48 TEKSDALE PLACK-NAMI':8. 



. "Croftland, land of superior quality." Jam. Diet. Sup. 



" In Icelandic kn>, pi. kner (Dan. kro), a small pen or fence ; 

 in Iceland the pen in which lambs when weaned are put during 

 the night." Cleasby. A pig-crce or kree, is u j)igstyo in North- 

 umberland. Kro, in Tauchnitz's Eng.-Dan. Diet, is inn, tavern; 

 alehouse. May tlie Tcil. kn) not be the origin of croft? Croft 

 is not found in Ihre's Suio-Cloth. Diet., or in other tongues, 

 unless it is the same as croitt in Manx, which means a croft, 

 small farm, or close. If not derived from Icel. or ^Manx, it is a 

 pure A.-S. word. In Wcl. cae, hi/chan, little field, cadlan, croft. 

 Ir. cae, hedge. 



" Cro/tum, a croft," (in low Lat.) '' a small parcel of ground 

 lying near the dwelling of the owner, but not necessarily adjoin- 

 it — the word is still in use." Uoldon Buke Gloss. 



Croft and toft are often found together in old documents, e.g. 

 " Quidam carbonarius tenel j toftum et j croftum et iv. acras, 

 et invenit caiboncs ad ferramenta carucarum de Coundona." lb. 

 p. 25. 



" Toftum, Cowell says, is a piece of ground on wliich a house 

 formerly stood, and B. Haldorsen describes it as ' area domus 

 vacua, ^ a torn' (empty). The modem Danish definition is a piece 

 of land adjacent to the house of a peasatit. It may liave got its 

 name from the clump of trees among which each cottage was 

 placed." lb. 



" Croft, a small inclosure; larger than a yard, but smaller 

 than a close." Engl. Dialect. Soc. East Yorkshire. 



Examples: — 



Osmond Croft — and there is Osmonflat, q.v., named from some 

 owner or some hero; the possessive s omitted — a Yorkshire 

 habit. Xot likely to have been derived from Ostemen or Host- 

 men, a name used only in some seaports, as Jfewcastle-on-Tyne 

 and Dublin. 



Wharley Croft — perhaps this ought to be Quarrycroft. Quarry 

 is pronounced n-harry. 



Woden Croft — Croft of Odin, Oden, "Woden, Wodan, Guodan, 

 Old Ger. AYuotan, or some man of the name ; men were often 

 named after their gods. 



