Where Do You Come From?

Travelling cross-country over the past few days at home have reminded me of the many interesting place-names there. Barton in the Beans, for example, is named for the local produce, Ratcliffe on the Wreake, a geographical name. Foxton, Bruntingthorpe, Groby, suffixes indicate they are named in the Northern Danelaw fashion. In fact, Leicestershire has a range of name origins besides these -thorpes and -bys, there are many -tons, -leys and -hams from Anglo Saxon, with a few Magnas and Parvas thrown in. They are entered in the Domesday Book, that definitive work created on the orders of William the Conqueror to determine exactly what his new kingdom was worth by way of land ownership, workforce and produce.

This edition contains more recent historical facts and makes fascinating reading, especially when familiar with an area and makes travelling even more interesting.