English Place Name Society
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The English Place-Name Society (EPNS) is a
learned society A learned society ( ; also scholarly, intellectual, or academic society) is an organization that exists to promote an academic discipline, profession, or a group of related disciplines such as the arts and sciences. Membership may be open to al ...
concerned with toponomastics and the
toponymy of England The toponymy of England derives from a variety of linguistic origins. Many English toponyms have been corrupted and broken down over the years, due to language changes which have caused the original meanings to be lost. In some cases, words u ...
, in other words, the study of place-names (
toponyms Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of '' toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage, and types. ''Toponym'' is the general term for a proper nam ...
). Its scholars aim to explain the origin and history of the names they study, taking into account factors such as the meaning of the elements out of which they were created (whether from the principal endemic tongues
Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...
, early Welsh, Danish, Norwegian, Cornish,
Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
,
Norman French Norman or Norman French (, , Guernésiais: , Jèrriais: ) is a '' langue d'oïl'' spoken in the historical and cultural region of Normandy. The name "Norman French" is sometimes also used to describe the administrative languages of '' Angl ...
– or others); the topography, geology and ecology of the places bearing the names; and the general and local history and
culture of England The culture of England is diverse. Owing to England's influential position within the United Kingdom it can sometimes be difficult to differentiate English culture from the culture of the United Kingdom as a whole. However, tracing its origins ...
.


History

In 1922 Professor
Allen Mawer Sir Allen Mawer, (8 May 1879 − 22 July 1942) was an English philologist. A notable researcher of Viking activity in the British Isles, Mawer is best known as the founder of the English Place-Name Society, and as Provost of University Col ...
read a paper to the
British Academy The British Academy for the Promotion of Historical, Philosophical and Philological Studies is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the sa ...
proposing a survey of English place-names. He obtained the formal and financial support of the academy. Within a year he had brought into being a society composed of interested persons, provided it with a constitution, and laid down the lines of its future conduct. The headquarters of the Society were first at the
University of Liverpool The University of Liverpool (abbreviated UOL) is a Public university, public research university in Liverpool, England. Founded in 1881 as University College Liverpool, Victoria University (United Kingdom), Victoria University, it received Ro ...
, where Mawer was professor of the English language. The publications of the Society began in 1924, with two volumes: a collection of essays and a dictionary of place-name elements. Mawer and Aileen Armstrong acted as general editors for the annual volumes of county place-name surveys. Starting in 1929, J. E. B. Gover collected material and was sub-editor of the volumes. In 1929, Professor Mawer was appointed provost of
University College, London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...
, and the Society moved there at the end of the year. At the outbreak of World War II, the Society removed briefly to University College, Aberystwyth, back to London, and then to Stansted Bury,
Stanstead Abbotts Stanstead Abbotts (alternatively Stanstead Abbots) is a village and civil parish in the district of East Hertfordshire, Hertfordshire, England; it lies on the county boundary with Essex. At the 2001 census, the parish had a population of 1,983 ...
, in eastern
Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...
. In July 1942, Sir Allen Mawer died, and Sir
Frank Stenton Sir Frank Merry Stenton FBA (17 May 1880 – 15 September 1967) was an English historian of Anglo-Saxon England, a professor of history at the University of Reading (1926–1946), president of the Royal Historical Society (1937–1945), Readi ...
became general editor. The Society moved to the
University of Reading The University of Reading is a public research university in Reading, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1892 as the University Extension College, Reading, an extension college of Christchurch College, Oxford, and became University College, ...
until 1946. When Professor
Bruce Dickins Bruce Dickins, Fellow of the British Academy, FBA (26 October 1889 – 4 January 1978), a graduate of Magdalene College, Cambridge, was Professor of English Language at the University of Leeds from 1931 to 1946 (where he succeeded E. V. Gordon), te ...
succeeded as honorary director, the Society removed to the
University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...
and Miss Margaret Midgley (later Dr Margaret Gelling) was appointed research assistant. When Professor Hugh Smith assumed the position of honorary director in 1951, University College, London, became once more the Society's headquarters, with Margaret Midgley continuing research there until 1953. Hugh Smith produced two new "Elements" volumes and 14 others on county place-names. Upon his death in 1967, Professor Kenneth Cameron became honorary director and the Society's offices were split between London and Nottingham, where the university provided room for the library and archives, as well as the services of a secretary. In 1972 the Society moved completely to Nottingham, where it remains at the Centre for Name Studies. Victor Watts became honorary director in 1992 until his death in 2002, when he was succeeded by Professor
Richard Coates Richard Coates (born 16 April 1949, in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, and educated at Wintringham School) is an English linguist. He was professor of Linguistics (alternatively professor of Onomastics) at the University of the West of England, Bristo ...
. The survey has been consistently supported, morally and practically, by the
British Academy The British Academy for the Promotion of Historical, Philosophical and Philological Studies is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the sa ...
. From 2005 to 2010, it was supported as well by a large grant from the
Arts and Humanities Research Council The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), formerly Arts and Humanities Research Board (AHRB), is a British research council, established in 1998, supporting research and postgraduate study in the arts and humanities. History The Arts a ...
.


Research breakthroughs

From the 1960s detailed comparison of distributions of the place-name types which had been thought to be early Saxon – and of archaeological evidence – has produced a re-written interpretation of some. The net effect, statistically, has been to find an original bias towards
Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...
. This means more names re-attributed, than the reverse, have been shown to be more likely
Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...
. In particular, Kenneth Jackson contributed to much of the research, identification and morphology of Celtic names.


Publications


Traditional county or county subdivision publications

The Society divides England firstly by traditional counties. The vast majority (or more convenient subdivisions) are sequentially covered in 96 volumes of the ''Survey of English Place-Names'', although the earlier volumes are less detailed. These are used mainly by scholars and academia. The volumes for
Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...
and much of
Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...
(the
North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...
and East Ridings and parts of the
West Riding The West Riding of Yorkshire was one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the riding was an administrative county named County of York, West Riding. The lieutenancy at that time included the city of York a ...
) are available free of charge on the society's website. In 2016, the Society published its first volume in the "Popular Series", on the county of Suffolk.


Other publications

By 2018 the society had published a range of other books and booklets by category (e.g. field-names), and some county dictionaries aimed mainly at a non-specialist audience. The Society is publishing a 2010s series of booklets on place-name elements, running in to the 2020s. Since 1969, the Society has published an annual ''Journal'', which contains essays on various place-name topics.


Substantial citation

EPNS material was used as the basis of ''The Cambridge Dictionary of English Place-Names'', published in 2004.


See also

*
English toponymy The toponymy of England derives from a variety of linguistic origins. Many English toponyms have been corrupted and broken down over the years, due to language changes which have caused the original meanings to be lost. In some cases, words u ...
* Scottish Place-Name Society * Welsh Place-Name Society *
Ainmean-Àite na h-Alba Ainmean-Àite na h-Alba (; "Gaelic Place-Names of Scotland") is the national advisory partnership for Gaelic place names in Scotland. Ainmean-Àite na h-Alba are based at Sabhal Mòr Ostaig on Skye. History Ainmean-Àite na h-Alba began as the ...
*
Society for Name Studies in Britain and Ireland The Society for Name Studies in Britain and Ireland (SNSBI) is a registered charity and a learned society of members with interests in proper names, including place-names, personal names, and surnames relating to the British Isles. The SNSBI is th ...
*
International Council of Onomastic Sciences The International Council of Onomastic Sciences (ICOS) is an international academic organization of scholars with a special interest in onomastics, the scientific study of names (e.g. place-names, personal names, and proper names of all other ki ...
* '' Rude Britain'', a book of selected British toponymy *
Richard Coates Richard Coates (born 16 April 1949, in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, and educated at Wintringham School) is an English linguist. He was professor of Linguistics (alternatively professor of Onomastics) at the University of the West of England, Bristo ...
*
Eilert Ekwall Bror Oscar Eilert Ekwall (8 January 1877 in Vallsjö – 23 November 1964 in Lund) was a Swedish academic, Professor of English at Sweden's Lund University from 1909 to 1942 and one of the outstanding scholars of the English language in the firs ...
*
Oliver Padel Oliver James Padel (born 31 October 1948 in St Pancras, London, England) is an English Medieval studies, medievalist and Toponymy, toponymist specializing in Welsh and Cornwall, Cornish studies. He is currently Honorary Research Fellow in the D ...


References


Bibliography

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External links

* * * * {{authority control 1923 establishments in England Archaeological organizations English toponymy Learned societies of the United Kingdom Organisations based in Nottingham Organizations established in 1923 University of Nottingham