In Atterbury the preposition and article have both remained, while in Thornber the suffix is almost unrecognizable. By, related to byre and to the preposition by, is especially common in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. It is sometimes spelt bee, e.g. Ashbee for Ashby. The simple Bye is not uncommon. Ham is cognate with home. In compounds it is sometimes reduced to -um, e.g. Barnum, Holtum, Warnum. But in some such names the -um is the original form, representing an old dative plural (Chapter III). Allum represents the usual Midland pronunciation of Hallam. Cullum, generally for Culham, may also represent the missionary Saint Colomb. In Newnham the adjective is dative, as in Ger. Neuenheim, at the new home. In Bonham, Frankham, and Pridham the suffix -ham has been substituted for the French homme of bonhomme, franc homme, prudhomme, while Jerningham is a perversion of the personal name Jernegan or Gernegan, as Garnham is of Gernon, Old French for Beard (Chapter XXI). Stead is cognate with Ger. Stadt, place, town, and with staith, as in Bickersteth(Chapter III). Armstead means the dwelling of the hermit, Bensted the stead of Benna (Chapter VII) or Bennet.
Stoke is originally distinct from Stock, a stump, with which it has become fused in the compounds Bostock, Brigstocke. Stow appears in the compound Bristol (Chapter XI) and in Plaistow, play-ground (cf. Playsted). Thorp, cognate with Ger. Dorf, village, is especially common in the eastern counties
"By twenty thorps, a little town,
And half a hundred bridges."
(Tennyson, The Brook, 1. 5.)
It has also given Thrupp and probably Thripp, whence Calthrop, Winthrop, Westrupp, etc.
Ton, later Town, gave also the northern Toon, still used in Scotland with something of its original sense (Chapter XII). Boston is Botolf's town, Gunston Gunolf's town. So also Tarleton (Thurweald), Monkton (monk), Preston (priest). Barton meant originally a barley-field, and is still used in the west of England for a paddock. Wick appears also as Wych, Weech. Its compounds cannot be separated from those of wick, a creek (Chapter XII). Bromage is for Bromwich, Greenidge for Greenwich, Prestage for Prestwich; cf. the place-name Swanage (Dorset), earlier Swanewic.
Worth was perhaps originally applied to land by a river or to a holm (Chapter XII); cf. Ger. Donauwert, Nonnenwert, etc. Harmsworth is for Harmondsworth; cf. Ebbsworth (Ebba), Shuttleworth (Sceotweald), Wadsworth (Wada). Sometimes we find a lengthened form, e.g. Allworthy, from ald, old (cf. Aldworth), Langworthy. Rickworth, further corrupted to Record, is the Anglo-Saxon name Ricweard. Littleworth may belong to this class, but may also be a nickname. This would make it equivalent to the imitative Little-proud, formerly Littleprow, from Old French and Mid. Eng. prou, worth, value.
To this group may be added two more, which signify a mart, viz. Cheap or Chipp (cf. Chepstow, Chipping Barnet) and Staple, whence Huxtable, Stapleton, etc. Liberty, that part of a city which, though outside the walls, shares in the city privileges, and Parish also occur as surnames, but the latter is usually for Paris.
Many other words connected with the delimitation of property occur commonly in surnames. Croft or Craft, a small field, is common in compounds such as Beecroft or Bearcroft (barley), Haycraft (see hay, below), Oscroft(ox), Rycroft, Meadowcroft. [Footnote: I remember reading in some story of a socially ambitious lady who adopted this commonplace name instead of Gubbins. The latter name came over, as Gobin, with the Conqueror, and goes back to Old Ger. Godberaht, whence Old Fr. Godibert.] Fold occurs usually as Foulds, but we have compounds such as Nettlefold, Penfold or Pinfold (Chapter XIII). Sty, not originally limited to pigs, has given Hardisty, the sty of Heardwulf. Frith, a park or game preserve, is probably more often the origin of a surname than the other frith (Chapter XII). It is cognate with Ger. Friedhof, cemetery. Chase is still used of a park and Game once meant rabbit-warren. Warren is Fr. garenne. Garth, the Scandinavian doublet of Yard, and cognate with Garden, has given the compounds Garside, Garfield, Hogarth (from a place in Westmorland), and Applegarth, of which Applegate is a corruption. We have a compound of yard in Wynyard, Anglo-Sax. win, vine. We have also the name Close and its derivative Clowser. Gate, a barrier or opening, Anglo-Sax. geat, is distinct from the Scandinavian gate, a street (Chapter XIII), though of course confused with it in surnames. From the northern form we have Yates, Yeats, and Yeatman, and the compounds Byatt, by gate, Hyatt, high gate. Agate is for atte gate, and Lidgate, whence Lidgett, means a swing gate, shutting like a lid. Fladgate is for flood-gate. Here also belongs Barr. Hatch, the gate at the entrance to a chase, survives in Colney Hatch. The apparent dim. Hatchett is for Hatchard (Chapter VIII); cf. Everett for Everard (Chapter II). Hay, also Haig, Haigh, Haw, Hey, is cognate with Hedge. Like most monosyllabic local surnames, it is commonly found in the plural, Hayes, Hawes. The bird nickname Hedgecock exists also as Haycock. The curious-looking patronymics Townson and Orchardson are of course corrupt. The former is for Tomlinson and the latter perhaps from Achard (Chapter VIII).
Several places and families in England are named Hide or Hyde, which meant a certain measure of land. The popular connection between this word and hide, a skin, as in the story of the first Jutish settlement, is a fable. It is connected with an Anglo-Saxon word meaning household, which appears also in Huish, Anglo-Sax. hi-wisc. Dike, or Dyke, and Moat, also Mott, both have, or had, a double meaning. We still use dike, which belongs to dig and ditch, both of a trench and a mound, and the latter was the earlier meaning of Fr. motte, now a clod, In Anglo-French we find moat used of a mound fortress in a marsh. Now it is applied to the surrounding water. From dike come the names Dicker, Dickman, Grimsdick, etc. Sometimes the name Dykes may imply residence near some historic earthwork, such as Offa's Dyke, just as Wall, for which Waugh was used in the north, may show connection with the Roman wall. With these may be mentioned the French name Fosse, whence the apparently pleonastic Fosdyke and the name of Verdant Green's friend, Mr. Four-in-hand Fosbrooke. Delves is from Mid. Eng. dell, ditch. Jury is for Jewry, the quarter allotted to the Jews, but Jewsbury is no doubt for Dewsbury; cf. Jewhurst for Dewhurst.