Archaic England : $b an essay in deciphering prehistory from megalithic monuments, earthworks, customs, coins, place-names, and faerie superstitionsBayley, Harold
History
Archaic England : $b an essay in deciphering prehistory from megalithic monuments, earthworks, customs, coins, place-names, and faerie superstitions
Bayley, Harold
Archaeology; England -- Antiquities
The phairy first king of the Isle of Man was regarded as the special
patron of sea-faring men, by whom he was invoked as "Lord of Headlands,"
and in this connection Berry Head at Brixham, Barras Head at Tintagel,
and Barham or Barenham Down in Kent are interesting. The southern coast
of Wales is sprinkled liberally with _Bru_ place-names from St. Bride's
Bay wherein is Ramsey Island, known anciently as _ynis y Bru_, the Isle
of Bru, to Burry river and Barry Isle next Sulli Isle (the _selli_
isle?).
Aubrey or Auberon may be said almost to pervade the West and South of
England: at Barnstaple or Barn Market we meet with High Bray, river
Bray, Bratton, Burnham, Braunton, _Berryn_arbor, the Brendon Hills,
Paracombe and _Baggy_ Point; in the Totnes neighbourhood are _Big_bury,
Burr Island, Beer Head, Berry Head, Branscombe, Branshill, and Prawle
Point, which last may be connoted with the rivers Barle, Bark, and Brue.
It is perhaps noteworthy that the three spots associated until the
historic period with flint-knapping[367] are _Beer_ Head in Devon,
_Pur_fleet near Barking, and _Bran_don in Suffolk.
Totnes being the traditional landing-place of Bru it is interesting to
find in that immediate district two Prestons, a Pruston, Barton, Bourton
or Borton, Brookhill, Bructon, Brixham, Prescott, Parmount, Berry
Pomeroy, Prestonberry and Preston Castle or Shandy's Hill.[368]
Ebrington suggests an _ington_ or town of the children of Ebr; Alvington
may be similarly connected with Alph, and Ilbert and Brent seemingly
imply the _Holy Ber_ or _Bren_. The True Street by Totnes may be
connoted with the adjacent Dreyton, and Bosomzeal Cross in all
probability once bore in the centre, or bogel, the boss which
customarily forms the eye of Celtic crosses. Hu being the first of the
three deddu, tatu, or pillars, the term Totnes probably as in
Shoeburyness meant Tot_nose_, and the adjacent Dodbrooke,
Doddiscombleigh, and Daddy's Hole may all be connoted with the Celtic
_tad_, _dad_, or _daddy_. With the Doddi of Doddiscombleigh or _Doddy's
Valley Meadow_, may be connoted the gigantic and commanding Cornish
headland known as Dodman. The Hollicombe by Preston was presumably the
holy Coombe, and Halwell, at one time a Holy Well: in this neighbourhood
of Kent's Cavern and Kent's Copse are Kingston and Okenbury; at
Kingston-on-Thames is Canbury Park, and it is extremely likely that the
true etymology of Kingston is not _King's Town_ but _King Stone_,
_i.e._, a synonymous term for Preston and the same word as Johnstone.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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