65 



Place Names in Dorset. 



Their Association with the Geography of the County. 



By W. J. Stanton, Esq. 



{Read before the Geographical Sectio?n on 24th April, ^909)- 



Many of the place-names in Dorset may be conveniently 

 arranged under certain geographical heads. First, there are those 

 connected with water ; and when, as in Dorset, between a hundred 

 and a hundred and fifty names can be so associated, there can be no 

 doubt in our minds as to where our early predecessors chose to 

 make their dwelling places. Then our forefathers appear to have 

 chosen the valleys rather than the hills for their villages, for a large 

 number of places so derive their names, and these may therefore be 

 placed second. Then there are the names connected with hills, 

 those with woods and forests, others with the soil and agricultural 

 pursuits, and, lastly, a number which have obtained their names in 

 various ways. 



Taking those connected with water, we find that the names of 

 most of the rivers of the county come from British words meaning 

 a river, stream, water, c&c, and so what were originally common 

 names have become proper ones, e.g., the Stour, formerly called the 

 Sdora or Stora, derives its name from the British word dour or dur, 

 meaning water, the Trent from trouent, a winding riv^er, the Frome 

 from fvau, a stream, the Wey from gwy, meaning water, the Wye 

 in Wales deriving its name similarly, and the Bredy and Brid from 

 brid, to spring forth. 



Then these rivers have given names to many of the places on 

 their banks. On the Stour itself we have East Stour, West Stour, 

 Stour Provost, the latter part derived from Preveaux in France to 

 the monastery of which place it belonged at the time of the Conquest, 

 Sturminster Newton, originally two separate places, Stourpaine, 

 which at one time belonged to the Paynes, and Sturminster Marshall, 

 the manor during John's reign having been in the possession of the 

 Marshals, Earls of Pembroke. The tributaries of the Stour are 

 responsible for many names. The Lydden gave Lydlinch ; the 

 Iwerne supplied Iwerne Courtenay (Shroton or Sheriffstun), Iwerne 

 Minster and Iwerne Steepleton ; the Tarrant (torrent), Tarrant 

 Gunville, Tarrant Hinton, Tarrant Launceston, Tarrant Monkton, 

 Tarrant Rawston, Tarrant Rushton, Tarrant Keyneston (Kaynes' 

 town) and Tarrant Crawford, most of these places obtaining the 

 second portions of their names from their ancient owners. Tarrant 

 Monkton, for example, belonged at one time to the abbey which 

 formerly existed at Cranborne. The Winterborne, so called because 

 in the summer it often reaches only as far as Winterborne Clenston 

 gives names to Winterborne Houghton (Hugh's town), Winterborne 

 Stickland (sticel-land, i.e., steep, sloping land), Winterborne Clenston, 

 (Clench was an ancient owner), Winterborne Whitchurch (Whit, 



