67 



castle, now used as a farmhouse; while near Sherborne we find 

 Bradford Abbas, a place formerly belonging to the abbey at Sher- 

 borne, and Thornford, so called probably because of a remarkable 

 thicket of thorns which grew near. 



The wells give us Wool or Welle, Ulwell (holy well), Warm- 

 well (Wermund, a Saxon owned the well), Poxwell (Pocca's well), 

 Askerswell (the well of Asker, a Saxon), Holwell (Holywell), and 

 Belchalwell (the beautiful cold well). 



From water mills the names of the following places are derived • 

 Fontmell Magna (in Domesday book we read three mills here pay 

 J IS. yd.), Corfe Mullen, Melbury Abbas (the place formerly 

 belonged to Sherborne Abbey), Melbury Bubb (the Bobbes or 

 Bolbes were the ancient owners), Melbury Osmund (the church is 

 dedicated to St. Osmund), and Melbury Sampford (the Sanfords 

 were the owners in the reign of Henry III.) 



Then we come to a number of places which derive their names 

 from water in various ways. We have Poole (Brit., pu/ oi pol, a 

 pool), Radipole (the reedy pool), Bradpole (the broad pool), Pulham 

 (a dwelling by a pool), Dorchester (Brit., dur, meaning water and 

 ceastre, a camp). Fleet {^., fleet, a place where the tide comes up), 

 Hamworthy (S., ham, a dwelling, and iveorth, meaning near a shore, 

 and hence the dwelling by the shore), Wyke Regis (S., ivyke, a curve 

 or reach of the sea, or a winding of the shore), Longfieet, Creek- 

 moor, Sherborne (S., sdre, meaning clear, pure, and hurne, a stream 

 or brook), Wareham (either from wear or ivare, meaning a dam, 

 or var a river, re two, ham, dwelling place, and hence the dwelling 

 place between two rivers, in this case the Trent and the Frome), 

 and Witchampton, which means a place on a winding river. 



Turning to the surface we get the Saxon word comb, meaning a 

 valley, constantly occurring. We find Bincombe (S., bifinan-comb, 

 means the inside dell), Chilcombe (S., ali, meaning cold), the 

 present village is on a hill, but the ancient parish was in a valley, 

 Melcombe Bingham (the Binghams were the owners in former 

 times), Melcombe Regis, Coomb Keynes (formerly held by the same 

 Kaynes who owned Tarrant Keynstone), Compton Abbas (once the 

 property of the abbey at Shaftesbury), Corscombe, Watercombe, 

 Bettiscombe, Encombe (in a valley), Thorncombe, Botcombe, 

 Nether (lower) Compton, Over (higher) Compton, and Compton 

 Valence, which, in the reign of Henry HI. was granted to William 

 de Valence, who afterwards became Earl of Pembroke, having 

 married the heiress. Corfe Castle, formerly Corves geat, owes its 

 name to the Saxon word ceorfan, meaning to cut, and referring to 

 its situation in a gap, or as it were, a cleft or cut in the hills, while 

 geai is the Saxon for gate or entrance. 



The hills give us Bindon, Hilton, Church Knowle (S', cjtolle^ 

 meaning the top of a hill or an ascent), Puncknowle, Marnhull 

 (Marl hill), Pentridge (Brit.,/^«, meaning a head or chief part, and 

 ridge, the ridge of a hill). Broad Windsor {broad, to distinguish it from 

 Littlewindsor, and Windsor, a winding bank or range of hills), 

 Steeple, from its situation under a steep hill, Swyre which derives 



