Odd Hampshire place names and what they really mean
Three villages called Wallop, a Crow, a Sheet, a Tiptoe and a Mapledurwell: where do the strangest Hampshire names come from?
Wallop, which names three Hampshire villages, roughly means the valley of springing water, from Old English waella and hop, though one surname dictionary says the origin is uncertain. Crow may come from a Brittonic word for ford or weir, Sheet from an Old English word for a corner of land, and Tiptoe from a French surname.
Hampshire has three villages called Wallop, and the name roughly means the valley of springing water. Wikipedia says Wallop comes from the Old English waella and hop, and that the three villages are Nether Wallop, Middle Wallop and Over Wallop. The Domesday Book of 1086 spells it Wallope. That is only the start of the county's odd names, so here are five more and what they probably mean.
Wallop, the odd one out
Strictly, the Wikipedia pages describe the meaning as "roughly" valley of springing water, and that care is warranted. A surname dictionary says the origin of the place-name is uncertain. So it is a sensible explanation, not a certainty, and our description stays as cautious as the source.
Crow
Crow is a place near Ringwood in the New Forest. Wikipedia says the name may derive from a Common Brittonic word, "criw" meaning ford or weir, or "craw" meaning hovel. Mental Floss gives a similar Celtic root, with weir or sty. So no birds are involved, probably, though the experts use the word "may".
Sheet
Sheet is a place by Petersfield. Mental Floss says its name comes from "sciete", an Old English word for a corner or bend of land. That is the only source we found: the Wikipedia page for Sheet gives no etymology. If you have always assumed it was about bedding, you are in good company.
Nately Scures
The name Nately Scures is explained in Wikipedia as "cattle field" from the Anglo-Saxon word neat, plus "scures", meaning wood or shade. It was recorded as Netlescures in 1413, and the church of St Swithun was built around 1175. The etymology is cited there to Hampshire Notes and Queries, and it is a single-source claim from Wikipedia, so treat it as the commonly given explanation.
Mapledurwell
Mapledurwell means maple tree spring, according to Wikipedia. It is a plain meaning for a pleasingly long name, and it also rests on one source, so we have kept it short.
Tiptoe
Tiptoe, near Hordle and Milford on Sea, sounds like a joke but is not about walking quietly. Wikipedia and Mental Floss say it comes from a surname of French origin, recorded in the 13th century as "Typetot", from the Tibetot family.
Names we left out
We skipped Mudeford's Gundimore, a house whose name origin is unknown, and Hamble-le-Rice and Ropley, which are less colourful.
A word on reliability
Place-name origins are among the hardest things to prove, because the evidence is often a few early spellings and a good guess. Where we cite one source, we have said so. If a local historian knows better, we would like to hear.
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