Our “Soles,” “Burys,” and “Hithes.”
The word Sole occurs frequently as a Kentish place-name, and is purely Saxon. Dr. Bosworth’s Anglo-Saxon Dictionary gives Sol as meaning “soil—dirt—a wallowing place”; while Lewis defines it as “a dirty pond of standing water.” The Saxon verb is Sylian, “to soil or cover with mud.” So an old Kentish will has the words “beside the wateringe sole in trend (i.e., the end) of Yckhame streete.” Now, as the chief industries of the Saxons in Kent were pigs and pots—as now they are bricks and beer—it is obvious that pigs, especially in clay soil, would create many wallowing places. So we find Sole Street, near Broadstairs (now corrupted into Sorvell and so made unmeaning and unintelligible), another by Cobham, another by Crundale, and another by Selling. We find also Bradsole (S. Radigund’s near Dover), Buttsole in Eastry, Blacksole at Wrotham, Maidensole, Longsole Heath by Allington, Thewsole, and Hangmansole in Romney Marsh, Eastsole, Newsole near Coldred, Esole near Nonington, Podsole near Headcorn, a Mote-sole Street in Sandwich, Mudshole by Hawkinge, Barnsole Lane, Gillingham, Capel Sole, Barnsole in Staple, Westfield Sole in Boxley, Rigsol Road in Otterden, and last, but not least, Paddisole, or Padsole, at Maidstone.