Geographical etymology: a dictionary of place-names giving their derivations

by Christina Blackie

M

MAEN (Welsh),

a stone; e.g. Maentwrog (the tower-like pillar), a parish in Merioneth; Maen or Dewi (St. David’s possession).

MAES, or FAES (Cym.-Cel.),
MOED, or MEAD (A.S.),
MATTE (Ger.),

a meadow or field, cognate with the Gael. magh; e.g. Maescar (the pool in the field); Maisemore (great field), in Brecknock and Gloucestershire; Marden, in Hereford, anc. Maes-y-durdin (the field of the water camp); Basaleg, a parish in Wales. The name has been corrupted Maes-aleg, signifying elect land, from an event famous in Welsh history, which took place there. Maes-teg (the fair field); Maes-yr-onnen (the field of ash-trees); Cemmaes (the plain of the ridge, cefn); Maes-y-Mynach (monk field); Cemmaes, i.e. Cefn-maes (the ridge of the plain), in Wales; Runnymede, Co. Surrey (the meadow of the council), Latinised Pratum-concilii; Andermatt (on the meadow); Zermatt (at the meadow), in Switzerland; Matterhorn (the peak of the meadow); Aeschenmatt (ash-tree meadow); Maes-Garmon (the field of St. Germanus), in Wales; Soultzmatt (the meadow of mineral waters, salz), in Alsace.

MAGEN, MEKEN, or MAIN (Teut.),

great; e.g. the R. Main, anc. Magen-aha (great water); Mainland, anc. Meginland (great island), in the Orkneys; Mainhardt (great wood); Meiningen (the great field)—v. GEN—in Germany.

MAGH (Gadhelic),
MACH (Cym.-Cel.), a ridge,

a field or plain, corrupt. into Maw or Moy, Latinised magus; e.g. Magh-breagh (the beautiful plain), in Ireland, extending from the R. Liffey to the borders of Co. Louth; Moy and May (the plain), both in Ireland and in Scotland; Moidart (the high plain), in Inverness-shire; Mayo (the plain of yew-trees); Moynalty, Irish Magh-nealta (the plain of the flocks); Macosquin, in Londonderry, corrupt. from Magh-Cosgrain (the field of Cosgrain); Mallow, in Cork, Magh-Ealla (the plain of the R. Allo or Ealla, now the Blackwater); Moville and Movilla (the plain of the old tree, bile); Moycoba, for Magh-Coba (the plain of Coba); Machaire, a derivative from Magh, is found under the forms of Maghera and Maghery, thus—Magheracloone (the plain of the meadow); Magheraculmony (the plain at the back of the shrubbery); Maynooth (the plain of Nuadhat); Moira, corrupt. from Magh-rath (the plain of the forts), Co. Down; Moyarta (the plain of the grave, ferta). In Scotland we find Rothiemay, in Banff, corrupt. from Rath-na-magh (the castle of the plain); Monievaird, i.e. Magh-na-bhaird (the plain of the bards), in Perthshire; Machynlleth (the ridge on the slope), a town in Montgomeryshire, Wales. In its Latinised form this word is found in Marcomagus, now Margagen (the plain of the Marcomanni); Juliomagus and Cæsaromagus (of Julius and Cæsar); Noviomagus (the new plain); and again the same word became magen or megen among the Teutonic races, thus Noviomagus became Nimeguen; Nozon was anc. Noviomagus or Noviodunum; Riom, in France, anc. Ricomagus (rich plain); Maing or Meung, on the Loire, formerly Magus; Argenton, Argentomagus (silver field); Rouen, anc. Rothomagus (the fort on the plain). The ancient name of Worms was Bartomagus, which Buttman says means high field; its present name was corrupted from Vormatia; Mouzon, in France, was Mosomagus (the plain of the R. Meuse).

MAHA (Sansc.),

great; e.g. Mahabalipoor (the city of the great god Bali); Mahanuddy (the great river); Mahadea Mountains (the mountains of the great goddess); Maha-vila-ganga (the great sandy river); Mantote, in Ceylon, corrupt. from Maha-Totta (the great ferry).

MAHAL, MAL, or MOLD (Teut.),

the place of meeting; e.g. Mahlburg or Mailburg, in Lower Austria (the town of the place of meeting); Detmold, anc. Theotmalli (the people’s meeting-place); Wittmold (the meeting-place in the wood); Moldfelde (in the field); Malton (the town of the meeting), in Yorkshire; Maulden (the valley of the meeting), in Bedfordshire; Kirch-ditmold (the church at the meeting-place).

MALY, or MALKI (Sclav.),

little; e.g. Malinek, Malinkowo, Malenz, Malchow, Malkow, Malkowitz (little town); Maliverck (the little height).

MAN, or MAEN (Cym.-Cel.),

a place or district; Maenol or Mainor, Welsh (a possession), akin to the Lat. mansio and the Fr. maison. From this word maybe derived Maine, a province of France; Mans and Mantes, although more directly they may probably come from the Cenomanni, a people who formerly inhabited that district in France; Mantua, in Italy, and La Mancha, in Spain, may be placed under this head; also Manchester, anc. Mancunium, and Mancester, anc. Manduessedum; Menteith, in Perthshire, the district of the R. Teith. In the Welsh language the letter m is changed into f and pronounced v, and fan abridged to fa, thus—Brawdfa (the place of judgment); Eisteddfa (the sitting place); Gorphwzsfa (resting place); Morfa (the shore or sea place); Manaera (the place of slaughter), probably the site of a battle; Manclochog (the ringing-stone).[4]

MANSUS (Lat.),

a farm or rural dwelling, to which was attached a certain portion of land. It was often contracted into mas, miex, or mex; e.g. La Manse, Mansac, Manselle, Le Mas, Beaumets, Beaumais, in France. The Manse, i.e. the dwelling and glebe attached to a parish in Scotland; Mains, a parish in Forfar.

MANTIL (Old Ger.),

the fir-tree; e.g. Mantilholz (the fir-wood); Mantilberg (fir-tree hill); Zimmermantil (the room or dwelling at the fir-trees).

MAR,

a Ger. word, used both as an affix and a prefix, with various meanings. As a prefix, it occasionally stands for mark (a boundary), as in Marbrook (the boundary brook), and Marchwiail (the boundary of poles), in Wales; sometimes for a marsh, as in Marbach, on the Danube, and Marburg, on the Neckar; sometimes also for mark, an Old Ger. word for a horse, as in Marburg, on the R. Lahn, and Marburg and Mardorf (horse town), in Hesse. As an affix, it is an adjective, and signifies, in the names of places and persons, clear, bright, distinguished, or abounding in; e.g. Eschmar (abounding in ash-trees); Geismar (in goats); Horstmar (in wood); Weimar (in the vine).

MARK (Ger.),
MEARC (A.S.),
MARCHE (Fr.),

the boundary; e.g. Styria or Stiermark, the boundary of the R. Steyer; Markstein (the boundary stone); Markhaus (the dwelling on the border); March, a town in Cambridge; La Marche (the frontier), a domain in France, having been the boundary between the Franks and Euskarians; Mercia, one of the kingdoms of the Heptarchy, bordering on Wales; and Murcia, in Spain, the boundary district between the Moorish kingdom of Granada and the other parts of Spain; Newmark, Altmark, Mittelmark (the new, old, and middle boundary), in Germany; Mark, in the Scandinavian language, meant a plain or district, thus Denmark means the plain of the Danes; Finnmark (of the Finns); Markbury, in Cheshire; Markley, in Hereford (the boundary town and field). The Marcomanni were the March or boundary men of the Sclavonic frontier of Germany; the R. March or Morava, the boundary between Lower Austria and Hungary; Marbecq and Marbeque, rivers in France; Mardick (the boundary dike).

MARKT (Teut.),
MERKT,

a market, sometimes found as mart; e.g. Marktmühle (the market mill); Marktham, Marktflecken (market-town), in Germany; Martham, also in Norfolk; Neumarkt in Germany, and Newmarket in England (new market-town); Martock, in Somerset (the oak-tree under which the market of the district used to be held); Market-Raisin, in Lincoln, on the R. Raisin; Bibert-Markt, in Bavaria, on the R. Bibert; Kasmarkt, in Hungary, corrupt. from Kaiser-Markt (the emperor’s market-town); Donnersmarkt, the German translation or corruption of Csotartokhely (the Thursday market-place), in Hungary. The cattle-market at Stratford-on-Avon is still called the Rother-market, from an old word rother, for horned cattle.

MARSA (Ar.),

a port; e.g. Marsala, in Sicily, i.e. Marsa-Allah (the port of God); Marsalquivir, i.e. Marsal-el-kebir (the great port). In Malta: Marsa-scala, Marsa-scirocco, Marsa-muscetto, Marsa Torno.

MAS (Irish),

the thigh—applied in topography to a long low hill; e.g. Massreagh (gray hill); Mausrower (thick hill); Massareene, i.e. Mas-a-rioghna (the queen’s hill); but Massbrook, Co. Mayo, is not from this root; it is a translation of Sruthan-an-aiffrinn (the brook where the mass used to be celebrated).

MAUM, MOYM, or MAM,

Irish madhm (a mountain pass or chasm); e.g. Maum-Turk (the boar’s pass); Maumakeogh (the pass of the mist); Maumnaman (of the women); Maumnahaltora (of the altar).

MAVRO (Modern Grk.),

black; e.g. Mavrovouno (the black mountain); Mavro Potamo (the black river), in Greece; Mavrovo and Mavroya (the black town), in Turkey.

MAWR,

by mutation fawr, Welsh (great)—v. MOR, p. 143.

MEDINA (Ar.),

a city or the metropolis; e.g. Medina, in Arabia, called by the Arabs Medinat-al-Nabi (the city of the prophet). In Spain: Medina-de-las-torres (the city of the towers); Medina-del-campo (of the plain); Medina-delpomar (of the apple-orchard); Medina-del-rio-seco (of the dry river-bed); Medina-Sidonia (of the Sidonians). This city was so named by the Moors, because they believed it to have been built on the site of the Phœnician city Asidur.

MEER, MERE (Teut.),

a lake, sea, or marsh; e.g. Blakemere (the black lake, blaec), in Hereford; Great Marlow or Merelow (the hill by the marsh); Cranmere (the crane’s lake or marsh); Winandermere, so called, according to Camden, from the winding of its shores; Wittleseamere, Buttermere, and Ellsmere, probably from personal names; Meerfeld, Meerhof, Meerholz, and Meerhout (the field, court, and wood near the lake or marsh), in Holland. But mere, in place-names, is said sometimes to mean a boundary—thus Merse, the other name for Berwickshire, may mean either the marshy land or the boundary county between England and Scotland. Closely connected with meer (a lake) are the words in the Celtic as well as in the Teutonic languages, denoting marshy lands, i.e. lands that have lain under water, and are still partially submerged—such as merse, A.S.; morast, Ger.; morfa, Welsh; marish, Gadhelic; marsk, Scand.; and marais, Fr. Many places in Great Britain and the Continent derive their names from these words, thus—the Maros or Marosh; and the Morava (marshy rivers); Moravia (the district of the marshy river); Morast, in Sweden (the town on the marsh); Merton, in Berwickshire (the town on the marsh); Morebattle, in Roxburghshire, anc. Mereboda (the dwelling on the marsh); Ostermarsh (east marsh), in Holland; Marengo (the marshy field), in Italy; Les Moeres (the marshes), in Flanders; Marchienne, Marchienes, Maresché, Maresches, Marest, etc., in France; Marcienisi, in Italy (marshy localities). The River Mersey may come from this word, or it may mean the border river between England and Wales.

MENIL, MESNIL (Fr.),

from Mansionile, the dim. of mansus; e.g. Grandmenil (the great dwelling or hamlet); Le Menil-la-comtesse (the manor of the countess); Mesnil-église (the church hamlet); Mesnil-Guillaume, Mesnil-Gilbert, Mesnil-Jourdan, named from the proprietors; Mesnil-sur-l’Estrée (the hamlet on the Roman road called Strata Estrée); Les Menils, Menillot, etc., in France.

MENZIL (Ar.),

a village; e.g. Miselmeri, corrupt. from Menzil-el-Emir (the emir’s village); Mezojuso, from Menzil-Yusuf (the village of Joseph).

MEON (Cel.),
MIO (Scand.),

little, cognate with the Lat. minor; e.g. the Rivers Minnow and Mynwy, in Wales; the Mincio, in Italy; the Minho, in Portugal; Minorca (the less), in opposition to Majorca (the greater island); Miosen (the little sea or lake), in Norway.

MICKLA, MYCEL (Teut. and Scand.),

great, Scotch muckle; e.g. Mickledorf, Michelstadt, Michelham, Mickleton (great dwelling); Micklebeck (great brook); Michelau (great meadow); Mitchelmerse (the great marsh); Mecklenburg, anc. Mikilinberg (the great town or hill fort); Muchelney (the great island), in Somersetshire, formed by the conf. of the Rivers Ivel and Parret; Meikle Ferry (the great ferry), on Dornoch Firth; Micklegarth (the great enclosure), the Scandinavian name for Constantinople, Grk. Megalopolis; but mikil or miklos, especially in Russia and Hungary, is often an abbreviation of St. Nicholas, and denotes that the churches in these places were dedicated to that saint—thus Mikailov, Mikhailovskaia, Mikhalpol (St. Nicholas’s towns), in Russia; Miklos-Szent and Miklos-Nagy-Szent, in Hungary; Mikolajow, in Poland; Mitcham, in Surrey, in Doomsday is Michelham.

MIN, MEN, or MAEN (Cym.-Cel.),

a high rock or the brow of a hill; e.g. Maen-du (black rock), in Monmouth; Minto, a parish in Roxburghshire, on the brow of a steep hill; Meonstoke (hill station); East and West Meon, in Gloucestershire; Mendabia (at the foot of the hill), in Spain; Altmaen, corrupt. to “Old Man of Coniston,” in the Lake country, and to the “Old Man of Hoy,” in the Orkneys; the “Dodmaen,” in Cornwall—v. DODD—has been corrupted to Deadman.

MINSTER, MYNSTER (A.S.),
MUENSTER (Ger.),

a monk’s dwelling or monastery, hence a cathedral—Lat. monasterium; e.g. Illminster, Axminster, Stourminster, Kremmunster, Charminster (the monasteries on the Rivers Ill, Ax, Stour, Krem, and Char); Beaminster, Co. Dorset, named after St. Bega; Kidderminster (the monastery of Earl Cynebert); Westminster (the minster west of St. Paul’s); Warminster (near the weir or dam of the R. Willey); Monasteranenagh (the monastery of the fair); Monasterboice (of St. Bœthus); Monasterevin (of St. Evin), in Ireland; Monasteria de la Vega (of the plain), in Spain. In France: Moutier, Moustier, Moustoir, Munster, Monestier (the monastery); Montereau, Montreuil, Marmoutier (the monastery of St. Martin); Masmoutier (of Maso); Noirmoutier and Rougemoutier (the black and red monastery); Toli-Monaster or Bitolia (the monastery of the beech-trees), in Turkey; Munster (the monastery), in Alsace; but Munster, a province in Ireland, is compounded from the Scand. ster—qu. v.—and the Irish Mumha, a king’s name; Munster-eifel (the monastery at the foot of the Eifel-berg).

MIR (Sclav.),

peace; e.g. Mirgorod (the fortress of peace); Miropol, Mirowitz, Mirow (the town of peace).

MITTEL, MIDDEL (Teut. and Scand.),
MIEDZY (Sclav.),

the middle, cognate with the Lat. medius, Grk. mesos, and Gadhelic meadhon; e.g. Middleby, Middleton, Middleham, Mitton, Middleburg (the middle town); Middlesex (the territory of the middle Saxons); Middlewich (the middle salt manufactory), in Cheshire—v. WICH; Midhurst (the middle wood), in Sussex; Midmar (the middle district of Mar), in Aberdeenshire; Ardmeanadh, Gael. Ardmeadhonadh (the middle height), being the Gaelic name for Cromarty; Mitford (the middle ford); Melton-Mowbray, sometimes written Medeltune (the middle town), formerly belonging to the Mowbray family; Mittelgebirge (the middle mountain range); Mittelwalde, Sclav. Medzibor (the middle of the wood), in Silesia; Methwold, in Norfolk, with the same meaning; Mittweyda (in the midst of pasture ground), in Saxony; Methley and Metfield (middle field); Meseritz and Meseritsch, i.e. mied-zyvreka (in the midst of streams), in Moravia and Pomerania; Mediasch (in the midst of waters), in Hungary; Misdroi (in the midst of woods), in Pomerania; Mediterranean Sea (in the middle of the land); Media (the middle country, as then known); Mesopotamia, Grk. (the country between the rivers); Mediolanum (in the midst of the plain or land)—v. LANN—the ancient name of Milan, Saintes, and some other towns.

MLADY, MLODY (Sclav.),

new; e.g. Mladiza, Mladowitz, Mladzowitz (new town), in Bohemia; Bladen and Bladow, corrupt. from Mladen, with the same meaning, in Silesia.

MOEL (Cym.-Cel.),
MAOL, MEALL (Gadhelic),
MOOL (Scand.),

a round hill or a bald promontory, as an adjective signifying bald, and often applied to hills and promontories, thus—the Mull or promontory of Cantyre and Galloway; Meldrum, in Aberdeenshire, and Meeldrum, in Ireland (the bald ridge); Melrose, i.e. Maol-ros (the bald headland), Old Melrose having been situated on a peninsula formed by the Tweed; the Eildon Hills, near Melrose, corrupt. from Moeldun (bald hill); the Island of Mull, one of the Hebrides; Mealfourvounie (the hill of the cold moor), in Inverness-shire; Glassmeal (gray hill), in Perth; Malvern (the bald hill of the alders, gwernen); Moel-y-don (the hill of the waves), in Anglesea; Moel-Aelir (the frosty hill); Muldonach (the hill of Donald), one of the Hebrides; Moel-Try-garn (the ridge of the three cairns); Moel-Eilio (the mount of construction); Moel-y-crio (the hill of shouting); Moel-ben-twrch (boar’s head hill), in Wales; Moel-cwm-Cerwyn (the bald dingle of the cauldron); Moelfre, corrupt. from Moelbre (bald hill), in Wales. In Ireland this word often takes the form of moyle, as in Kilmoyle (bald church); Rathmoyle, Lismoyle, Dunmoyle (the bald or dilapidated fort); Mweelbane (the white hill); Meelgarrow (rough hill); Meelshane (John’s bald hill); Mweel-na-horna (the bald hill of the barley); Maulagh (abounding in hillocks); Mullaghmeen (smooth hillock); Mulboy (yellow hillock), etc.; Mullanagore and Mullanagower (the little summit of the goats). In Wales: Moel-hebog (hawk hill); Moel-eryn (eagle hill), in Wales. The Mool of Aswich and the Mool of Land, in Shetland.

MOIN, MOINE (Gadhelic),
MON,

a moss or bog. in Ireland: Mona-braher, i.e. Moin-nam-brathar (the bog of the friars); Monalour (of the lepers); Moneen (the little bog); Ballynamona (the town of the bog); Monard (high bog); Montiagh, for Mointeach (the boggy place); Monabrock (the badger’s moss); Monroe (the red moss); Mon is, however, sometimes used instead of monadh (a rising ground in a moor), as in Co. Monaghan, Muineachan (abounding in little hills); which country, however, according to the Annals of the Four Masters, was named from its chief town (the town of monks). In Scotland: Moin, a moorland district in Sutherlandshire; Monzie and Moonzie (the mossy land), in Fife and Perthshire; Montrose (the boggy promontory); Mon, again for monadh, in Monimail (bald hill), in Fife; Moncrieffe (the woody hill, craobach); Moness (the hill of the cascade, eas).

MÖNCH (Ger.),
MONEC (A.S.),
MONACH (Gadhelic),
MYNACH (Cym.-Cel.),

a monk, from the Greek monos (alone); e.g. Monkton, Monkstown, Monkswood, Monkland, named from lands belonging to the monks; Le Mönch (the monk), one of the highest of the Bernese Alps; Monachty (the monks’ dwelling), in Wales; Llan-y-mynach (the monks’ church or enclosure), Co. Salop; Monksilver, in Somerset, corrupt. from Monk-sylva (the monks’ wood); Monkleagh (the monks’ meadow); Munsley, with the same meaning, in Hereford; Monach-log-ddu (the place of the black monks), in Wales; Munchberg (monk’s hill), in Bavaria; Munchengratz (the monks’ fortress), in Bohemia; Munich and Munchingen (belonging to the monks), in Germany.

MONDE, MÜND (Ger.),
MUNNI, MINDE (Scand.),

a river mouth; e.g. Dortmund, Fischmund, Dendermund, Roermonde, Travemünde, Saarmund, Tangermünde, Ysselmonde, Rupelmonde, Orlamunda, Stolpemünde, Swinmund or Sweinemund, Ukermünde, Warnemunde, at the mouth of the rivers forming the first part of these names; Münden, in Hanover (at the mouths of the Rivers Werra and Fulda); Monmouth (at the conf. of the Mynwy and Wye); Plymouth, Falmouth, Sidmouth, Yarmouth, Grangemouth, Teignmouth, Wearmouth, Cockermouth, at the mouths of these rivers; Bishop’s Wearmouth, founded by Biscop in the middle of the seventh century; Deulemont, in France, at the mouth of the Deule; Gladmouth, in Wales, formerly Cledemuth, at the mouth of the Clede or Cleddy; Minde, in Iceland, at the mouth of Lake Miosen.

MONEY,

a frequent prefix in Irish names from muine (a brake or shrubbery); e.g. Moneymore, Moneybeg (the great and little shrubbery); Moneygorm (the blue shrubbery); Moneyduff (the black or dark shrubbery); Moneygall (the shrubbery of the strangers).

MONT, MONTE (Fr. and It.),
MONTANA and MONTE (Span. and Port.),

a mountain, from the Lat. mons, and cognate with the Gadhelic monadh, and the Cym.-Cel. mynydd; e.g. Montalto (high mount); Montauban (the mount of Albanus); Montechiaro (clear mount); Monte-fosoli (brown mount); Montehermosa (beautiful mount), in Spain; Montenegro, Turc. Karadagh, Sclav. Zerna-gora (black mount), in Turkey; Beaumont, Chaumont, Haumont (the beautiful, bald, and high mount); Montereale and Montreal (the royal hill); Montreal, in Canada, so named by Cartier in 1555; Monte-Rosa, anc. Mons-sylva (woody hill); Monte-Video (the prospect mount); Montmartre, anc. Mons-Martyrum (the hill of the martyrdom of St. Denis), but its earlier name was Mons-Martis (the hill of Mars); Montmirail, Lat. Mons-mirabilis (the wonderful mountain); Remiremont, Lat. Romaries-mons, founded by St. Romarie in 620; Monte-Cavallo, corrupt. from Monte-Calvaria (the Mount of Calvary), so called from a number of chapels, in which were represented the successive scenes of our Lord’s passion. From monticellus, the diminutive of mont, have arisen such place-names as Moncel, Le Monchel, Monchelet, etc.; Mont d’Or (golden mount), in Auvergne; Montefrio (cold mount), in Spain; Montpellier, Lat. Mons-puellarum (the hill of the young girls), so called from two villages belonging to the sisters of St. Fulcrum; Montserrat (the serrated hill); Clermont (bright hill); Mondragon and Montdragone (the dragon’s hill); Monfalcone (hawk hill); Mons, Ger. Berghen (hill town), in Belgium; Piedmont (at the foot of the Alps); Floremont or Blumenberg (flowery hill), in Alsace; Montaign and Monthen, anc. Mons-acutus (sharp or peaked hill); Montigny, Montignac (mountainous); Jeumont, anc. Jovismons (the hill of Jove), in France; Mount Pilatus (the mount with the cap of clouds, from pileus, Lat. a felt cap); Richmond, in Yorkshire, named from a castle in Brittany, from which the Earl of Richmond took his title, meaning the rich or fertile hill; Richmond, in Surrey, named by the Earl after his Yorkshire estate, formerly called Shene from the splendour of the royal residence there, seine, A.S. (splendid); Righimont, in Switzerland, corrupt. from Mons-regius (royal hill); Montacute (sharp hill), in Somerset; Tras-os-Montes (beyond the hills), in Portugal; Apremont, in France, for Aspromonte (rough hill); Pyrmont, corrupt. from Mons-Petrus (St. Peter’s mount); Montferrato (the fortified hill). Mont also signified a hill fort, like berg and dun, as in Montalcino (the fort of Alcinous), in Italy; Montgomery, in Wales, (the fortress of Roger de Montgomerie, who erected a castle there in 1093)—its earlier name was Tre-Faldwyn (the dwelling of Baldwin, a Norman knight); Charlemont, in France, named after Charles V.; Henrichemont, after Henri-Quatre. In Wales: the town of Mold, abbreviated from Mons-altus (high fort)—the Normans built a castle there; Mynydd-du (black hill); Mynydd-mawr (great hill); Mynydd-moel (bald hill). In Scotland: Monadh-ruadh (the red mount or the mounth), the Gaelic name for the Grampians; Mount Battock, Gael. Monadh-beatach (the raven’s hill); Mountbenjerlaw, in Selkirkshire, originally Ben-Yair (the hill of the R. Yair), to which the A.S. law and the Norman mount were added. But monadh in Gael. signifies a mountain range, and sometimes a moor, as Monadh-leath (the gray mountain range). Probably Mendip, in Somerset, is the deep hill, Welsh dwfn and mynydd; Monimail (bald hill); Monifieth (the hill or moor of the deer, feidh). The Mourne Mountains, in Ireland, means the mountains of the tribe; Mughhorna. Mon, in the Basque language, also signifies a hill, and is found in Monzon, an ancient town of Spain, with a hill fort; Monda and Mondonedo, in Spain; and Mondego, in Portugal; and in Carmona (hill summit), in Spain.

MOOS (Ger.),
MOS (Scand.),
MECH, MOCK (Sclav.),

mossy ground; e.g. Donaumoss (the mossy meadow of the Danube); Mosston (the town on the mossy ground); Moseley (moss-field or valley); Moscow, on the R. Moskwa (mossy water); Mossow, Mehzo, Mochow, Mochlitz (the mossy ground); Mohacs, Ger. Margetta (the marshy or mossy island), in the Danube; Miesbach (the district of the mossy brook), in Bavaria. The Irish word mæthail (soft mossy land) is almost synonymous with these roots. It is found in Mohill, Co. Leitrim; Mothel in Waterford, and Mothell in Kilkenny; Cahermoyle (the stone fort of the mossy land) in Ireland, and in Muthil in Perthshire.

MOR, MOER (Teut. and Scand.),

waste land, heath; Scot. muir; e.g. Moorby, Morton, and Moreton (the dwelling on the moor); Morpeth (the moor path); Oudemoor (the old moor), and Oostmoer (east moor), in Holland; Moorlinch (the moor ridge, hlinc); Lichtenmoer (the cleared moor); Muirkirk (the church in the moor), in Argyleshire; Murroes, corrupt. from Muirhouse, a parish in Co. Forfar; Tweedsmuir (the moor at the source of the R. Tweed), a parish in Peeblesshire; Muiravonside (the mossy land on the banks of the R. Avon), in Stirlingshire.

MOR (Gadhelic),
MAWR (Cym.-Cel.), or by mutation fawr; e.g. Morlais for Mawr-clais (the great trench), the name of a ruined castle near Cardiff, built above a deep gully, through which a brook passes.

great; e.g. Morven (the great ben or hill), a hill in Caithness and also in Aberdeenshire; Morven or Morvern, i.e. Mor-Earrain (the great district), in Argyleshire, called by the Gaels Kenalban, corrupt. from Cenealbaltyn, i.e. the tribe of Baldan, a personal name; Kenmore (the great headland), on Loch Tay; Penmaen-mawr (the great stone-hill), in Wales.

MOR (Cym.-Cel. and Sclav.),
MUIR (Gadhelic),
MORFA (Welsh), sea-marsh,

the sea, cognate with the Lat. mare, and its derivatives in the Romance languages, and the Teut. meer; e.g. Armorica or Brittany, and Pomerania (the districts on the sea-shore); Morbihan (the little sea), in Brittany; Morlachia or Moro-Vlassi (the Wallachs’ or strangers’ land by the sea)—v. WALSCH; Morlaix (a place on the sea-shore), in Brittany; Glamorgan, Welsh gwlad-morgant (the district of Morgan Mawr, an ancient king of Wales); Morgan, in Cornwall, i.e. by the sea-shore; Maracaybo (the headland by the sea-shore), in South America; Parimaribo (the dwelling near the sea), in South America; Connemara, in Ireland, Irish Conmac-ne-Mara, the descendants of Conmac (by the sea-side).

MOST (Sclav.),

a bridge; e.g. Dolgemost (long bridge); Maust, Most, Mostje (the place at the bridge), in Bohemia; Babimost (the old woman’s bridge, i.e. the fragile bridge), abbreviated to Bomst; Priedemost (the first bridge), in Silesia; Mostar (old bridge), a town in Turkey.

MOT, or MOOT (A.S.),

the place of assembly, where the Anglo-Saxons held their courts of justice; e.g. Mote-hill, at Scone; the Moat Hill, near Hawick; the Mote of Galloway; the Moat of Dull, in Perthshire, and of Hamilton, on Strathclyde; Moot-hill, at Naseby; and in the Lake District, Montay and Caermote; Moothill also appears in Aberdeenshire; Almoot, near Peterhead, meaning the meeting-place on the height, has been corrupted into Old Maud, and the railway company have called their station New Maud. It is found in the Gaelic name for the Island of Bute, Baile-mhoide (the dwelling of the courts of justice), but in this case, as in Ireland, the word was probably borrowed from the Saxons. The word is found in Ireland, signifying a large mound, as well as in connection with the courts of justice—as in Tom-an-mhoid (the hill of the court of justice); La Motte, Fr. (a hillock), common in France.

MÜHLE (Ger.),
MYLEN (A.S.),
MUILENN (Gadhelic),
MELIN (Cym.-Cel.),
MLYN (Sclav.),
MOLEN (Dutch),

a mill, cognate with the Lat. mola, and its derivatives in the Romance languages; e.g. Mülenbach and Molinbech (mill brook); Mühlan, Mühldorf, Mühlhausen, Muhlheim (mill dwelling); Moleneynde (mill corner), in Germany and Holland. In England and Scotland: Melbourne, Milton, Millwick, Milford, Milden, Milnathorpe (the stream, town, ford, hollow, farm, of the mill); but Milton, in Kent and in Dorsetshire, are corrupt. from middle town; Moulin, a parish in Perthshire. In France: Moulins (the mills), so called from the great number of water mills formerly on the R. Allier; Mülhausen or Mulhouse, in Alsace, celebrated for its manufactures; Molina, a manufacturing town in Murcia; also in Spain, Molinos-del-Rey (the king’s mills). In Ireland: Mullinahone (the mill of the cave); Mullinavat (of the stick); Mullintra (of the strand); Mullinakil (of the church). In Sclavonic districts: Mlineh, Mlinki, Mlinsk, Mlinow, etc.

MULLAGH (Gadhelic),

the top or summit, and sometimes applied to hills of a considerable height; e.g. Mullaghmeen (the smooth summit); Mulkeergh (the summit of the sheep, caoirich); Mullan (the little summit), in Ireland; probably the Island of Mull, in the Hebrides.

MURUS (Lat.),
MAUER (Ger.),
MURA (Sclav.),

a wall; e.g. Maurs (the walled town), in France; also Villa-de-Muro-cincto (the dwelling surrounded by walls); Morsain, in 879 Murocinctus (surrounded by walls); Murviel (old walls), in Herault,—a place where the ruins of an ancient Gaulish city are found; Mauerhof (the enclosed court), in Germany; Trasmauer (the walled town on the R. Trasen), in Austria; Murany-var (the walled fortress), in Hungary; Muriel-de-la-fuente (the walled town of the fountain); Muriel-viejo (the old walled town); Murillo (the little walled town), in Spain; Murviedro (the old fortifications), called by the Romans Muriveteres, because they believed it to be on the site of the ancient Saguntum; Semur, in France, corrupt. from Sinemurum (without walls).