Hinton (place name)
The former monastery of Wimbourne held land here.
Hinton is a place name of Old English origin, and is a common English village name, particularly in Southern England. Village names often include a suffix, for example Hinton on the Green and Hinton-in-the-Hedges.
The place-name is closely related to other place-names that may derive from Old English hēah (or hēa, hēan), meaning "high" or "tall", such as Highham, Heaton, and Hampton.
Etymology
[edit]The place name Hinton is of Old English origin, and usually derives from either:
- Old English hiwan (or higna,[1] hina[2]), meaning "members of a family, household or religious house",[3][4] or "farm of the monks or of the nuns".[1]
- Old English hēah (or hēan), [1][2] meaning "high, tall" or "exalted, important".
The suffix is from Old English tūn, meaning "an enclosed piece of ground" or "a village or town".
Examples
[edit]List of examples
[edit]Sortable list of examples:
| Place name | County | Location | Domesday entry | Etymology | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hinton on the Green | Worcestershire | 52°04′N 1°58′W / 52.06°N 1.96°W | Hinetune.[5] St. Peter's Abbey |
higna.[2][1] ("monastery") |
In 981 Elfleda granted the manor to St. Peter's Abbey. |
| Hinton-in-the-Hedges | Northamptonshire | 52°01′30″N 1°11′20″W / 52.025°N 1.189°W | Hintone.[6] Geoffrey de Mandeville |
See below. | There is no known record of monastic settlement. |
| Hinton Blewett | Somerset | 51°18′32″N 2°34′59″W / 51.309°N 2.583°W | Hantone.[7] William of Eu |
hēan.[2][1] ("high") |
|
| Hinton St Mary | Dorset | 50°56′38″N 2°18′22″W / 50.944°N 2.306°W | Haintone.[8] Shaftesbury Abbey |
hēan.[2][1] ("high") |
The village occupies a hill overlooking the River Stour. |
| Hinton St George | Somerset | 50°54′32″N 2°49′08″W / 50.909°N 2.819°W | Hantone.[9] William of Eu |
hēan.[2][1] ("high") |
|
| Hinton Martell | Dorset | 50°51′14″N 1°58′59″W / 50.854°N 1.983°W | Hinetone.[10] Gilbert de Magminot |
higna.[2][1] ("monastery") |
Former monastery of Wimbourne Minster held land here. |
Hinton-in-the-Hedges
[edit]The name was previously recorded as Hynton in the edge (1549).[2] The toponym might be: "Village in the hill-side".
The etymology is uncertain. The etymologist Victor Watts proposed that the name derives from Old English hina,[2] which is normally used in the context of a monastery or other community.[2] However, there is no known record of a monastic settlement.
Another possibility is that the name derives from Old English hēah ("high). The name element edge refers to a hill-side or escarpment (also found in nearby Edge Hill and Edgcote) – the village is on the rim of a plateau used by the Hinton-in-the-Hedges Airfield. The Holy Trinity Church is 128m above sea level, while the church at nearby Westbury is only 103m above sea level.
List of place-names in England
[edit]Sortable list of Hinton place-names:
See also
[edit]References
[edit]Citations
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g h Reaney 1969, pp. 39.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Watts 2007, pp. 306.
- ^ Clark Hall 1916, p. 343.
- ^ Watts 2007, p. 306. "Such a manor was set aside for the support of the domestic servants of a religious or other household"
- ^ *"Hinton [-on-the-Green]". Open Domesday. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
- ^ *"Hinton [-in-the-Hedges]". Open Domesday. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
- ^ *"Hinton [Blewitt]". Open Domesday. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
- ^ *"Hinton [St Mary]". Open Domesday. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
- ^ *"Hinton [St George]". Open Domesday. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
- ^ *"Hinton [Martell]". Open Domesday. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
Bibliography
[edit]- Clark Hall, John Richard (1916). A Concise Anglo−Saxon Dictionary, Second Edition. The Macmillan Company.
- Reaney, P. H. (1969). The Origin of English Place Names. Routledge & Kegan Paul.
- Watts, Victor (2007). The Cambridge Dictionary of English Place-Names. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-16855-7.
External links
[edit]- Open Domesday
- Survey of English Place-Names University of Nottingham