Truro - Truru

First recorded as Trurow 1157, then Truieiu 1186; Triueru c1193, 1195, 1196,1198, 1214; 1278; Treueru 1194-1207, 1263, 1265, 1291, 1299, 1305; Triveriu 1198; Triuereu 1199; Tryuereu C12, C13; Triveru 1201, 1214, 1227, 1278; Triwereu 1201; Truveru 1201, 1259 c1300; Treuereu 1229; Truueru 1259, 1319; Trueru 1259; Tryveru 1264, 1284, 1297; Truweru 1267,1288; Truru 1278, 1290, 1308, 1321, 1384, 1390, 1400, 1420, 1427, 1451, 1462, 1470, 1480, 1500, 1502, 1503, 1508, 1511; etc. (50 historic spellings in all).

Godolphin - Godolghan

Gludholghan 1185,
Wulgholgan 1194,
Woldholgan, 1201,
Gudolgan 1229,
Godwolgan 1277, 1314,
Gotholgan 1284, 1295, 1346,
Godgolwan 1293,
Godolgan 1296, 1387,
Godholgan 1297,
Godolhan 1302,
Gudholgan 1311,
Godelghhen 1311,
Godolghan 1327, 1410,
Gotholhan 1420, 1476,
Gotholghan 1451,
Godolphin 1613,
Godolfyn 1620

St Martins by Looe - Penndrumm

St Agnes (Scilly) - Ragynys

St Martins (Scilly) - Sen Martyn

Bryher (Scilly) - Breow

Tresco (Scilly) - Treskaw

St Mary's (Scilly) - An Nor

Isles of Scilly - Syllan

Tregustick - Tregestek

Tregustick - 10/9866 - AND 10/8463 (Fire Brigade 1965:63)

One is Withiel and the other is St. Columb Minor

Gover 1948 gives, for Withiel, Tregeustek 1356, Tregewestek 1394

For St. Columb Minor Tregwestok 1284, Treguestok 1284, Tregustoke 1302, Tregoustek 1334, Tregeusetek 1440.

Not found in Padel 1985 so probably a personal name.

The archiac -ok, -oke suffix in the St. Columb Minor form is consistant with the surpression of the mutation.

So the best I can do is unknown personal name *Gwestek, *Kestek There definitely is a -ek suffix > <-ick> in mid-Cornwall and there is a Old Cornish personal name Kest as in Lankeast, Keason c.f Gwynn as in Boswedden and Gwynnek as in Trewinnick. But Welsh and Breton forms of Gwestek, Kestek would need to be found to endorce this theretical construct.

Porth - Porth

Harbour, bay, port

Par - Porth

Harbour, bay, port

Nancledra - Nanskledri

Nancledra is NANS (valley) and KLODRI (personal name). Around 1500 there was a shift in vowel sounds so it became KLEDRI. So the Cornish version is NANSKLEDRI.

Nancledra yw nans 'valley' ha Klodri 'personal name'. A-dro 1500 yth esa effeythyans bogolenn ytho Nanskledri

Pengegon - Penn an gegin

It means 'end of the kitchen'. It is interesting to note that the Cook's Kitchen shaft at South Crofty is not that far away.

Trevail - Treveyl

Tre (settlement) + Mael (personal name)

Trembath - Trenbath

TREMBATH, TRENBATH tre-an-bagh, homestead in the nook or corner, or tre-an-bath, the boar's farm

York - Evrog

Yorkshire = Bro Evrog. The old Celtic for York was 'Eboricum'

Canterbury - Kargant

Bath - Karvath

Devon - Dewnens

Cambridge - Kargront

Somerset - Gwlas an hav

Land of the summer

Minehead - Menydh

Minehead is a corruption of the British word 'menydh' (mountain).

Oxford - Rysoghen

Rys (ford) + oghen (ox). Early records show the British name was Rydychen.

London - Loundres

Exeter - Karesk

This is a documented placename going back more than a 1000 years. Kar (fortified town) + Esk (old name for Exe). This river name is a cognate of the Usk, which comes from the old Celtic word for water. It may possibly have been 'fast flowing water', and giving us our modern Cornish word 'uskis' (quickly).

Plymouth - Aberplymm

The Cornish version is of course a name made up by translating the English placename. However, remember that 'Plym' is actually from Celtic times anyway.

Delabole - Delyowboll

Delyow = leaves + Poll = pit

Boswednan - Boswynnan

Boswednan is not found in any of the Place-name books.

It is found at OSGR 4431

This places it approx 1 km from Madron.

The first element is bos 'dwelling' which is a feminine noun

The second element is therefore *gwednan.

The graph is a Late Cornish development from /nn/

The second element is probably a personal name of the form *Gwennan.

e-y alternation has taken place so the name is Gwynnan

Gwynnan is a Celtic personal name also found in Old Welsh and Old Breton - See Cornish Namesp. 51

So dwelling of Gwynnan

Crockagodna (Mylor) - Krakk an Konna (Ponsnowydh)

This field name usually refers to a very steep slope - a break neck. This provides an excellent idiom for Revived Kernewek - uskister krakk an konna - breakneck speed! the an is verived by Croc-an-codna (Sithney 1787)

Devon - Dewnans

The official translation is 'Deep Valley Dwellers'.

Dewnans = down (deep) + nans (valley)

Cornwall - Kernow

Cornwall = Kernow + Wealas

Wealas is the Saxon word for foreigners.

Men Scryfa - Men Skrifys

Written stone

Men an toll - Men an toll

Stone of the hole

Trebrownbridge - Pons Trevronn

This placename is a combination of 'tre' (farmstead) + 'bronn' (hill) and the English word 'bridge'.

Lanyon - Lynnyeyn

Lynn + yeyn

Lake + cold = Cold lake

harbour - porth

holy enclosure - lann

valley - nans

appears often as 'nance'

pool, pit - poll

headland - penn

farmstead, town - tre

fem.

The farmstead = an dre

Liskeard - Lyskerrys

Lys + Kerwyd (?) = The court of Kerwyd. It has been surmised that Kerwyd was something to do with Caradon.

Tolvaddon - Talvann

Tal = Brow

vann = bann = peak

Thus this is brow of the peak.

Ventonlace (Ladock) - Fentenlas (Egloslasek)

This is the name of the road opposite my house in Fordh Ponsmeur/Grampound Road. It is derived from fenten 'spring' + glas 'green, verdent'. It was the name of the farm in the centre of the village and probably would have been the name of the village had the railway not been such an important factor in the creation of Fordh Ponsmeur/Grampound Road.

enclosure, church site, holy place - lann

Breton lann, Cornish lann, Welsh llan. When a Celtic saint or hermit set up a cell they would have biult a wattle and dob hut. This was usually replaced with a small stone built chapel like St. Piran's Oratory or St. Nicholas' chapel at St. Ives. It was also usual to build a wall of stone to protect the cell - an enclosure. This may have been to protect stock or keep wolves and other wild animals out. Over time many such lann were filled in rubbish etc and the chapel replaced by a church. The lann became a church site. Many Cornish churches seem to be built on a small platform (the lann filled in). The lann became grave-yards or holy places. At first there appears to be no lann names in the west of the country but following the golden rule of place-name study - Look at the old forms! Lannyust/St. Just in Penwith was Lanuste 1396. Lannsiek/St. Just in Roseland was Lansioch 1204 and Lannaled/St. Germans was Lannaledensis, Lanaletensis 10th Century. So if you have a geek at the lann he directory you will find many Cornish forms with Lann but missing from the English forms. Padel says that lann and nans are often confused. Since lann is feminine and causes soft mutation and nans is masculine and there is devoicing caused by the s - this confusion is very often easily sorted out.

Parc an mengleth - Park an moengleudh

Field of the quarry

Treverven (St. Buryan) - Treverwynn (Eglosveryan)

tre 'farm, settlement' + OW personal name Berwyn. According to Gover Berwyn is also found in Treverren. The second element of the name is probably derived from British windos > wind > wynn > gwynn 'white, fair, blessed' Again can some check this against Gover. See also Trevedran.

Trevedran (St. Buryan) - Trevedern (Eglosveryan)

A tricky name especially when the file to St. Buryan on my copy of Gover is cruppted. St. Breward, St Cleer - fine but St. Buryan 'unable to read file' It must be all those times I dragged up the old saying 'you d'knaw as much bout it as a Buryan man d'knaw bout minin' - St. Buryan was the only parish in Cornwall never to have had a tin mine. Trevedran < tre 'farm, settlement' + unknown element or name. The second element could begin with a b or an m (both mutate to v) so we need *bedran or *medran. No elements seem to match however there is the personal name Edern. It is found in Treveddon in Cornwall (derived from Latin Aeternus - according to Gover). The intusive v is common in Cornwall c.f. Trevanion < tre + OW personal name Enyen. Sothere may be an intermediate form *Trevedern. Metathisis of the r and n has taken place. This is found in Kammbronn/Camborne Cambron c.1230 > Camborne 1431. Also the usual change of Late Cornish a for e has occurred. So Trevedran < tre + Edern. Thas the theory obm now can ee chech un out gainst Gover?

St. Just in Roseland - Lannsiek

St. Just/Lannsiek from Kernewek lann 'churchsite, enclosure' + Siek a Breton personal name, c.f. St. Seoc in Brittanny Lansioch 1204. With Kernewek there is no need for the 'in Roseland' bit as the other St. Just Lannyust.