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

by Christina Blackie

the west. This word Buttman traces to an old Ger. root wesen, Goth. visan (rest), i.e. the quarter of the heavens where the sun sinks to rest; e.g. Westphalia (the western plain); Westerwald (west wood); Westerufer (the western shore, i.e. of the R. Inn); Westhausen and Westhoffen (the west dwellings and court), in Alsace; Wesen, on the west shore of Lake Wallensee; Westeraas, in Sweden, anc. Vestra-aros (western dwelling), so called to distinguish it from Ostra-aros (the eastern dwelling); Westman’s Isles, Scand. Vestmanna-eyar, on the coast of Iceland, so called because peopled by men from the west—Irish pirates; Westbury, Westbourn, Weston, Westbrook, from the same root.

WICH, WIC, WYK (Teut.),
WICK, VIG (Scand.),
WAS, WIES (Sclav.),

a dwelling, a village, a town—a word in general use in the topography of Great Britain, as well as on the continent, but with various meanings. According to Leo, the Teut. wich or vichs arose from the root waes, A.S., and wiese, Ger. (a moist meadow) and hence was applied to places situated on low lands, often on the bank of a stream; e.g. Meeswyk (the town on the Maas); Beverwyk, on the Bever. The primary meaning seems to have been a station—with the Anglo-Saxons a station or abode on the land, with the Norsemen a station for ships. The root of the word runs through all the Aryan languages—Sansc. veça, Grk. oikos, Pol. wies, Ir. fieh, Cym.-Cel. qwic, all meaning an abode; e.g. Alnwick (the town on the R. Alne); Ipswich, anc. Gippenswich, on the Gipping; York, A.S. Eorvic, Lat. Eboracum, Welsh Caer-Ebreuc (the town on the water, or R. Eure); Hawick (the town on the haugh or low meadow); Noordwyk (north town); Nederwyk (lower town); Zuidwyk and Zuick (south town), in Holland and Belgium; Harwich (army town), so called from having been a Saxon station or military depot; Keswick (the town of Cissa); Wickware, in Gloucestershire (the town of the family of De la Ware). On the other hand, the Scandinavian wich or vig signifies a bay, or a place situated on the coast, or at the mouth of a river—thus Schleswick (on a bay formed by the R. Schlie), in Prussia; Wick (the town on the bay), in Caithness; Sandwich (the town on the sandy bay); Lerwick (on the muddy bay); Greenwich, Scand. Granvigen (the town on the pine bay); Reikjavik, in Iceland (the reeky or smoky bay); Vigo in Spain, and Vaage in Norway (on spacious bays); Swanage, in Dorset, anc. Swanwick (Sweyen’s bay town); Brodick, in Arran (the broad bay town); Wicklow, in Ireland, probably Danish Vigloe (bay shelter), used by the Danes as a ship station; Smerwick (butter bay); Berwick, contracted from Aberwick (at the mouth of the R. Tweed)—v. ABER. Wiche also denotes a place where there are salt mines or springs, and in this sense is probably connected with the Scand. vig, as salt was often obtained by the evaporation of sea-water in shallow bays; thus Nantwich—v. NANT; Middlewich (the middle salt works); Droitwich, Lat. Salinæ (the salt springs, where the droit or tax was paid). In some cases wich or wick is derived from the Lat. vicus, cognate with the Grk. oikos and Sansc. veça (a dwelling)—thus Katwyk-sur-mer and Katwyk-sur-Rhin are supposed to occupy the site of the Roman Vicus-Cattorum (the dwelling-place of the Chatti); Vick or Vique, in Spain, from Vicus-Ausoniensis (the dwelling of the Ausones); Vidauban, in France, from Vicus-Albanus (the dwelling of Albanus); Longwy, from Longus-vicus (long town); Limoges, anc. Lemovicum (the town of the Lemovici); also in France: Vic-desprès (the town on the meadows); Vic-sur-Losse and Vic-sur-Aisne, the towns on these rivers. The Sclav. wice is found in Jazlowice (the town on the marsh); and Malschwice (Matthew’s town), etc.

WIDR, or VITU (Teut. and Scand.),

wood; e.g. Norwood (north wood); Selwood, Lat. Sylva-magna (great wood), Celtic Coitmaur; Coteswold (from its sheep-cotes, in the wood); the Wolds, near Wolderness, in Yorkshire; Ringwood, in Hants, Lat. Regni-sylva (the wood or forest of the Regni, a tribe); Wittstock and Woodstock (woody place); but Wittingau, Wittingen, Wittgenstein, Wittgensdorf, and other names with this prefix in Germany, come from the patronymic Wittick or Wittikind (i.e. the children of the woods). In England the same prefix may mean white, as in Witney, or from places where the Saxon Witangemote held their meetings; Holywood, in Dumfriesshire, Lat. Abbia sacra nemoris (the abbey of the sacred wood), called by the Irish Der-Congal (the sacred oak grove of Congal).

WIECK, or WIKI (Sclav.),

a market especially for corn; e.g. Wieck (the market town), the name of numerous places in the Sclavonic districts; Wikow (the Sclavonic name for Elsterwerder)—v. WARID, etc.

WIESE (Ger.),
WAES (A.S.),

pasture-ground or meadow; e.g. Pfaffenwiese (the priest’s meadow); Schaafwiese (sheep pasture); Wiesbaden (the meadow baths); the Wash (near moist pasture-ground); Wismar (beautiful or rich meadow), in Mecklenburg; Wiesflech (the hamlet in the meadow pasture); Ziegelwasen (the goat’s meadow); Wisheim (the dwelling in the meadow or pasture-ground).

WILIG (A.S.),