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

by Christina Blackie

N

NAES (A.S.),
NOES (Scand.),
NES (Fr.),

a nose, cognate with the Lat. nasus, and in topography applied to a promontory; e.g. the Naze, in Norway, and Nash, in Monmouth; Nash-scaur (the promontory of the cliff), in Wales; Katznase (the cat’s headland); Blankenese (white cape), in Holstein; Foreness, Sheerness, Fifeness, Buchanness, Blackness, in England and Scotland; Roeness (red cape), Shetland; Vatternish (water cape), in Skye; Borrowstounness or Bo’ness, in West Lothian (the cape near Burward’s dwelling); Holderness (the woody promontory); Langness and Littleness, in Man; Dungeness (danger cape); Furness (the cape of the beacon-fire), the site of an ancient lighthouse in Lancashire; Saturnness (the southern cape), in Kirkcudbright; Shoeburyness, corrupt. from Sceobirig (the cape of the sea-fortress); Skegness (the cape near the wood, skogr); Skipness (ship headland); Sviatanos, Sclav. (holy cape), in Russia; Caithness (the promontory of the Catti, a tribe).

NAGORE (Hindu nagar, Sansc. nagura),

a city; e.g. Barnagore for Varaha-nagur (the city of the boar); Chandernagore (of the moon); Serenagur (of the sun).

NAGY (Hung.),

great; e.g. Nagy-Karoly (Charles’s great town); Nagy-Malton (St. Matthew’s great town); Nagy-Szent-Miklos (of St. Nicholas); Nagy-varad (great fortress); Nagy-Koros (the great town on the R. Köros).

NAHR (Semitic),

a river; e.g. Nahr-el-keber (the great river); Nahr-el-kelb or Lycus (the river of the dog or wolf), so named from a fancied resemblance of a rock near its mouth to the head of these animals; Nahr-Mukatta (the river of slaughter); Aram-Naharaim (the high lands of the two rivers, i.e. Mesopotamia); Nahar-Misraim (the river of Egypt, i.e. the Nile).

NANT (Cym.-Cel.),

a brook or a valley through which a stream flows; e.g. Nantmel (the honey brook); Sych-nant (dried-up brook); Nancemillin (the valley of the mill), in Wales; Dewffneynt (the deep valley) was the ancient British name of Devonshire; Levenant (smooth stream); Nant-frangon, i.e. Nant-yr-a-franc (the beavers’ valley); Nantglyn (the glen of the brook); Nant-y-Gwrtheyren (Vortigern’s valley), in Wales; Nans, in Cornwall; also in Cornwall—Penant (the head of the valley), and Cornant (a brook); Nantwich, in Cheshire (the salt-works, wich, on the brook or stream, i.e. the Weaver); Nantua (in a valley of the Alps); Nantes named from the Namnetes (dwellers in the valley); Mochnant (the swift brook); Nannau (the brooks), in Wales; Nangle, a bay on the coast of Wales, perhaps Nant-gel or cel (a secret corner)—the Rev. J. James. Nevern, a parish in Wales, for Nant-ynfer (the brook of the confluence); Nancy (the valley dwellings); Nans, Nant, with the same meaning, in France; Nanteuil (the valley of the fountain)—v. ŒUIL; Nantberis (St. Peris’s brook).

NASS (Ger.),

moist; e.g. Nassau (the moist meadow); Nassenfeld (moist field); Nassenhuben (the huts in moist land); Nassenbeuren (the dwelling in moist land).

NAVA (Basque),

a plain; e.g. Nava-de-los-Oteros (the plain of the heights); Nava-hermosa (beautiful plain); Navarre and Navarreux (the plain among hills); Navarette (the plain at the foot of the hill); Paredes-de-nava (the houses of the plain).

NEDER, NIEDER, NEER (Teut. and Scand.),

lower; e.g. Netherlands (the lower lands); Netherby (lower town); Niederlahnstein (the fortress on the lower R. Lahn); Nederheim, Nederwyk (lower dwellings).

NEMET (Celtic),

a sacred grove, cognate with the Lat. nemus and the Grk. nemos; e.g. Nemours, anc. Nemoracum (the place of the sacred wood or grove); Nanterre, also in France, anc. Nemetodurum (the sacred grove on the waters); Nismes, anc. Nemausus (the place in the grove); Augustonemetum (the splendid place of the grove), being the ancient name of Clermont; Nemetacum, the ancient name of Arras; Nemea (the place of the grove), in Greece.

NEU (Ger.),
NEWYDD (Cym.-Cel.),
NUADH (Gadhelic),
NOWY and NAU (Sclav.),

new, cognate with the Lat. novus and the Grk. neos and their derivatives; e.g. Neuburg, Neudorf, Neustadt, Neuville, Newbury, Newburgh (new town); Neumarkt (new market); Newbold, Newbottle, Newbattle (new building), in Germany, England, and Scotland; Newburgh, in Fife, is a town of considerable antiquity. It owes its origin to the Abbey of Lindores, in its neighbourhood. It was erected into a burgh or barony by Alexander III., in 1266, and in the charter it was called “Novus burgus, juxta monasterium de Lindores.” It seems, therefore, that there was a more ancient burgh belonging to the abbey in the neighbourhood—Newburn (new stream), in Fife. Newhaven (the new harbour), in relation to the older harbour of Leith. In the sixteenth century Newhaven had a chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary, and was then called our Lady’s port of grace; but in the year 1511 the city of Edinburgh bought up the village and harbour. In France: Nevers and Noyon, anc. Noviodunum (the new fortress); Neuvy, with the same meaning; Neuvéglise (new church); Villeneuve (new villa); Nièvre and Nivernais, a department and ancient province of France; Nienburg, corrupt. from Neuenburg (new town), in Hanover; Newport (new harbour), in Belgium; Newport, in the Isle of Wight, so named because it superseded the older harbour at Carisbrook; Newport, in Wales, which superseded Caerleon; Neusatz or Neoplanta (new station), founded in 1700, on the Danube; Neusohl (new seat), in Hungary—its native name is Bestereze-banya (the mine on the R. Bistritz); Neustadl (new stall); Neuwied (new pasture); Nimeguen, anc. Noviomagus (new field), in Holland; Novgorod and Novigrad (new fortress); Novidwar (new court), in Russia; Nowe-mjasto (new bridge), in Poland; Novobeilaiaskaia (the new town on the white stream), in Russia; Nova-Zembla, i.e. Novaia-Zemlia (the new land); Nowazamka (new castle); Novi-Bazaar (new market), in Turkey; Nowosedl (new seat); Nienburg, Nyborg, Nyby, Nystead (new town), in Denmark and Holland; Neocastro (new camp), in Greece; Nola or Novla (new place), in the Sardinian states; Naumburg and Nienburg, corrupt. from Neuenburg (new town); Nykioping (new market-town), in Sweden, and Nykjobing, in Denmark, with the same meaning; Newington, in Surrey, corrupt. from Neweton; Newfoundland, so called when rediscovered by John Cabot in 1427, but known previously by Icelandic colonists as Litla-Helluland; Nova Scotia (New Scotland), called by the Norseman Markland; New River, a large aqueduct from Hertfordshire to Islington, by which a great part of London is supplied with water; New Ross, Co. Wexford, corrupt. from its Irish name Ros-mic-Treoin (the wood of Treun’s son); Newtown-Hamilton, in Ireland, founded by the Hamilton family in 1770; Newtown-Limavady, Co. Londonderry, named from a castle in the neighbourhood called Limavady (the dog’s leap); Newtown-Stewart, Co. Tyrone, so called from Sir William Stewart, to whom it was granted by Charles I.; New York, named in honour of the Duke of York, afterwards James II.; New Zealand, called by Tasman, its Dutch discoverer, in honour, it is supposed, of his native province.

NIJNY (Sclav.),

lower; e.g. Nijny-Novgorod (the lower new fortress); Nijny-Neviansk (the lower town on the Neva), as distinguished from Verkii-Neviansk, the upper; Nijnaia-ozernaia-krepost (the lower fort of the lakes); Nijny-Devitzk (the lower town on the Devitza); Nijni-Tagelsk (the lower town on the R. Tagel), in Russia.

NIMZ (Sclav.),

foreign, from nemy or nêmec, dumb—a word applied by the Sclavonic races to the Germans, because their language was unintelligible to them: e.g. Niemitsch, Niemez, Niemtschitz, German towns in Bohemia; Nemet-uj-var (the new German fortress), in Hungary; but there is a Sclavonic deity called Njam, to whom the names of some of these places may be traced.

NO, NOE, NOUE (Old Fr.),

a low meadow habitually overflowed with water. It has evidently arisen out of noyer, to submerge; e.g. Noaillac, Noallau, La Noalle, Noalles, Noyelle, Noyellette, in which the word is probably joined to œuil, a water-source; Nogent (pleasant meadow); No-aux-Bois (in the woods); Les Noues, Neuillay, Neuilly, Noisy, Lat. Noesiacum.

NORDEN, NÔORD (Teut.),
NOR (Scand.),
NORD (Fr.),

the north; e.g. Normandy (the land given by the French to the Normans under Rollo in 912); Noordbroek (the north marshy land); Noordwolde (north wood), in Holland; Norbury, Nordenburg, Norton, Nordhausen (north dwelling or town); Norham, on the R. Tweed; Northampton (the town on the north side of the Aufona, now the R. Nen); Northumberland (the land north of the Humber); Nordkyn (north cape); Normanton and Normandby (dwellings of the Norsemen or Danes), in England; Norrköping (northern market-town), in Sweden; Norrland (a large division of Sweden); Northallerton, in Yorkshire, so called to distinguish it from Allerton-Mauleverer; North Cape (the most northerly point of Norwegian Lapland); North Berwick, Co. Haddington, so called to distinguish it from Berwick-upon-Tweed; Norway (the northern kingdom)—v. REICH, REIKE; Norfolk (the abode of the north people, as distinguished from Suffolk to the south); Northleach, north of the R. Leach; Northwich, in Cheshire (the north salt manufactory)—v. WICH; Norwich, the town which superseded Venta-Icenorum, whose inhabitants fled at the approach of the Danes, and erected a castle of defence farther north.

NOYER (Fr.),

the walnut-tree, Lat. nucarius, from which are derived nucetum, nucelletum, and nugaretum (a place planted with walnut-trees); e.g. Noyers, Nozay, Noroy, La Nozaye, Les Nozées, Nozieres, Nozeroy, etc., in France.

NUDDY (Pali),

a river; e.g. Maha-nuddy (great river); Nuddea (the district of the rivers).

NUWERA (Tamil),

a city; e.g. Alut-nuwera (new city); Kalawa (the city on the Kala-Oya, i.e. the rocky river); Nuwera-Panduas (the city of Panduas), in Ceylon.