UNIVERSITY OF WINCHESTER FACULTY OF HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES The significance of the place-name element *funta in the early middle ages. JILLIAN PATRICIA HAWKINS Thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy July 2011 UNIVERSITY OF WINCHESTER ABSTRACT FACULTY OF HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES Thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy The significance of the place-name element *funta in the early middle ages. Jillian Patricia Hawkins The Old English place-name element *funta derives from Late Latin fontāna, “spring”, and is found today in 21 place-names in England. It is one of a small group of such Latin-derived elements, which testify to a strand of linguistic continuity between Roman Britain and early Anglo- Saxon England. *funta has never previously been the subject of this type of detailed study. The continued use of the element indicates that it had a special significance in the interaction, during the fifth and sixth centuries, between speakers of British Latin and speakers of Old English, and this study sets out to assess this significance by examining the composition of each name and the area around each *funta site. Any combined element is always Old English. The distribution of the element is in the central part of the south- east lowland region of England. It does not occur in East Anglia, East Kent, west of Warwickshire or mid-Wiltshire or north of Peterborough. Seven of the places whose names contain the element occur singly, the remaining fourteen appearing to lie in groups. The areas where *funta names occur may also have other pre-English names close by. All have evidence of rural agricultural or industrial activity in late Roman times, and were accessible overland. Some have cemetery or settlement evidence of early Anglo-Saxon presence. Twelve *funta names are mentioned in Domesday. Evidence from place-names, charters and archaeological excavation shows that *funta sites usually lay between or within areas of continued British, and early Anglo-Saxon, presence. This accumulated evidence suggests that a place whose name contains the element *funta may have been a meeting-place at a spring of indigenous and incoming people in this period, probably to agree separate or, more rarely joint, territory. Thus the significance of the element may relate to a local early boundary agreement. DECLARATION OF AUTHORSHIP I, JILLIAN PATRICIA HAWKINS declare that the thesis entitled The significance of the place-name element *funta in the early middle ages and the work presented in the thesis are both my own, and have been generated by me as the result of my own original research. I confirm that: This work was done wholly while in candidature for a research degree at this University; No part of this degree has previously been submitted for a degree or any other qualification at this University or any other institution Where I have consulted the published work of others, this is always clearly attributed Where I have quoted from the work of others, the source is always given. With the exception of such quotations, this thesis is entirely my own work. I have acknowledged all main sources of help. None of this work has been published. Signed: ………………………………………………….. Date: ……………………………………………………. Table of Contents. Page Introduction to the study: *funta i Acknowledgements v Abbreviations vi Chapter 1. Background to the study: how Britain became England. 1 The ending of Roman authority and post-RomanBritain The Adventus Saxonum vel Anglorum 4 Documentary evidence for the Adventus 4 Archaeological evidence for the Adventus 5 The survival of the British 7 Archaeological evidence and evidence of the British 7 The position of the Britons in Anglo-Saxon England: evidence from law and language 11 Chapter 2. Language use in fifth-century Britain, the influence of Latin and the early development of Old English, with reference to the place-name element *funta. 15 1 Spoken language in fifth-century Britain 17 2 The element *funta 21 Previous studies of the element *funta 22 The mode of entry of the element into Old English, and its possible form 24 Modern forms of *funta 26 3 The Britons, invisible but not inaudible: the resonance of British in Old English 27 The significance of water in fifth-century sub-Roman Britain 31 Conclusion 32 Chapter 3. *funta sites and pre-English place-names in their surrounding areas 35 Part 1. Areas with more than one *funta site 39 Area 1, Wiltshire, Urchfont, Teffont, Fovant 41 Area 3, South-east Hampshire and south West Sussex, Funtley, Boarhunt, Havant, Funtington 53 Area 4, East Sussex, Bedfordwell, Founthill, F(r)ontridge 71 Area 11, to the north and west of London, Bedfont, Chalfont, Bedmond, Cheshunt 83 Part 2. Areas with a single *funta site 111 Area 2, South-west Hampshire, Mottisfont 113 Area 5, Kent/Surrey border, Pitchfont 121 Area 6, South-east London, north-west Kent, Wansunt 129 Area 7, South-east Essex, Tolleshunt 135 Area 8, North-west Essex, Wicken Bonhunt 141 Area 9, West Cambridgeshire, Funthams 145 Area 10, East Warwickshire, Chadshunt 153 Conclusion to Chapter 3 163 Chapter 4. Analysis and Discussion. 165 *funta names grouped according to qualifiers or other 168 generics Roman evidence and *funta sites 171 Early Anglo-Saxon evidence and *funta sites 175 Pre-English names and *funta sites 178 *funta sites and places called wīchām 182 *funta sites and the notion of a boundary location 184 *funta sites and central places 191 Summary of Chapter 4 194 Chapter 5. Interpretation and suggestions for future research. 195 Recapitulation: the aims, objectives and questions 195 The evidence 196 The place 197 The word 198 Borrowing and loan-words 200 The place-name element and its use 201 Recapitulation: the answers 203 The answers 203 Bibliography 207 Appendix 1. Gazetteer of *funta sites. Table of contents. Page Area 1 Wiltshire 241 Urchfont 249 Teffont and Fovant 254 Area 2 South West Hampshire, Mottisfont 261 Area 3 South East Hampshire, South West Sussex 269 Funtley 277 Boarhunt 281 Havant 285 Funtington 290 Conclusion to Area 3 296 Area 4 East Sussex 297 Bedfordwell 305 Founthill 309 Fontridge 312 Conclusion to Area 4 315 Area 5 Kent/Surrey border, Pitchfont 316 Area 6 South East London, North West Kent, Wansunt 325 Area 7 South East Essex, Tolleshunt 333 Area 8 North West Essex, Wicken Bonhunt 340 Area 9 West Cambs, Peterborough, Funthams 346 Area10 East Warwickshire, Chadshunt 355 Area11 North and West of London 363 Bedfont 372 Chalfont 379 Bedmond 383 Cheshunt 390 Conclusion to Area 11 396 Appendix 2. Additional Material. Table of contents. Some common elements used in Chapter 3 403 The name Fonthill 413 The place-name Bonhunt 415 List of Figures. Figure page 1 *funta sites: location in England iii 2 Area 1Wiltshire 45 3 Area 3 SE Hants SW Sussex 57 4 *funta sites and ōrā names 63 5 Area 4 East Sussex 73 6 Area 11 North and West of London 91 7 Area 11Grim’s Ditches 97 8 Bedfont area pre-English names and Saxon sites 100 9 The suggested bounds of the Middle Saxon province 106 10 Area 2 Mottisfont 115 11 The steep slope in Chilcombe Copse, Leckford 117 12 Area 5 Pitchfont 123 13 Area 6 Wansunt 131 14 Area 7 Tolleshunt 137 15 Area 8 Wicken Bonhunt 143 16 Area 9 Funthams 147 17 Area 10 Chadshunt 157 18 Distribution of coins of the four peripheral areas 242 19 The territory of the Durotriges 243 20 East Wansdyke 245 21 The font at Urchfont 249 22 Teffont springhead 255 23 Fovant pool 255 24 Mottisfont abbey and *funta 261 25 Funtley pond 277 26 Boarhunt, church of St Nicholas 281 27 The Homewell at Havant 285 28 Bosham stream south of Funtington village 290 29 Earthworks on the West Sussex coastal plain 298 30 Iron Age sites in the Weald 300 31 Roman ironmaking sites in the Weald 302 32 Bedfordwell roundabout 305 33 Founthill farmhouse 309 34 Fontridge, looking east along the ridge 312 35 Pitchfont farm seen from the north 316 36 The border between the counties of Surrey and Kent 323-4 37 Looking towards Cavey’s spring near Wansunt Road 325 38 The church of St Nicholas, Tolleshunt Major 333 39 St Helen’s chapel, Bonhunt farm 340 40 The area around Funthams 347 41 The position of Funthams 349 42 Sites to the north and west of London 365 43 Roman roads and *funta sites 367 44 5c and 6c Saxon sites N and S of the Thames 369 45 East Bedfont, church of St Mary the Virgin 372 46 The area around Bedfont 373 47 The Late Roman ladder system 375 48 Chalfont St Peter, Church of St Peter 379 49 Wellfield Spring, Bedmond 383 50 Cheshunt, church of St Mary the Virgin 390 51 The Churchgate Heritage Trail 391 52 Beech Bottom Dyke, St Albans 400 53 Devil’s Dyke, Wheathampstead 400 54 Verulamium and its setting 401 55 Early Anglo-Saxon remains in the Chilterns 402 List of Tables. Table 4.1a Roman evidence and *funta sites 173 4.1b “ “ “ 174 4.2 early Anglo-Saxon evidence and *funta sites 177 4.3a *funta sites and pre-English names within 5km 180 4.3b “ “ “ 10km 181 4.3c *funta sites and places called wīchām 183 4.4a relative positions 188 4.4b *funta sites and pre-English names, early Anglo-Saxon evidence, wīchām sites and British occupation 189 4.4c *funta sites and boundaries 190 4.5 *funta sites and central places . Introduction to the study: *funta. The focus of this study is the Old English place-name element *funta.