Making It Up

Contact

Place Names

—

by

Tim
in

I think I have probably blogged before about English place names.

But a couple of things have made me think about them again today. First, I heard an archaeologist on Radio 4 earlier talking about place names which contain the word ‘raven’. What she said was fairly straightforward, ravens are carrion eaters, so they tended to congregate by the town midden. Hence, somewhere with the delightful name Ravenswood, for example, probably really means it had a fairly smelly past.

Then I chanced across ‘Long Tongue Scrog Lane’, wouldn’t it be fabulous to live somewhere like that? “Could I have your address please” “Long Tongue Scrog Lane” “???…can you spell that please”. Mind you I do get fed up with having to recite our current address, so I expect the charm might wear thin.

Other favourites of mine are:

Grunty Fen, Pidley Fen, Clowne, Dudley (only when spoken by someone born there),

Happisburgh, Wymondham, Heckmondwyke and Mytholmroyd.

But some of them, Woodbridge, Shingle Street, are lovely for just setting out the plain obvious.

Home Ed Inspiration, Ideas, and Activities

Click the links below and scroll through my collection of ideas, workshops, excursions, and more to discover practical everyday activities you can do together in and around your home classroom.

Home Education Inspiration
Home Ed: Ideas and Activities
Home Ed: Topics and Discussion
Exploring Neurodivergence in Children

Comments

16 responses to “Place Names”

  1. Jax avatar
    Jax

    I like Pity Me and No Place.

    Reply
  2. Bob avatar
    Bob

    Six Mile Bottom?

    Reply
  3. Tim avatar
    Tim

    Six Mile Bottom, yourself.
    I also like it when I see signs pointing to ‘The Chalfonts’, must be wonderful to be such an important family, you get your own road sign.

    Reply
  4. Raymond Lesley avatar
    Raymond Lesley

    My favourite was always a place – pretty much uninhabited, but marked on the map – in the middle of nowhere, north of Brighton called Cow Bottom Hovel.

    Reply
  5. Tim avatar
    Tim

    Cow Bottom Hovel is hard to find – finally found it here just south of Badgerhole Shaw. 🙂

    Reply
  6. Deb avatar
    Deb

    I want to live in Uncouth Road, which is just down the road from where my friend lives near Rochdale. And I want to know how it came to be called that 🙂
    The town I *do* live in was mentioned on University Challenge last night – how’s that for a claim to fame? LOL

    Reply
  7. Clare avatar
    Clare

    My Dad’s middle name is from Wymondham but because no one can pronounce or spell it correctly his parents changed the spelling to Wyndham. Very strange decision when you consider that very rarely do you use your full middle name!
    Clare
    x

    Reply
  8. Tim avatar
    Tim

    Deb, Uncouth Road is next to Halliwell Street. Uncouth and Halliwell normally do go together. 🙂

    Reply
  9. Daddybean avatar
    Daddybean

    I just wonder how they get to the pronunciation of Happisburgh (sort of hazeborough for those who don’t know).
    Then again it is in Norfolk

    Reply
  10. Em avatar
    Em

    I like Puncknowle near where I used to live. gold star for anyone that knows how to say it 🙂

    Reply
  11. Gill avatar
    Gill

    Er – Punk Noel, Em?
    Clueless, really!

    Reply
  12. dottyspots avatar
    dottyspots

    I used to live by Shrewley and Mouseley End (and next to them was Hawks Nest, which must have kept them on their toes 😉
    I still giggle everytime we drive past Wetwang *sigh* 😀

    Reply
  13. Tim avatar
    Tim

    I also like Nettlebed, near Reading, I used to drive through there to see a friend who lived at Gallowstree Common.

    Reply
  14. Tim avatar
    Tim

    I also just remembered Dragarse Hill, sadly omitted on most maps, but it was the road that led from Wickham Market to the local gibbet, Potsford Gibbet.

    Reply
  15. Brenda Wood avatar
    Brenda Wood

    I live on Long Tongue Scrog Lane and believe me, it is a pain to have to spell it out every time! But different!

    Reply
  16. Andrea G avatar
    Andrea G

    Another odd pronounciation (along the lines of Happisburgh and Wymondham)
    I used to live in Hertfordshire not far from somewhere called Haultwick pronounced ‘artic’ !!!

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Get in Touch

Need support for your home ed journey? Looking for tutoring for your young person? Have an idea for a collaboration? I’d love to hear from you!

Get in Touch

How I Can Help

After 20+ years of home educating my four children (two now adults), I’ve gathered a wealth of experience that I’m passionate about sharing. Beyond blogging and guest writing, I offer several services designed to support families on their home education journey.

Resources to Support Your Home Ed Journey

I’ve put together a collection of resources that I’ve genuinely found useful over the years—things that have actually made a difference in our home education. Whether you’re just starting out or looking to freshen things up, there’s something here to help. These are the tools, guides, and materials I’d recommend to a friend, because they work.

Featured products

Browse the Shop