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What place-names tell us about the Vale Throughout the East Midlands almost all place-names were coined between the sixth and eleventh centuries – although Norman French names, such as Belvoir, are from the eleventh or twelfth centuries. Furthermore from the twelfth century onwards villages with similar names were differentiated by adding the name of the landowner – think of Cropwell Bishop and Cropwell Butler. Often names are the oldest evidence we have for places. Modern spellings are usually different to the early forms. For example Cropwell was originally 'Crophille' from the Old English words crop hyll which mean 'rounded hill'. Car Colston was originally 'Kirk Colston' which is slightly odd as 'Kirkton' was once used interchangeably with Screveton. This is because Screveton church is somewhat separate from the village, situated halfway between Screveton and Car Colston. Eventually Screveton was used for the main part of the village and Kirketon for the small settlement behind the church with Kirketon Hall. When early spellings are 'unpacked' by experts they usually reveal something of the place's origins. Screveton means ‘farm of the Sheriff’' and 'sherrif' is the Middle English form of Old English scirgerefa, 'shire reeve', then as now the representative of royal authority in a shire. Thoroton is from a Scandinavian man's name – perhaps 'Thurferth', although most other villages nearby are named after men with English names. Askockton, Barnstone and Granby are the exceptions, named after Scandinavians called Aslakr, Beorn and Grani. Muston is the settlement distinctive for mice. Langar is from 'long gore' with 'gore' meaning a triangular shape. Well strictly it means 'spear-shaped' as 'triangle' doesn't enter the English language until the fourteenth century. The eponymous 'spear' of land seems to be the fields between the River Smite and the Stroom Dyke before they flow into each other at the northern end. Clearly the name predates the modern village to the south-east. Possibly the eponymous lang gore of Langar – the land between the two watercourses. Looking south-west along the Stroom Dyke from the road bridge with part of the gore on the right. Hose is named after a distinctively-shaped hill known to the Anglo-Saxons as a hoh. Well clearly more than one such hoh as Hose is the plural. Curiously the village is on level ground. But the Belvoir ridge rises up to the south and two modern farms near the summit seem to have replaced hoh-like knolls. Like Langar the name was coined before the current village was created. Bottesford tells us there was a bottl at a ford. And bottl was Old English for a palatial house. Well palatial by the standards of the time. It was probably a precursor to the Norman castle at Belvoir. Missing medial consonants East Midlands accents are notoriously 'lazy' and drop parts of words. Bottesford clearly lost the medial 'l'. And Screveton is pronounced locally as 'Screeton', just as Muston is contracted to 'Musson'. Both Screeton and Musson are fairly common surnames encountered on memorials so we know this contraction dates back several centuries. Orston lost its medial consonants even earlier. It was once 'Oschintone', the settlement associated with the followers (-ingas) of an Englishman called something like Osica. Originally the name for Orston was identical to Ossington, fifteen miles to the north. Spellar Hill Even minor place-names can be revealing. To the west of Orston is a crossroads. Maps tell us the low eminence is called Spellar Hill. Spellar is Old English for someone giving a speech or reciting stories. So Spellar Hill was a moot site, in other words an outdoor meeting place. This fits with it being on parish boundaries between Orston, Aslockton, Scarrington and Thoroton. See this entry for why those villages were closely-linked in Anglo-Saxon times. There's a Spellow Hill between Bingham and Radcliffe on Trent, from Old English spell hlaw 'speech mound'. That too was a moot site, almost certainly for the Rushcliffe Hundred before the location shifted to Moot House Pit at the side of the Fosse Way. By the way there wasn't a house there. 'House' is a corruption of howe, the Scandinavian word for a mound. When tutors were on the look-out Toot Hill south of Bingham tells us the Anglo-Saxons had a look-out there, keeping an eye on the Trent valley. The origin of 'toot' has never been agreed. The best suggestion is that 'toot' is from a pre-christian tutelary guardian known the the Romans as Toutatis but encountered on Romano-British votive rings inscribed with just 'Tut' (pronounced 'toot' at the time). This means the real origin is from Latin tutorem (nominative tutor) which originally meant 'guardian, watcher' but later evolved into Old French tuteor with the sense of '(private) teacher' and then into Modern English 'tutor'. And there are still tutors at Bingham's Toot Hill School. But probably no shrine to Toutatis… This video includes a broader introduction to Anglo-Saxon place-names: How Anglo-Saxons found their way. The video is a shorter version of this free PDF. Back to top of this page     Back to home page   This website does not gather or store any visitor information. Copyright Bob Trubshaw 2025 No unauthorised copying or reproduction except if all following conditions apply: a: Copy is complete (including this copyright statement). b: No changes are made. c: No charge is made. www.hoap.co.uk/chronicle

Chronicle entries home page what's new? the geology of the Vale the boundaries and rivers of the Vale long, long ago prehistory in the Vale prehistoric boundaries in the Vale north-south prehistoric routeways Romans roads in the Vale Roman settlements in and near the Vale long ago introduction to Anglo-Saxons place-names of the Vale waterborne transport around the sixth century Orston's early church Anglo-Saxon sculpture in the Vale why Orston lost out to Bingham and Bottesford what the Normans did for the Vale Granby's importance in 1086 Granby's lost castle the Vale's watermills in 1086 Romanesque sculpture in the Vale St Remigius why Bottesford is in Leicestershire the Vale in medieval times medieval gargoyles of the Vale Eastwell's chancel screen St Ethelburga's church other early saints Elston's old chapel Muston and Long Clawson saltways of the Vale the Vale's medieval tile collection the Vale in Tudor times Dissolution in the Vale not that long ago the Vale in the C17th the 'great and the good' of the Vale Bottesford's effigies 'wicked practice and sorcerye' the whales on the Whalley memorial Car Colston's bigoted GP cum JP the Vale's very own regicide Wiverton Hall five rare C17th fonts in the Vale pinfolds and pounds in the Vale dovecotes in the Vale the Vale in the C18th turnpiking the Vale gravestones and C18th trade routes goodbye 'Belvoir Angels' C18th gravestone carvers in the Vale Daffy's Elixir the Marquess of Granby Stilton from the Vale springs and spas of the Vale outstanding organs in the Vale Grantham canal changes in the Vale's agriculture since 1800 Eastwell's recusant priest house and chapel Colston Bassett's ruined church seems like yesterday windmills in the Vale stained glass in the Vale village life in the southern Vale 1850 to 1880 folklore of the Vale Flintham museum lacemaking in the Vale gypsum pits in the Vale brick and tile works in the Vale ironstone quarrying in the Vale ironstone railways ironstone quarries of Leicestershire (YouTube video) The Vale's railway stations Orston's famous architect Mothers Union banners of the Vale redundant telephone exchanges in the Vale WWII airfields and pillboxes in the Vale the Vale in 1944 location shooting at Belvoir Castle Screveton's giants researching and writing local history the Vale as a verb getting started free advice from 2005 asking curious questions (YouTube video) local history groups in and around the Vale Aslockton (Cranmer LHG) Bingham Heritage Trails Association Bottesford Eastwell Harby Harlaxton Hickling Redmile archive Belvoir Villages History and Memories Group Belvoir Angel Society Grantham Canal Society you may also be interested in free PDFs written by Bob Trubshaw Earliest Churches in Nottinghamshire How Anglo-Saxons Found Their Way Anglo-Saxon Leicestershire Conversations in Churchyards Little-known Leicestershire and Rutland Bob Trubshaw's YouTube channel Introduction to medieval carvings Anglo-Saxon and Romanesque carvings How Anglo-Saxons found their way Anglo-Saxon shrines at fords Meetings at triangles Rota's Land and Franni's Land Reading Romanesque fonts Church and manor The significances of square headdresses Early churches and waterborne trade Charnwood slate gravestones and C18th trade routes Ironstone quarries of Leicestershire Roman roads in north-east Leicestershire Salt ways in Leicestershire Why Melton Mowbray needed to called 'middle town' Evolving Anglo-Saxon agriculture Nottinghamshire's earliest churches Ploughs not piety? Economic regeneration in the C7th Were Anglo-Saxon weaving huts women-only places? Barrowby Until Now website Rutland Village by Village website Sepulchral Effigies of Leicestershire and Rutland