WHAT'S IN A NAME???

Guest blogger ~ post written by JPE

I've become very curious about the suffixes

found in London names.

There are ---hams everywhere, such as in Tottenham, Wickham & Buckingham; and 

---bury, as in Salisbury & Canterbury.

Of course, we find the same suffixes in the US too.

It turns out ---ham is related to our word for

"home" & refers to a homestead or settlement.

The word "hamlet" also derives from this origin.

Both ---bury & ---borough

derive from the German "burgh" or "berg"

meaning castle.

A ---bury was an enclosed settlement.

The word "borough" evolved to define a county or region. Many cities in the UK & US continue to have 

divisions by "boroughs."

Canterbury means the "walled settlement of Kent." 

So, what is a ---wick, as in Chiswick or Gatwick? 

 What is a ---ton, as in Kensington or Winston?

 How about ---coomb or ---combe, as in Batcombe or Lyncombe?

AND, what is a ---stoke, as in Northstoke or Graystoke? 

Finally, how about ---ford, as in Stanford or Oxford? 

Did I peak your curiosity?

the answers can be found at these very

COOL websites.

Institute for Name Studies

Origins of Some Name Places