D

Dadnor (Bridstow).

'The bank of... ?'; perhaps of Daddo. For second element see Appendix, -over.

Daffaluke (Marstow).

Evidently a corruption of W. dyffryn-llwg, 'valley of the marsh'. The stream that flows through it is still called 'Luke Brook'.

Daff-y-nant (Whitchurch).

W. dyffryn-y-nant, 'valley of the brook'. Or possibly it may be a corruption of W. dyfrhynt (dwfr hynt), 'water-course'.

Darren Wood and The Darren (Garway).

W. derwen, 'an oak tree'.

Deabley (Bromyard).

Dean Hill (Ross).

O.E. denu, acc. dene, 'a valley'; Sir James Murray says this is 'perhaps' the etymology of the 'Forest of Dean'. We may venture the same conjecture here, in spite of the contradiction implied in 'valley-hill'. Gir. Camb. calls the Forest of Dean 'Danubia'.

Deerfold Forest (Wigmore).

The second element is O.E. weald, 'forest'; the first may be akin to dam, 'hurt', 'The wood dangerous'.

Demesne (Garway).

'Demesne' was the portion of a manor which the holder (whether tenant-in-chief or only an under-tenant) worked as a home-farm, by the labour due from the peasants who held under him.

Cf. Clifford's Mesne in Linton.

*Denard [Goodrich].

Dewchurch (Much and Little).

'Church of Dewi', i.e. St David.

Cf. Llandewi (four or more in Wales and Mon.), Dewiston (Pembs.), Dewisland (Pembs. Hundred).

Dewell (Dilwyn).

Dewsall.

'St David's Well'. But, as often, the ending -welle tends to become -walle.

Deykins Green (Bromyard).

In 1322 'David filius Daykyns' held lands in Glasbury. Possibly his father may have lived in Bromyard.

Dickendale (Wigmore).

Dicks (Llanveyno).

W. ty dych, 'house of sighs'.

Didley (St Devereux).

'Meadow of Dudda or Dodda' (both forms very common).

Cf. Dudley (Worcs.), Didcot (Berks.).

*Diffringarran.

A 'Liberty' of Wormelow in 1722. W. dyfryn-garran, 'the valley of the Garran river'.

Dilwyn.

I cannot explain this word; and the multitude of its forms only increases one's perplexity.

Dinchill (Donnington).

See Ding-wood and Donning-ton.

Dineterwood (Ewyas Harold).

Evidently akin, in origin, to Dyndor. The 1831 Ord. Map spells it Dinedor Wood.

Dingwood Park (Ledbury).

The 1278 form is probably a scribe's mistake; the 1289 form suggests the kinship to Donnington (q.v.) little more than a mile away.

Dinmore.

Welsh din mawr, 'big hill'. The various spellings show the difficulties which English and Norman scribes found in pronouncing even the simplest Welsh words.

Cf. Dunmore (Berks.).

Dipper-moor (Kilpeck).

So in the 17th century when the Gomond family held it.

Docklow.

For the second element see Append. III, -low. The first element may be O.E. docce, 'dock'. 'Hill on which dock grows plentifully'.

Dodmarsh (Westhide).

Dolvaugh (Bredwardine).

Probably corrupted from W. dol fach, 'little meadow'.

Cf. Pont-nedd-vaugh (Glam.).

Dolward (Turnastone).

It may be, like Clzickward and Breadward, one of the Herefordshire -wardines. But, in a Welsh district, it is more probably W. dol, 'a meadow', with some suffix which English lips have assimilated to the -wardine ending.

Dolyhir (Kington).

W. dol-y-hir, 'long meadow'.

Donathan (Llanwarne).

Donnington.

'Tun of the Dunnings', i.e. sons of Dunn or Dunna. Dingwood Park and Dinchill (both close by) are evidently akin to Donnington in origin. There are eight or nine Donningtons, Doningtons, or Dunningtons in England.

Dore (river, trib. of Monnow).

Welsh dwfr, or dwr, 'river', 'water'. See also Abbeydore.

*Dorfeld [in or near Bacton].

'Field on the banks of the Dore'.

Dormington.

Duncumb gives a Dom. form Dermentune, which I cannot find in the Herefordshire Dom.

Dorstone.

It is uncertain what is the pers. name involved in the first element. The Dom. form seems to point to some such name as Thorkell, but see the old forms of Thruxton, and cf. Torkesey (Lincs.), which is O.E. Torkesei (i.e. troges ig, 'island of the tub' or 'of the small boat'). The 13th century forms would seem to give something like 'tun of Deorsige' (a known name). In any case it cannot be 'tun of the god Thor,' which would be Thores-tun. There is a Dorstone in Birley; it has no old forms, and may be of a different origin.

Doward Hill (Welsh Bicknor).

Welsh Bicknor in the Lib. Land. is Garth Benni (plur. of ban, 'a peak'). There are two ridges jutting out into the two loops of the river in the parish. Hence it has been suggested that Doward is a corruption of Dew-arth, itself a corruption of Dougarth, 'the two garths.' As there are no old forms, and the study of Welsh place-names has not yet been seriously taken in hand by any competent scholar, we can only refrain from comment.

Downton.

O.E. dun, 'a hill.' The Ord. Map 1831 says pleonastically 'Downton-on-the-rock.' The hills above Bromyard are called Downs. There is a Downshill in Bishopstone, a farm called Downways in Eardisland, and a Downwood in Shobdon.

Drabbington (Thornbury).

*Draycote [mentioned with Dilwyn and Pembridge].

O.E. draeg-cott, probably (says Alex.) 'an isolated homestead'. Skeat says draeg means 'a retreat, a place of shelter'.

Drayton (Brimfield).

O.E. draeg-tun, 'an isolated tun'. See Draycote.

Drumleigh (Stoke Prior).

Drythistle Hill (Bromyard).

There is also a Dryebrokeswalle in Hope Mansell in 1338.

Dudshill (Upper Sapey).

Duffryn (Abbeydore).

Welsh dyffryn,'a valley'.

Dulas (river and parish).

Welsh du glais, 'dark stream'. The same word as Douglas (I. of Man) and Dowlais (Glam.), and the Welsh river Dewlas.

Dunbridge (Ledbury).

Also Dunfield (Harpton), *Dunleye [in Foy in 1247], Dunswater (Kingstone), and Dunwood (Dilwyn). The first element in all these may be Dunn, Dun, or Dunna (a common pers. name in Onom.), or it may be O.E. dun, 'a down', 'a hill'.

Dundercamp (Ullingswick).

Probably, like Dineterwood, akin in origin to Dyndor.

Dunre [Domesday Hundred].

See Dyndor.

Dyndor.

What the Dom. form means I cannot say. But it evidently survived unchanged into the 14th century. Then the intrusive d begins to appear. And ingenious Tudor antiquaries evidently concluded that it was Welsh din dwr, 'hill by the river'; and the spelling was changed accordingly.

Cf. Dinder (Somers.).

Dyon's Court (Leinthall Earles).

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