This is fascinating! Norsemen were active throughout Europe in the 9th century. Some local Viking placenames - Barkestone - 'Borkr's tun' = Bark's farm - Borkr was a common Norse name. Many thanks for your article, it is very informative, and have often wondered where the names like Wark and Felton (North of Newcastle ) originated from . Chester-le-Street: Places containing the word Chester are usually Anglo-Saxon in origin even though they refer to the earlier site of a Roman fort. The map also shows the density of Viking settlement names ending in 'thorpe', 'toft' and 'by'. The Vikings of Normandy In other cases the Norse suffix was added to an Anglo-Saxon word or name. Many of these wouldnt seem at all out of place in North Yorkshire. There are several places with the lundur ending in Iceland, including Bjarkarlundur in the South Westfjords. Some places include: Mablethorpe, Moorthorpe and Cleethorpes (if you allow a 's' on the end). Le was added by the Normans as part of a suffix to distinguish places with similar names Le-Street distinguishes it from other places called Chester. Two particularly common examples in East Ireland are the suffixes holm, hlm which translates as small island or hill, and -firth suffix, derived from fjr, which means fjord. Later it became the home of a castle and palace belonging to the Bishops of Durham hence the Bishop part of the name. Adlestrop and Southrope). -beuf: bmeaning town or farm. Fierce raiders, depicted on the Lindisfarne Stone. -by or -bie: town, farm or settlement. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. these is a topic on cities and the patterns in cities, Whenever I answer 6 mark questions, i alwys get 3/6 and i don't know how i am suppost to get 6/6. You are politely asked 'Please slow, For part I of this post CLICK HERE Peoples, languages and cultures Thorfast's new improved comb. All actual places, only two minor errors York was a major centre for traders and craftsmen in Viking times. Before thelfriths time it was known by the Celtic name Din Guayroi. The suffix -gate from gata, which means street or road. The easiest and quickest approach is to look for the place names ending in by, meaning town or farm. What was made in Viking AgeJorvik (York)? (originally Fulcatorp). Note that this is by no means a complete list. There are a number of Snfells in Iceland, and then of course there is the snow-mountain-glacier, or Snfellsjkull. DAVID SIMPSON explores the sometimes surprising meanings of place-names in the North East region. -by or -bie: town, farm or settlement. clett: klett, meaning rock or cliffs. Its from the Old English (Anglo-Saxon) hlaw meaning hill. These are known as 'Grimston hybrids', because -ton is an Anglo-Saxon word meaning town or village, and Grim is a Viking name. So-called 'Grimston hybrids' - place-names that are a mixture of Anglo-Saxon and Viking words ( -ton is an Anglo-Saxon word meaning town or village, and Grimr is a Viking . Nordic place names can be found all over the UK, but especially in and around Yorkshire. This word even exists in English in the word by-law, which means local law of the town. Most of the place names beginning with sk-, for example, show Old Norse linguistic influence. strand: strnd, meaning coast. Netherthorpe. Look for Icelandic place names ending in -haugur or beginning with Haug-. Egilsay simply means Egils Island. . All of these are found as parts of place names in Iceland as well. Place names ending in -thorpe, such as Scunthorpe. In other cases the Norse suffix was added to an Anglo-Saxon word or name. The Street The easiest and quickest approach is to look for the place names ending in by, meaning town or farm. Another suffix is -thorpe, with 155 place names ending in -thorpe in Yorkshire alone. Photo/Wikimedia Creative Commons license. On the surface Ashington looks like the place belonging to the people of a person called Ash or something similar. Do you want to know more about this subject? All of these are found as parts of place names in Iceland as well. lads Ill tell ye aboot the Tangled Worm, The ancient broken counties of Tyne, Wear and Tees, A human is a bundle of energy gathering protons, neutrons and electrons, Life behind the lens of a North East photographer, The past is a wonderful place to visit but its not a place to permanently stay, From local fun run to the worlds best half marathon, From whisky and flour to an unbeatable music hub, Cyclists Paradise: Keeping fit and enjoying the regions landscapes, Cathedrals Treasures are the Tutankhamun of the North-East, Listed Buildings Heritage in North East England, Review: Hops and hysterics at Wylam Brewery, Ill boo your team, but drink your beer., Three brothers, four starring roles and one proud mum, Its a Chefs Wife : Playing the chain game, Green Party leader presents alternative plans for Durham, Newcastle vets saving lives of Sri Lankan street dogs. Each name will also be given in one or more runic alphabets, and will be linked to appropriate place-names where relevant. Sailing from their original homeland in Scandinavia the Vikings colonized the islands of the North Atlantic, including Iceland, and settled along the coasts of Western- and Northern Europe, reaching as far as Greenland and even the shores of North America. -dalle: dal meaning valley. Join our weekly hand curated newsletter to have all the latest news from Iceland sent to you. -dalle: dal meaning valley. The White Mound. on the traditional Anglo-Saxon sites. For example, places ending in '-thorpe' were often small Viking settlements, '-thwaite' meant settlements carved out of woodlands and '-by' meant settlement. The ending of the name in thorpe meaning new village in Norse, show it was a Viking settlement. The name ending "beck" denotes a small water course. I havent seen it anywhere else. However, even if the Vikings themselves and any physical remains they might have left behind, have long since disappeared, they did leave unmistakeable marks on the landscape in the local place names: Wherever the Vikings settled we can find place names with Norse origins. names are connected with secondary settlement, where the settlements were on the margins or on poor lands. And, next time you're in a Thorpe, a Howe, a Kirkby, or even in Grunty Fen (our favourite place name), think of the Vikings who've left an indelible mark . Geoff. The Viking word for street is 'gate' and street names ending in 'gate' are evidence of Viking settlement. To help you find these Viking footprints on the map we prepared this guide. would be very appreciated! So in Viking times a by place-name had a higher status than a thorpe place-name. The experts will have knowledge of how these languages evolved and changed over time and in the case of Old English and Old Norse, how they fused together along with the later Norman French to form the basis of the English language as we know it today. Have you had an experience related to the contents of this article? Warkworth: Wark comes from weorc an earthwork or castle and worth means an enclosed settlement. These are sometimes wholly in Old Norse, and sometimes they are in a mixture of Old Norse and Old English, suggesting interaction between the incomers and the locals. After winning 11 games this season with the Huskies' bowl victory over Texas, t he nation's leader in passing yards emerged as a household-name for college football fans on the West Coast as he . Jordanthorpe Nowadays, these mostly refer to villages, but some of these have grown into sizeable towns, such as Grimsby in Lincolnshire. Scunthorpe is a town in Lincolnshire, England. Evidence that the Vikings settled there is found in street names. Look for dalur in Iceland, an extremely common suffix. Hartlepool : Means Stag Island Pool. However, the modern Icelandic word for a village is orp. Viking settlements were on entirely new sites: many Viking settlements continued i know they transport the iron-ore to Sao Luis but not where in the amazon the project actually is. However, a place called Spjtahlmaflaga in about the same place. : In some cases the Nordic names replaced the local names. it cant be boring! It is in fact a serious scholarly study and often a complicated one at that. There are 210 by place names in Yorkshire alone. holm: hlm, meaning small island. These are known as 'Grimston hybrids', because -ton is an Anglo-Saxon word meaning town or village, and Grim is . Thorps in Dungeons and Dragons are defined as having between 20-80 people while those in Pathfinder have 20 or fewer. Most of the Viking trading posts or colonies have long since disappeared, disappearing into the mists of time or swallowed up by the surrounding culture. Many place-names (mostly ending in -by, such as Selby) are from Old Norse in origin. In some cases the Nordic names replaced the local names. So there are lots of names that are thorpe but most likely not Viking place-names Some place-names give clues to the origins of the early settlers who founded the place. lunn: lund, meaning grove. Place-names ending in thorpe are Viking just like those ending in by. A borough was a town and the five towns were Leicester . how long is it to go from England to kieder, two examples of different geographical features from a river, Using links between historical, environmental and social economic reasons. The idea is that a Viking took over an Anglo-Saxon place and called it after himself. The Vikings did not leave as large an imprint on the landscape of France or even Normandy, where their influence was greatest. firth: fjr, meaning fjord. (Women's names . We take place-names for granted but all have an origin and meaning that is often long forgotten or sometimes lost in time. In other cases Viking place names can be identified by the use of a Norse suffix, like thorpe which means village or -by, which can both mean village or town, as in Grimsby, which simply means the town or farm of Grmur. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Du3_JHH5zC4&list=PLqkZM0deNugtwPmeVOQf2IV1x3Y37k1hX, Gemmas Journey : Theatre, Culture, Events, Berts Blogs: Energy, Science and Reminiscenses, North East Maps, Gifts and Clothes by Tangled Worm, North East Quiz Number 1: Test Your North East Knowledge, Explore the magic of sculpture at Cheeseburn, Jewels of emotion admired beyond our inspirational shores, Stunning, timeless timelapse for the North East, North East Culture, Creativity and Connections. thanks. In Old Danish a by was a Viking farm or village and even today a quick scan of a map of Denmark and youll find dozens and dozens of little villages with names like Norby, Kaerby, Staby, Balleby, Foldby, Karlby, Draby, Voldby, Rakkeby and Mejby. Some historians Photo/Abraham Ortelius. One theory is that it is named from its middle location between the historic Christian centres of Whitby and Durham. dale: dal, meaning valley. Don't worry, we won't spam you. Netherthorpe, Sheffield has many districts with a Thorpe suffix, though I suspect some are modern, in the fashion of Viking place names. Place names ending in -by, -wick, -howe, -thorpe, and -thwaite are indicative of names whose origins lie in Norse. Place names ending in -thorpe (or -thorp, -throp or -trop) eg. Its my Geog homework i just can't get my head around it. These are the most common suffixes of Norse origin found in Normandy: -tot: tft meaning farm. The best places to look Using place names, then, historians and linguists are able to determine the spread of Viking settlements, finding that the further north one goes, the more obvious is the Scandinavian influence. vat: vatn, meaning lake. Viking but Germanic (Angle, Saxon etc). Anglo-Saxon place names end in -ham, -ing, -stowe, -stead, - and -ton. Unlike other le place-names it doesnt use hyphens but it could easily have been called Hart-le-Pool. Darlington : Originally something like Deornoths Peoples enclosure. She admits that she didn't create the map, which she said she found on Reddit. This suggests that they came to settle as well as to raid and fight. Torp was the Viking equivalent of similar Germanic words and had The Wiske is a tributary of the Swale and has an Anglo-Saxon name that means damp meadow. There are 155 place names ending in -thorpe in Yorkshire. Looking for a tutor to help me with an argumentative essay on climate change. Many places ending in words like -thorpe, -toft, -ness, -by, and -kirk are likely to be Norse in origin. 2nd level -place names ending in thorpe, by, thwaite, toft -family names ending in son -semantic shift and borrowing -fragment+bread=loag changes in pronounciation ON kid vs. OE cild ON kirk vs. OE cirice Old norse g used for OE j ON egg vs. OE ey changes in inflection simplification and loss of inflectional morphology Rivers, becks, burns and linns : Whats in a (North East) Place-Name? Did you know that Sunderland was the sundered or separated land; Newcastle was simply a New Castle and Gateshead was, quite strangely, the head of the she-goat? Did you know that Thorpe was a place name given by the Vikings for a a settlement or a farm? The Icelandic equivalent is br which is a very common suffix. Some place-names give clues to the origins of the early settlers who founded the place. Street usually refers to a Roman road. Other common Scandinavian place names are those ending in -thorpe (meaning 'a new village'), as in Scunthorpe (meaning 'Skuma's village'), or -thwaite (meaning 'a meadow', 'a piece of land'), as . Another factor is that few large These (-by) endings effectively meant it was a village or settlement. There are literally thousands of place names in England, of Viking origin, and hundreds in Western Europe. -beuf: bmeaning town or farm. Place names as a mixture of Anglo-Saxon and Viking words. In England Viking place names are of course most common in the area known as the Danelaw, the areas where Danish law applied in Northern and Eastern England, the shires of Yorkshire, Leicester, Nottingham, Derby, Stamford, Lincoln and Essex. Viking origins because the word was also used by tribes from North Place names as a mixture of Anglo-Saxon and Viking words. -hogue: haug meaning small hill or mound. wick: vk, meaning bay. or boats, such as the 'keel' of a boat, which indicate the importance of farming Viking place names end in -by, -thorpe, -toft, and -scale. Header image:Mi D 529 (c) University of Nottingham Manuscripts and Special Collections, used with permission, Traders, raiders, and artists? Vikings Things like exam techniques and revision techniques will be sooo helpful. Scunthorpe is a town in Lincolnshire, England. I would love to know what Law means in the north east as in Charlaw Inn or Pelaw and many others. S horpe and Grimethorpe-thorpe meant farms.Place names ending in -toft or-tofts.A -toft referred to the site of a house or a plot of land.Viking Wordshs = householme = islet; dry . Skellingthorpe is similar, and is pure Viking. Why do we protect some areas from flooding but not others? sker: sker, meaning skerry. The Vikings DID invade so the answer to your question is "yes." garth: gar, meaning enclosure. Finding these place names isnt that hard if you know what you are looking for. Place-names ending in -thorpe, such as Scunthorpe - thorpe is the Old Norse word for village or farmstead. Viking place names are understandably more common in the areas where Viking settlement and influences were most dense and Viking influences were strongest. Especially if you are searching for a place name in Iceland. The second element is called the generic and refers to the kind of place being named.