr, 'great wood,' is valueless.)
Catmore means ' cat moor ' ; and, when the mere
dried up or was drained away, it was natural to
substitute 'moor'. The A.S. form is also Cat-
mere, as in Birch, C.S. ii. 371, 1. 1-i ; and only
three lines below there is a reference to the Cat-
maeringa gemajre, i. e. ' boundary of the Catmer-
ings or dwellers in Catmere '. We also find Cat-
meres gemjere, in the same, iii. 52 ; which avoids
confusion between mere and gemcere. The same
charters mention a place called Catbeorh, ' cat-
barrow,' in the same neighbourhood.
Peasemore. Between Leckhampstead and
Beedon. Formerly Peasemere. Spelt Pesemere,
T.E. ; Cl.R. ; T.N. ; R.C. Peysmer, V.E. (temp.
Henry VIII) ; Pesemere, Ipm., p. 167. In the
Chronicle of Abingdon, ii. 31, there is mention
of Ecclesia de Pesimara (or Pesimaro). D.B. has
Peine in Gamencsfelle [Ganfield] hundred, p. 8 ; but
this must refer to Pusey. We also find a Pease-
marsh in Sussex, and a Peasenhall in Suffolk,
which appear in Ipm. as Pesemersh and Pesenhale
(or Pesehale). It does not seem possible to see
for this prefix any other origin than the A.S.
pisa, a pea, pi. pisan, Middle English pese, pi.
pesen, later pease, now absurdly cut down to pea.
The sense must refer to a piece of land where
peas were cultivated, just as we find in the Index
to Kemble's Charters such forms as Bean-broc,
80 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Bean-leah, Bean-setan, Bean-stede, all apparently
from the A.S. bean, a bean. The sense would be
'mere near a field for peas'. The form Pesimaro
is due to an attempt at representing a syllabic
final -e in a Latin spelling, and is of no value.
Ripplesmere. This is the name of a hundred
which contains Windsor. It appears as a hundred-
name from the first. We find hundred de Ripples-
mere, F.A. (1316); and D.B. has Riplesmcrc or
Riplesmer hundred twice, pp. 7, 12. The nom.
case of Ripples appears as Rippell in Birch, C.S. i.
84, and as Ryppel in the same, iii. 486 ; with re-
ference to Ripple in Worcestershire. There is
another Ripple in Kent, near Deal. The standard
form is Rippel, and it must have been a personal
name. The sense is l Rippel' s mere '.
Mere (2).
There is a less common mere, meaning ' a boun-
dary'. Lord Bacon has meere-stone, a boundary-
stone, in his Essay 56 (Of Judicature). It only
occurs in Horme \ The A.S. form is ge?nd}re, or
(rarely) maere.
Hormer. This is the name of the most north-
ern hundred, containing Hinksey and Cumnor.
Spelt Hornemere hundred, Ipm. ; H.R. D.B. has
Hornimere hundred, p. 6. In the Chronicle of
Abingdon it is further extended to Hornigmere, ii.
278 ; but the full form is Horninga mgere, as in
Birch, C.S. iii. 520. This name occurs as one of
the boundaries of some land at Witney, Oxon.,
THE SUFFIX -OR oh -ORE 81
which extended over thirty hides ; and the list of
boundaries is closed by a reference to Hinksey,
which is in Hornier hundred. The sense is
' boundary of the Hornings or sons of Horn'.
Horninga is the gen. of the pi. form Horningas.
Horn is a famous name, as there is a Romance of
Kim; Horn.
The Suffix -or or -ore.
The A.S. ora, a margin, bank, shore, is cognate
with the Latin ora, which happens to be identical
with it in form. Nevertheless, it is a native Teu-
tonic word, and occurs as a suffix in place-names ;
viz. in Bagnor, Cumnor, and Windsor. It also
appears alone, in the place-name Oare ; which I
shall consider first.
0\re. Near Chieveley, and considered as in it
(Kelly). Spelt Ore, T.N. ; F.A. (131 6). The A.S.
form is Ora, dat. Oran ; in Birch, C.S. iii. 509. It
simply means f bank, edge, margin '.
Bagnor. Near the Lambourn, above Donning-
ton. Spelt Bagenore, T.N. ; F.A. (1316). D.B.
has Bagenore ; p. 15. From an A.S. type Bacgan-
ora, i.e. ' Bacga's bank or edge'. The gen. case
Bacgan occurs in Bacgan-leah (i.e. Bagley) in
Birch, C.S. iii. 96. The nom. Bacga occurs in the
Liber Vitae of Durham. See Bagley Wood, p. 71.
Cumnor. Not far from Oxford. Spelt Comenore,
P.R. ; H.R. ; Cumenore, R.C. ; Comenor, T.N.
D.B. has Comenore, p. 6. The A.S. type appears
as Cumenoran in Birch, C.S. i. 505, last line ; but
the copy is late. On p. 368, Charter 680 gives an
1257 ' L
82 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
earlier spelling Cumanora ; with a for e. And
again, Cumenoran occurs in the same, iii. 67.
But we find a still fuller form in the same, ii.
Appendix, p. vii ; and in iii. 68 ; viz. Colmanora
(Colmonora). As this occurs twice, it must be
taken to be significant. The variant Colmon (for
Colman) is only admissible if we take Colman to
be a complete name, and exclude the supposition
that -on is the termination of a genitive singular.
But this leaves no sign of the genitive at all. We
must therefore assume that the full form must
have been *Colmannesora ; and that the -es has
dropped out owing to the rather cumbrous form of
the word ; a phenomenon of which there is really
quite a large number of examples. And when we
notice that Colman is a name that occurs at least
Jive times, whilst Colma is not known, it will be
seen that the most probable sense is ' Colman's
bank, or edge '. Taylor is mistaken in taking
Cumenora to be the oldest form.
Windsor. Formerly spelt Windesore, H.R. ;
JVhulesoi'es, RB. D.B. also has Windesores ;
p. 2. Fuller forms are Windelsore, Robert of
Gloucester; Ipm. ; Windlesor , T.N. ; Wyndlesora,
T.E. ; Wyndeleshore, R.B. ; Windlesores, Pipe Rolls.
In the A.S. Chronicle it is Windlesoran, in the
dative ; an. 1 096. An earlier form of the prefix
is Wendles ; as in Wendles-ore, Kemble, Cod. Dipl.
iv. 165. And a still earlier one is Wamdles, which
occurs in another compound, viz. Waendles-dun,
in Birch, C.S. iii. 518, 1. 3. Waendles or Wendles
is the gen. case of Waendel or Wendel. Hence
THE SUFFIX -PEN 83
the sense is l VYaendel's bank ' or ' Wsendel's shore ' .
It is highly probable that Wsendel is the same
word as Vandal, which is merely a Latin spelling
of a Teutonic word ; though Waendel, in the
present case, is merely a man's name. When we
use the word ' vandalism' reproachfully, we should
remember that it obtained its sinister sense from
the Romans, who were enemies of the Goths and
Vandals and of the Teutonic races generally, and
regarded them as ' barbarians'. The English were
on the other side ; and there may be Vandals
amongst us still. There is a Wandlebury, i.e.
' Vandal fort ', within three miles of Cambridge.
The original sense of Waendel (Vandal) seems to
have been simply ' wanderer ' ; from the same
source as the A.S. wandrian, to wander. Cf. also
Wendles-dun, Waendles-dun ; Birch, C.S. hi. 517,
518; Wendles-clif, id. i. 341; Waendles-cumb,
Kemble, CD. vi. 120.
-PEN.
Pen is not common as a suffix. When it occurs,
it represents the A.S. perm, a pen for cattle or a
sheepfold. There is but one example in Berks.,
viz. Inkpen.
Inkpen. To the S. of Kintbury. This curious
name looks as if it had an obvious reference to
writing materials ; but the resemblance is acci-
dental. The k was once ag ; and the pen referred
to is a cattle-pen. Formerly spelt Inkepennc, T.E.;
F.A. (1316); V.E. ; Ynkepenne, Ipm., p. 105.
Earlier Ingpenne, Ipm., p. 49 ; Ingepennc, T.N.
84 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
D.B. has Hingepene, p. 11; with a meaningless H
prefixed. In an A.S. charter we find Ingepenne
in the dative ease ; Birch, C.S. ii. 367. Here
penne is the dat. of pom, a pen for cattle ; and
Inge is for Ingan, gen. of Inga, a known personal
name. The sense is e Inga's pen '.
-RIDGE.
Ridge is still in common use, though it seldom
has the exact old sense of ' back '. The A.S. form
is hiycg, dat. hycge ; common also in Northum-
brian in the form rigg. One example of a Berks,
name that contains this suffix is disguised by an
absurd spelling, probably thought to be phonetic ;
viz. Courage. A second example is of obvious
etymology, viz. Hawkridge.
Courage. Situate in Chieveley. It is a daring
respelling, after the Norman manner, of an English
name which might better be denoted by Curridge.
Spelt Curry ggc, F.A. (1428) ; Cuserugge, T.N. ;
Cusengge, Pipe Rolls ; Cusrigge, Ipm. ; Coserugge,
Ipm. ; F.A. (1316). D.B. has Coserige ; p. 14. It
is obvious that the rr is due to sr ; and arose from
assimilation. It is Latinised as Cuserugia in 1147 ;
Index. It appears in an A.S. (Chieveley) charter as
Cusan-ricge and Cusan-hricge, in the dative case ;
Birch, C.S. iii. 60. Cusan is the gen. of the per-
sonal name Cusa. The sense is ' Cusa's ridge '.
Hawkridge. In Bucklebury (Kelly). Although
this is a very small place, it is mentioned in a Saxon
charter, dated 956, in which its boundaries are
THE SUFFIX -RITH 85
given, and it is stated to be near the river Pang.
See Birch, C.S. hi. 87, where it is spelt Heafoc-
hrycg. From the A.S. heaj'oc, hqfoc, a hawk, and
hrycg, a ridge. The name, in fact, explains itself
at once.
The Suffix -rith.
This is a most interesting word. The A.S. nth,
masc, and tithe, fern., both denoted a rill or
streamlet. In fact, our modern rill is merely a
French formation from a diminutive form rithel,
'little rill.' It is the same as the Low German
reide, North Friesic ride, rie, with the characteristic
Low German loss of d between two vowels. Hence,
even in England, the river-name Rye ; and the
famous Rie-vaulx Abbey owes its name to an
extraordinary combination of the A.S. nthe, a
stream, with the Norman vaulx, vaux (Latin vattis),
a valley. Shottery, in Warwickshire, appears as
Scotta-rlth in A.S. charters. The Berks, examples
are Childrey and Hendred. In these examples
the suffixes -rey, -red, are due to Anglo-French
substitutions. In the latter, the A.S. th is ex-
changed for d, in the former it has become part
of a diphthong, the consonant being suppressed.
Perhaps it is well to add that the A.S. rv-th is from
the same root as the Lat. ri-uus, a river. And
further, that the modern form Rye is perfectly
distinct from the Essex ree, a stream, which is
sometimes absurdly written Rhee. (This ree arose
from a misdi vision of the A.S. formula ait thcere ea,
' at the stream,' whence the M.E. at ther ee, at the
ree. For ca (like Lat. aqua) is feminine.)
86 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Childrey. To the W. of Wantage. The d is
excrescent, and of late introduction. Spelt Chelrey,
Celry, Celrea, T.N.; Chelrethe, Chelereye, Ipm. D.B.
has Celrea, p. 1 3 ; where C (before e) has the sound
of the modern E. ch. It appears in an A.S. charter
as Cilia rithe ; Birch, C.S. ii. 489. A still older
spelling is Cillan rithe, id. 601 ; in the dative case,
from the masc. nom. rith. Cillan is the gen. of
the feminine name Cille ; and the sense is ' Cille's
rill '. In this case, it is probable that we know
who Cille was, viz. the sister of Hean, first abbot
of Abingdon. See the Chronicle of Abingdon, i. 13.
Hendred. There is a West Hendred and an
East Hendred ; to the E. of Wantage. The d is
excrescent, and of late introduction. Spelt Hcn-
rcth, H.R. ; Esthenreth, Westhenreth, T.E. ; Henreth
(with <5 for th), Pipe Rolls. D.B. has Henret, p. 4 ;
with the Norman t for E. th. In A.S. charters it
appears as Henna-rith ; Birch, C.S. iii. 165, 326,
391. Henna is the gen. pi. of A.S. hen, keen, a hen.
The sense is ' hens' rill ', or ' rill of water-hens '.
Cf. Henbrook, Wore. ; also Emborne, ' duck
stream,' as at p. 15.
The Suffix -shet or -sheet.
Only in Bagshot. Bagshot is in Surrey ; but
as Bagshot Heath is in Berks., I include it.
Bagshot. Both syllables have suffered altera-
tion. A better form would have been Backsheet
or Bakshet. Spelt Baggeshott, Ipm., p. 334 ; also
Bagshat, Ipm. ; Bagshott, P.R, ; but Bagshet, Ab.,
R.C. ; Bakeshet, Bakset, T.N. ; Baggeshete, Ipm.,
THE SUFFIXES -STEAD, -HAMSTEAD 87
vol. 2. In the Chronicle of Abingdon, ii. 7, 132,
there is mention of a wood near Winkfield called
Bac-sceat (temp. Will. I ; 1066-1087). The sense
is ' back-nook'; from A.S. bar, the back, and
sceat, an angle, nook, corner. Cf. Wop-shete
(Kemble).
-STEAD, -HAMSTEAD.
Stead is from the A.S. stede, f a stead, place,
station, site.' It only occurs, in Berks., in com-
position with ham-, giving hamstead or hampstead
(with an excrescent or unoriginal p). The A.S.
hamstede means f a homestead ' or ' farm ' ; from
ham, a home. The a is shortened before mst.
Examples are Ashampstead, Easthampstead,
Finchamstead, Hampstead Marshall, Hampstead
Norris, Leckhampstead, Sulhampstead.
Ashampstead. To the W. of Pangbourn. Spelt
Ashamsted, P.R. ; R.C. (1307); Ashehampstede,
R.C. (1316). The sense is f ash-homestead ' ; or
homestead near the ash-tree.
Easthampstead. To the S. of Bracknell. The
sense is l homestead lying to the east '. East-
hampstead Plain lies to the east of Finchamstead.
Finchamstead. Spelt Finchamstede, H.R.; Fynch-
amsted, F.A. (131 6). D.B. has Finchamestede ; p. 3.
The prefix is the A.S. fine (dat. fince), a finch.
The sense is ' homestead or farm frequented by
finches '. Cf. Finchfield, Wore.
Hampstead Marshall. To the E. of Kintbury.
Spelt II ampsted Marshall, V.E. (temp. Henry VIII);
88 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Humpstcd, R.C. ; Hamstede, H.R. D.B. has Hame-
stede in Chcnetebeiie [Kintbury] hundred; p. 15.
In an A.S. charter relating to this place it is spelt
hamstede; Birch, C.S. hi. 302. The sense is 'home-
stead ' or ' farm ' ; and the name Marshall is
explained from the fact that it once belonged to
the Lord Marshal of England. We find Ha?npsted
Marshal in the possession of Roger le Bygod, Earl
of Norfolk and Marshal of England, and his wife
Alicia, in 1307 ; see Ipm., p. 21 6.
Hampstead Norris. Spelt Hampsted Norres,
V.E. (temp. Henry VIII). So called because held
by the family of Norreys. Norreys is a Norman
name, and signifies a Norman or Northman.
Leckhampstead, or Leckhamstead. Spelt Lec-
hampstede, R.B. ; Leckhampsted, F.A. (1316); Lec-
hamstede, H.R. ; Lekehamstede (1459), Index. D.B.
has Lecanestede ; p. 6 ; Lachenestede ; p. 8. An A.S.
charter in Birch, C.S. ii. 534, gives the boundaries
of Leachamstede. The prefix is the A.S. leac, a
leek ; but the same name was applicable to any
garden-herb. The sense is ' homestead or farm
with a kitchen garden'. N.B. There is another
Leckhampstead in Bucks.
Sulhampstead. Sulhampstead Bannister and
Sulhampstead Abbots lie to the S. of Theale.
Bannister (formerly Banistre) is a Norman name
of French origin. Spelt Sulhampsted Banaster
and Sulhampsted Abbatis, V.E. ; Silhamsted, T.E. ;
F.A. (1428); Sylhamsted, T.N. ; Silhampstede, Ab. ;
Syllampstede, F.A. (1402). The A.S. form does
THE SUFFIXES -THORN, -TOWN, -TON 89
not appear ; but the vowels u, i, ij require A.S. y.
Hence the prefix probably represents the A.S.
sijlu, a miry place ; and the sense is ' a homestead
in a miry place '.
-THORN.
The A.S. thorn is often used with the sense of
thorn-bush ; cf. hawthorn. It is frequently men-
tioned in boundaries of places.
Crowthorn. To the N. of Sandhurst. In Ipm.,
p. 294, there is a mention of Crowethorne, as being
in Somersets. There was also once a Crowthorn
in Hants, called Cra wan-thorn in a Hants charter;
Kemble, Cod. Dipl. iv. 103, 1. 4 (Bromdame in 1. 6 I
take to be Bramdean, and Heantun to be Hinton
Ampner). From era/van, combining form of crdive,
a crow. Lit. ' crow-thorn '. Cf. crawanleac=craw-
leac, crow-garlic.
-TOWN, -TON.
The suffix -ton is for A.S. tun, the unstressed
form of tun, ' town.' It practically meant ' a home-
stead ', or a farmhouse with all its outbuildings, &c.
It occurs frequently, viz. in Aldermaston, Apple-
ton, Ardington, Aston, Avington, Bourton, Bright-
walton, Brimpton, Charlton, Chilton, Clapton,
Compton, Donnington, Drayton, Easton, Eaton,
Garston, Hinton, Kennington, Kingstone, Milton,
Steventon, Sutton, Uffington, Ufton, Upton,
Weston, Woolhampton, Woolstone, Wootton. The
double suffix -hampton occurs in Bockhampton.
Aldermaston. Near the middle of the south-
ern boundary of the county. An n has been lost
1257 M "
90 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
before the s, much disguising the name. Aldermas-
ton, V.E. (temp. Henry VIII). But earlier it is
Aldermanston, F.A. (131 6) ; Aldremanneston, T.N. ;
Aldremanston, Ipm. D.B. has Heloremanestune (ab-
surdly), p. 5 ; but on the same page it has El-
dremanestune. The prefix is obvious, as it repre-
sents the A.S. ealdormannes, gen. case of ealdormann,
' an alderman/ originally a name given to a noble-
man of the highest rank, or the chief officer of
a shire. Thus the literal sense is 'alderman's
town '.
Appleton. On the Thames ; above Oxford.
Formerly Appelton, Ipm. ; Apeltonc, R.B. D.B.
has Apletune, p. 12; Aplctone, p. 16. An A.S.
charter has .Eppeltun, in Birch, C.S. ii. 513. The
sense is 'apple town'; or 'farm with an apple-
orchard '. We are told in the same charter that
this place had formerly gone by a totally differ-
ent name, viz. iErmundes-lea, i.e. ' iErmund's lea'.
The name .ZErmund is an abbreviation of some
earlier form, probably of Earnmund or of Eard-
mund.
Ardington. Near Wantage. Formerly spelt
Ardington, Ipm. ; Ardinton, H.R. ; T.N. ; Ardynton,
F.A. (1316); Erdinton, Cl.R. Latinised as Ardin-
tona, Erdintona ; Index. D.B. has Ardintone, p. 13.
It is the same name as that of Erdington, near
Birmingham. I have explained (Place-names of
Cambs.,p. 6l) that Armingford (formerly Arning-
ford, Emingford) answers to the A.S. Earninga-
ford ; and in precisely the same way Ardin(g)ton
and Erdington answer to the A.S. form Eardinga-
THE SUFFIX -TON 91
tun ; i. e. ' town of the Eardings, or sons of Earda'.
Here Earda is a pet-name for names beginning
with Eard-, such as Eardbeorht, Eardwulf, &c.
In his edition of Asser, Mr. Stevenson has a note
at p. 236, in which he suggests that (judging from
its situation) the * Eardulfes leah ' mentioned in
Kemble, Cod. Dipl. vi. 129, niay be another name
for Ardington. If so, we may certainly consider
Earda to signify Eardwulf. Indeed, Eardwulf is
much the commonest of the names beginning
with Eard- ; more than twenty examples of it
have been recorded.
Aston, or Aston Tiruold. To the E. of Blew-
berry. Lysons also gives the form Aston Thorold.
Aston is a very common name, as it simply means
' east town '. This appears from the fact that
old spellings often appear as Eston. Spelt Estone,
T.E. ; Aston Tomld, V.E. (temp. Henry VIII).
D.B. has Estone in Blilberie [Blewberry] hundred;
p. 9- The A.S. form appears as Eastun (for cast
tun) in a charter relating to this very place ; see
Birch, C.S. i. 390 ; hi. 393. Aston in Herts, and
Aston in Bucks, can both be proved to have the
like origin. Tirrold and Tyrrell are both forms
of the Norman Turold, which corresponds to the
M.E. Thorold, later form of the Norse Thoraldr,
cognate with A.S. Thurwold, Thurweald ; see
Bardsley and Searle.
Avington. On the Kennet ; near Kintbury.
There is another Avington in Hants. Spelt
Aventon, F.A. (1316); Avynton, Avienton, H.R. ;
Aventon, Avinton, T.N. ; but Avyngton, V.E. (temp.
92 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Henry VIII). The name appears in an A.S. char-
ter as Afintune (dative) ; see Birch, C.S. hi. 292. The
nom. is Afintun. But I cannot explain it. As a
guess, I should suppose it to be short for Afinga-
tun, i.e. f town of the Afings ', or 'of the sons of
Afa '. Afa is a known name, of which Searle
gives two examples. But the frequent absence
of g in all the earlier examples suggests that Avin
or Aven may have resulted from the simple form
Afan, gen. of Afa. In this case, the sense would
be 'Afa's town'. It obviously makes but little
difference. The weakening of an to en, and again
of en to in, are both rather common.
Bourton. In Shrivenham. In Birch, C.S. i.
506, we find ' Scriuenham. Burgton ', thus men-
tioned together in a Grant to Abingdon Abbey.
This shows at once that Bourton corresponds to
the A.S. burg-tun or burh-tun, lit. ' borough town'.
Brightwalton. To the E. of Lambourn. Also
called Brightwaltham ; which is certainly corrupt.
Spelt Brightwalton, T.E. ; Bri/ghtwa/ton, Ipm. ;
Brictewalton, T.N. ; all shortened and unmeaning
forms. Spelt Bristwoklintona (1086) ; Index. D.B.
has Bristoldestone ; p. 8. Norman scribes often
write st for ght, A.S. hi. There is no doubt as to
the form, because it appears in an A.S. charter,
dated 939> as Beorhtwaldingtune, dative, in Birch,
C.S. ii. 462. It is obviously short for Beorhtweald-
inga-tun, i.e. 'town of the Beorhtwealdings or
sons of Beorhtweald '. Beorhtweald is a very
common name, of which there are more than
forty examples.
THE SUFFIX -TON 93
Brimpton. Near the Emborne, and to the W.
of Aldermaston. Certainly the same name as
Brington, Hunts., as the old forms show. Spelt
Brympton, V.E. (temp. Henry VIII); Brinton,
Ipm. ; Biimton, Biimptun, T.N. ; H.R. ; Bernynton,
F. A. ; Bernintun, Pipe Rolls. D.B. has Brintonc in
Tacekam [Thatcham] hundred; p. 13. The A.S.
form Bryningtune (dative) appears in 9^4 ; Birch,
C.S. ii. 559- Short for Bryningatun, i.e. 'town (or
enclosure) of the Brynings '. Bryning is a patro-
nymic from the personal name Bryni ; so that
the Brynings were ' sons of Bryni '. Hence also
Briningham (Norfolk).
Charlton. There is a Charlton to the NE. of
Wantage. A more important use of Charlton is
as the name of a hundred (containing Shinfield),
in quite another part of the county. There are,
in fact, many Charltons. We find Cherledon hun-
dred, H.R. D.B. has Cerlctone, p. 3 ; with Cc for
E. Che. Cf. Cherletone, R.B. Charlton, in Wantage,
is actually mentioned in an A.S. charter, where it
is spelt Ceorlatun ; Birch, C.S. iii. 98. Ceorla is
the gen. pi. of ceorl, a churl, a husbandman. The
literal sense is 'churls' town'.
Chilton. To the W. of Blewberry. Spelt
Chilton, Ipm.; T.N. D.B. has Cilletone ; p. 7.
The A.S. form is Cilda-tun, in a charter dated
1015 ; see Kemble, Cod. Dipl. vi. 169. The A.S.
eilda is a form of the gen. pi. of cild, a child. The
sense is f children's town ' or farm. The allusion
may be to a farm carried on by young men whose
parents had died. Cf. Chilford, Cambs., which
94 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
means ' children's ford ' ; where the allusion is,
no doubt, to the shallowness of the ford.
Clapton. To the N. of the Kennet, near
Avington and Hungerford. Also called Clopton,
described as being near Avington; F.A. (1316);
R.C. (D.B. has Clopcote in Eletesford hundred; p. 12.
This refers to Clopcot, which, according to Kelly,
belongs to Wallingford.) The prefix Clap- or
Clop- is common ; the A.S. form, in both cases, is
usually clop. I have discussed this clop in my
Place-names of Beds., s. v. Clapham. The sense is
not quite certain, but it seems to be the same word
as the Middle Danish Hop, a stub, or stump;
probably allied to clump. If so, it means ' a town
or enclosure of stubby ground '.
Compton Beauchamp. Not far from Dragon Hill.
(There is another Compton, near E. Ilsley, which
gave its name to Compton hundred.) Called
Compton Beauchamp, Ipm., p. 276, a.d. 1315-16;
where it is described as held by Guido de Bello
Campo, Earl of Warwick, and Alicia his wife ;
Guido de Bello Campo being a Latin rendering of
Guy Beauchamp. Spelt Compton, T.E. ; Cumpton,
Ipm., p. 105 ; Compton, Cumpton, H.R. ; Compton
Beauchemc, V.E. D.B. has Contonc; p. 4. The
dative Cumtune occurs in an A.S. charter dated
955 ; see Birch, C.S. hi. 69- The nom. is Cumtun.
The prefix is from A.S. cumb, a hollow valley,
a combe ; a word of Celtic origin, as seen by
comparison with the Welsh cwm, a combe, a hollow
in a hill-side. The sense is 'town or farm in
a combe'. Cf. Compton, Staffs.
THE SUFFIX -TOX 95
Donnington. Near Shaw ; cf. Shaw-cum-Don-
nington (Kelly). Spelt Donington, R.C. ; Dunyng-
ton, F.A. (1316); Duninton, Cl.R., vol. i. We
find the A.S. expression ( on Dunninglande ' in
a Will; see Birch, C.S. iii. 601, last line. The
correct original form was, accordingly, Dunninga-
tun ; i. e. ( town of the Dunnings or sons of Dunn '.
Drayton. To the S. of Abingdon. Spelt
Drayton, V.E. (temp. Henry VIII) ; Draitonc, R.B.
D.B. has Draitune ; p. 9- The A.S. form Draegtun
occurs in a charter dated 960 ; see Birch, C.S. iii.
279. From the A.S. droeg, discussed in my Place-
names of Cambs., where there is also a Drayton.
It is certainly derived from dragon, to draw, also,
to build a nest (N.E.D.). This explains the prov.
E. dray, 'a squirrel's nest', and shows that the
A.S. dra'g meant a place of shelter. It may have
meant 'a sheltered farm'. See Draycot, p. 27.
Easton. In Welford. Lit. ' east town '. Cf.
Aston above. Alluded to in an A.S. charter of
79b"; see Birch, C.S. i. 390. It is there spelt
Eastun.
Eaton Hastings. On the Thames, not far from
Faringdon. Spelt Eatone, T.E. ; Eton, H.R. ;
Eton Hastinges, Ipm., p. 146; P.R. The same
name as Eton. Spelt Eatun in an A.S. charter
relating to Abingdon ; see Birch, C.S. i. 490.
From the A.S. ea, a stream, a river ; with reference
(apparently) to the Thames, as in the case of
Eton, Bucks. The sense is ' river town ', or ' town
on the river'. The Hastings family was English,
named from Hastings in Sussex.
96 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Garston, or East Garston. On the Lamboum.
Called Est garston, H.R. The A.S. form is Gaerstun ;
as in Birch, C.S. iii. 96, line 14. In the same, iii.
68, we find Gerstun and Grestun. The prefix
goers is a variant of grass, modern E. grass. The
sense is ' grass town ', or ' farm with abundance of
grass '.
Hinton Waldrist, or Waldridge. Near Long-
worth and the Thames. The old name seems to
have been Henton. In Ipm., p. 1 62, Henton and
Harewell (Harwell) are said to be in Berks.
D.B. has Hentone in Gamesfel [Ganfield] hundred
(p. 16), a correct reference to Hinton. Probably
not the same name as Hinton, or Cherry Hinton,
Cambs. It is further remarkable that Ipm.
(Inquisitiones post Mortem) has many references
for Henton, in nine different counties, including
Dorsets., Wilts., and Hants, which all have
Hintons. I think that the careful examination of
the Worth charter, printed in Birch, C.S. iii. 228,
as no. 1028, will pi'ove that Hinton Waldrist is
referred to in it. Mr. Birch says it relates to land
at Worth in Faringdon. What that means I do
not know ; but it is certain that Worth is the old
name of Longworth, and it is to Longworth that
the charter really refers. For it not only mentions,
in the boundaries, the Thames and the Ock, but
the eing-hcema gemcere or ' boundary of the people
of king's home ', i.e. of Kingstone, the cearninga
gemcere, or ' boundary of the people of Charney ',
and lastly the heantunninga gemcere, or l boundary
of the people of Heantun ', And this Heantun is,
THE SUFFIX -TON 97
of course, Henton, or Hinton Waldrist ; just as
Heandun became Hendon. Thus the A.S. form
■was Hean-tun ; where Kean is the usual dative of
heah, high. The sense is ' high town '. As to
Waldridge, it is not a Norman but an English
form ; from the A.S. Wealdric (like Aldridge from
Ealdric). This name actually occurs in the
Chronicle of Abingdon, ii. 127 (a.d. 1100-35),
>\here we find : 'ego Waldricus regis cancellarius.'
Waldrist seems to have been formed from the gen.
Wealdrices, or Waldric's. Cf. Woolstone, p. 101.
Kennington. On the Thames, below Oxford.
Spelt Kenington, Ipm. ; P.R. ; Kenintone, R.B. ;
Keninton, T.N. The name appears in A.S. charters
as Cenintune (dative) in Birch, C.S. hi. 162 ;
Cenigtun, id. iii. 160. Also, in a late copy, as
Chenitun, id. i. 505 ; Chenigtun, 506, in the foot-
note ; here the spelling Che is due to a Norman
scribe, who wrote Che for A.S. Ce (as often). The
A.S. spellings are therefore Cenintun and Cenigton,
which are not reconcilable unless we suppose
them to represent the form Ceningtun. I think,
therefore, that the original form was Ceninga tun,
in accordance with the present name. The A.S.
cene means ' bold, valiant, keen ' ; whence Keen as
a surname. It is further noticeable that, although
the A.S. ce becomes che when the e is shoi't, the
A.S. ce becomes kee when it is long. The sense
is ' town of the Keenings or sons of Keen '. In
later times the ee was shortened. The same is
true of Kensworth (Herts.), which means ' Keen's
worth or farm '. See my Place-names of Herts.
1257 N
98 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Kingstone Bagpuize. To the W. of Marcham.
Spelt Kingeston, H.R. D.B. has Chingestune in
Merceham [Marcham] hundred, p. 10 ; with Chi for
Ki (as usual). The boundaries of this place are
given in an A.S. charter ; see Birch, C.S. iii. 546.
It is there spelt Kingestun and Cingestun. Here
tinges is the gen. of ring, ci/ning, a king. The
sense is 'king's town'.
The name Bagpuize is of Norman origin, due
to the holder of the land. It is called Kingston
Bakepas, F.A. (131 6); Kingston Bagepuys, F.A.
(1428); and Kingston Bagpuz, V.E. In the
Chronicle of Abingdon, ii. 30, 31, Adelelmus and
Radulphus de Bachepuiz are mentioned in con-
nexion with the church at this Kingston ; temp.
William II. In the same, ii. 121, the Norman
name is spelt Bakepuz. It is of local origin, from
a place in France. The Norman bake answers to
the Old French bache, explained by Godefroy as
meaning a gulley or watercourse ; and pus, puiz
are old forms of F. puits, Lat. puteus, a well. The
place-name had reference to ' a well with a water-
course '.
Kingston Lisle. Between Shrivenham and
Wantage. Noted as Kingeston Lisle, R.C. (15 Ed-
ward I). A note in Kelly says that it was named
from William de Insula (or De L'isle) in the time
of Henry II. The Chronicle of Abingdon, ii. 145,
mentions Robertus de Insula as being loi - d of the
vill of Bradendene (1100-1135).
Milton. To the S. of Abingdon. As in the case
of Milton, Cambs., and in many other cases, Milton
THE SUFFIX -TON 99
is a shortened form of Middleton. Spelt Milton,
V.E. (temp. Henry VIII). But Middelton, H.R. ;
T.E. D.B. has Middeltune in Sudtune [Sutton]
hundred ; p. 7. It is close to Sutton Courtney.
The sense is ' middle town ' ; perhaps because it
is between Steventon and the southern end of
Sutton Courtney.
Steventon. Near Milton (above). Spelt Stiven-
ton, H.R. ; T.E. ; Stivinton, R.T. ; Styvinton, R.C. ;
Styvington, F.A. (1316). Later Stevynton, V.E. ; so
that the former e was once i. D.B. has Stivetune ;
p. 4. The same name as Steventon or Stevington,
Beds. Stiven- (as in H.R.) probably represents an
A.S. form Sty fan, gen. of Styfa, in which the /was
pronounced as v. This name is not recorded, but
occurs in the diminutive form Styf'ec. From its
genitive Sty feces was formed the name of Stetch-
worth, Cambs. ; and perhaps Stechford in Worces-
tershire. The sense is 'Styfa's farm '. The change
from Stiventon to Steventon was doubtless owing
to the influence of the Norman name Stephen.
Perhaps Styfa is also implied in the patronymic
which appears in Stifinge-haema; Birch, C.S. iii. 392.
Sutton Courtney. To the S. of Abingdon.
Spelt Suttone, R.B. ; Sutton hundred, H.R. ; Suthtun,
Pipe Rolls. D.B. has Sudtone,p. 4 ; Sudtune, p. 7.
Spelt SuStun in a charter giving the boundaries
of Appleford, Berks. ; Birch, C.S. ii. 224. The
sense is ' south town '. There are more than
forty Suttons. Note that Sutton was once also
the name of a hundred. Courtney is a Norman
name, of French origin. Named, according to
100 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Bardsley, from Courtenay in the Isle of France,
which was the name of an old French province
that also contained Paris.
Uffington. To the E. of Shrivenham. Spelt
Uffinton, H.R. ; T.N. ; Offingtone, Offentone, T.E.
D.B. has Offentone, p. 7; where the Norman initial
o had much the same sound as the A.S. u, and was
quite distinct from A.S. o. Spelt Uffentune, in
the dative case, in Birch, C.S. ii. 376, where its
boundaries are given. The writing of ng for n is
comparatively late, and is of no significance. The
original A.S. form would be UfFantun, where UfFan
is the gen. case of UfFa, a known name, and per-
fectly distinct from Offa, though they are often
ignorantly confused. U and o differ ; a cut is not
a cot.
Ufton Nervet. To the S. of Theale. Spelt
Uftone, F.A. (1316). Even without other forms to
guide us, it is obvious that the A.S. form must
have been UfFantun, i. e. ' Uffa's town ', precisely
as in the case of Uffington above. We might
suppose, from the forms, that Ufton is the older
place, and that its name has suffered greater change
by contraction. Nervet must be an old Norman
surname. The form nervet is the exact Norman
equivalent of the Old French nerve, which Gode-
froy explains as ' full of nerve, strong ' ; so that it
was originally a complimentary epithet.
Upton. Near Blewberry. Spelt Upton, H.R. ;
T.N.; Optone, T.E. D.B. has Optone in Blitberie
[Blewberry] hundred ; p. 1 5. The same name as
THE SUFFIX -TON ; ;*4pj
Upton, Hunts. From the A.S. up, up ; used \i>
composition with the sense of f uppe?": The
sense is ' upper town '. Not far off there is an Aston
Upthorpe (i. e. upper village) near Aston Tirrold.
Weston. In Wei ford (Kelly). The sense is
' west town '. There are about thirty Westons.
Woolhampton. Between Thatcham and Theale
(nearly). I discuss the suffix -Hampton at p. 102.
In this case the old form did not really possess
that suffix, as will appear. Spelt Wullaminton,
H.R. ; Wolamptone, F.A. (1428) ; Wllaumton, R.T.
But earlier, it is Wulavinton, T.N. ; Wullavintoii,
R.C. D.B. has OUavintone, p. 10 ; with for Wu.
It thus appears that the successive forms were
Wullavintoii, Wullaminton, Wollamton, Wolhamp-
ton, &c. The form Wullavintoii fairly agrees with
the modern names Woolavington, Somersets., and
Woollavington, Sussex. All have the same origin ;
and as the A.S. f between two vowels denotes v,
we find the same prefix as in the A.S. Wullafing-
land, which occurs in Kemble, Cod. Dipl. vi. 243.
Further, Wullaf is a late form of Wulflaf, due to
assimilation. Hence the A.S. form of Woolhamp-
ton must originally have been Wulflafinga-tun, i.e.
' town (or farm) of the Wulfiafings or sons of
Wulflaf '. Wulflaf (later Wullaf) is a known name.
Woolstone. Not far from Shrivenham. An old
name and much contracted ; entirely unconnected
with wool and stone. (There are other places with
a similar name, but they may not be from the same
original.) Spelt Wlricheston, Wulurichcston, H.R.
102 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Wlfrkhestone (error for Wlfrkhestone, by the very
frequent substitution of t for c), T.E. ; Wulf riches-
ion, Wulvricheston, T.N. ; Wolricheston, Ab. In
F.A. (13 16) we find that Wolfricheston is in Shri-
venham hundred. D.B. has Olvricestone ; p. 5. The
A.S. original is unmistakable. It must have been
Wulfrices tun, i.e. 'Wulfric's town or farm'.
Note that, in D.B., p. 14, the name recurs, but is
there miswritten Vlritone (omitting ces), and is
moreover incorrectly said to be in Thatcham
hundred, by confusion with Woolhampton. Wild
and silly fables have been founded upon this mis-
reading, which is a reason for recommending
caution.
Wootton. Between Appleton and Kennington.
Spelt Wotton, T.E. Alluded to in a charter ; see
Birch, C.S. i. 506, line 2, where it appears as
Uudetun, a late spelling of Wudetiin, or rather
of Wuduton. Literally, 'wood toAvn '; or 'farm near
a wood'. There are a dozen Woottons or Wootons.
-HAMP-TON.
The suffix -hampton (with excrescent p) is a com-
pound suffix, composed (in this instance) of the
A.S. ham, 'home,' and tun, 'town.' The sense is
much the same as that of ' homestead '. The only
example is Bockhampton.
Bockhampton. A tithing, one mile to the E.
of Lambourn (Kelly). Spelt Bokhampton, Ipm.;
Bochamton,T.N.; Bockhampton, P.R. ; Bochampton,
Ab. The sense of the prefix is doubtful. The
Middle English sometimes represents A.S. ;
THE SLTFIXES -WARE, -WELL 103
perhaps the form bock represents the A.S. boc, a
beech-tree ; see boc-haga, hoc-holt in the Supple-
ment to the A.S. Diet. If this is right, the sense
is ' beech homestead '. Compare Buckland above,
and Bookham (Surrey), A.S. Bocham. (Doubtful.)
The Suffix -ware.
Clewer. Near Windsor. Spelt Cliware, Cle-
tvare, Ipm., vol. 2 ; Cleware, Ab. ; Clyware, F.A.
(1316) ; Cliwar, T.N. ; Cluer, V.E. But Clyfwere
(temp. Edw. I) ; Index. D.B. has Clivore in Riples-
mere hundred; p. 14. The prefix is evidently the
A.S. clij) lit. <a cliff', also an acclivity or slope.
In Birch, C.S. ii. 476, we find the expression on
clifwere, but the charter (which relates to Wilts.)
is full of late spellings and is not helpful. A better
form is given in a Kentish charter, in Birch, i. 318,
where we find f on eastan clifwara gemaere ' and
' on suthan clifwara gemaere '. Here warn is the
gen. pi. of the pi. sb. ware, ' people ' ; as in Cant-
ware, men of Kent, people of Kent. Similarly,
the A.S. clif-ware would mean 'cliff-men ', applied
to a small tribe or company who had settled at
Clewer. It is obviously impossible to say how
they came to possess this epithet.
Well.
Well is used in the usual sense of 'spring of
water '. It occurs in Brightwell, Coxwell, Harwell,
Sotwell, and Sunningwell.
Brightwell. Near Wallingford. Spelt Brith-
tvell (with th for hi) ■ H.R. ; Bridewell, T.N. D.B.
104 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
has Bristowelle, p. 5 ; with st for A.S. ht. There
is also a Brightwell in Oxfordshire, alluded to in
an A.S. charter in the phrase ' a?t Berhtanwellan ' ;
Birch, C.S. ii. 166. Again, in the same, ii. 596, we
read : ' incolae prolatum nomen latialiter declara-
tam font em indiderunt, nunc vero . . . Beorhtan-
wille.' This proves at once that the sense is
simply 'bright well'. It is remarkable that
Kemble, in his Codex Diplomaticus, vol. iii, p. xiii,
sees in this name an allusion to ' Berhte or Beorhte,
the goddess of wells '. It would seem, however,
that our ancestors were quite unconscious of any
such allusion, because the A.S. beorhtan is ex-
pressly explained to mean declaratam. I think it
means 'clear, translucent', as defined in the N.E.D.
Coxwell. Great and Little Coxwell are near
Faringdon. Spelt Cokestvell, T.N. ; Index ; Cofces-
welle, T.E. D.B. has Cocheswelle, p. 4 ; where che —
he. These represent an A.S. form Cocces-wielle,
lit ' Cock's well '. Cocc, c cock,' is here used as
a personal name ; or we should expect ' cock-well '.
Harwell. Near Didcot. Spelt Hareivell, H.R.
D.B. has Harwelle, p. 5 ; and Harowelle, p. 14.
The A.S. form is given as Haranwylle in Birch,
C.S. iii. 446. As haran is the gen. case of ham, a
hare, the sense is ' Hare's well '. The use of the
genitive suggests that Hara is here used as a per-
sonal name. Otherwise, the spelling would have
been Harawylle.
Sotwell. Near Wallingford. Spelt Sottetvell,
H.R. ; Sottetvell, Sotewell, T.N. D.B. has Sotwelle •
THE SUFFIXES -WELL, -WORTH 105
p. 8. The A.S. form must have been Sotan wielle,
i.e. ' Sota's well '. Sota is known as a personal
name. The o is short, and Sota is merely the
weak fonn of the A.S. adj. sot, sott, ' foolish ' ;
whence the modern E. sot. The compound sot-
ceorl, ' foolish churl/ is not in the Dictionary ; but
it occurs in Birch, C.S. ii. 242, line 13.
Sunningwell. To the N. of Abingdon. Spelt
Sunningrvell, Ipm. ; Sonnyngewelle, T.E. ; Sunninge-
tvell, T.N. D.B. has Soningeunel ; p. 6. The right
A.S. form occurs as Sunningauuille (in a late copy) ;
Birch, i. 506 ; and Sunninga-wylle, id. iii. 108
(footnote 2). Elsewhere it is misspelt, without
the third n. The sense is ' well of the Sunnings '.
Cf. Sunninghill, and Sonning, pp. 63, 69.
-WORTH.
The suffix worth or wyrthe was applied to an
enclosed homestead or farm ; see Bosworth and
Toller's A.S. Diet., p. 1267. It is allied to the
A.S. weorth, 'worth, value' ; and may be taken in
the sense of ' property ' or ' holding '. Examples
occur in Aldworth, Bayworth, Chaddleworth,
Denchworth, Longworth, Padworth, Seacourt, and
Sugworth.
Aldworth. Between Compton and the Thames.
Spelt Aldeworth, F.A. (1316); T.N. ; T.E. ; R.C.;
Audeworth, Cl.R. I find no mention of it in
A.S. charters, but it answers to the expression to
ealdan wyrthe in Birch, C.S. ii. 358. The sense is
simply 'old worth', i.e. 'old farm'.
1257 o
106 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Bayworth. In Sunningwell (Kelly). D.B. has
Baiorde ; p. 6. (In D.B. worth is usually expressed
by orde.) In the Abingdon Chronicle we find
Baigeuurtka, i. 36 ; and Bceieuurtha, p. 37. Also
Bcegenweorthe in the same, p. 218. The bounda-
ries of Ba} r \vorth are given in a charter dated 956.
It is spelt Baegen-weorthe (dative) in Birch, C.S.
hi. 107 ; better Baegan-wyrthe, id. hi. 96. Here
Baegan is the gen. of the personal name Baega or
Bajga. The sense is ' Bsega's worth or farm '. The
same A.S. prefix occurs in Baynhurst ; see p. 65.
Chaddleworth. Near Brightwaltham. Spelt
Chadelworthy R.C. ; Chadeletv'rth, T.E.; Chadelcs-
worth, H.R. ; Chadlesworth, Ipm. D.B. has Cedene-
ord in Eglei hundred, p. 8 ; with n for /. In an
A.S. charter, dated 960, it appears as Ceadelan-
wyrth ; in Birch, C.S. iii. 274. This seems to
decide that the forms with the genitive in -es are
unoriginal ; and that the sense is f Ceadela's worth
or farm '. The name Ceadela seems to be distinct
from Ceadwalla.
Denchworth. To the NNE. of Wantage. Spelt
Denchenmrth, Dencheswurth, T.N. ; Denechesworth,
F.A ; Denchesn'ith, T.E. ; Denhesivorde, R.B. ;
Dencheworth, V.E. (temp. Henry VIII). D.B. has
Detichestrorde ; p. 10. It appeal's in A.S. charters
as Dences-wyrthe, Birch, C.S. i. 490 ; Deniches-
uurde (a late spelling), also Deniceswurth (printed
Deinceswurth), id. 506 (and footnote) ; Deneces-
wurthe (dative), ii. 601 ; iii. 237. The sense is
( Denec's worth ', or ( Denic's worth '. This per-
sonal name is not known elsewhere.
THE SUFFIX -WORTH 107
Longworth. Eight miles from Abingdon, and
ten from Oxford. The old name was simply
Worth. The prefix Long- appears in the 14th
century ; I find Langtvorthe, F.A. ; Langworth in
1458; Index. Also Longworth, V.E. (temp.
Henry VIII). Spelt With, T.E. It appears in
A.S. charters as Weorthe, Birch, C.S. hi. 67 ; and
Wyrthe, p. 258. It merely means 'long worth or
farm '.
Padworth. To the SSW. of Theale. Spelt
Paddemirth, T.N. ; Padeworth, V.E. D.B. has
Peteorde (with t for d) ; p. 11. The A.S. form is
Peadan-wurth ; Birch, C.S. hi. 178. The sense is
1 Peada's worth or farm '. Peada as a personal
name is unknown elsewhere, except in another
place-name written Peadan-beorge in the dative
case; Birch, C.S. ii. 142, line 1. The modern
Padbury has not precisely the same prefix ; its
A.S. form was Padde-byrig ; Birch, C.S. ii. 377.
Here Padde represents Paddan, gen. of Padda, a
known name.
Seacourt. Within two miles of Oxford. This
is a most interesting example, on account of the
impossibility of guessing its origin. It has nothing
to do either with sea or court. At the same time,
the historical etymology is quite clear. Spelt
Sevekenmrth, T.N. ; Sevkeworthe, F.A. (1401-2);
Seovecwurde, Chronicle of Abingdon, ii. 311. D.B.
has Seuacoorde ; p. 6. It appears in an A.S.
charter (about a.d. 957) as Seofecan-wyrthe
(dative); Birch, C.S. iii. 201, line 1. The sense is
' Seofeca's worth or farm '.
108 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Sugworth. There is a Sugworth Farm in Sun-
ningwell, according to Bacon's map. It is inter-
esting as being mentioned in Domesday Book,
where it appears as Sogorde ; p. 6. Ipm. mentions
a place named Suggeden (Salop) in 1293-4, which
corresponds to the modern surname Sugden (in
the Clergy List). The A.S. place-name Sucgan-
graf occurs in Birch, C.S. iii. 96 ; see note 32. It
is therefore certain that the modern prefix Sug-
answers to the Middle English Sugge-, and to the
A.S. Sucgan, genitive of Sucga. The sense is
' Sucga's worth or farm '.
Having now accounted for all the compound
names containing some well-known suffix, it re-
mains to discuss the names in which no such suf-
fix appears. It is remarkable how few they are.
The list contains only Beedon, Bray, Shaw, Ship-
pon, Speen, and Theale.
Beedon. To the S. of East Ilslev. To be divided
as Beed-on, or rather Beed-en. The ending in
-on is due to confusion with names ending in
-don, which are numerous. Spelt Bedene, F.A.
(1428) ; Budene, F.A. (1428) ; Budon, alias Bedon,
V.E. (temp. Henry VIII) ; Beden, Bede, T.N. Also
Budeneye, F.A. (131 6), where it is mentioned as
being near Oare, Peasemore, and Leckhampstead.
D.B. has Bedene ; p. 6. Spelt Bydene in an
A.S. charter relating to Beedon ; Birch, C.S. iii.
429 ; with an endorsement in which it is spelt
Bedene ; but both of these spellings seem to be
late. The right form appears to be By dan, as in
BEEDON, BRAY 109
the compound Bydan-wyrth, id. iii. 45. We also
find, in the boundaries of Chieveley, the expres-
sion Byden-hjema gemseres, i.e. c of the boundary
of the people of Bydan-ham'; p. 52. The late name
Buden-eye (for A.S. Bydan-Ieg), and the names
Bydan-wyrth and Byden-ham (for Bydan-ham), all
prove that Bydan is really an old genitive singular
from a nominative Byda or Byda. The latter is
the right form, and is a known name. Indeed,
it occurs again in Biddenham, Beds., formerly
Bidenham, Bedenham, from A.S. Bydan ham, or
' Byda's home '. Hence Beedon really represents
the A.S. gen. case Bydan, meaning ( Byda's ', just
as 'Smith's house' might be shortened to ' Smith's'.
The missing suffix is supplied in the old form Bu-
deneye (above) ; which was originally ' Bydan
leg ' or ' Byda's isle '.
The A.S. y was variously represented in Middle
English by 1, y, u, e ; so that all the later spellings
are accounted for. The modern ee is due to the
Mercian form Bedan, gen. of Beda.
Bray. On the Thames, above Windsor. Also
formerly (and now) the name of a hundred. Spelt
Braie, Ipm. ; Bray, Ipm., T.N. ; Bray, Broy, R.B.
Cf. Brayfield, Braybrook, Brayton. The name is
therefore a native one, not Norman. We find
also hundred de Bray, F.A. (131 6). D.B. has Brat ;
p. 3. Ipm. has such names as Bray-burne, -broke,
-legh, -lond, -thwayt, -toft, -ton ; also Brai-ton,
Brei-tofte. The fact that such names as Bray-
bourn, Bray-brook, &c, exhibit no genitive suffix
(such as would result from A.S. -es, -an) suggests
110 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
that Bray is not due to a proper name, but repre-
sents some natural object. I am somewhat doubt-
ful as to the sense, but I would suggest that Bray
is directly derived from the Mercian breg, lit. an
eyebrow ; whence also prov. E. bree, the eyebrow ;
cf. A.S. brcew. For this word doubtless had also
the sense of ' hill-side ' ; precisely as in both the
Northumbrian and Wessex dialects. The North-
ern form (from the Norse bra) is now spelt brae,
and is a very familiar word in Scottish ; see brae
in the N.E.D. The Wessex bru, though it is not
really cognate with the words above, likewise had
the double sense of ' eyebrow ' and ' hill-side ' ;
see Brow in the N.E.D. and E.D.D. I suggest,
accordingly, that the original sense was f hill-side '
or 'slope'. Cf. M.E. breu in Stratmann. I very
much doubt whether any of the words or forms
mentioned above are related to the Welsh bre,
Irish bri, a hill ; nor do I assign to them a Celtic
origin. See Urkeltischer Sprachschatz by Whitley
Stokes, p. 171. Bray, in Wicklow, has an English
name, which translates the older Celtic Bree
(Joyce). The Mercian forms breg, bregh are given
in Bosworth's Diet., s.v. breaw. An old notion
that Bray represents the Latin Bibracte (!) need
not be seriously considered.
Shaw ; or Shaw-cum-Donnington. On the N.
bank of the Lambourne. Spelt Shaghe, F.A.
(131 6); Schawe, T.E. D.B. has the strange Nor-
man spelling Essages ; p. 14. Here ss is for sh ;
and the vowel E is prefixed. The A.S. form is
Scaga, meaning ' thicket ' or ' wood '.
SHIPPON, SPEEN 111
Shippon. One mile from Abingdon. Spelt
Slmpene, F.A. (131 6); Scippene, Chronicle of
Abingdon, ii. 285; Scipena, id. ii. 19 (a.d. 1087-
1100). The A.S. form is so/pen, a cow-house, a
cattle-shed ; still common as prov. E. shippen or
skuppen.
Speen, or Speenhamland. Near Newbury.
Spelt Spene cum Woodspene et Spenhamlonde, F.A.
(1316); Spate, H.R. ; T.E. ; Spenes, T.N., Cl.R. ;
Spenhamland, Ab. In a Grant by King Kenulf,
a.d. 821, we find: 'cum ilia silva integra quae
dicitur Spene Pohanlech et Trinlech ' ; Birch, C.S.
i. 506 ; Avhere another MS. has Spene wohanlaeh
et trindlaeh (footnote to the same). D.B. has
Spone (not Spene); p. 15. The A.S. form is,
accordingly, Spene, an adjectival form (like cene,
grene) derived from a sb. Spoil (whence the form
Spone in D.B.). The A.S. span (modern E. spoon)
meant originally a chip, a thin shaving, thin plank ;
another sense was, doubtless, a wooden shingle or
wooden tile for roofing or protecting the front of a
house. Cf. lce\. spon-thak, zthakch. of shingles, sparara,
sponn, a chip, shingle for thatching ; Swed. span,
a chip, pi. spanar, or collectively span, shingles,
thin boards to cover houses (Widegren) ; E.
Friesic spun, a chip, shingle, sponen, adj., made oi
shingles. I suppose that the place (and afterwards
the wood spoken of in the A.S. charter) took its
name from a shingled house or building, which was
also called Spen-ham, ' shingled home ' (whence
Speenham and Speenhamland). At any rate this
solution is both possible and probable. Cf. Spondon,
112 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Derb. ; and A.S. Spon-waelle, Spon-ford ; Birch,
C.S. i. 496 ; iii. 288.
It is quite otherwise with the impossible theory,
to be found in any book that treats of the old
Roman roads, which identifies Speen with the old
Roman station called in Spinis, or Spinis, mentioned
in the Itinerary of Antoninus, sections xiii and
xiv. Whether the situation of Speen best fits the
descriptions or not, need not be here considered ;
for even if it can be granted that Speen occupied
the exact position of Spinis or Spinae, there is no
possible connexion between the names, as the
principal vowel-sounds are quite irreconcilable.
The Latin name, if borrowed, would have given
A.S. spin, ' thorn' ; but no such word is known in
A.S. It has been said, with singular simplicity,
that the Lat. spina was so pronounced that the 1
had the sound of the modern Eng. ee ; and there-
fore spina was Speen ! This egregious statement
quite overlooks the fact that the Latin and
Anglo-Saxon e were pronounced alike, so that the
A.S. Spene was sounded something like the
modern English Spainer (to coin a word). And,
in fact, the Latin splen has actually become E.
spleen ; but spina has become spine (through the
Old French espine). As to Speen, cf. prov. E.
spean, a slip of wood, a bar of a gate ; E.D.D. It
should be noted that, topographically, it would be
much better to locate the Latin Spinae at or near
Newbury ; and that the identification of it with
Speen is by no means satisfactory or helpful.
Camden, on this account, seems to suggest that
Spinae was fii'st of all at Newbury and afterwards
SPEEN, or SPEENHAMLAND 113
at Speen ; but this assumes that a place has the
power of locomotion ! Such an assumption gives
up the case.
Theale. Near the Kennet, above Reading.
It was once (and still remains) the name of a
hundred. We rind hundred de la Thele, H.R. ; la
Thele, F.A. (131 6). But the word is native, not
Norman ; from the A.S. thel, ' a plank.' The A.S.
shoi-t open e became, regularly, ea in Tudor
English ; as in mete, meat, stelan, to steal, &c. No
doubt thel had the same sense as the com-
pound thelbrycg, f a plank bridge,' as in Birch,
C.S. hi. 682. It meant 'a, plank thrown over
a stream '.
The Rivers of Berkshire.
There is not much to be said of the rivers
of Berkshire. The Thames forms its Northern
boundary, and has a very old name, the origin of
which is wholly unknown. It certainly is not
English. The A.S. spelling is Taemese, or Temese ;
and there was another river of the same name
which gave a name to Tempsford in Beds. The
Normans wrote Th for the initial T, and we still
preserve this absurdity.
The Kennet is certainly of Celtic origin ; see
under Kintbury, p. 23. There is another Kennet
in Cambs., a Kent in Westmoi'land, and a Kent-
ford in Sussex. The sense is unknown.
The origin of the Loddon is unknown. There
is a place called Loddon in Norfolk ; but this may
be a different name.
The names of the Emborne, the Lambourn, and
1257 p
114 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
the Pang or Pangbourn, are all English ; and
have already been explained (pp. 15, 16, 17).
The Ock is from the A.S. Eoccen, which is
frequently mentioned in the charters as the name
of the river ; a name of unknown origin. It easily
came to be pronounced like a modern English
form Yocken ; after which it lost the initial y-
sound and the suffix. The Normans disliked
initial y, and often dropped it. A well-known
example occurs in the A.S. Gippes-wic, which is
now Ipswich. In Birch, C.S. hi. 68, there is
a late copy of a charter dated 955, which contains
the spelling eoccen, altered fourteen lines below
to occen, and even to eccen, which can hardly be
right.
At p. 70 of the same, in the boundaries of
Compton Beauchamp, there is an allusion to
Welandes smidoan, or ' Weland's smithy '. This
is the famous Wayland Smith's Cave, concerning
which much has been written. The spelling with
ay is modern, the correct form being Weland, as
above.
INDEX
Abingdon, 30.
Aldermaston, 89.
Aldworth, 105.
Appleford, 44.
Appleton, 90.
Arborfield, 38.
Ardington, 90.
Ascot, 26.
Asharapstead, 87.
Ashbury, 19.
Ashdown, 31.
Aston Tirrold, 91.
Avington, 91.
Badbury, 20.
Bagley, 71.
Bagnor, 81.
Bagshot, 86.
Balking, 66.
Barkhara, 54.
Basilden, Basildon, 28.
Baynhurst, 65.
Bayworth, 106.
Beedon, 108.
Beenham, Benhara, 54.
-bergh, 13.
Berkshire, 9.
Bessilsleigh, 72.
Binfield, 38.
Binsey, 34.
Bishain, 55.
Blewberry, Blewbury, 20.
Boekhampton, 102.
-bourn, 15.
Bourton, 92.
Boxford, 44.
Bracknell, 53.
Bradfield, 38.
Bray, 109.
Brightwalton, 92.
Brightwell, 103.
Brirapton, 93.
-brook, 19.
Buckland, 71.
Bucklebury, 22.
Burghfield, 39.
-bury, 19.
Buscot, 26.
Catmore, 78.
Chaddleworth, 106.
Challow, 77.
Charlton, 93.
Charney, 34.
Chieveley, 72.
Childrey, 86.
Chilton, 93.
Cholsey, 35.
Clapton, 94.
Clewer, 103.
Coleshill, 62.
-combe, 24.
Compton Beauchamp, 94.
Cookham, 55.
-cot, -cote, 26.
Cotsettlesford, 11.
Courage, 84.
Coxwell, 104.
116 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Cranbourn, 15.
Crookham, 55.
-cross, 27.
Crowthom, 89.
Cuckamslow, 77.
Cumnor, 81.
Denchworth, 106.
-dene, -den, 28.
Denford, 45.
Didcot, 26.
Donnington, 95.
-down, -don, 30.
Draycot, 27.
Drayton, 95.
Duxford, 45.
Early, 72.
Eastbury, 22.
Easthampstead, 87.
Easton, 95.
Eaton Hastings, 95.
Egley, 73.
Enborne, 15.
Englefield, 39.
Eslitesford, 12.
-ey, 34.
Faircross, 27.
Faringdon, 32.
Farnborough, 14.
Fawley, 74.
-field, 38.
Finehampstead, 87.
-ford, 44.
Frilford, 46.
Frilshara, 56.
Fyfield, 39.
Ganfield, 40.
Garford, 46.
Garston, 96.
Ginge, 67.
Goosey, 35.
-grave, 52.
Grimsbury, 22.
Hagbourne, 15.
-hale, 52.
-ham, 53.
Hampstead Marshall, 87.
Hampstead Norris, 88.
-hampton, 102.
-hamstead, 87.
Hanney, 35.
Harwell, 104.
Hatford, 46.
Hawkridge, 84.
-hay, 62.
Hendred, 86.
-hill, 62.
Hinksey, 36.
Hinton Waldrist, 96.
-hithe, 63.
Hodcot, 27.
-holt, 64.
Hornier, 80.
Hundreds of Berkshire, 11.
Hungerford, 47.
Hurley, 74.
-hurst, 64.
Hurst, 65.
Ilsley, 75.
-ing, 66.
Inkpen, 83.
Kennet, river, 23, 113.
Kennington, 97.
Kingston Bagpuize, 98.
Kingston Lisle, 98.
Kintbury, 23.
INDEX
117
Lambourn, 16.
-land, 71.
Leckharapstead, 88.
Letcombe, 24.
-ley, 71.
Lockinge, 67.
Loddon, 113.
Longcot, -27.
Longworth, 107.
-low, 77.
Lyford, 47.
Mackney, 36.
Maidenhead, 63.
Marcham, 56.
-marsh, 78.
-mere (1), 78.
-mere (2), 80.
Midgrham, 57.
Milton, 98.
Moreton, 33.
Moulsford, 48.
Nachededorn, 12.
Newbury, 23.
Oakley, 75.
Oare, 81.
Ock, river, 11, 114.
-or, -ore, 81.
Padworth, 107.
Pangbourn, 17.
Peasemore, 79.
-pen, 83.
Purley, 75.
Pusey, 36.
Radley, 76.
Reading, 69.
Remenham, 57.
-ridge, 81.
Ripplesmere, 80.
-rith, 85.
river-names, 113.
Roborough, 14.
Ruscombe, 25.
Sandford, 49.
Sandhurst, 65.
Sandleford, 49.
Seacourt, 107.
Shalbourne, 17.
Shaw, 110.
Shefford, 50.
Shellingford, 50.
-shet, -sheet, 86.
Shinfield, 41.
Shippon, 111.
Shottesbrook, 19.
Shrivenham, 57.
Sinodun Hill, 33.
Sonning, 69.
Sotwell, 104.
Sparsholt, 64.
Speen, 111.
Stanford, 50.
-stead, 87.
Steventon, 99.
Stratfield, 41.
Streatley, 76.
Sugworth, 108.
Sulham, 58.
Sulhampstead, 88.
Sunninghill, 63.
Sunningwell, 105.
Sutton Courtney, 99.
Swallowfield, 42.
Thames, 113.
Thatcham, 59.
Theale, 113.
-thorn, 89.
118 PLACE-NAMES OF BERKSHIRE
Tidmarsh, 78.
Tilehurst, 65.
-town, -ton, 89.
Tubney, 37.
Twyford, 51.
Uffington, 100.
Ufton Nervet, 100.
Upton, 100.
Wallingford, 51.
Waltham, 59.
Wantage, 70.
-ware, 103.
Warfield, 42.
Wargrave, 52.
Wasing, 70.
Watchfield, 42.
Weland's smithy, 114.
Welford, 51.
-well, 103.
Weston, 101.
Whatcomb, Watcumbe, 95.
Whistley, 76.
Wickham, 60.
Wifol, Wiford, 13.
Windsor, 82.
Winkfield, 43.
Winterbourne, 18.
Wittenham, 60.
Wokefield, 43.
Wokingham, 61.
Woodhay, 62.
Woolhampton, 101.
Woolstone, 101.
Wootton, 102.
-worth, 105.
Wytham, 61.
Yattenden, Yattendon, 29.
Oxford: Printed at the Clarendon Press by Horace Hart, M.A.
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