A weald once meant a dense forest, especially the famous great wood once stretching far beyond the ancient counties of Sussex and Kent, England, where this country of smaller woods is still called "the Weald." Now that most English forests have been cut down, the word may refer to open countryside or to the special clays found in the Weald. Weald descends from an ancient Indo-European root meaning "forest" or "wild." It is closely related to the German Wald and Old Norse völlr, both of which descend from the same Indo-European root; both German and Old Norse are sister languages of English. A dense growth of softwoods (a forest) in the Sierra Nevada Range of Northern California A forest is an area with a high density of trees (or, historically, an area set aside for hunting). ... The Indo-European languages include some 443 (SIL estimate) languages and dialects spoken by about three billion people, including most of the major language families of Europe and western Asia, which belong to a single superfamily. ... This is the approximate extent of Old Norse and related languages in the early 10th century. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ...

The Weald

As a geographical term, the Weald is a particular area in the South of England that is situated between the chalk hills of the North Downs and South Downs, and that extends across the counties of Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex and Surrey. It has also been known as the Forest of Andred or Andredswald because in the early Middle Ages it was known to stretch from Andred or Anderida in East Sussex to Dorset, seventy miles long and thirty miles deep. A compass rose with South highlighted South is most commonly a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. ... Royal motto: Dieu et mon droit (French: God and my right) Englands location within the UK Official language English de facto Capital London de facto Largest city London Area  - Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population  - Total (2001)  - Density Ranked 1st UK 49,138,831 377/km² Ethnicity... The Needles, part of the extensive Southern England Chalk Formation Chalk is a soft, white, porous form of limestone composed of the mineral calcium carbonate. ... For the landform that extends above the surrounding terrain and that is smaller than a mountain, see the article on mountain. ... The North Downs in England are a ridge of chalk hills that stretch about 100 mi (160 km) from Hampshire through Surrey and Kent. ... Near Beachy Head The South Downs is one of the two areas of chalk downland in southern England. ... Originally, a county was the land under the jurisdiction of a count (in Great Britain, an earl, though the original earldoms covered larger areas) by reason of that office. ... Kent is a county in England, south-east of London. ... East Sussex is a county in South East England. ... West Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex (with Brighton and Hove), Hampshire and Surrey. ... Surrey is a county in southern England, one of the Home Counties. ... The Forest of Andred or Andredswald is an alternative name for the Weald in southern England and refers to the ancient woodland which once stretched from Andred - now more commonly known as Anderida or Pevensey - to Dorset. ... Andredswald or The Forest of Andred are alternative names for the Weald in southern England and refer to the ancient woodland which once stretched from Andred - now more commonly known as Anderida or Pevensey - to Dorset. ... The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ... Anderida is an ancient Roman fort at Pevensey, near Eastbourne in Sussex, England. ... East Sussex is a county in South East England. ... Dorset (pronounced Dorsit, sometimes in the past called Dorsetshire) is a county in the southwest of England, on the English Channel coast. ...

The High Weald of higher hills, ridges and valleys is part of the Wealden anticline, once layered rock that later rose up and folded upward into an arched incline, as well as steep slopes falling away in certain parts of the area. It covers an area of 500 mile² (1,300 km²) and has been declared an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Fljótsdalur in East-Iceland A valley is a landform, which can range from a few square miles (square kilometers) to hundreds or even thousands of square miles (square kilometers) in area. ... In geology, an anticline is a type of fold that involves a downward slope to either side. ... Sedimentary, volcanic, plutonic, metamorphic rock types of North America. ... Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) is a United Kingdom. ...

Lower parts of the Weald form a gentler rolling countryside which is especially popular with ramblers. The Weald has kept its wooded character to this very day, the forest still covering 23% of the area, one of the highest levels in England. Despite the population pressure in the South of England, it has not resulted in any major urban environment. Small towns such as Tunbridge Wells, Tonbridge, Crawley, Sevenoaks, etc., are local centres which have attracted a certain number of commuters into London without having lost their character of old. Ramblers are recreational walkers who generally walk on countryside footpaths or in upland open country. Many (but by no means all) take part in walks organised through local branches of the Ramblers Association of England, Scotland, and Wales. ... Tunbridge Wells (officially Royal Tunbridge Wells) is a Wealden town in west Kent in England, just north of the border with East Sussex. ... Location within the British Isles Tonbridge is a market town in the English county of Kent, with a population of 31,600 in 2001. ... Map sources for Crawley at grid reference TQ2736 Crawley is a town and local government district in West Sussex, England. ... Sevenoaks is a town in Kent, in south-east England. ...

The area was the centre of the Wealden iron industry from Roman times until the last forge was closed in 1820. The use of its timber for the furnaces, but also for the medieval cloth industry and for the use by the shipbuilders on the Thames and Medway, might well have denuded its landscape, but now that all three industries use other raw materials, the Weald remains one of the most heavily wooded areas of England. It is also one of the most important regions whence many English yeomen came to settle the lands across the sea which have since become the United States. The Wealden iron industry is the result of a combination of the natural materials being available for the making if iron. ... Ancient Rome was a civilization that existed in Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East between 753 BC and its downfall in AD 476. ... Cloth-making was, apart from iron-making, the other large-scale industry carried out on the Weald of Kent and Sussex in medieval times. ... Several places exist with the name Thames, and the word is also used as part of several brand and company names Most famous is the River Thames in England, on which the city of London stands Other Thames Rivers There is a Thames River in Canada There is a Thames... The Medway Towns have developed into an area of urban sprawl, situated near an environmentally significant wetlands region, and formed by the union of Chatham, Gillingham and Rochester in Kent, England. ... Yeoman is an antiquated term for a now almost-defunct British social class. ...

Other English Wealds

Wooded areas other than those which are situated between the Downs and which have the name Weald are North Weald Bassett in Essex, and Harrow Weald in northwest London. A downland is an area of open chalk upland. ... Alternate uses, see List of dog breeds for several dog breeds known as Bassets, including the familiar Basset Hound. ... This article is about the county of Essex in England. ... Harrow is a locality in the London Borough of Harrow in London. ... St. ...

Compare wold, which is from the same root as weald, and which originally meant "forest" or "wildlands." It now most often means open countryside or moorlands and especially the rolling uplands known in the North of England as the Yorkshire Wolds. These are among the beautiful Yorkshire Dales which veterinarian James Herriot made famous in his nostalgic All Creatures Great and Small and sequels. Compass rose with north highlighted and at top North is one of the four cardinal directions, specifically the direction that, in Western culture, is treated as the primary direction: north is used (explicitly or implicitly) to define all other directions; the (visual) top edges of maps usually correspond to the... The Yorkshire Wolds are an area of low hills and valleys in the East Riding of Yorkshire in North-Eastern England. ... A village in the Yorkshire Dales The Yorkshire Dales lie in an area of high ground in North and West Yorkshire, England. ... A veterinary surgeon removes stitches from a cats face following minor surgery on an absess. ... James Herriot is the pen name of James Alfred Wight, known as Alf (October 3, 1916 - February 23, 1995), a British veterinarian and writer. ... Nostalgia currently describes a longing for the past, often idealized and unrealistic. ... All Creatures Great and Small (the title being borrowed from a line of the hymn, All Things Bright and Beautiful) was a book by James Herriot, first published in 1972. ... A sequel is a work of fiction in literature, film, and other creative works that is produced after a completed work, and is set in the same universe but at a later time. ...

External links

• High Weald
• Map of heritage locations
• National Parks for High Weald