Names retating to Religious Worship. 95 
local names we do find it so used: thus “ ASelwulfing lond ” (Cod. 
Dipl., 179) is exactly equivalent to “ ASelwulfes lond,” the land of a 
luke AiSelwulf, not of a family called Mdelwulfings.” So again 
“Set Folewining lond,” and “ St Wynhearding lond” (Cod. Dipl., 
195), imply the land of Folewine and of Wyneheard, not of marks 
or families called Folewinings and Wyneheardings. Woolbedington, 
Woollavington, Barlavington, are respectively Wulfbeding-tin, 
Wulfléfing-ttin, Bedérléfing-twin, that is, the ¢ém or dwelling of 
Wulfléf, Wulflbed, and Beérléf. Between such words and genuine 
patronymics the line must be carefully drawn, a task which requires 
both skill and experience. The best security is where we find the 
patronymic in the genitive plural—(with the termination, that is, of 
inga, as in examples just given)—but one can very generally judge 
whether the name is such as to have arisen in the way described 
above, from a genitive singular. Changes for the sake of euphony 
must also be guarded against, as sources of error: thus Abingdon 
(in Berks) might impel us strongly to assume a family of ‘ Abingas;’ 
the Saxon name Aibban-din convinces that it was named from an 
Atbba (m.), or Abbe (f.). So Dunnington is not Duninga-tin but 
Dunnan-tin that is Dunna’s (=Dunn’s?) tén, or dwelling.” 
TV.—Names which have reference to the Religious Worship of 
those who from time to time settled in this part of the country. 
Under this head will be ineluded those which illustrate alike the 
heathendom and the early Christianity of our Teutonic forefathers. 
60. (a) Of the former perhaps the best known is the name which 
now appears as WaNsDYKE, the largest of the ancient Wiltshire Dykes, 
_ and which is found in the charters invariably as Wopnzs-Dic, that 
| is, Woden’s-dyke. Again, in the land-limits of Alton Priors we have 
| the name Wodunes-beorg, which is the original form of what we know 
~ as Woodborough, meaning Woden’s Hill (Cod. Dipl., 1035). Then 
we have Wodnes-den in the land-limits of Overton (Cod. Dipl., 1120). 
“So common in every part of England,” says Kemble, “ are names of 
places compounded with this name, that we must admit the worship of 
Woden to have been current throughout the island: it seemsimpossible 
_ to doubt that in every quarter there were localities ' Mee rising 
é 1Saxons in England, i., 343, 

