3 ms·

-by (Norse suffix for 'settlement') vs. -bury (corruption of Old English for 'castle') lets you pretty nicely draw out the borders of the historic Danelaw i.e.

-by (Norse suffix for 'settlement') vs. -bury (corruption of Old English for 'castle') lets you pretty nicely draw out the borders of the historic Danelaw i.e. the area where the Norse Vikings settled: https://placenames.rtwilson.com/#W3sidGV4dCI6ImJ5IiwiY29sb3IiOiIjZmYwMDAwIiwiY2hlY2tlZCI6dHJ1ZSwibWF0Y2hUeXBlIjoiZW5kc3dpdGgifSx7InRleHQiOiJidXJ5IiwiY29sb3IiOiIjMDAwMGZmIiwiY2hlY2tlZCI6dHJ1ZSwibWF0Y2hUeXBlIjoiZW5kc3dpdGgifV0%3D https://placenames.rtwilson.com/#W3sidGV4dCI6ImJ5IiwiY29sb3I... Compare against this map: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:England_878.svg https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:England_878.svg The Danelaw ceased to politically exist over a thousand years ago so that's pretty impressive.

JdeBP 3y ago
As I said in another comment, just bear in mind the possibility that the map of 878 England from the 19th century could well be based upon the same evidence. Although it is significant that the names survive and show clear boundaries, it may well be a lot less significant that a modern map and a 19th century map show the same boundaries.
mdpye 3y ago
-thorpe, from either old nose or Anglo saxon also shows another nice geographical line. Complements the defaults selected on the page nicely: https://placenames.rtwilson.com/#W3sidGV4dCI6ImJ1cmdoIiwiY29sb3IiOiIjZTMxYTFjIiwiY2hlY2tlZCI6dHJ1ZSwibWF0Y2hUeXBlIjoiZW5kc3dpdGgifSx7InRleHQiOiJoYW1wdG9uIiwiY29sb3IiOiIjMWY3OGI0IiwiY2hlY2tlZCI6dHJ1ZSwibWF0Y2hUeXBlIjoiZW5kc3dpdGgifSx7InRleHQiOiJiYWNoIiwiY29sb3IiOiIjMzNhMDJjIiwiY2hlY2tlZCI6dHJ1ZSwibWF0Y2hUeXBlIjoiZW5kc3dpdGgifSx7InRleHQiOiJUaG9ycGUiLCJjb2xvciI6IiNmZjdmMDAiLCJjaGVja2VkIjp0cnVlLCJtYXRjaFR5cGUiOiJhbnl3aGVyZSJ9XQ%3D%3D https://placenames.rtwilson.com/#W3sidGV4dCI6ImJ1cmdoIiwiY29...
- deleted 3y ago
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arethuza 3y ago
Quite a lot of what is now Scotland was Norse for a long time - the most obvious name being "Sutherland" (Suðrland) which is extreme north west of the island of Britain: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scandinavian_Scotland https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scandinavian_Scotland
pjc50 3y ago
The Norse vs. Old English vs. Roman place naming also explains the inconsistent pronunciation (see other subthread)
fransje26 3y ago
So very interesting. Thank you!

JdeBP 3y ago

As I said in another comment, just bear in mind the possibility that the map of 878 England from the 19th century could well be based upon the same evidence. Although it is significant that the names survive and show clear boundaries, it may well be a lot less significant that a modern map and a 19th century map show the same boundaries.

mdpye 3y ago

-thorpe, from either old nose or Anglo saxon also shows another nice geographical line. Complements the defaults selected on the page nicely: https://placenames.rtwilson.com/#W3sidGV4dCI6ImJ1cmdoIiwiY29sb3IiOiIjZTMxYTFjIiwiY2hlY2tlZCI6dHJ1ZSwibWF0Y2hUeXBlIjoiZW5kc3dpdGgifSx7InRleHQiOiJoYW1wdG9uIiwiY29sb3IiOiIjMWY3OGI0IiwiY2hlY2tlZCI6dHJ1ZSwibWF0Y2hUeXBlIjoiZW5kc3dpdGgifSx7InRleHQiOiJiYWNoIiwiY29sb3IiOiIjMzNhMDJjIiwiY2hlY2tlZCI6dHJ1ZSwibWF0Y2hUeXBlIjoiZW5kc3dpdGgifSx7InRleHQiOiJUaG9ycGUiLCJjb2xvciI6IiNmZjdmMDAiLCJjaGVja2VkIjp0cnVlLCJtYXRjaFR5cGUiOiJhbnl3aGVyZSJ9XQ%3D%3D https://placenames.rtwilson.com/#W3sidGV4dCI6ImJ1cmdoIiwiY29...

deleted 3y ago
[deleted]

arethuza 3y ago

Quite a lot of what is now Scotland was Norse for a long time - the most obvious name being "Sutherland" (Suðrland) which is extreme north west of the island of Britain: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scandinavian_Scotland https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scandinavian_Scotland

pjc50 3y ago

The Norse vs. Old English vs. Roman place naming also explains the inconsistent pronunciation (see other subthread)

fransje26 3y ago

So very interesting. Thank you!