244 Etymology of some Names of Places, by R. Carr-Ellison. 



III. — Cunion Crag. 



The grand ice-rounded crag on Dunmoor-hill bears the 

 name of Cunion. It is obviously a British plural, like 

 Dynion, men, from Dyn, a man : Druidion, Druids. Owen 

 Pugh says that cun is a leader, or chieftain — plural, cunon, 

 but also cmiion. In Wales we have a well-known scene of 

 rocks called Cerrig-y-Bruidion, or, Creigan Derwyddon, 

 rocks of the Druids — or, perhaps, Druid-like rocks. Craig, 

 plural Creigiau, crag, crags. Creigiau Cunion, would be 

 Chieftain Rocks. But to express Rocks of the Chieftains, it 

 should be, I believe, Creigiau-y-Gunion, changing C into G. 



IV. — Hedgeley. 



Anciently written Hiddeslie and Higgeleye in the Pipe- 

 roll and other early muniments, which I have often consulted 

 for it ; and it is still pronounced as if written with i short. 

 Yet Hedge is never pronounced hidge, and we may be quite 

 sure that Hedge has only a conventional place in this topical 

 name. In all likelihood its etymology is hige-leag, from 

 Anglo-Saxon Mgvu, a family (pronounced heegu) or house- 

 hold, domestics included. It might signify a site brought 

 into cultivation entirely by the domestic labour. It cannot 

 be from heah, high, because the site of the township was 

 anything but elevated, being at Low-Hedgeley only seventy 

 feet above the Breamish, where its foundations exist on the 

 green Rabbit-Banks. Also, because heak-leag would pro- 

 duce Healey, or Heeley, or Highley — not Hedgeley. But as 

 Hedgeley is a pleasing name it need not be changed. If 

 there was not a hedge there, there might have been. When 

 Sir Walter Scott was asked "Whether The Abbot ever 

 forded at Abbotsford ? " he replied, " He might have done 

 so." But it is well to remember the probable, and not unin- 

 teresting real etymology of Hedgeley. 



V. — Yevering and Yevering Bell. 



I had never thought with sufficiently close attention and 

 application to find out what " Yevering " and " ad Gebryn " 

 and " Gefrin " could really be ; though, in a cursory way, I 

 had sometimes guessed. Anglo-Saxon brynan is " to bren," 

 as our old folk still properly say. They bren the stick's, 

 but the sticks bum, Anglo-Saxon byrnan. I think Yever- 

 ing will turn out to be a place of gebryne, or Heathen Saxon 



