The county of Cumbria in the north west of England has a long and complex history of human settlement. Geographically, Cumbria is situated right between the four major countries of the British Isles. Historically, the contrasting landscapes between the mountains and the fertile coastal areas and the rich variety of mineral resources available in the county have made it an attractive area for habitation since the Upper Paleolithic, and various ethnic groups have been drawn to the area, leaving their linguistic mark since the Iron Age. Cumbria is a county in the North West region of England. ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: Multiple unofficial anthems Capital London Largest city London Official language(s) English Government Constitutional monarchy  - Queen Queen Elizabeth II  - Prime Minister Tony Blair MP Unification    - by Athelstan AD927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi   - Water (%) Population... The Upper Paleolithic (or Upper Palaeolithic) is the third and last subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age as it is understood in Europe, Africa and Asia. ... Iron Age Axe found on Gotland This article is about the archaeological period known as the Iron Age, for the mythological Iron Age see Iron Age (mythology). ...

Linguistic Influences

Brythonic

General distribution of Brythonic elements

Since the Iron Age, the inhabitants of Cumbria would have spoken Brythonic Celtic, which is related to modern Welsh, Cornish and Breton. Evidence of this language is mostly visible in topological features such as rivers (Kent, Eden, Ehen, Levens) and mountains (Blencathra, Helvellyn, Coniston Old Man). The Brythonic languages (or Brittonic languages) form one of the two branches of the Insular Celtic language family. ... Welsh redirects here, and this article describes the Welsh language. ... The Cornish language (in Cornish: Kernowek, Kernewek, Curnoack) is one of the Brythonic group of Celtic languages that includes Welsh, Breton, the extinct Cumbric and perhaps the hypothetical Ivernic. ... Breton can refer to: The Breton language A person from Brittany, a region of France previously controlled by Britons the Breton people, a Celtic ethnic group native to the region of Brittany Author André Breton Thierry Breton, the French Minister of Economy, Finance, and Industry French realist painter Jules Adolphe...

In the first millennium AD the Brythonic spoken in north west England and southern Scotland developed into a separate strain called Cumbric, which included some influences from Latin picked up during the Roman Occupation of Britain. It is likely that most place names with Brythonic influences have survived from this time (Carlisle, Penrith, Penruddock, Caernarvon) Motto: (Latin for No one provokes me with impunity)1 Anthem: Multiple unofficial anthems Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow Official language(s) English, Gaelic, Scots2 Government Constitutional monarchy (as part of the UK)  - Queen Queen Elizabeth II  - Prime Minister of the UK Tony Blair MP  - First Minister Jack McConnell MSP... Evolution and Extinction Cumbric was the Brythonic Celtic language spoken in much of Cumbria, Northern Northumbria, and parts of lowland Scotland until about the 11th century. ... Latin is an ancient Indo-European language. ...

British influenced place names exist throughout the whole county, but are particularly common around the river valleys of the Lake District and around the coastal plains of the Solway Firth. The panorama across Eskdale from Ill Crag. ... Map of Solway Firth. ...

Common Brythonic Elements

• blaen - 'summit' → blen-
• caer - 'fort'
• creic, carreg - 'rock' → crag
• dun - 'fort'
• pen - 'hill', 'head'

Old English

General distribution of Old English elements

Angles from Deira and Bernicia (later Northumbria would have gradually filtered into Cumbria since the 5th century, but the area retained a distinctly British identity until at least the 8th century. Settlement by the English began in the north, with settlers following the line of Hadrian's Wall and traversing Stainmore Pass then settling the Eden Valley before making their way along the north coast. Some time later they would have begun to move into the Kent Valley, Cartmel and Furness, gradually moving further north along the west coast. Deira (perhaps corresponding with the Brythonic kingdom of Ebrauc) was a kingdom in England during the 6th century AD. It later merged with the kingdom of Bernicia (Brythonic, Brynaich) to the north to form the kingdom of Northumbria. ... Bernicia (Brythonic, Brynaich or Bryneich) was a kingdom of the Angles in northern England during the 6th and 7th centuries AD. It later merged with the kingdom of Deira to form the kingdom of Northumbria. ... Section from Shepherds map of the British Isles about 802 AD showing the kingdom of Northumbria Northumbria is primarily the name of a petty kingdom of Angles which was formed in Great Britain at the beginning of the 7th century, from two smaller kingdoms of Bernicia and Diera, and... Pieces of Hadrians Wall remain near Greenhead and along the route, though large sections have been dismantled over the years to use the stones for various nearby construction projects. ... Eden Valley is a city in Meeker County, Minnesota. ... Kent is a county in England, south-east of London. ... Cartmel is a village in Cumbria several miles west of Grange-over-Sands. ... Furness is a peninsula in north-west England. ...

As a general rule the English stayed out of the mountainous central region and remained in the lowlands, but after the Celtic kingdom of Rheged was annexed to English Northumbria sometime before 730 AD, the Celtic language of Cumbric was slowly replaced by Old English. As a result, Old English elements can be found throughout the county, but mostly in the names of towns and villages (Keswick, Workington, Barrow-in-Furness). Very few rivers or mountains contain Old English elements (Eamont, Stainmore), but many of the lakes contain the element mere, meaning 'lake'. Entrance to the Rheged Discovery Centre Rheged was a Brythonic nation of Sub-Roman Britain, where the natives spoke Cumbric. ... Note: This page contains phonetic information presented in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) using Unicode. ...

Common Old English Elements

• ham - 'home'
• inga - 'descendants of...'
• mer - 'lake' → mere
• ton - 'farm'
• wic - 'farm' (from Latin vicus, often found near Roman roads) → wick

Old Norse

General distribution of Old Norse elements

The Norse appear to have arrived in Cumbria in 925AD and left a huge impression upon the toponymy of Cumbria. Originally from Norway, it is generally accepted that they would have come here via their colonies in Iceland, Ireland and the Isle of Man, perhaps bringing with them a touch of Gaelic influence. Toponymy is the taxonomic study of toponyms (place-names), their origins and their meanings. ...

It seems they would have arrived around the south west of the county and penetrated into the uplands of the central region where the Old Norse influence is dominant. Many mountains, rivers and valleys have Norse names, as attested by the abundance of the elements fell, -ay and dale (Mickledore, Scafell, Rothay, Duddon, Langsleddale, Allerdale). Many town and villages also contain Norse elements (Whitehaven, Ravenglass, Silloth, Ulverston, Ambleside) Old Norse or Danish tongue is the Germanic language once spoken by the inhabitants of the Nordic countries (for instance during the Viking Age). ...

Common Old Norse Elements

• á - 'river' → ay
• bekkr - 'stream' → beck
• dalr - 'valley' → dale
• fors - 'waterfall' → force/foss
• fjallr - 'mountain' (usually a large, flat mountain) → fell
• gil - 'ravine' → gill, ghyll
• haugr - 'hill' → how, howe, haw
• holmr - 'island' → holme
• intaka - 'intake' (land reclaimed from a moor or woodland, an enclosure)
• pic - 'peak' → pike
• saetr - 'shieling' → side, set
• tjorn - 'small lake' → tarn
• þveit - 'clearing' → thwaite
• tun - 'farm'

There are also a number of Danish influenced place names (Allonby, Thursby, Ousby, Milnthorpe, but the majority are situated along the Eden Valley and the north coast of the county, suggesting that they might have come across Stainmore around the 9th century AD.

Common Danish Elements

• by - 'home' (may be Old Norse, but more often Danish)
• þorp - 'village' → thorpe

Goidelic Celtic and Irish Influence

There are several places throughout Cumbria which exhibit Gaelic influences. Some names contain actual Goidelic elements (Rathmoss, Knock, Kinn, Glencoyne), whilst others show evidence of Irish settlement in other ways (Kirksanton, Kirkbride, Patterdale, Ireleth, Ireby) The most likely explanation for these is that the Norse settlers from Ireland would have brought with them Irish servants or Irish wives. Several Irish Saints are recalled in Cumbrian place names, including Saint Bega, Saint Brigid, Saint Sanctan and Saint Oswald. The Goidelic languages (also sometimes called the Gaelic languages or collectively Gaelic) are one of two major divisions of modern-day Insular Celtic languages (the other being the Brythonic languages). ... Goidelic is one of two major divisions of modern-day Celtic languages (the other being Brythonic). ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Saint Brigid of Ireland Saint Brigid of Ireland (Bridget, Bridgit, Brigit, Bride) (451- 525) was born at Faughart near Dundalk, County Louth, Ireland. ... Saint Oswald (d. ...

NB: the Norse element erg, meaning 'shieling' comes from the Goidelic airidh and would have been picked up during the Norse occupation in Ireland (Sizergh, Cleator)

Norman French and Middle English

At the time of the Norman conquest in 1066, it is likely that a mixture of Norse and Old English would have been spoken throughout most of Cumbria, which persisted until the spread of Middle English after the 12th century. The Domesday Book of 1086 lists only a few places in the south of the region, as at this time most of northern and central Cumbria was part of Scotland, but with several battles over the following centuries the whole area became part of England. Middle English is the name given by historical linguistics to the diverse forms of the English language spoken between the Norman invasion of 1066 and the mid-to-late 15th century, when the Chancery Standard, a form of London-based English, began to become widespread, a process aided by the... Doomesday Book (also known as Domesday, or Book of Winchester), was the record of the great survey of England completed in 1086, executed for William the Conqueror, that was similar to a census by a government of today. ...

The influence of Norman French is usually confined to manorial names and residences and often include a personal name to distinguish between two places belonging to different lords (Egremont, Beaumont, Maulds Meaburn, Crosby Garret, Ponsonby, Grange).

Although it is often difficult to distinguish between a Middle English name and an earlier one, some places do seem to contain elements (Tod Ghyll, Brocklebank, Ladyholme, Cam Spout, Monk Coniston, Newlands, Sweden Bridge)

Common Norman French and Middle English Elements

• grange - 'farm' (usually belonging to a monastery)
• great - 'large' (denoting the larger of two places)
• ground - (denoting land belonging to a person, divided from monastic lands after the Dissolution in 1536
• little - (denoting the smaller of two places)
• monk - (referring to land belonging to a monastery, usually Furness Abbey)
• mont - 'hill'

Dissolution can have the following meanings: In music dissolution is the separation of an inter-parametric unit into its component parts, where usually each part is developed independently. ...

Modern Names

Several places in Cumbria have been renamed in more recent times, (Belle Island, Maryport, Longtown, Sprinkling Tarn)

Examples

 List of Abbreviations OE Old English ON Old Norse Da Danish Br Brythonic Celtic Go Goidelic Celtic Ir Irish Sc Scottish NF Norman French 

Note: This page contains phonetic information presented in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) using Unicode. ... Old Norse or Danish tongue is the Germanic language once spoken by the inhabitants of the Nordic countries (for instance during the Viking Age). ... The Brythonic languages (or Brittonic languages) form one of the two branches of the Insular Celtic language family. ... The Goidelic languages (also sometimes called the Gaelic languages or collectively Gaelic) are one of two major divisions of modern-day Insular Celtic languages (the other being the Brythonic languages). ... The Scottish language may refer to: Scots - A series of Germanic dialects used in lowland Scotland. ... The Norman language is a Romance language, one of the Oïl languages. ...

Areas

Allerdale 'valley of River Ellen'

Copeland 'bargained land, bought land' from ON kaupa land

Cumbria 'land of the Cymry' (the Brythonic name for the British people of the area, related to Welsh Cymru, believed to originate from a Proto-Celtic *kombrogi meaning 'companion, compatriot'). Welsh redirects here, and this article describes the Welsh language. ... Proto-Celtic, also called Common Celtic, is the putative ancestor of all the known Celtic languages. ...

Cumberland 'land of the Cymry' from the OE Cumbra land

Furness 'further promontory' from OE fuðor and ON nes, the oldest form of the name is Fuþþernessa (c1150)

Grizedale Forest 'valley with pigs' from ON gris dalr

Maryport named after the wife of Humphrey Senhouse who developed the town into a port. It was originally called Ellenfoot as it stood at the foot of the River Ellen but was changed in 1756 as the town developed.

Milnthorpe 'village with mills' from OE millen and Da þorp

Morecambe Bay 'crooked estuary' from Br mori cambe

• the town in Lancashire was named after the Bay in the 19th century

Solway Firth 'Muddy ford estuary' from ON sol vath fjórðr

Westmorland 'land west of the moors' from OE west mōr land

Rivers

Brathay 'broad river' from ON breiðr á

Calder 'rocky, fast flowing river' from Br caled dubro

Cocker 'crooked river' from Br *kukra or *crumbaco

Crake possibly 'stoney river' from Br carreg

Dacre 'trickling stream' from Br dakru

Derwent 'oak valley' from Br derw nant or 'abounding in oaks' from Br derwentio

Duddon uncertain. Possilby 'Dudda's valley' from an OE personal name and denu or an unknown Br name containing du, 'dark'.

Eamont 'meeting of the rivers from OE ea (ge)mot

Eden

Ehen probably 'cold river' from a Br word related to Welsh iain, 'cold'

Esk 'water' from Br isca or Go easc

Greta 'rocky river' from ON grjót á

Kent probably from Br cunetio meaning 'sacred one'

Levens 'smooth-flowing river' from a Br word related to Welsh llyfyn, 'smooth'

Liza 'shining river' from ON ljós á

Lowther 'foaming river' from ON lauðr á

Rothay 'trout river' from ON rauði á

Sprint 'gushing' from ON spretta'

The Lakes

Bassenthwaite Lake 'Bastun's clearing' from an OE personal name Beabstan, or a NF nickname Bastun and ON þveit Bassenthwaite Lake is located in the Lake District in England. ...

Brothers Water either 'broad water' from ON breiðr vatn or 'brothers' water' from ON bróðirs vatn (there are legends of two brothers drowning in this lake)

Buttermere 'lake by dairy pastures' from OE butere mere' Image:Beautiful britain buttermere. ...

Coniston Water named after the town, which means 'king's farmstead from ON konigs tun Coniston Water as seen from Holme Fell, 3 kilometres to the north. ...

Crummock Water 'lake of the crooked river', linking the name with the River Cocker which flows through it. Related to Br *crumbaco Crummock Water is a lake in the Lake District in Cumbria, England. ...

Derwent Water named after the River Derwent A view of Derwent Water in the English Lake District Derwent Water (alternative spelling, Derwentwater) is one of the principal bodies of water in the Lake District National Park in the north of England. ...

Devoke Water 'little dark one' from a word *dubaco Devoke Water is a small lake in the mid-west region of the English Lake District, in the county of Cumbria. ...

Elterwater 'swan lake' from ON eltr vatn

Ennerdale Water named after the valley in which it is situated Ennerdale Water, as seen from Revelin Crag Ennerdale Water is one of the smaller lakes in the region of northern England known as the Lake District. ...

Grasmere 'lake in pasture' or 'grassy lake' from OE græs mere Grasmere village and lake as seen from the fell of Stone Arthur This article is about the village in the UK. For the neighborhood in Staten Island, New York, USA, see Grasmere, Staten Island. ...

Haweswater 'Hafr's lake' or 'he-goat's lake' from the ON hafs vatn Haweswater seen from high up on Harter Fell Haweswater is a reservoir in the English Lake District built in the valley of Mardale in the county of Cumbria. ...

Hayeswater 'Eithr's lake from an ON Eiths vatn Where is it? Hayeswater is situated about a half-hours walk SE of the hamlet of Hartsop in the Patterdale Valley. ...

Loweswater 'leafy lake' from ON lauf saer, ON vatn or OE wæter was added later Loweswater is one of the smaller lakes in the English Lake District. ...

Rydal Water named after the valley of Rydal; formerly called Routhmere, linking the lake with the River Rothay Rydal Water is a small lake in the central region of the English Lake District, in the county of Cumbria. ...

Tarn Hows probably 'hill tarn' from ON tjórn haugr View of Tarn Hows Tarn Hows is an area of the Lake District National Park, containing a picturesque tarn, approximately 3 km northeast of Coniston and 2. ...

Thirlmere 'lake with a gap' from OE thyrel mere Thirlmere is a reservoir in the Lake District National Park, England. ...

Ullswater uncertain. Possibly named after a Norse chief Ulf or a local Saxon Lord named Ulphus The middle and lower reaches of Ullswater from Hallin Fell Ullswater is the second largest lake in the English Lake District, being approximately 9 miles (14. ...

Wast Water 'Wasdale Water'. The name literally means 'water water' from ON vatn and OE wæter View of Wast Water from side of Great Gable Wast Water or Wastwater is a lake in the Lake District National Park, England. ...

Windermere 'Vinandr's lake' from ON personal name 'Vinandr' and OE 'mere' Windermere from the north. ...

Mountains, Fells and Hills

Birker Fell 'birch hill' from ON bjirk haugr

Black Combe 'dark-crested mountain' from OE blæc camb, not to be confused with Br combe meaning 'valley'.

Blencathra 'chair-shaped bare hill' from Br blaen cathrach

Cat Bells 'den of the wild cat' from OE catt and ME belde

Catstycam 'ridge with wild cat's path' from ON katts stigr kambr or OE catt stig camb

Coniston Old Man named after the town at its foot, the Old Man comes from Br maen meaning stone

Dollywaggon Pike dollywaggons were sled-like barrows used to transport stone and minerals down the sides of steep mountains when mining was common in the Lake District. Pike means 'peak' from ON pík

Harter Fell 'deer hill' from ON hjartar haugr

Helvellyn

High Street named after the Roman road which passed along it, a literal translation of the Latin via alta; the summit of this hill is named Racecourse Hill after locals used the flat area for fairs in the 18th and 19th centuries

St Sunday Crag Saint Sunday is the local name for Saint Dominic, though how he is connected to the mountain is unknown. Crag means 'rock' from the Br carreg St. ...

Scafell Pike

Skiddaw

Stainmore 'stoney moor' from OE stān mōr

Valleys

Borrowdale 'valley with a fort' from ON borgar dalr

Dunnerdale 'valley of the River Duddon'

Ennerdale 'valley of the River Ehen'

Langdale 'long valley' from ON lang dalr

Lonsdale 'valley of the River Lune'

Mardale 'valley with a lake' from ON marr dalr

Patterdale 'Patrick's valley', possibly named after St Patrick or, more likely, a later Norse-Irish settler

Sleddale 'valley with flat land' from ON sletta dalr

Wasdale 'valley of water' from ON vatns dalr

Towns and Villages

Aspatria 'Patrick's Ash' from ON asc and the personal name

Barrow-in-Furness 'headland island' from Br barr and ON ey

• places with -in-Furness represent those once belonging to Furness Abbey

Blennerhasset 'Hay farm on a hill' from the ON blen haugr, both meaning 'hill' and haysaetr Categories: Cistercians | Ruins | England | Stub ...

Bootle 'huts, shelter' from ON buðl

Bowness 'promontory shaped like a bow' from ON bogi nes

Cark 'rock' from Br carreg

Carlisle 'fort of the God Lugus' from Br caer Lugus Lugus was a deity widely hypothesized to have been worshipped in Gaul, Britain, Ireland, Spain and other ancient Celtic regions. ...

Cockermouth 'mouth of the River Cocker'

Dalton-in-Furness 'farm in a valley' from ON dalr tun

Grange-over-Sands 'outlying farm belonging to a monastery' from the ME grange. -over-Sands was probably added in the 19th century when the town prospered as a holiday resort overlooking Morecambe Bay

Hawkshead uncertain. The 'hawks-' might either mean 'hawk' or be the ON personal name Haukr and the '-head' may mean 'head' from OE heofod or 'summer farm, shieling' from ON saetr

Kendal 'valley of the River Kent' from ON Kent dalr

Keswick 'cheese farm' from OE cēse wic

Kirkby 'village with a church' from ON kirk by

Millom 'mills' from OE millen

Threlkeld 'thrall's well' from ON þrœl kelda

Ulpha 'wolf hill' from ON ulfr haugr

Ulverston 'Ulfr's farmstead' from ON Ulfrs tun

• ulfr is also the ON word for 'wolf'

Whitehaven 'white harbour' from ON hvit hafn

Islands

Belle Isle, Windermere 'beautiful isle' from Fr belle

• originally named Langholme, ON 'long island', it was renamed in 1781 by its new owner Isabella Curwen

Chapel Island, Morecambe Bay named for the chapel built here in the 14th century by monks from nearby Conishead Priory to serve the needs of travellers and fishermen on the sands of Morecambe Bay.

Foulney Island, Morecambe Bay 'island of birds' from ON fuglena and ON ey

• Foulney is now a bird sanctuary and site of special scientific interest

Ladyholme, Windermere 'island of Our Lady'. ME, using ON holmr

• St Mary's hermitage was here, mentioned 1272

Lord's Island, Derwentwater probably named after the Earls of Derwentwater. Gabriel delivering the Annunciation to Mary. ...

Piel Island, Morecambe Bay named after Piel Castle.

• The island was originally called Foudrey or Fotheray, possibly from ON fouder ey meaning 'fodder island', and the castle was called the 'Pile [Peel] of Fotherey'.

Rampsholme, Derwentwater probably 'Hrafn's island' from ON Hrafns holmr or 'wild garlic island' with the OE hramsa

Roa Island, Morecambe Bay 'Red Island' from ON rauðr

• the area is rich in red haematite

St. Herbert's Island, Derwentwater named after the 7th century saint who was a hermit on this island. Hematite (AE) or haematite (BE) is the mineral form of Iron (III) oxide, (Fe2O3), one of several iron oxides. ...

• the island became a place of pilgrimage by 1374

Walney, Irish Sea 'Isle of the British' from ON valna ey

• the Old English name for Walney was Wagneia, 'island of quicksands' and in the Domesday Book it is called Houganai, 'island of Hougun' (Hougun is the name given to Furness in Domesday).

See also

• Cumbria
• Lake District
• Cumbric
• History of Cumbria

Cumbria is a county in the North West region of England. ... The panorama across Eskdale from Ill Crag. ... Evolution and Extinction Cumbric was the Brythonic Celtic language spoken in much of Cumbria, Northern Northumbria, and parts of lowland Scotland until about the 11th century. ... The modern administrative county of Cumbria in England was created in 1974 from the ancient counties of Cumberland, Westmorland, Lancashire North of the Sands and a part of Yorkshire, but the human history of the area is ancient. ...

Reference

• Place Names of Lake District