What's in a name?

The meaning of the name of the market town that is Loughborough has long been the subject of discussion, hypothesis and disagreement, with many options being put forward. Until formalised spelling was adopted, the letters appearing in the name were also many and varied. (1)

In his pamphlet published for Charnwood Community Council, Williams (2) says [my italics]:

“What’s in a name?

All place names have meanings but ours has been argued over more than most. Historians over the years have given the following meanings.

1. Lough = Lake. Borough = Town. (the meadows being the former lake)

2. Leire = River Leire. Borough = Town. (the river Soar might once have been called Leire as in the name Leicester)

3. Luhedes Burg. (from the ‘Oxford Dictionary of Place Names’ – a strongly emplaced settlement named after a now unknown probably Saxon – Luhede)

4. Lucte or Luhede Burne (again an early possible settlers [sic] name – his settlement by a small stream – burn)”

In 2016, the English Place-Name Society (EPNS) published Part Seven of its ‘Place-Names of Leicestershire’ series, itself a volume in ‘The Survey of English Place-Names’. The EPNS was formed in 1923 and is based at Nottingham University. It researches and surveys English place-names, with support from the Arts and Humanities Research Council and the British Academy. The Society aims to publish the results of its findings, and since its inception has produced 91 volumes, which are focused on a variety of [historic] counties, from Cornwall to Cumbria, from Shropshire to Norfolk, and many other counties.

Part Seven of the Leicestershire series covers the Hundred of West Goscote, and the Leicestershire parishes of Repton and Gresley Hundred. Loughborough falls within the Hundred of West Goscote. The Hundreds were divisions within a county or shire, which pre-date the Local Government Act of 1894. (3)

Perhaps this map of the Hundred of West Goscote, showing the neighbouring Hundreds of East Goscote and Sparkenhoe, and the neighbouring counties of Derbyshire, Staffordshire and Nottinghamshire, is helpful.

Contained within the EPNS volume are the variant spellings of Loughborough, from its appearance in the Domesday book of 1086, through to its most recent spelling, the one we know today. These variant spellings amount to 37:     

Locteburne

Loughborough

Loughborow

Loughborow

Loughburgh

Loughtburgh

Loughtebourgh

Loughteburgh

Loughtteburgh

Louthborowe

Louthbourgh

Louthebourg

Loutheburgh

Lowtheborou

Lucgborowe

Luchteburc

Lucteb

Luctebur

Lucteburgh

Luctheburch

Luctheburg

Lughborow

Lughburgh

Lugheburgh

Lughtburgh

Lughtebourg

Lughteburg

Lughteburgh

Luteburg

Luthburgh

Lutheburg

Lutteborough

Luttebur

Luttebur

Lutteburg

Lutteburgh

Lvctebvrne

The EPNS suggest that the most recent interpretation of the meaning of the town name of Loughborough is taken from the Old English personal name of Luhhede, with the addition of a form of the word ‘burh’ (4), which is Old English for a fortified or defended site, hence:

“The fortified place of a man called Luhhede”

The ‘burh’ would often be situated on a high point in the area. Given that the original centre of Loughborough was around the area of the parish church - where the guildhall, the manor house and the thirteenth century rectory are also situated - this is the nearest high point from the River Soar, thus ideal for a settlement.

I wonder if we will ever be able to find out who Luhhedes actually was? Or if future historians will discover a different meaning for the name of the town of Loughborough?

(1) For an interesting discussion of the standardisation of English spelling, albeit from an American perspective, see this article.

(2) Williams, Brian C.J. (1974). Walks around Loughborough, no.3: ancient buildings in Loughborough. Discovering Charnwood series. Loughborough: Charnwood Community Council.  

(3) A good starting point for an introduction to the Hundreds can be found on Wikipedia – an explanation, and a list of Hundreds  

(4) Have a look at this interactive online dictionary for a definition of ‘burh’. 

Posted by lynneaboutloughborough 1 January 2021

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Dyer, Lynne (2021). What's in a name? Available from: https://lynneaboutthestreetsofloughborough.blogspot.com/2021/01/whats-in-name.html [Accessed 1 January 2021]

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