Melbourne

Named after the 2nd Viscount of Melbourne, Derbyshire, itself deriving from the Old English mylen (“mill”) + burne (“stream”).

South Derbyshire
South Derbyshire#English

A market town and civil parish in South Derbyshire district, Derbyshire, England, located in the East Midlands (OS grid ref SK3825).


Halifax

From Old English halh-ġefeaxe (literally “grassy corner”), compounded from halh + ġefeaxe. Folk etymology suggests Old English hāliġfeax (literally “holy hair”), as compounded from hāliġ + feax, from a local legend that the town is said to have received the name from the fact that the hair of a murdered virgin was hung up on a tree in the neighborhood, which became a resort of pilgrims. Compare also Fairfax.
The capital city of Nova Scotia is named after statesman George Montagu-Dunk, 2nd Earl of Halifax (1716–1771).
The civil parish is also named after the 2nd Earl of Halifax. Coined by British-Dutch surveyor Samuel Holland.

coin

An industrial town in West Yorkshire, England, 20km south-west of Leeds.


Halifax

Halifax (an industrial town in West Yorkshire, England, 20km south-west of Leeds)


Wellington

en-prop

Wellington (countable and uncountable, plural Wellingtons)

Wellingtons (plural)
wellington (alternative)

From earlier Weolingtun, from:
# For the place in Shropshire, England: Partly uncertain. The second element from Old English tūn (“estate”), while the first element could come either from *wœling (“ridge, bank”), or else from *wēoling (“device, artefact”).
# For the place in Somerset, England: Partly obscure. The last element from Old English tūn (“estate”), while the first element could come from either the personal name *Wēola + ing, or else *wēoling (“trap”).
# Many places with this name are named after Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, British soldier and statesman.

Telford and Wrekin
Telford and Wrekin#English

A market town and civil parish with a town council in Telford and Wrekin borough, Shropshire (OS grid ref SJ6511).

Somerset West and Taunton
Somerset West and Taunton#English

A market town and civil parish with a town council in Somerset, previously in Somerset West and Taunton district (OS grid ref ST1320).


Bromley

en-proper noun

Bromley (countable and uncountable, plural Bromleys)

From Old English brōm (“broom”) + lēah (“wood”). Equivalent to broom + -ley and doublet of Brimley; compare Broom.

Bromley (disambiguation)
London Borough of Bromley

A town in the borough of Bromley, in south-eastern Greater London (OS grid ref TQ4069).


Aldershot

/ˈɔːldə(ɹ)ˌʃɒt/

/ˈɒldə(ɹ)ˌʃɒt/

From Old English alor (“alder”) + sceat (“corner”).

A town in Rushmoor borough, Hampshire, England (OS grid ref SU8650).


Alton

From Old English ǣwell (“river source”) + tūn (“settlement, town”).

A town and civil parish with a town council in East Hampshire district, Hampshire (OS grid ref SU7139).


Andover

From Middle English Andever, Andeafara, from Old English Andefera (“Andover”); possibly from Old English *Ande + ēa + fara (literally “farer over the river Ande”) or from Old English *Ande + ōfer (literally “[town situated on the] bank of the river Ande”).

Population 5,430 (more like 40,000 today), Andover is "a bustling agricultural town" with "many malt houses, and a factory for silk shag".

2023 June 28, Stephen Roberts, “Bradshaw's Britain: Alton to Exeter”, in RAIL, number 986, page 59:

A town and civil parish with a town council in Test Valley district, Hampshire, England (OS grid ref SU3645).


Axminster

From Old English Acsan mynster, equivalent to the River Axe + minster.

A market town and civil parish with a town council in East Devon district, Devon, England (OS grid ref SY2998).


Newcastle

[ˈnjʉˌkʰɑːsɫ̩]

From new + castle. Doublet of Neuchâtel.

A large market town in Staffordshire, England.


Newcastle

Unadapted borrowing from English Newcastle.

ubor

Newcastle, Newcastle-under-Lyme (a large market town in Staffordshire, England)


Lewes

en-proper noun

Lewes (countable and uncountable, plural Leweses)

From Middle English Lewes, from late Old English Lewes, a variant of earlier Lǣwe, of uncertain origin. Traditionally derived from Old English hlǣw (“hill”), referring to the several mounts in Lewes. Alternatively, perhaps derived from Old English lǣw (“cut, incision, gash”), referring to the narrow, steep-sided 'gash' where the River Ouse cuts through the line of the South Downs.

unc

uncertain

A town and civil parish with a town council in Lewes district, East Sussex, England (OS grid ref TQ4110).


Whitby

en-proper noun

Whitby (countable and uncountable, plural Whitbys)

Whitbys (plural)
Whidbee (alternative)
Whidby (alternative)

From Old Norse hvítr býr (“white town”). Equivalent to white + -by.

A town, seaport, and civil parish with a town council in North Yorkshire, England, previously in Scarborough district (OS grid ref NZ8911).


Washington

Washington (countable and uncountable, plural Washingtons)

Washington (the town in Tyne and Wear, northeast England): probably from the Old English place name Hwæssingatūn (literally “a settlement of the household of *Hwæssa”), from *Hwæssa (a Saxon chieftain's name) + -ing (“belonging to”) + tūn (“homestead, settlement”). It was attested in 1096 as Wasindone. Hwæssa is of uncertain origin, said to possibly correspond to waþ (“hunt”) + sige (“victory”), or possibly related to hwæte (“wheat”). There are other theories; more on Wikipedia.
The surname derives from the town, and most places in the United States are named for George Washington.

DC

The federal district and city are coterminous and the city government administers the district, so are jurisdictionally equivalent

A town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England.


Wilton

en-prop

Wilton (countable and uncountable, plural Wiltons)

From either Old English welig (“willow”) or wella (“spring, stream”) + tūn (“enclosure; settlement, town”).

Wiltshire actually comes from Wiltonshire, for Wilton was once a county town, royal residence and bishopric - a place of significance.

(uncountable) A number of places in England:

A town and civil parish with a town council near Salisbury, Wiltshire, famed for the Wilton carpets (OS grid ref SU0931).


Croydon

From Old English Crogedene ("saffron valley"), from Old English croh (“saffron”) (< Latin crocus (“saffron”)) + Old English denu (“valley”).

A large town in the south of Greater London, England, historically in the county of Surrey.

(historical) A former airport in Croydon.


Weston-super-Mare

Latin, meaning "Weston-upon-Sea". See super, mare.

A seaside town and civil parish with a town council, on the Bristol Channel coast of North Somerset district, Somerset, England (OS grid ref ST3261).


Stevenage

A new town and borough in north Hertfordshire, England, part of London’s commuter belt (OS grid ref TL2324).


Greenwich

/ˈɡɹinwɪt͡ʃ/

From Middle English Greenwich, from Old English Grēnawīċ, Grēnewīċ (literally “green harbour, green settlement”). Equivalent to green + -wich.
The civil parish in New Brunswick may have been named after Greenwich near London, after Greenwich Village, or after Greenwich Street in Hampstead, New York.

A town on the south bank of the River Thames in south-east Greater London, England, through which the prime meridian passes (OS grid ref TQ3877).


Hackney

The senses "a horse" and "(a means of transport) available for hire" derive from the fact that many horses were kept for hire in the London borough of Hackney.
The place name is from Old English Hacan ieg "Hacan's Isle" (or "Hook's Island"), referring to dry land in a marsh.

A town in eastern London, England, within this borough (OS grid ref TQ3584).


Boston

→ Abenaki: Pastonki, pastoni

→ Klamath-Modoc: basdin

→ Lushootseed: pastəd

→ Mohawk: Wáhston

The US city is named after the English town (from which several prominent colonists had come), which itself is sometimes said to be named as a contraction of Botolph's town or Botolph's stone (the name Botolph itself coming from Old English Botwulf, from boda + wulf). However, this is uncertain.

A town and borough in Lincolnshire, England (OS grid ref TF3244).


Durham

From Old English Dunholm, meaning "hill islet". In order to get from Dunholm to Durham, two major processes had to take place. Firstly, the n at the coda of the first syllable, dun, underwent dissimilation. Specifically, by influence of the m in the coda of the following syllable (holm), said n denasalised and lenited to the oral r, thus dur. Secondly, after a weakening of the vowel quality in the more weakly-stressed syllable holm, this ending was misanalysed as the similar-sounding toponymic suffix, -ham, meaning home or farm.
Doublet of Duresm and Dunelm.

A city, the county town of County Durham, England.


Daventry

A market town and civil parish of Northamptonshire, England.


Weybridge

/ˈweɪbɹɪd͡ʒ/

A town in Elmbridge borough, Surrey, England (OS grid ref TQ0764).


Darlington

/ˈdɑːlɪŋtən/

-ɑː(ɹ)lɪŋtən

From Middle English Dearnington, Derlinton, from Old English Dēornōþingtūn, supposedly “the settlement of Dēornōþ's people”, from an unclear root + -ing + tūn. Compare Old English dīerling. The transistor configuration is named for its inventor, Sidney Darlington.

A large market town in County Durham, England.


Hastings

The placename in England is derived from the Old English tribal name Hæstingas (“Hæsta's people, the family/followers of Hæsta”), which was later transferred to their settlement.
The family name has two possible sources:
* from the place name
* a patronymic surname derived from the Anglo-Norman personal name Hasten(c), Hastang
The later place names in other countries are named either after people with that family name, or after the town of Hastings in England.

A town and borough in East Sussex, England.


Richmond

From Middle English Rychemund, from a name cognate to French Richemont (“town in Normandy”). Equivalent to rich + mound.

A common place name (Richmonds on Wikipedia):

A town in south-west Greater London; in full, Richmond upon Thames (OS grid ref TQ1875).

Richmond upon Thames
Richmond upon Thames#English

A market town and civil parish in North Yorkshire, previously in Richmondshire district (OS grid ref NZ1701).


Ludlow

en-proper noun

Ludlow (countable and uncountable, plural Ludlows)

Ludlow
Ludlow (disambiguation)
River Teme

From the Old English rivername Hlūde, now the River Teme, + hlǣw (“mountain, hill, mound”).

A town and civil parish with a town council in south Shropshire, England (OS grid ref SO5174).


Shirley

English place name from Old English sċīr (“county”) + lēah (“meadow”). Equivalent to shire + -ley (“lea”). More at shire, leigh.

Sherley (alternative)
Shurley (alternative)

A suburban town in the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull, West Midlands, historically in Warwickshire (OS grid ref SP1278).


Arnold

From a French version of a Germanic name, from Proto-Germanic *arô (“eagle”) + *waldą (“power”). For the first part of the word doublet of erne, ornis, and ornitho-.
Compare the Latin male given name and cognomen Aquila, and female given name Aquilīna (whence Russian Акули́на (Akulína)), related to aquila (whence eagle).

A market town in Gedling borough, Nottinghamshire, England (OS grid ref SK5945).


Acton

Acton (countable and uncountable, plural Actons)

From Old English āc (“oak”) + tūn (“farm, town, homestead”); compare the doublet Aughton.

(uncountable) Any of a few places in England:.

A town and suburb in the borough of Ealing, Greater London (OS grid ref TQ2080).


Ash

Ash (countable and uncountable, plural Ashes)

Ash (deity)
Ash (disambiguation)#Places
Ash (name)

A town and civil parish in Guildford borough, Surrey, near Aldershot (OS grid ref SU8950).


Barnet

Barnet (countable and uncountable, plural Barnets)

Barnets (plural)
Barnett (alternative surname)

From Old English bærnet (“place cleared by burning”).

der

A town in the borough of Barnet, Greater London, England, United Kingdom.


Battle

Capitalization of battle. Doublet of Battaglia.

A town and civil parish with a town council in Rother district, East Sussex, England; supposed site of the Battle of Hastings (OS grid ref TQ7416).


Caer

Caer
Gaer (soft)
Nghaer
Chaer
Caerlleon (alternative)
Caerlleon Gawr (alternative)

Specialized use of caer (“fortified city”).

Chester (a city, the county town of Cheshire, in northwest England)

codi cyn cŵn Caer

to get up at the crack of dawn; to get up before the dogs of Chester

cyn codi cŵn Caer

at the crack of dawn; before the dogs of Chester get up


Deal

From Old English dael (“valley”), corresponding to modern dale.

A coastal town and civil parish with a town council in Dover district, Kent, England (OS grid ref TR3752).


Eye

A small town and civil parish with a town council in Mid Suffolk district, Suffolk, England (OS grid ref TM1473).


Fleet

A town and civil parish with a town council in Hart district, Hampshire, England (OS grid ref SU8054).


Holt

en-proper noun

Holt (countable and uncountable, plural Holts)

English, Dutch, north German, Norwegian and Danish surname, all from the noun holt (“copse, woodland”).

A number of places in the United Kingdom:

A market town and civil parish with a town council in North Norfolk district, Norfolk, England (OS grid ref TG0738).


Maidenhead

A short time since, some friends drinking tea one summer evening at their residence near Maidenhead, with all the windows of the drawing-room open, there suddenly burst in a host of small flies, which covered the table and the furniture […]

1836, The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction:

Windsor and Maidenhead
Windsor and Maidenhead#English

A town in Windsor and Maidenhead borough, Berkshire, England (OS grid ref SU8881).


March

en-prop

March (usually uncountable, plural Marches)

Bislama: maj

→ Bengali: মার্চ (marco)

→ Burmese: မတ် (mat)

→ Chichewa: Malichi

→ Dari: مارچ (mârč)

→ Hausa: Maris

→ Hawaiian: Malaki

→ Hindi: मार्च (mārc)

→ Malay: Mac

→ Maori: Māehe

→ Marshallese: M̧aaj

→ Tokelauan: Māti

→ Tongan: Maʻasi

From Middle English March, Marche, borrowed from Anglo-Norman marche, from Old French marz, from Latin mensis Mārtius (“the Martian month”), from earlier Mavors.

der

A market town and civil parish with a town council in Fenland district, Cambridgeshire, England (OS grid ref TL4196).


Reading

From Old English Rēadingas, the name of a tribe or clan of early Anglo-Saxon England whose capital was at Reading. Not related to reading.

A unitary authority and borough (Reading Borough Council) in Berkshire.


Rugby

From earlier Rokeby (rook + -by), from Middle English Rokebi, an alteration (using the Middle English bi (“village, town”), from Old Norse býr (“town, settlement”)) of Old English Rocheberie, possibly from earlier Old English *Hrōceburh (literally “rook-fort, Rookbury”).

A town in Warwickshire, England, where the sport of rugby is thought to have originated.


Sale

Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester#English

A town in the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, historically in Cheshire (OS grid ref SJ9892).


Sandwich

The family name is from Old English Sandwīċ, from sand + wīċ (“wick, settlement, harbour, hamlet”), equivalent to sand + -wich.

A town and civil parish with a town council in Dover district, Kent, southeastern England, one of the historic Cinque Ports (OS grid ref TR3258).


Sandy

Domesday Book
Sandy (given name)
Sandy, Bedfordshire
Sandy, Carmarthenshire

* (Bedfordshire) Recorded as Sandeie in the Domesday Book, the town is named with Old English sand (“sand”) + īeġ (“island”). Doublet of Sanday.
* (Carmarthenshire) From Welsh sant + dŷ (“house of the saint”)

Central Bedfordshire
Central Bedfordshire#English

A market town and civil parish in Central Bedfordshire district, Bedfordshire, England (OS grid ref TL1649).


Shaw

en-proper noun

Shaw (countable and uncountable, plural Shaws)

→ Translingual: shawii

Shaw and Crompton
Shaw and Crompton#English

A town in Shaw and Crompton parish, Oldham borough, Greater Manchester (OS grid ref SD9308).


Slough

From Middle English Slo, perhaps related to the noun slough (“marsh”) (referring to the land) or to sloe (referring to bushes).

A town in east Berkshire, England (formerly Buckinghamshire), close to Heathrow Airport.


Ware

Ware (countable and uncountable, plural Wares)

East Hertfordshire
East Hertfordshire#English

A town and civil parish in East Hertfordshire district, Hertfordshire (OS grid ref TL3614).


Berkeley

From Old English beorc (“birch”) + leah (“meadow, leigh”). Equivalent to birch + -ley (“lea”).

Barclay (alternative)
Barclift (alternative)
Barkley (alternative)

A town and civil parish with a town council in Stroud district, Gloucestershire, England (OS grid ref SP6899).


Dover

From Old English Dofras, from Latin Dubris, from Brythonic Dubras (“the waters”), from Proto-Celtic *dubros (“water”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰubrós (“dark”), from *dʰewb- (“deep”). Compare Tauber.
The village in Nova Scotia is likely named after the town in England.

A town, civil parish (with a town council) and major port in Kent, England, the closest point to France (OS grid ref TR3141).


Wells

From Old English wella, genitive plural of well (“spring”), in reference to a residence near a group of springs. The original use of the genitive case here would've indicated origin. The -s ending of the modern form would be added later on upon reanalysis after the breakdown of the case system (outside of pronouns) that occurred in the development of English.

A small town in Norfolk, England; in full, Wells-next-the-Sea.


Loughborough

A town in Charnwood borough, Leicestershire, England (OS grid ref SK5319).


Scarborough

Scarborough (countable and uncountable, plural Scarboroughs)

Scarboroughs (plural)
Scarboro (alternative)
Scarbro (alternative)
Scarbrough (alternative)

/ˈskɑɹbəɹoʊ/

From the Old Norse personal name Skarði + borg (“fortress”).

A coastal town in North Yorkshire, England (OS grid ref TA040880). It should now be a civil parish, with a town council elected on 1 May 2025.


Dovre

Dover (a town and port in modern Kent, in southeast England)


Hartlepool

A town and seaport in County Durham, in northeastern England.


Berwick-upon-Tweed

→ Welsh: Berwig ar Dwid

From Old English bere (“barley”) + wīc (“settlement”) + name of river.

A town and civil parish with a town council in Northumberland, and the northernmost town in England (OS grid ref NT9953).


Blackpool

A town, seaside resort, borough and unitary authority in Lancashire, England (OS grid ref SD3136).


Bournemouth

From Bourne (“name of a local stream”) + mouth. Doublet of Burnmouth.

Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole#English

A large town, part of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole district, Dorset, England.


Weymouth

In England, from Wey + mouth, referring to that river's mouth. The village in Nova Scotia is named after the city in Massachusetts.

Weymouth and Portland
Weymouth and Portland#English

A town and civil parish (with a town council) in Dorset, England, previously in Weymouth and Portland district (OS grid ref SY6779).


Exeter

From Old English Ex (“the river Exe”) + ċeaster (“town”), 'the Roman city of Isca'.

A city and local government district, the county town of Devon, in south-west England.


Dorchester

Dorchester
Guy Carleton, 1st Baron Dorchester

Ultimately from Celtic *Durno-wāriā (Latin Durnovāria) + Old English ċeaster (“fort, Roman town”).
The civil parish in New Brunswick and Ontario town are named in honour of colonial administrator Guy Carleton, 1st Baron Dorchester (1724 - 1808).

der

A town and civil parish with a town council in Dorset, southern England, which is the county town (OS grid ref SY6990).


Swanage

From Middle English Swanwiche, from Old English swan (“swan”) or swān (“herdsman, swain”) + wīċ (“village”).

A coastal town and civil parish with a town council in Dorset, England (OS grid ref SZ0378).


Yeovil

A town and civil parish with a town council in Somerset, England, previously in South Somerset district (OS grid ref ST5516).


Poole

en-proper noun

Poole (countable and uncountable, plural Pooles)

A town in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole district, Dorset, England.


Bognor Regis

From Old English. In a document of 680 AD, it is referred to as Bucgan ora, "Bucge's shore". The Regis (from Latin rex (“king”)) was added after King George V stayed there to convalesce.
Bucgan can be derived from 'Bucca' which means a 'male goat' hence the 'goat shore', as most Saxon village names describe what the place did or produced.

A coastal town and civil parish with a town council in Arun district, West Sussex, England (OS grid ref SZ9399).


Newquay

From new + quay, for a quay built here in the 15th century.

A town and civil parish with a town council, on the north coast of Cornwall, south west England (OS grid ref SW8161).


Wareham

Wareham (countable and uncountable, plural Warehams)

From Old English Werhām, from Old English wer (“weir”) + hām (“homestead”) or hamm (“water meadow”).

A market town in Wareham Town parish, Dorset, England, previously in Purbeck district (OS grid ref SY9287).


Clare

Medieval English vernacular form of Clara, from the Latin clara, feminine of clarus (“bright, shining, clear”), a post-classical name made famous by the 13th century Saint Clara of Assisi.
In Oxfordshire, from Clarora, a clay slope.

A small town and civil parish with a town council in West Suffolk district, Suffolk, England, previously in St Edmundsbury district (OS grid ref TL7745).


St Helens

metropolitan borough
metropolitan borough

A town and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, in northwestern England.


Spalding

A market town in South Holland district, Lincolnshire, England (OS grid ref TF2422).


Bolton

From Middle English Bodeltone (in the Domesday Book) etc., ultimately from Old English bolt, bold, botl, etc. (“home, hall, manor”) + -tun (“-ton: enclosure, town”).

But Bolton deserve real credit, seeking to take advantage of their jitters at every opportunity in typically determined fashion.

2010 December 29, Chris Whyatt, “Chelsea 1 - 0 Bolton”, in BBC:

A town and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England.


Brandon

From Middle English Brandon, Brampdon, Bramdun, Bremedon, Bromdun, from Old English brōmdūn, from brōm (“broom shrub”) + dūn (“hill, dune”). Doublet of English Branton.

Any of some towns and villages in England:

A market town and civil parish with a town council in West Suffolk district, Suffolk, on the border with Norfolk (OS grid ref TL7886).


Clifton

Clifton (countable and uncountable, plural Cliftons)

Cliftons (plural)
Cliffton (alternative)

*Literally meaning "town by a cliff." From Old English clif (“cliff”) + tūn (“town”). Analyzable as cliff + -ton.
*In Oregon County, Missouri, from Cliff + -ton. From being named after a Cliff, or which may be clipped to Clif.

A small town in Salford, Greater Manchester (OS grid ref SD7802).


Douvres

Dover (a town and port in Kent, in southeast England)


Chester

Chester (countable and uncountable, plural Chesters)

From Middle English Chestre, from Old English Ċeaster, from ceaster, a borrowing from Latin castra (“camp”).
The village in Nova Scotia is likely named after the city in Pennsylvania.

A city, the county town of Cheshire, in northwest England.


Kingston

In the case of settlements outside England, from king's + -ton (“town”), in reference to monarchs of the British Empire. In the case of settlements within England, a development from earlier Old English Cinges tūn or Cynges tūn (“king's town or manor”), in reference to various monarchs. Sometimes derived from other places already named Kingston or, particularly in America, from people with the surname King. Doublet of Kingstown, Kingstone, Conington, and Cunnington. Cf. also Kingsville, Kingsburg, Conisbrough, Coniston, Coniston Cold, Queenstown, Queenston, Princeton, Princetown, and Princes Town.
In particular, the community founded in New Brunswick in 1783 in the aftermath of the American Revolution may have been named as a sign of loyalty to George III; its parish was named for the community. The village in Nova Scotia was named for its district (Kings County) and the unrealized hope that it would become a town. The surname is derived from the various locations named Kingston.

doublet

Kingston upon Thames
Kingston upon Thames#English

A town in the borough of Kingston upon Thames, Greater London, formally Kingston upon Thames.


Newport

en-proper noun

Newport (countable and uncountable, plural Newports)

Port-Neuf

the equivalent of Newport (new port: a new transport hub)

A town and civil parish (served by Newport and Carisbrooke Community Council) in the Isle of Wight (OS grid ref SZ5089).

A town and civil parish in Telford and Wrekin, Shropshire (OS grid ref SJ7419).


Burton

Usually from Old English burhtun (fortified farmstead, farmstead near or belonging to a stronghold or manor), from burh + tun.

Burton upon Trent
Burton upon Trent#English

East Staffordshire
East Staffordshire#English

A number of places in England and Wales:

Ellipsis of Burton upon Trent: a civil parish and market town in East Staffordshire district, Staffordshire.


Woodstock

Woodstock (countable and uncountable, plural Woodstocks)

From Old English wudu (“wood”) + stoc (“dwelling”).

West Oxfordshire
West Oxfordshire#English

A market town and civil parish with a town council in West Oxfordshire district, Oxfordshire, England (OS grid ref SP4416).


Glastonbury

From Middle English Glastingaburghe, from Old English Glæstingaburg, "the fortified place of the Glæstingas", from *Glæstinga (the people of Glastonia) + Old English byrg (“fort”).

A town and civil parish with a town council in Somerset, England, previously in Mendip district (OS grid ref ST5039).


Ipswich

From the Old English personal name Gip, genitive case Gipes + Old English wīċ (“port, bay”).

A port town and borough in and the county town of Suffolk, England.


Bude

A coastal town in Bude-Stratton parish, north Cornwall, England (OS grid ref SS2106).


Dudley

Translingual: Dudleya

From Old English, literally "wood or clearing of Dudda (a personal name of unknown meaning)".

A market town and metropolitan borough of the West Midlands, England.


Wimbledon

From an Old English name (probably *Wynnmann, or alternatively *Wynebeald) + dūn (“hill”).

A suburban town and the principal business area in the borough of Merton, Greater London.


Stratford

From Old English strǣt (“road”) + ford (“ford”). Doublet of Stretford.

The name of various cities, towns and boroughs in the USA, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. See the full list.

A town in the borough of Newham, Greater London (OS grid ref TQ3884).

A market town in Stratford-upon-Avon parish, Stratford-on-Avon district, Warwickshire, properly Stratford-upon-Avon.


Warwick

From Middle English Warwyk, from Old English Wǣringwīċ (literally “dwelling by the weir”), from wer (“weir”) + -ing (“of the”, used with masculine nouns) + wīċ (“dwelling place, village”).

affix

A town and civil parish with a town council in Warwick district, and the county town of Warwickshire, England (OS grid ref SP2865).


Gateshead

From Middle English Gatesheved (c. 1190), from Old English *Gāteshēafod, from gāt (“goat”) + hēafod (“head”). First mentioned by Bede in Latin in his Ecclesiastical History of the English People as ad caput caprae (literally “at the goat's head”), meaning a headland or hill frequented by (wild) goats. Both Latin and English names may be calques of a Brythonic predecessor formed from Proto-Brythonic *gaβr, from Proto-Celtic *gabros (“goat”), and might have been the Romano-British fort of Gabrosentum.

Of this number, 64 belonged to the above district, including Newcastle, with the addition of Gateshead, which lies on the opposite bank of the Tyne, in the county of Durham; and these afforded 2.13 cases per annum, which, as the population was 213,000, gave one case for every 100,000 inhabitants.

1830, John Yelloly, Sequel to a Paper on the Tendency to Calculous Diseases, and on the Concretions to Which Such Diseases Give Rise, in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, Vol. 120

A town in Tyne and Wear, in north-east England, found upon the southern bank of the Tyne (OS grid ref NZ2562).


Bedford

Bedford (disambiguation)
John Russell, 4th Duke of Bedford

From Middle English Bedforde, Bedeford, from Old English Bedaford, Bedanford, equivalent to Bede's + ford.
The civil parish is named after John Russell, 4th Duke of Bedford (1710 - 1771). Coined by British-Dutch surveyor Samuel Holland.

coin

A market town, the county town of Bedfordshire, England.


Crewe

en-proper noun

Crewe (countable and uncountable, plural Crewes)

Recorded as Creu in the Domesday Book, the town's name is derived from Old Welsh criu (“weir; crossing”) (compare modern Welsh cryw).

A town and civil parish with a town council in Cheshire East district, Cheshire, England (OS grid ref SJ7055).


North Shields

/ˌnɔːθ ˈʃiːldz/

A town in Tyne and Wear, England, on the north bank of the Tyne.


Eton

Eton (countable and uncountable, plural Etons)

From Old English *Ēatūn, from ea (“river”) + tun (“town”). See also the doublet Eaton.

A town and civil parish in Windsor and Maidenhead, Berkshire, England (OS grid ref SU965775).


Middlesbrough

/ˈmɪdəlzˌbʌɹə/

From Old English middel (“middle”) + Old English burh (“fortified place”). Doublet of Middleburg and Middlebury. Cf. also Middelburg.

A town, unitary authority, and borough of North Yorkshire, England, situated on the River Tees.


Berwick

→ Welsh: Berwig

For places in England and Scotland (e.g. North Berwick), from Old English bere (“barley”) + Old English wīc (“settlement”). For the Scottish name, there is the possibility that the second element instead derives from a different word, for which see -wick.
Places outside England and Scotland are generally named, possibly indirectly, after places in England, including Berwick-upon-Tweed.
The town in Nova Scotia is named after the town in Maine. The name was chosen by a local resident who had travelled through the community in Maine and was impressed by its neatness.

For quotations using this term, see Citations:Berwick.

Ellipsis of Berwick-upon-Tweed: a town in Northumberland, England.


South Shields

A town in the Metropolitan Borough of South Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, in the Northeast of England (OS grid ref NZ3667).


Teesside

A conurbation in North East England encompassing the towns of Middlesbrough, Stockton-on-Tees, Redcar and surrounding settlements.


Mansfield

From Old English Mammesfeld, from a Brythonic word mamm, meaning "mother" or "breast" + feld (“field”).


Kendal

From Old English Cent + dæl = "valley of the river Kent".

Westmorland and Furness
Westmorland and Furness#English

A town and civil parish with a town council in Westmorland and Furness, Cumbria, England, previously in South Lakeland district (OS grid ref SD5192).


Dartmouth

English port: from Dart + mouth, since it lies at the mouth of the River Dart.

A town, civil parish, and port in South Hams district, Devon, England (OS grid ref SX8751).


Arundel

From Old English hārhūne (“horehound”) + dell (“small valley”).

A market town and civil parish with a town council in Arun district, West Sussex, England (OS grid ref TQ0107).


Northampton

From Old English Norþhāmtūn. The earliest reference to Northampton in writing occurred in 914 under the name Ham tune. The Domesday Book (1086) records the town as Northantone: the prefix “North” was added later to distinguish it from other towns called “Hampton”, most prominently Southampton.

West Northamptonshire
West Northamptonshire#English

A large town, the county town of Northamptonshire, now in West Northamptonshire district, England.


Newark

Probably from Old English nīewe (“new”) + weorc (“work”). In this case, a perhaps more accurate sense of "work" would be that of a building, as an example of a work of labor. It appears in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Newerche.

A civil parish and town with a town council in Nottinghamshire, England.


Grimsby

From Old Norse Grim (“male given name”) (Grimr, Grimnir, Grim; masked one, mask; Odin) + -s + býr (“village”). Equivalent of Grim + 's + -by.

gloss

<i class="Latn mention" lang="non">Grimr, Grimnir, Grim; masked one, mask; Odin</i>

North East Lincolnshire
North East Lincolnshire#English

A large town and seaport on the Humber in North East Lincolnshire district, Lincolnshire, England.


Crawley

From Old English crāwe (“crow”), genitive plural, crāwan + lēah (“wood, clearing”).

A large town and borough in West Sussex.


Yarmouth

en-proper noun

Yarmouth (countable and uncountable, plural Yarmouths)

* From the name of the River Yare + Old English mūþ (“mouth”).
* On the Isle of Wight, from the River Yar + mouth.
* The town in Nova Scotia is named after the town in Massachusetts.

A town and civil parish with a town council on the northwest coast of the Isle of Wight, England (OS grid ref SZ3589).


Telford

Telford (countable and uncountable, plural Telfords)

Telfords (plural)
Talford (alternative)
Telfort (alternative)

Telford
Telford (disambiguation)
en:Thomas Telford

From Old French taille fer, meaning "(he who) cuts iron" or "iron-cleaver"; used as a nickname for a man who could cleave clean through the armour of his foe. The second syllable was eventually reanalysed as native English 'ford'.
* (road): Named after Thomas Telford, a famous civil engineer.

Telford and Wrekin
Telford and Wrekin#English

A new town in Telford and Wrekin borough and the ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, named after Thomas Telford (OS grid ref SJ7008).


Huddersfield

A large town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, West Yorkshire, England.


Great Yarmouth

desc

→ Japanese: グレート・ヤーマス

→ Japanese: グレート・ヤーマス

A coastal town and borough of Norfolk, England.

Borough of Great Yarmouth
Great Yarmouth


Harwich

In the reverse direction, creature comforts were not closely studied, and the vessel left Antwerp at 1 p.m., to arrive in Harwich at the awkward hour of 2 a.m. The boat train was waiting for the weary stream of passengers, who straggled up George Street, encumbered with luggage, or following burdened porters in the darkness.

1951 November, K. Westcott Jones, “Parkeston Quay and the Antwerp Continental Service”, in Railway Magazine, page 760:

The port of Harwich is where England bares her rump to the continent.

2021, A. K. Blakemore, The Manningtree Witches, Granta Books:

A coastal town and civil parish with a town council in Tendring district, Essex, England (OS grid ref TM2632).


Folkestone

Folkestone and Hythe
Folkestone and Hythe#English

A coastal town and civil parish with a town council in Folkestone and Hythe district, Kent, England (OS grid ref TR2235).


Falmouth

In Cornwall, from Fal + mouth, at the mouth of the River Fal.

A town, port, and civil parish with a town council in south-west Cornwall, England (OS grid ref SW8132).


Eastbourne

A coastal town and local government district with borough status of East Sussex, England (OS grid ref TV6098).


Penzance

From Cornish Pennsans, meaning "holy headland".

A coastal town, port, and civil parish with a town council in Cornwall, England (OS grid ref SW4730).


Barnstaple

Formerly Barnstable; the name is first recorded in the 10th century and is believed to derive from the Old English bearde (“battle-axe”) and stapol (“pillar”). Not related to staple in the sense of a market, which arose later.

A town and civil parish with a town council in North Devon district, Devon, England (OS grid ref SS5633).


Basildon

Basildon (disambiguation)
Borough of Basildon

A new town in Essex, England (OS grid ref TQ7088).


Birkenhead

From Birkheued 1260, Bircheveth c1200; headland where birch trees grow; from Old English birce + heafod.

A town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England (OS grid ref SJ3288).


Bridlington

From the Old English personal name Berhtel + -ing (“belonging to”) + tun (“settlement”).

East Riding of Yorkshire
East Riding of Yorkshire#English

A coastal town and civil parish with a town council in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England (OS grid ref TA1866).


Gosport

Possibly from goose or gorse, or from God's port.

A town and borough in Hampshire, England, next to Portsmouth (OS grid ref SZ6199).


Guildford

The root of the first part may be gold rather than guild: the only known 10th-century (Saxon) record uses Guldeford and in the 11th century Geldeford, both equivalent to gold ford. Local historians suggest that this might refer to golden-coloured flowers or sand.

A large town, the county town of Surrey, England.


Harrogate

/ˈ(h)æɹəɡət/

She was from Harrogate, a beautiful town in North Yorkshire with quaint shops, spas and tea rooms aplenty. Itʼs where you go when you want to show people the nice parts of Yorkshire – the kind of place you would take your mother for Motherʼs Day.

2020, Dr Amir Khan, The Doctor Will See You Now, Ebury Press (2021), page 117:

A town in North Yorkshire, England. It should now be a civil parish, with a town council elected on 1 May 2025.


Lowestoft

From Old Norse Hloðvér (“a personal name”) + toft (“homestead”).

A town and civil parish with a town council in East Suffolk district, Suffolk, England, previously in Waveney district (OS grid ref TM5493).


Luton

From the name of the River Lea + Old English tūn (“enclosure; settlement, town”). Doublet of Leyton.

der

A town, unitary authority, and borough of Bedfordshire, England.


Maidstone

From Old English medestan, meddestane from earlier mægdan stane (“the maidens' stone, the people's stone”). Ultimately from Old English mægden + stan or mæġþ + stan which are equivalent to maid(en) + stone. Compare Folkestone and Chiddingstone.

A town in and the county town of Kent, England; located on the River Medway.


Margate

Alderman Johnson condemns the Reform Act, and is for going backward, in all things, to the good times. Punch humbly suggests that every man who votes for the Crab Alderman should be punished as follows:— The said voter never to be permitted to travel by rail, but to journey to York or elsewhere by the very slowest coach. Never to go to Margate by steamboat, but to take three days to the voyage, per hoy. Never to send a letter by penny-post, but to pay 10d. or 13d., as the case may be—the good old price of the good old times.

1847, “Vote for Alderman Johnson”, in Punch, volume XIII, page 40:

A coastal town in Thanet district, Kent, England (OS grid ref TR3570).


Morecambe

A resort town and civil parish with a town council in Lancaster district, Lancashire, England (OS grid ref SD4364).


Shrewsbury

/ˈʃɹoʊzbəɹi/

From Old English Sċrobbesburh (literally “fort in the scrubland region”), from *sċrob (“shrub, scrub”) + burh. Compare Shropshire from Sċrobbesċīr, short form of Sċrobbesbyriġ sċīr (literally “shire of Shrewsbury”).

A large market town, the county town of Shropshire, England.


Swindon

From Old English swīn (“swine, pig”) + denu (“valley”), similar to the name Swinden. The first element could instead be from the Old Norse personal name Sveinn, or its Old English equivalent swān.

A town, unitary authority, and borough in Wiltshire, England.


Taunton

en-prop

Taunton (countable and uncountable, plural Tauntons)

From Old English Tantūn, from the name of the river Tone.

Somerset West and Taunton
Somerset West and Taunton#English

A town and civil parish with a town council in Somerset, England, previously in Somerset West and Taunton district (OS grid ref ST2225).


Warrington

From Middle English Wardintone, from personal name, Wearda, from Old English weard (“guard”) + ing + tūn, meaning either "Wearda's estate" or "the lookout place".

A town, borough, and unitary authority in Cheshire, England.


Stratford-on-Avon

Stratford-on-Avon District
Stratford-upon-Avon
en:Clopton Bridge

From being the location of a river ford for a roadway. From Old Welsh avon (“river”) + Old English ford (“ford”) + Old English strǣt (“street”); from Latin strata (“road”). From being a ford for a British Roman road. The ford itself has subsequently been built over, becoming Clopton Bridge. The river itself has subsequently become named River Avon.

Stratford-upon-Avon (alternative)
Stratford (alternative)

Nuneaton was not a Stratford on Avon, nor had it a salubrious air.

1957, The Foundry Trade Journal, page 454:

If America is not privileged enough to have a Stratford-on-Avon, it still has a Concord

1979, Steven Kagle, America: Exploration and Travel, page 82:

A town in Warwickshire, England, birthplace of William Shakespeare. Often used as a byword for a particularly idyllic or historic town.


Haslemere

A town and civil parish with a town council in Waverley borough, Surrey, England (OS grid ref SU9032).


Felixstowe

First attested as Filchestou in 1254. Derived from a compound of the name of Saint Felix of Burgundy and Middle English stowe (“place, stead”).

A coastal town, port, and civil parish with a town council in East Suffolk district, Suffolk, England, previously in Suffolk Coastal district (OS grid ref TM3034).


Bridport

A town and civil parish with a town council in west Dorset, England (OS grid ref SY4693).


Newhaven

A town and civil parish with a town council in Lewes district, East Sussex, England (OS grid ref TQ4401).


Fareham

en-proper noun

Fareham (countable and uncountable, plural Farehams)

Recorded as Ferneham in the Domesday Book, the placename derives from Old English fearn (“fern”) + hām (“homestead”).

A town and borough in Hampshire, England (OS grid ref SU578048).


Waterlooville

From Waterloo + -ville; it was originally named Waterloo.

A town in Havant borough, Hampshire, England (OS grid ref SU6809).


Hythe

Hythe and Dibden
Hythe and Dibden#English

A town in Hythe and Dibden parish, New Forest district, Hampshire, England (OS grid ref SU4207).

A coastal town and civil parish with a town council in Folkestone and Hythe district, Kent, England (OS grid ref TR1634).


Havant

From Middle English Haveunte from Old English Haman (“Hama's”, personal name) + *funta (“Spring”)


Eastleigh

Borough of Eastleigh
Eastleigh (disambiguation)

A town and local government district with borough status of Hampshire, England (OS grid ref SU4519).


Bordon

Variant of the place name Old English Barden (“barley valley”), from bere + dun (“hill, valley”).

A town in Whitehill parish, East Hampshire district, Hampshire, England (OS grid ref SU7935).


Basingstoke

Basingstoke and Deane
Basingstoke and Deane#English

A town in Basingstoke and Deane district, Hampshire, England.


Fordingbridge

/ˈfɔː(ɹ)dɪŋˈbɹɪd͡ʒ/

See ford, bridge. First recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 under the name Forde.

A town and civil parish with a town council in New Forest district, Hampshire, England (OS grid ref SU1414).


Ringwood

en-proper noun

Ringwood (countable and uncountable, plural Ringwoods)

Probably from Old English rimuc (“boundary”) + wudu (“wood”).

A town and civil parish with a town council in New Forest district, Hampshire, England (OS grid ref SU1505).


Tadley

From the Old English personal name Tada + lēah (“woodland clearing, glade”).

A town and civil parish with a town council in Basingstoke and Deane borough, Hampshire, England (OS grid ref SU6061).


Jarrow

From Middle English Jarwe, Jaruum, from Old English on Ġyrwum (“(at the) marshes”) (Latin: in Gyruum), dative plural of ġyru (“mud; marsh”), from Proto-Germanic *gurwijō (“mud”) from Proto-Indo-European *gʷʰer- (“warm; hot”). Related to gore, from Proto-Germanic *gurą (“half-digested stomach contents; feces; manure”). The dʒ sound in Middle English j derives from a nasal before palatalised ġ (compare singe).

inh

A town in the Metropolitan Borough of South Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, north-east England, located on the River Tyne (OS grid ref NZ3265).


Windsor

Inherited from Middle English Wyndelsore, from Old English Windlesōra (“Windsor”, literally “bank with a windlass, winch by the riverside”), from *windel ("reel, winch"; > Middle English windel (“reel, spool”)) + ōra (“bank, shore”). See windlass.

gloss

"reel, winch"; > Middle English <i class="Latn mention" lang="enm">windel</i> (“reel, spool”)

Windsor and Maidenhead
Windsor and Maidenhead#English

Windsor, Berkshire, a market town in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, famous for Windsor Castle.


Hertford

Inherited from Middle English Hertford, from Old English Heorotford, from heorot (“stag”) + ford (“ford”), equivalent to hart + ford.

East Hertfordshire
East Hertfordshire#English

A town and civil parish (with a town council) in East Hertfordshire district, and the county town of Hertfordshire, England (OS grid ref TL3212).


Hertford

English: Hertford; Hartford

→ Old French: Herteford

Inherited from Old English Heorotford, Heortford; equivalent to hert (“hart”) + ford (“ford, crossing”).

Hartford (alternative)
Hertforde (alternative)
Hurtford (alternative)

Hertford (a town in Hertfordshire, England)


Hungerford

en-proper noun

Hungerford (countable and uncountable, plural Hungerfords)

From Old English hungor (“hunger, famine”) + ford (“ford”), a name which probably denoted an unproductive or barren land.

A town and civil parish with a town council in West Berkshire district, Berkshire (OS grid ref SU3368).


Barnsley

Barnsley (countable and uncountable, plural Barnsleys)

From the Old English personal name Beorn + -s- + lēah (“woodland clearing, glade”).

metropolitan borough
metropolitan borough

A market town and metropolitan borough in South Yorkshire, England (OS grid ref SE3406).


Newbury

From Old English niwe (“new”) + byriġ, the dative case of burh (“fortified place”). Doublet of Newburgh.

A local government district in Berkshire formed in 1974 and renamed West Berkshire in April 1998.

A town and civil parish with a town council in West Berkshire district, Berkshire, England (OS grid ref SU4767).


Banstead

Equivalent to bean + stead (indicating a place where beans were grown).

Reigate and Banstead
Reigate and Banstead#English

A town in Reigate and Banstead borough, Surrey, England (OS grid ref TQ2559).


Kidderminster

A town and civil parish with a town council in Wyre Forest district, Worcestershire, England, traditionally associated with the cloth trade and the manufacture of carpets (OS grid ref SO8376).


Rochester

/ˈɹɒt͡ʃɪstə/

/ˈɹɑt͡ʃɛstɚ/

From Middle English Rovescester, from Old English Hrofesċeaster (literally “Hrofi's fortified camp”).

inh

A town and historic city in Medway borough, Kent, England (OS grid ref TQ7468).


Stafford

From Old English stæþ (“landing place”) + ford.

en:Stafford
en:Stafford (disambiguation)
en:Stafford (surname)

de Stafford (alternative archaic)
Strafford (alternative)

A town in and the county town of Staffordshire, England.


Hyde

en-proper noun

Hyde (countable and uncountable, plural Hydes)

* As an English surname, from the root of hide (“measure of land”).
* Also as an English surname, spelling variant of Ide.
* As a Jewish surname, Americanized from Haid.

Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester#English

A town in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, Greater Manchester (formerly in Cheshire).


Buckingham

From Old English Buccingahām, from the personal name Bucca (see bucca (“he-goat”)) + -ing (“belonging to”) + hām (“home”).

A place name:
A town in Buckinghamshire, England.


Marlborough

A town and civil parish with a town council in Wiltshire, England (OS grid ref SU1969).


Middleton

Middleton (countable and uncountable, plural Middletons)

From Old English Middeltūn, equivalent to middle + -ton.
The town in Nova Scotia is named for its location midway between Annapolis Royal and Kentville.

Any of many placenames in England, Scotland and elsewhere, from the Old English words for "middle town", including:

A number of places in England, including:

A town in Rochdale borough, Greater Manchester (OS grid ref SD8705).


Dunholm

Middle English:

English: Durham

→ Old French: Duresm

Middle French: Duresm

→ English: Duresm

→ Latin: Dunelmun

→ English: Dunelm

dun (“hill, mountain”) + holm (“islet”, from Old Norse holmr, from Proto-Germanic *hulmaz)

compound

Durham (the county town of County Durham)


Ramsgate

A coastal town and civil parish with a town council in Thanet borough, Kent, England (OS grid ref TR3864).


Meregate

Obsolete spelling of Margate: a coastal town in Kent, England.


Ramsey

From Old English hramsa (“wild garlic”) + īeġ (“island”).

A small town and civil parish with a town council in Huntingdonshire district, Cambridgeshire, England, originally in the county of Huntingdonshire (OS grid ref TL2885).


Chatham

From an Old Welsh word cēd, meaning "wood" + hām (“home”).

since Adam was an oakum boy in Chatham Dockyard

when Adam was an oakum boy in Chatham Dockyard

A port and town on the River Medway in Kent, England; the home of the Royal dockyard.


Kimberley

English place name "wood or clearing of Kyneburga (a seventh century female saint)", from Old English cyne- (“royal”) + burh (“fortress”) + lēah (“leigh, clearing”).

A town and civil parish with a town council in Broxtowe borough, Nottinghamshire, England (OS grid ref SK4944).


Louth

A market town and civil parish with a town council in East Lindsey district, Lincolnshire, England (OS grid ref TF3287).


Pickering

en-proper noun

Pickering (countable and uncountable, plural Pickerings)

Pickerings (plural)
Pickron (alternative)

A town and civil parish with a town council in North Yorkshire, England, previously in Ryedale district (OS grid ref SE7984).


Atherton

Atherton (countable and uncountable, plural Athertons)

Athertons (plural)
Atterton (alternative)
Eatherton (alternative)
Etherton (alternative)

From the Old English personal name Æþelhere + tūn (“enclosure; settlement, town”).

A town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, Greater Manchester, England (OS grid ref SD6703).


Beverley

Beverley (countable and uncountable, plural Beverleys)

Beverleys (plural)
Beverly (alternative)

From Old English befer (“beaver”) + lēah (“clearing”). Equivalent to Beaver + -ley (“lea”).

A market town and civil parish with a town council and county town of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England.


Leigh

From the nominative case of Old English lēah (“wood, meadow”), 'dweller by the wood or clearing'.

A town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, Greater Manchester (OS grid ref SD6500).


Nelson

Nelson (countable and uncountable, plural Nelsons)

From Middle English Neil + -son and Nell + -son.
* In the United States, also an Anglicisation of North Germanic (Scandinavian) surnames such as Nilsen, Nielsen, and Nilsson, equivalent to "son of Nicholas".

A town and civil parish of Pendle borough, Lancashire, England.


Blackburn

Blackburn (countable and uncountable, plural Blackburns)

Blackburns (plural)
Blackbourn (alternative)
Blackburne (alternative)

From Old English blæc (“dark”) + burna (“stream”).

Blackburn with Darwen
Blackburn with Darwen#English

A large town in Blackburn with Darwen district, Lancashire, England.


Braintree

From the Old English personal name *Branca + trēow (“tree”).


グリニッジ

[ɡɯ̟ɾʲiɲ̟id̚d͡ʑi]

From English Greenwich. Doublet of グリーンウィッチ (Gurīnwitchi).


King's Lynn

A market town and port in Norfolk, England.


Accrington

From the Old English æcern and -tun, meaning "where acorns are found".

A town in Hyndburn borough, Lancashire, England.


Adlington

Adlington (countable and uncountable, plural Adlingtons)

Adlingtons (plural)
Hadlington (alternative)

From the Old English personal name Ēadwulf + -ing (“belonging to”) + tūn (“enclosure; settlement, town”).

A town and civil parish in Chorley borough, Lancashire, England (OS grid ref SD6013).


Alston

From Old English Ælfes (given name with possessive) tun, translating as "Ælf's town".

A market town in Alston Moor parish, Westmorland and Furness, Cumbria, previously in Eden district (OS grid ref NY7146).


Audenshaw

From Old English Aldwine + sceaga (“copse”).

A town in Tameside borough, Greater Manchester, England.


Reeth

Possibly from Old English rīþ (“[place at] the stream”). Recorded in the Domesday Book as Rie and in 1184 as Rithe.

inh

A small town in Richmondshire district, North Yorkshire, England.


Buxton

en-proper noun

Buxton (countable and uncountable, plural Buxtons)

Buxtons (plural)
Buckstone (alternative)

Two main origins:
* The town in Derbyshire derives from Old English būgan (“to bend, bow”) + stān (“stone”).
* The village in Norfolk derives from an unattested Old English personal name *Bucc + -s- + tūn (“enclosure; settlement, town”).

A town in High Peak district, Derbyshire, England, United Kingdom (OS grid ref SK059735).


Wigan

From Proto-Brythonic, ultimately probably from Latin vicus (“town”) + a diminitive suffix (c.f. Welsh gwig + -an).

A town and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England.


Cramlington

From earlier kramelston, of North Germanic origin, from Danish kram (“tight, narrow”) + -ton (“town”).

A town and civil parish with a town council in Northumberland, England (OS grid ref NZ2776).


Morpeth

Originally recorded in the Assize Rolls of Northumberland of 1256 as Morthpath, from morð pað, ”murder path”.

A town and civil parish with a town council in and the administrative centre of Northumberland, England (OS grid ref NZ1985).


Emsworth

A small coastal town in Havant borough, Hampshire, England (OS grid ref SU7405).


Ealing

A town in West London, Greater London, England.


Stratford-upon-Avon

A market town and civil parish with a town council in Stratford-on-Avon district, Warwickshire, England (OS grid ref SP2054).


Mere

# For the places in England: from Old English mere (“lake, pond”).
# For the place in Belgium: from Middle Dutch mēre, from Old Dutch meri (“lake, sea”).

A small town and civil parish with a town council in south-west Wiltshire, England (OS grid ref ST8132).


Royston

From a place name in Hertfordshire, from the medieval given name Royce + Old English tūn (“settlement”).

North Hertfordshire
North Hertfordshire#English

A town and civil parish in North Hertfordshire district, Hertfordshire, England, on the Cambridgeshire border (OS grid ref TL3541).


Bollington

From Middle English Bolin (“River Bollin”) + tūn (“settlement”), 'the settlement on the river Bollin'.

inh

River <i class="Latn mention" lang="enm">Bollin</i>

The township of Bollington (Macclesfield) has been very unhealthy the whole year. There were 50 deaths in it this quarter, 22 of which were from typhus and scarlatina.

1863, Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages in England, Twenty fourth Annual Report of the Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages in England, page xxxi:

Collieries are established in the townships of Hurdsfield, Rainow, Bollington, Adlington, Pott- Shrigley, Lyme, Worth, Poynton, and Norbury

1808, Sir Henry Holland, Board of Agriculture and General Improvement, “Minerals”, in General view of the agriculture of Cheshire: with observations drawn up for the consideration of the Board of Agriculture and Internal Improvement, page 14:

A town and civil parish with a town council in Cheshire East borough, and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England (OS grid ref SJ9377).


Earby

West Riding of Yorkshire
West Riding of Yorkshire#English

A small town in Pendle district, Lancashire, England, historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire.


Hayes

en-proper noun

Hayes (countable and uncountable, plural Hayeses)

*As an English locational surname, from Old English hæs (“brushwood”) (see hris) and Middle English hay (“enclosure”), heye.
*As an Irish surname, from Ó hAodha (“descendant of Aodh”).

A town in the borough of Hillingdon, Greater London (OS grid ref TQ1080).


Κόλτσεστερ

head

Κόλτσεστερ • (Kóltsester)


Chard

There was to be no official opening ceremony, but nevertheless the inhabitants of Chard were not going to neglect this opportunity for a bean-feast, for they were also to celebrate the demolition of the town's East Gate.

1954 February, R. J. Sellick, “Railways to Chard”, in Railway Magazine, page 121:

A town and civil parish in Somerset, England, previously in South Somerset district, near the Devon border. The civil parish is named Chard Town, and served by Chard Town Council. (OS grid ref ST3208).


Roffa

la-proper noun

Roffa f sg (genitive Roffae); first declension

Roffae (genitive)
Roffa (nominative singular)
Roffae (genitive singular)
Roffae (dative singular)
Roffam (accusative singular)
Roffā (ablative singular)
Roffa (singular vocative)
Roffae (locative singular)

Rochester (a town and historic city in Medway borough, Kent, England)


Malton

en-proper noun

Malton (countable and uncountable, plural Maltons)

Probably from Old English mæþel (“speech”) + tūn (“enclosure; settlement, town”), hence a settlement where a public assembly was held.

A market town and civil parish with a town council in North Yorkshire, England, previously in Ryedale district (OS grid ref SE7871).


Wokingham

Meaning "home of the people of Wocca", apparently a Saxon chieftain. In Victorian times, it was known as Oakingham, and the acorn with oak leaves is the town's symbol.

A market town and civil parish with a town council in Berkshire, England (OS grid ref SU8168).


Penrith

First element from Cumbric *penn (“head, top, summit”). Suffix probably Cumbric *rıd (“ford”), or possibly Cumbric *rüð (“red”).

Westmorland and Furness
Westmorland and Furness#English

A market town and civil parish in Westmorland and Furness district, Cumbria, England, previously in Eden district, historically in Cumberland (OS grid ref NY5130).


Twickenham

Richmond upon Thames
Richmond upon Thames#English

A town in the borough of Richmond upon Thames, south-western Greater London, England, historically in Middlesex (OS grid ref TQ1673).


Thorne

A market town and civil parish (served by Thorne-Moorends Town Council) in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England (OS grid ref SE6813).


Morley

en-prop

Morley (countable and uncountable, plural Morleys)

From Old English mor (“moor”) + leah (“wood”). Equivalent to moor + -ley (“lea”).

(uncountable) Any of various places in England:

A market town and civil parish with a town council in the Metropolitan Borough of Leeds, West Yorkshire (OS grid ref SD2628).


Chesterfield

A market town and borough in Derbyshire, England.


Sutton

en-proper noun

Sutton (countable and uncountable, plural Suttons)

From Old English suþ (“south”) + tun (“town”).

A number of places in England, including:

A suburban town in southern Greater London, historically in Surrey (OS grid ref TQ2664).


Stanhope

The British placenames are from Old English stan (“stone”) + hōp (“valley”).

A market town and civil parish in Weardale, County Durham, England (OS grid ref NY9939).


Orpington

A town in Greater London, in southeastern England.


Torquay

A town and coastal resort in Torbay borough, in southern Devon, England.


Barking

Compare older names such as Medieval Latin Berchingae (from the Domesday Book) and Latin Berecingum.

Barking and Dagenham
Barking and Dagenham#English

A town in the borough of Barking and Dagenham, in eastern Greater London, England (OS grid ref TQ4484).


Lancastre

Lancaster (a city, the county town of Lancashire, England)


Christchurch

Christ Church, Oxford
Christchurch
University of Oxford

From Christ + church.
* (English town): The English town's name is from the name of a priory established in 1094.
* (New Zealand city): The New Zealand city's name is from Christ Church, Oxford, an Oxford University college, chosen by an alumnus of the University.

A coastal town and former borough in Dorset, England, formerly in Hampshire. The borough was abolished on 1 April 2019.


Devizes

From Latin. Because the castle was on the boundaries of the manors of Rowde, Bishops Cannings and Potterne it became known as the castrum ad divisas ("the castle at the boundaries"). On John Speed's map of Wiltshire (1611), the town's name is recorded as The Devyses.

A market town and civil parish with a town council in Wiltshire, England (OS grid ref SU0061).


Radcliffe

A town in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, Greater Manchester, England (OS grid ref SD7807).


Newmarket

The cloak and card game are named after the English town.

A market town in Suffolk, England, with a famous racecourse.


Woodley

Woodley (countable and uncountable, plural Woodleys)

From Old English wudu (“wood”) + lēah (“woodland clearing, glade”). Equivalent to wood + -ley (“lea”).

A town and civil parish with a town council in Wokingham borough, Berkshire, England (OS grid ref SU7673).


Tring

A market town and civil parish in Dacorum borough, Hertfordshire, England (OS grid ref SP9211).


Lydd

A town and civil parish with a town council, on the Romney Marsh in Folkestone and Hythe district, Kent, England (OS grid ref TR0420).


Yarm

A town and civil parish with a town council in Stockton-on-Tees borough, North Yorkshire, England (OS grid ref NZ4112).


Crosby

Crosbie (alternative)
Crossby (alternative)
Corsby (alternative)

From Old Norse kross (“cross”) + býr (“settlement”).

A town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside (OS grid ref SJ3198).


Bury

Bury (countable and uncountable, plural Burys)

The place name means "fort," from Old English burg. Doublet of borough, Brough, and burgh.

Bury
Bury (surname)
Bury, Greater Manchester

A town and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester.


Oldham

Oldham (countable and uncountable, plural Oldhams)

Domesday Book
Metropolitan Borough of Oldham
Oldham (disambiguation)#Other meanings

Recorded as Aldehulme in the Domesday Book, the English toponym is named with Old English eald (“old”) + Old Norse holmr (“holm, islet”). Or else, the first element may be Old English Alda, a male given name, or the Cumbric/Proto-Brythonic equivalent of Welsh allt (“cliff”).

A town and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England (OS grid ref SD922053).


Rochdale

/ˈɹɒt͡ʃdeɪl/

From the River Roch + dale, although recorded in the Domesday Book (1086) as Recedham (homestead with a hall), which became Rachedal by 1195 (valley of the River Roch).

A town and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England.


Stockport

Stockport (countable and uncountable, plural Stockports)

From Old English stoc (“house, dwelling; place”) + port (“port; market town”).

der

A market town and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England (OS grid ref SJ8990).


Shaftesbury

A town and civil parish with a town council in north Dorset, England (OS grid ref ST8623).


Welwyn Garden City

A garden city (actually a town without city status) in Welwyn Hatfield borough, Hertfordshire, England.


Woking

A town in Surrey, England (OS grid ref TQ0058).


Skegness

From either (East) Old Norse Skeggi (personal name) or skegg (“beard”) + nes (“headland”).

A town and civil parish with a town council in East Lindsey district, Lincolnshire, on the east coast of England (OS grid ref TF5663).


Hingham

A market town and civil parish with a town council in South Norfolk district, Norfolk, England (OS grid ref TG0202).


Hitchin

From Old English *Hicce, the name of a tribe.

A town in North Hertfordshire district, Hertfordshire, England (OS grid ref TL1829).


Hawes

A small market town and civil parish (served by Hawes and High Abbotside Parish Council) in North Yorkshire, England, previously in Richmondshire district (OS grid ref SD8789).


Bungay

A market town and civil parish with a town council in East Suffolk district, Suffolk, England (OS grid ref TM3389).


Wynchester

English: Winchester

Inherited from Old English Wintanceastre, Winteceaster.

Winchestre (alternative)
Wynchestre (alternative)
Winceastre (alternative Early-Middle-English)
Wincestre (alternative Early-Middle-English)

Winchester (the county town of Hampshire, England, United Kingdom)


Warwyk

Old English Wǣringwīċ (literally “dwellings by the weir”), from wer (“weir”) + -ing (“of the”, used with masculine nouns) + wīċ (“dwelling place, village”).


Leek

Perhaps of pre-Anglo-Saxon (non-Old English) origin and instead from Celtic; compare Welsh llech and Irish leac (“stone”), both from Proto-Celtic *ɸlikkā.
Recorded as Lec in 1086 (DB).

Staffordshire Moorlands
Staffordshire Moorlands#English

A town and civil parish with a town council in Staffordshire Moorlands district, Staffordshire, England (OS grid ref SJ9856).


Portishead

From the genitive singular of Old English port (“harbor”), portes + hēafod (“head”), meaning "the harbor headland".

Portishead, lying west-north-west of Bristol, on the Severn, had a small port from medieval times on its pill, or inlet, and began to develop as a seaside resort early in the nineteenth century, when it was served by steam packets from Bristol.

1955 June, C. L. Mowat, “The Bristol & Portishead Pier & Railway”, in Railway Magazine, page 371:

A coastal town and civil parish with a town council in North Somerset district, Somerset, England, on the Bristol Channel (OS grid ref ST4676).


Leatherhead

The Leatherhead Museum has traced the history of the town from its beginnings in about AD 880 when it was known as Leodridan (dative case of a compound of leode and rida), meaning "place where people [can] ride [across the river]" in Anglo-Saxon). Later in the Domesday Book it was called Leret. Later forms recorded are Lereda, Ledreda, Leddrede (all second half of 12th century).


Epsom

From Old English Ebba (“a personal name”) + hām (“homestead”).

A town in Epsom and Ewell borough, Surrey, England, known for its racecourse (OS grid ref TQ2060).


Eastwood

A town and civil parish with a town council in Broxtowe borough, Nottinghamshire, England (OS grid ref SK4646).


Exmouth

In England, from Old English Exanmūþa recorded c. 1025, equivalent to Exe + mouth.

A town in Devon, England, at the mouth of the River Exe.


Stone

en-prop

Stone (countable and uncountable, plural Stones)

A market town and civil parish with a town council in Stafford borough, Staffordshire (OS grid ref SJ9034).


Walton

Variously from Old English weall (“wall”) or wealh (“Celt, Welshman”) + tūn (“settlement”)

Place names in Canada, New Zealand, United Kingdom and the USA.

A city in Boone County and Kenton County, Kentucky, United States.

A number of places in England, including:

A suburb and civil parish (with a community council) in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire (OS grid ref SP8936).

A northern suburb of Peterborough, Cambridgeshire (OS grid ref TF1702).

A suburb of the City of Liverpool, Merseyside (OS grid ref SJ3694).

A hamlet in Eccleshall parish, Stafford borough, Staffordshire (OS grid ref SJ8527).

A suburban area in Stone parish, Stafford borough, Staffordshire (OS grid ref SJ9033).

A village and civil parish in the City of Wakefield, West Yorkshire (OS grid ref SE3517).


Shipley

From Old English scēap (“sheep”) + lēah (“meadow, field, pasture”), thus a field for grazing sheep; equivalent to sheep + -ley. Compare Gateley (literally “goat lea”).

A town and civil parish with a town council in the Metropolitan Borough of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England.


Stroud

A town and civil parish with a town council in Stroud district, Gloucestershire, England (OS grid ref SO8505).


Aldridge

en-proper noun

Aldridge (countable and uncountable, plural Aldridges)

Aldridges (plural)
Arledge (alternative)
Arlidge (alternative)
Houldridge (alternative)
Oldridge (alternative)

From Old English alor (“alder”) + wīc (“farmstead”).

A town in Walsall borough, West Midlands, England (OS grid ref SK0500).


Henley

Henley (countable and uncountable, plural Henleys)

From Old English hēan, weak dative case of hēah (“high”), + lēah (“woodland clearing, glade”). Compare Hanley, which shares the same etymology.

A town in Oxfordshire, England; see Henley-on-Thames.

A town in Warwickshire, England; see Henley-in-Arden.


Rayleigh

A town and civil parish with a town council in Rochford district, Essex, England (OS grid ref TQ8090).


Bingham

en-prop

Bingham (countable and uncountable, plural Binghams)

Uncertain. Perhaps from Old English Bynna (given name) + -ing + hām (“home, property”), or from Old Norse bingr (“stall, bed”) + hām.

A town and civil parish in Rushcliffe district, Nottinghamshire, England (OS grid ref SK703343).


Bingley

en-proper noun

Bingley (countable and uncountable, plural Bingleys)

From the Old English personal name Bynna + -ing (“belonging to”) + lēah (“woodland clearing, glade”).

A market town and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England (OS grid ref SE108389).


Broughton

Broughton (countable and uncountable, plural Broughtons)

From Old English beorg (“mountain, hill”) or brōc (“brook, stream, torrent”) + tūn (“enclosure; settlement, town”).

North Lincolnshire
North Lincolnshire#English

(uncountable) A number of places in the United Kingdom:

A small town and civil parish with a town council in North Lincolnshire district, Lincolnshire, England (OS grid ref SE9609).


Burnham

Burnham (countable and uncountable, plural Burnhams)

From Old English burna (“stream”) + hām (“homestead”) or hamm (“water meadow”).

A town in Essex, England; see Burnham-on-Crouch.

A coastal town in Somerset, England; see Burnham-on-Sea.


Farnworth

Farnworth (countable and uncountable, plural Farnworths)

From Old English fearn (“fern”) + worþ (“enclosure”).

A town in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, formerly in Lancashire (OS grid ref SD7305).


Gainsborough

A town and civil parish with a town council in West Lindsey district, Lincolnshire, England (OS grid ref SK8190).


Hatfield

Hatfield (countable and uncountable, plural Hatfields)

Hatfields (plural)
Hetfield (alternative)

A town and civil parish in Welwyn Hatfield borough, Hertfordshire (OS grid ref TL2208).

A town and civil parish in Doncaster borough, South Yorkshire (OS grid ref SE6509).


Heywood

A town in the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England (OS grid ref SD8510).


Kington

Kington (countable and uncountable, plural Kingtons)

From Old English cyning (“king”) + tūn (“enclosure; settlement, town”).

A town and civil parish with a town council in north-west Herefordshire, England (OS grid ref SO2956).


Putney

From Old English personal name Putta, genitive case Puttan + hȳþ (“landing place”).

A suburban town in the borough of Wandsworth, Greater London, England (OS grid ref TQ2475).


Swinton

Swinton (countable and uncountable, plural Swintons)

From Old English swīn (“pig, swine, wild boar”) + tūn (“enclosure; settlement, town”).

der

A town in the Metropolitan Borough of Salford, Greater Manchester, England (OS grid ref SD7702).

A town in the Metropolitan Borough of Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England (OS grid ref SK4599).


Whitworth

en-proper noun

Whitworth (countable and uncountable, plural Whitworths)

From Old English hwīt (“white”) + worð (“enclosure”).

A small town and civil parish with a town council in Rossendale borough, Lancashire, England (OS grid ref SD8818).


Tipton

An industrial town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell, West Midlands, England (OS grid ref SO9592).


Worthing

Worthing (countable and uncountable, plural Worthings)

* The name of the village in Norfolk derives from Old English worþig (“enclosure”).
* The name of the town in West Sussex derives from the unattested Old English personal name *Weorþ + -ing (“belonging to”).

A coastal town and borough in West Sussex, England.


West Bromwich

They had been to a party thrown by friends of theirs from a congregation in West Bromwich, and likely themselves had enjoyed a glass of red.

2020, Paul Mendez, Rainbow Milk, Dialogue Books (2021), page 83:

A town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell, West Midlands, England, formerly in Staffordshire (OS grid ref SP0091).


ボストン

[bo̞sɨ̥tõ̞ɴ]

ja:ボストン (曖昧さ回避)


Ottery St Mary

A town and civil parish with a town council, on the River Otter in East Devon district, Devon, England (OS grid ref SY1095).


Solihull

Perhaps a form of soily hill: the parish church of St Alphege was built on a hill of stiff red marl.

A large town and metropolitan borough of the West Midlands, in the centre of England.

Metropolitan Borough of Solihull
Solihull


Walsall

A town and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England.


Scunthorpe

From Old English Escumetorpe, from Old Norse Skumasþorp, from Skuma + -s + þorp, literally “Skuma's homestead”.

af

An industrial town in North Lincolnshire district, Lincolnshire, England, United Kingdom (OS grid ref SE8910).


Cheltenham

We couldn't get him back into training before Christmas time because he picked up an injury at the Cheltenham Festival last year and we had to go softly softly.

2006 April 28, “Royal heads Betfred field”, in RTE Sport, Ireland, retrieved 2009-06-22:

The society had apparently been formed the previous year, but as the Cheltenham Spa Railway Society, which sounded rather parochial and unambitious - particularly as (by all accounts) its founders had gathered in a garden shed in the town.

2021 December 29, Stephen Roberts, “Stories and facts behind railway plaques Cheltenham (1928)”, in RAIL, number 947, page 60:

A town and borough in Gloucestershire, England, famous for its racecourse.


Gillingham

en-proper noun

Gillingham (countable and uncountable, plural Gillinghams)

/ˈɡɪ.lɪŋ.əm/

From the Old English personal name *Gylla + -ing (“belonging to”) + hām (“homestead”).

A town in Medway borough, Kent, England (OS grid ref TQ775675).

A town and civil parish in north Dorset, England (OS grid ref ST805265).


Kingston upon Thames

Distinguishing this location from other places also known as Kingston. The River Thames is on the west side of the town, and forms part of the borough's western boundary here.

An ancient market town, now a royal borough of Greater London, England, officially called the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames.


Frome

A town and civil parish with a town council in Somerset, England, previously in Mendip district (OS grid ref ST7848).


Pontefract

From Latin pons (“bridge”) + Latin fractus (“broken”).

A town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England (OS grid ref SE4522).


Chippenham

From Old English Ċippanham, from the personal name *Cippa, genitive singular *Cippan + hamm (“promontory”).

A market town and civil parish with a town council in north Wiltshire, England (OS grid ref ST9173).


Flitwick

From the name of the River Flit + Old English wīc (“village; temporary abode”).

der

Central Bedfordshire
Central Bedfordshire#English

A town and civil parish in Central Bedfordshire district, Bedfordshire, England (OS grid ref TL0334).


Glossop

A market town in High Peak borough, Derbyshire, England (OS grid ref SK0394).


Harpenden

A town and civil parish with a town council in St Albans district, Hertfordshire, England (OS grid ref TL1314).


Kenilworth

From Old English feminine personal name Cynehild (“royal battle”), genitive singular Cynehilde + worþ (“enclosure”).

A town and civil parish with a town council in Warwick district, Warwickshire, England (OS grid ref SP2971).


Ormskirk

Of Old Norse origin. Derived from Ormres kirkja, i.e. the church of Ormr, a personal name meaning "serpent" or "dragon".

A market town in West Lancashire district, Lancashire, England (OS grid ref SD4108).


Uckfield

A town and civil parish with a town council in Wealden district, East Sussex, England, on the River Uck (OS grid ref TQ4721).


Verwood

Equivalent to fair + wood; recorded as Fairwod (1329) and Fayrwod (1436).


Yateley

A town in Hampshire, in southern England.


Oswestry

Recorded as Oswaldestroe in 1191, a tree of a man called Oswald; from Old English trēow.

A town and civil parish with a town council in north-west Shropshire, England (OS grid ref SJ2929).


Paignton

A coastal town in Torbay district, Devon, England (OS grid ref SX8960).


Teignmouth

From Teign + mouth, at the mouth of the River Teign.

A town and civil parish with a town council in Teignbridge district, Devon, England (OS grid ref SX9473).


Enfield

From Old English Ēana (given name) or ēan (“lamb”) + feld (“field”).

A town and London borough in Greater London.


Denton

en-proper noun

Denton (countable and uncountable, plural Dentons)

From Old English denu (“valley, den”) + tūn (“enclosure; settlement, town”).

(uncountable) A number of places in England:

A town in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, Greater Manchester (OS grid ref SJ9295).


Whitehaven

A port town and civil parish with a town council in Cumberland, Cumbria, England, previously in Copeland borough, and historically within the county of Cumberland (OS grid ref NX9718).


Amwythig

Amwythig
Hamwythig (prothesis-h)
Yr Amwythig (alternative)

Unknown. Possibly from a Proto-Celtic *ambi-uk-t-iko (“little defence”); with the *uk-t being comparable to Middle Welsh gweith (“battle”). Or else *ambi-uik-s-t-.


Cirencester

A market town and civil parish with a town council in Cotswold district, Gloucestershire, England, the site of the ancient Corinium of the Dobunni (OS grid ref SP0202).


Stourbridge

/ˈstaʊəbɹɪd͡ʒ/

A large town in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, West Midlands, England.


Knutsford

A town and civil parish with a town council in Cheshire East district, Cheshire, England (OS grid ref SJ7578).


Potton

en-proper noun

Potton (countable and uncountable, plural Pottons)

From Old English pott (“pot”) + tūn (“enclosure; settlement, town”).

A town and civil parish with a town council in Central Bedfordshire district, Bedfordshire, England (OS grid ref TL2249).


Tavistock

From its location on the River Tavy + Old English stoc; recorded as Tauistoce in 981 and Tavestoc in 1086 (DB).

A town and civil parish with a town council in West Devon district, Devon, England (OS grid ref SX4874).


Dawley

Telford and Wrekin
Telford and Wrekin#English

A small town in Great Dawley parish, Telford and Wrekin borough, in the ceremonial county of Shropshire, England (OS grid ref SJ6807).


Winchcombe

A town and civil parish with a town council in Tewkesbury borough, Gloucestershire, England (OS grid ref SP0228).


West Ham

From Old English west (“west”) + hamm (“water-meadow”).

A town in eastern London, in the borough of Newham, Greater London, England.


Eston

Eston (countable and uncountable, plural Estons)

From Old English ēast (“east”) + tūn (“enclosure; settlement, town”).

Redcar and Cleveland
Redcar and Cleveland#English

A town in Redcar and Cleveland district, North Yorkshire, England (OS grid ref NZ5518).


Brampton

From Old English brōm (“broom plant”) + -tun (“enclosure”).

A small market town and civil parish in Cumberland district, Cumbria, previously in Carlisle district (OS grid ref NY5361).


Ashford

From Old English æscet (“a clump of ash trees”) + ford or, alternatively, from æsc (“an ash tree”) + ford. Equivalent to ash + ford.

The Borough of Ashford, a local government district with borough status of Kent, formed in 1974, with its headquarters in the town.

A number of places in England:
A town in Kent (OS grid ref TR0142).

A town in Spelthorne borough, Surrey, historically in Middlesex (OS grid ref TQ0671).


Wendover

A market town and civil parish in Buckinghamshire, England, previously in Aylesbury Vale district (OS grid ref SP8607).


Alford

Alford (countable and uncountable, plural Alfords)

Alfords (plural)
Allford (alternative)
Alvord (alternative)

From the Old English female given name Ealdgȳþ + ford (“ford”).

A town and civil parish with a town council in East Lindsey district, Lincolnshire, England (OS grid ref TF4576).


Chertsey

From Old English Ċeortes īeġ, from the personal name *Cerot + 's + īeġ (“island”).

A town in Runnymede district, Surrey, England.


Quinton

Quinton (countable and uncountable, plural Quintons)

Variant of Quentin, merged with an Old English place name meaning "queen's town".

A historical village, small town, and suburb in the Metropolitan Borough of Birmingham, West Midlands, England (OS grid ref SO9984).


Dagenham

From Old English Dæccanhām, having -ham. First appeared in a document (as Dæccanhaam) in a charter of Barking Abbey dating from 666 AD. The name almost certainly originated with a small farmstead, the "ham" or farm of a man called Daecca, of uncertain meaning, but compare þæc (“roof”).

A suburban town in the borough of Barking and Dagenham, in eastern Greater London, England, United Kingdom (OS grid ref TQ4984).


Staines

Staines (countable and uncountable, plural Staineses)

A town on the Thames in Spelthorne borough, Surrey, England, historically in Middlesex. Officially Staines-upon-Thames, but this name is generally ignored.


Gravesend

An ancient town situated on the Thames Estuary in north-west Kent, England, and the administrative centre of Gravesham borough (OS grid ref TQ6474).


Winslow

Winslow (countable and uncountable, plural Winslows)

From Middle English Wynselowe, from Old English Wineshlauu, from Wines (“Wine's”, personal name) + hlāw (“mound”).

compound

A town and civil parish with a town council in Buckinghamshire, England, formerly in Aylesbury Vale district (OS grid ref SP7728).


Fenton

en-proper noun

Fenton (countable and uncountable, plural Fentons)

From Middle English Fenton, from Old English fenn (“fen, marsh”) + tūn (“enclosure; settlement, town”).

A town in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, one of the Potteries (OS grid ref SJ897446).


Dunstable

A town and civil parish with a town council in Central Bedfordshire district, Bedfordshire, England (OS grid ref TL0121).


Ripley

Ripley (countable and uncountable, plural Ripleys)

From the Old English folk name for the Anglian tribe, Hrype, genitive case Hrypa + Old English lēah (“woodland clearing”).

A town and civil parish with a town council in Amber Valley district, Derbyshire (OS grid ref SK3950).


Beaconsfield

A market town and civil parish with a town council in Buckinghamshire, England, previously in South Bucks district (OS grid ref SU9391).


Tamworth

Tamworth
Tamworth pig
Tamworth, Staffordshire

A town in Staffordshire, England (OS grid ref SK2203).


Bakewell

Bakewell (countable and uncountable, plural Bakewells)

From the Old English personal name Badeca + wella (“spring, stream”).

Derbyshire Dales
Derbyshire Dales#English

A market town and civil parish in Derbyshire Dales district, Derbyshire, England (OS grid ref SK2168).


Beccles

A market town and civil parish with a town council in East Suffolk district, Suffolk, England (OS grid ref TM4290).


Corby

North Northamptonshire
North Northamptonshire#English

A town and civil parish with a town council in North Northamptonshire district, Northamptonshire, England (OS grid ref SP8888).


Standish

A small town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, Greater Manchester, England (OS grid ref SD5610).


Hove

A town on the south coast of East Sussex, England, west of Brighton


Salcombe

A coastal town and civil parish with a town council in South Hams district, southern Devon, England (OS grid ref SX7339).


Fleetwood

From Old English flēot (“pool, stream”) + wood.

A coastal town and civil parish with a town council in Wyre borough, Lancashire, England (OS grid ref SD3348).


Rye

* As an English surname, variant of Rea.
* Also as an English surname, from the noun rye.
* As a Norwegian surname, from several farmsteads whose name derive from Old Norse rjóðr (“forest clearing”); see the verb ryðja (“to clear”).
* As a Danish surname, from the town Ry in Skanderbord.
* The town in England is perhaps derived from Old English riþ (“river, stream”).

River Rye, Yorkshire
Rye (disambiguation)
Rye, East Sussex
Rye, New York

A small town and civil parish in Rother district, East Sussex, England (OS grid ref TQ9220).


Cheshunt

A town in Broxbourne borough, Hertfordshire, England (OS grid ref TL3502).


Epping

Epping (countable and uncountable, plural Eppings)

From Old English yppe (“upland”) + ing (“meadow”).

A market town and civil parish in Epping Forest district, Essex, England (OS grid ref TL455025).


Banbury

From Old English Bannanburg, from Old English *Banna (“name of a 6th-century Saxon chieftain said to have built a stockade in that place”) or bana, bona (“a byname meaning ‘felon, murderer’”) (see bane) + burgh (“borough; settlement; town”).

der

A market town and civil parish with a town council, on the River Cherwell in Cherwell district, Oxfordshire, England (OS grid ref SP4540).


Settle

en-proper noun

Settle (countable and uncountable, plural Settles)

From Old English setl (“sitting, residence”).

A town and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England, previously in Craven district (OS grid ref SD816640).


Macclesfield

From the Old English name *Maccel, hence meaning field of Maccel. The Domesday Book records the name of Maclesfeld.

A market town and civil parish with a town council in Cheshire East, Cheshire, England.


Loftus

A town and civil parish with a town council in Redcar and Cleveland district, North Yorkshire, England.


Watford

Watford (countable and uncountable, plural Watfords)

Watfords (plural)
Wadford (alternative surname)

From either Old English wæt (“wet”) or wāþ (“hunting, chase”) + ford (“ford”).

A town and borough in Hertfordshire, England (OS grid ref TQ1196).


Helston

From Cornish Hellys (meaning "old court"), with the -ton suffix added.

A town and civil parish in south-west Cornwall, England (OS grid ref SW6527).


Clacton-on-Sea

A town and coastal resort in Tendring district, Essex, England. (OS grid ref TM1715).


Clacton-on-Sea

Langs kysten i Essex ligger flere populære badesteder, blant annet Clacton-on-Sea.

Along the coast of Essex are several popular seaside resorts, including Clacton-on-Sea.

Clacton-on-Sea (a resort town in Tendring district, Essex, East of England, England, United Kingdom)


Ilkeston

A town in Erewash district, Derbyshire, England (OS grid ref SK4641).


Tunstall

Tunstall (countable and uncountable, plural Tunstalls)

From Old English tūn (“enclosure; settlement, town”) + steall (“stable”).

der

A town in the City of Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, one of the Potteries (OS grid ref SJ864516).


ノーサンプトン

West Northamptonshire
West Northamptonshire#English

Northampton (a large town, the county town of Northamptonshire, now in West Northamptonshire district, England)


ウォリック

Warwick (a town and civil parish with a town council in Warwick district, and the county town of Warwickshire, England (OS grid ref SP2865))


Ryde

Once a Regency seaside resort, visitor numbers in Ryde were up and down historically, then down for good 1970s onwards (cheap Mediterranean charter flights).

2019, Isabel Waidner, We Are Made of Diamond Stuff, Dostoyevsky Wannabe Originals, page 33:

A town and civil parish with a town council on the northeast coast of the Isle of Wight, England.


Shanklin

A town and civil parish with a town council on the south-east coast of the Isle of Wight, England (OS grid ref SZ5881).


Sandown

A ‘slum zoo’ in Sandown and a nation in decline, but here we go. What a life.

2019, Isabel Waidner, We Are Made of Diamond Stuff, Dostoyevsky Wannabe Originals, page 101:

A town and civil parish with a town council on the southeast coast of the Isle of Wight, England (OS grid ref SZ5984).


Cowes

A town on the north coast of the Isle of Wight, England.


Ventnor

A town and civil parish with a town council on the south coast of the Isle of Wight, England (OS grid ref SZ5677).


Grays

A town in Thurrock borough, Essex, England, on the north side of the River Thames; also known as Grays Thurrock (OS grid ref TQ6177).


Rainham

A town in the borough of Havering, on the eastern edge of Greater London, England, originally in Essex (OS grid ref TQ5282).

A town, originally a village, within the Medway Towns conurbation in north Kent, England (OS grid ref TQ8166).


Medway Towns

A conurbation in North Kent, England, mainly comprising the three large towns of Chatham, Gillingham, and Rochester.


Hounslow

London Borough of Hounslow
Richard Hounslow

A town in western Greater London, England.


Hammersmith

As for Hammersmith itself, that's now a transport hub, but unfortunately cars were invited to the party, so the centre is a roaring roundabout.

2012, Andrew Martin, Underground Overground: A passenger's history of the Tube, Profile Books, →ISBN, page 50:

Hammersmith and Fulham
Hammersmith and Fulham#English

A town in west London, in the borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, Greater London, England (OS grid ref TQ2378).


Wandsworth

Partly derived from the River Wandle, which flows through the town and into the Thames.

A town in southwest London, England, on the south side of the River Thames.


Uxbridge

From Wixan + Old English bryċġ (“bridge”), meaning, "the bridge leading to the Wixan", a Saxon tribe which settled near the Lincolnshire fens.

A town in the borough of Hillingdon, on the western edge of Greater London, England, originally in Middlesex (OS grid ref TQ0584).


Harrow

From Old English hearg (“altar; grove, temple”), from Proto-Germanic *harugaz.

inh

Harrow School
Harrow, London
London Borough of Harrow

A town in northwestern Greater London, England.


Bexley

From Old English byxe (“box tree”) + leah (“wood”), equivalent to box + -ley (“lea”).

A suburban town in the borough of Bexley, south-east Greater London, England (OS grid ref TQ4973).


Walthamstow

/ˈwɔːlθəmstəʊ/

The principal town of the borough of Waltham Forest, Greater London, England, and the borough's administrative headquarters. (OS grid ref TQ3789).


Upminster

First recorded in 1062 as Upmynstre, and recorded in the 1086 Domesday Book as Upmunstra. Formed from Old English upp and mynster, meaning "the large church on high ground".

A town in the borough of Havering, on the eastern edge of Greater London, England, originally in Essex (OS grid ref TQ5686).


Ilford

The name is first recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Ilefort, meaning "ford over the Hyle" (an old name for the River Roding that means "trickling stream"). Equivalent to Hyle + ford.

A large town in north-eastern Greater London, England, and the administrative headquarters of the London borough of Redbridge.


Brentford

A town in the borough of Hounslow, in western Greater London, England, on the north side of the River Thames.


Hadleigh

A town and former civil parish in Castle Point borough, Essex, England (OS grid ref TQ8187).

A market town and civil parish with a town council in Babergh district, Suffolk, England (OS grid ref TM0242).


Harlow

From Old English hær (“rock”) or here (“army”) + hlæw (“hill”).

A town and local government district of Essex, England.


Billericay

/bɪləˈɹɪkiː/

Various theories; see Billericay#Toponym. First recorded in 1291 as Byllyrica.

A town and civil parish in Basildon borough, Essex, England (OS grid ref TQ6794).


トーキー

ja-pos

トーキー • (Tōkī)

ja:トーキー (イングランド)
ja:トーキー (曖昧さ回避)

Torquay (a town and coastal resort in Torbay borough, in southern Devon, England)


Whitefield

A town in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, Greater Manchester (OS grid ref SD8006).


Hemsworth

From the unattested Old English personal name *Hymel + -s- + worþ (“enclosure”).

A town and civil parish with a town council in the Metropolitan Borough of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England (OS grid ref SE4213).


Woolwich

A town in the borough of Greenwich, in southeast London, England.


Wolverton

Wolverton and Greenleys
Wolverton and Greenleys#English

A constituent town of Milton Keynes in Wolverton and Greenleys civil parish, Buckinghamshire, located at its northern edge (OS grid ref SP8140).


ハートフォード

ハートフォード • (Hātofōdo)

Hertford (a town in Hertfordshire, England)


Hanley

en-proper noun

Hanley (countable and uncountable, plural Hanleys)

From Old English hēan, weak dative case of hēah (“high”) + lēah (“woodland clearing, glade”). Compare Henley, which shares the same etymology.

A town in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, one of the Potteries (OS grid ref SJ880480).


Bideford

From Old English personal name, Bȳda + ford.

A historic port town and civil parish with a town council on the estuary of the River Torridge in Torridge district, Devon, south-west England (OS grid ref SS4526).


Esher

A town in Elmbridge borough, northern Surrey, England (OS grid ref TQ1364).


Hayle

A harbour town and civil parish with a town council in West Cornwall, England (OS grid ref SW5537).


Ascot

From Old English ēast (“east”) + cot (“cottage, hut”). Doublet of Eastcote.

Sunninghill and Ascot
Sunninghill and Ascot#English

Windsor and Maidenhead
Windsor and Maidenhead#English

A town in Sunninghill and Ascot parish, Windsor and Maidenhead borough, Berkshire, England, and the location of the famous Ascot Racecourse.


Sunbury-on-Thames

A town in Spelthorne borough, Surrey, England (formerly in Middlesex), commonly known as Sunbury.


Sheerness

A town and civil parish with a town council on the Isle of Sheppey in Swale borough, Kent, England (OS grid ref TQ9274).


Congleton

Congleton (countable and uncountable, plural Congletons)

/ˈkɒŋɡəltən/

From Old English cung (“mound”) + hyll (“hill”) + tūn (“enclosure; settlement, town”).

A town and civil parish in Cheshire East district, Cheshire, England (OS grid ref SJ854628).


Bracknell

First recorded in a Winkfield Boundary Charter of AD 942 as Braccan heal, perhaps meaning "nook of land belonging to a man called Bracca".

Bracknell Forest
Bracknell Forest#English

A town and civil parish with a town council in Bracknell Forest district, Berkshire, England (OS grid ref SU8669).


Minehead

Somerset West and Taunton
Somerset West and Taunton#English

A coastal town and civil parish with a town council in Somerset, England, previously in Somerset West and Taunton district (OS grid ref SS9746).


Sittingbourne

A large town in Swale district, Kent, England (OS grid ref TQ9063).


Northallerton

A town and civil parish with a town council in North Yorkshire, England, previously in Hambleton district (OS grid ref SE3693).


Keighley

Keighley (countable and uncountable, plural Keighleys)

Keighleys (plural)
Keathley (alternative)
Keatley (alternative)
Keithley (alternative)
Keithly (alternative)
Kightley (alternative)
Kightly (alternative)

Recorded as Middle English Chichelai in the Domesday Book, the town is named with the Old English personal name *Cyhha + lēah (“woodland clearing, glade”).

A town and civil parish with a town council in the Metropolitan Borough of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England (OS grid ref SE0641).


Kettering

Kettering (countable and uncountable, plural Ketterings)

A market town and civil parish with a town council in North Northamptonshire district, Northamptonshire, England (OS grid ref SP8678).


Camberley

In Surrey, originally named Cambridge Town in 1862 after the Duke of Cambridge. Camberley was coined in 1877 at the behest of the Post Office, presumably to avoid confusion with the Cambridgeshire city. The place in New Zealand would have been named after the Surrey town.

A town in Surrey Heath borough, Surrey, England.


Farnborough

A town in Rushmoor district, north-east Hampshire (OS grid ref SU8655).


Aylesbury

A town and civil parish with a town council in Buckinghamshire, England, previously in Aylesbury Vale district (OS grid ref SP8113).


Tilbury

Tilbury (countable and uncountable, plural Tilburys)

From the Old English personal name Tila + byriġ, the dative case of burg (“fortified place”).

A town and port in Thurrock borough, Essex, England (OS grid ref TQ639761).


Broadstairs

Broadstairs and St Peter's
Broadstairs and St Peter's#English

A coastal town on the Isle of Thanet, in Broadstairs and St Peter's parish, Thanet district, Kent, England (OS grid ref TR3967).


Whitstable

A coastal town in the north of Canterbury district, Kent, England (OS grid ref TR1066).


Workington

A coastal town and civil parish with a town council in Cumberland district, Cumbria, England, previously in Allerdale borough, and historically in the county of Cumberland (OS grid ref NX9928, NY0028).


Widnes

Usually explained to be of Danish origin, from vid (“wide”) or ved (“wood”) + næse (“nose”).

A town in Cheshire, England, originally in Lancashire.


Tewkesbury

From Old English personal name *Tēodec, genitive case *Tēodeces + byriġ, dative singular of burh (“fort”).


Ellesmere Port

Cheshire West and Chester
Cheshire West and Chester#English

A town and port in Cheshire West and Chester district, Cheshire, England (OS grid ref SJ4076).


Runcorn

The earliest written reference to the town is in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, where it is spelled "Rumcofan", literally meaning "a wide cove or bay". This word is derived from the Old English words rúm (“wide, broad”) and cofa (“cave, cove”). Other historical spellings of Runcorn include "Rumcoven", "Ronchestorn", "Runckhorne", and "Runcorne".

A town in Halton borough, Cheshire, England (OS grid ref SJ5183).


Evesham

Inherited from Middle English Evesham, from Old English Eofesham (literally “Eof's enclosure”), from Eof (given name) + hamm (“enclosure”).

inh

A town and civil parish with a town council in Wychavon district, Worcestershire, England (OS grid ref SP0343).


Altrincham

/ˈɒltɹɪŋɡəm/

Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester#English

A town in the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford, Greater Manchester, England.


Worksop

A town in Bassetlaw district, Nottinghamshire, England.


Rotherham

en-proper noun

Rotherham (countable and uncountable, plural Rotherhams)

Rotherhams (plural)
Rotheram (alternative surname)
Rudrum (alternative surname)

From Rother (“a river in South Yorkshire”) + Old English hām (“homestead, estate”).

Metropolitan Borough of Rotherham
Rotherham

metropolitan borough
metropolitan borough

A large town and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England (OS grid ref SK4392).


Clevedon

A coastal town and civil parish with a town council in North Somerset, Somerset, England (OS grid ref ST4071).


Highbridge

Burnham-on-Sea and Highbridge
Burnham-on-Sea and Highbridge#English

A market town in Burnham-on-Sea and Highbridge parish, Somerset, previously in Sedgemoor district (OS grid ref ST3147).


Trowbridge

Trowbridge (countable and uncountable, plural Trowbridges)

Trowbridges (plural)
Troubridge (alternative)

From Old English trēow (“tree”) + brycġ (“bridge”).

A town and civil parish in and the county town of Wiltshire, England (OS grid ref ST8557).


Melton Mowbray

A town (unparished) in Melton borough, Leicestershire, England. (OS grid ref SK7519).


Huntingdon

Huntingdon (countable and uncountable, plural Huntingdons)

From Old English Huntandūn, equivalent to hunta (“hunter”) + dūn (“hill, mountain”).

A market town and civil parish with a town council in Huntingdonshire district, Cambridgeshire, England, and former county town of Huntingdonshire (OS grid ref TL2372).


Diss

A market town and civil parish with a town council in South Norfolk district, Norfolk, England (OS grid ref TM1179).


Tonbridge

Tonbridge and Malling
Tonbridge and Malling#English

A market town in Tonbridge and Malling district, Kent, England (OS grid ref TQ5946).