Thanks to everyone who entered our June book giveaway to win a copy of The Forest Guide to England, Wales or Scotland by Gabriel Hemery. The responses formed a lovely collection of favourite words and place-names related to trees or woods, complementing Brian Palmer’s article on Woods and the Welsh language. I have attempted to summarise them below, apologies for any errors in translation!
Unsurprisingly coed and related words featured heavily, for example in the names of Welsh places and woodlands such as Coed y Wenallt, Coed-y-glyn (wood in a valley) and Coed y Haearn (Ironwood), named for its proximity to an Iron Age Hill fort. Another Welsh submission, llannerch goedwig, is a forest clearing.
Favourite Welsh tree and plant names included Derw (Oak), Helyg (Willow), Afal Bramley (Bramley Apple), Ffawydden Copr (Copper Beech), and Uchelwydd (Mistletoe, literally high wood).
Also received was the excellent Welsh proverb Dod yn ôl at fy nghoed which literally translates as to return to my trees, and means to return to a balanced state of mind. A Wrexham University blog describes how the saying underpins their health & wellbeing education.
Favourite English wood-related place-names included:
- Hurstmonceux in East Sussex, derived from the Anglo-Saxon hyrst (wooded hill) and the 12th century Lords of the Manor, the Monceux family.
- Holmfirth, coming via Holne from the Anglo-Saxon for Holly, and frith, the Norman term for forest (although forest had a slightly different meaning in medieval times).
- Sevenoaks, which is fairly self-explanatory! First recorded around a thousand years ago as Seouenaca, from seofon and ac – the place of the seven Oaks. The original Oaks have been replaced many times, including after six of them blew down in the storm of 1987.
- Oswestry, derived from Oswald’s tree (in Welsh Croesoswallt, Oswald’s Cross), and probably referring to the 7th century king of Northumbria who died in battle there.
Meaning a small wood or grove, both the English shaw and Cornish kelli were nominated. From further afield came albero, Italian for both a tree and the mast of a ship, and komorebi – a Japanese term with no direct English translation that refers to sunlight filtering through the gaps between trees. Certainly something that’s worthy of a name!
