Survey of English Place-Names

Historical Forms

• oþ olle discan, of olle discan 948 ShaftR(S534(1)) 15

• on olle discan 956 14 ib

• on alle þiscan, of alle discan 948 ShaftR(S534(1)) 15

• on holen wicken 955 ShaftR(S573) 14

• 'meadow called Holewich' 1291 Hutch3

• (prat' voc') Holwiche 1513,1514 Ct

• a mede called Hollwyssh, Hollwysshe water 1381 Pitt 16

• Holies 1545 Ct

• Hollish Furlong 1700 DCMDeed c.1774 TA 1844

• Bailiff's Hollish 1783 DROMap

• Bailiffs Hollish Md, Long Hollish 1844 TA

• Hawlish 1861 Hutch3

Etymology

Probably 'Olla's marshy meadows', from the OE  pers.n. Olla found in Owlpen Gl 2245 and wisc, with mǣd , wæter ; the OE  forms in -an , as Professor Löfvenberg points out, probably represent a dat.pl. in -um . However, Dr von Feilitzen considers Olla an unlikely first el. in view of the consistent ME forms with initial H - and prefers hol 2 'hollow' on the basis of holen - 955 and Hole - 1291. The forms in -discan , -þiscan from the ME copies of the two earliest OE charters are probably due to scribal confusion of w (p ), þ , ð and d (cf. -forð for -ford in ShaftR (S 534 (1)), and dis for þis , nord for norð , saþendune possibly for sawendune (q. v. infra ) in ib (S 632)); -wicken in ShaftR (S 573) has probably been influenced by the wi (c )ken spellings in this charter for the r.n. Wych (earlier the name of the Corfe River, v. RNs.); alle - in ShaftR (S 534 (1)) probably shows confusion of the rare OE  pers.n. Olla with the common OE  pers.n. Alla , and holen - in ib (S 573) may have been influenced by on þa holendich and on þat holenbedde (both dealt with infra ) in the same charter. The fields called Hollish are water meadows situated along the S bank of the stream (referred to once as Hollwysshe water but now unnamed) which rises near Downshay Fm in Worth Mat. par. infra and flows WNW to meet the Corfe River near the Corfe C.-Ch. Knowle bdy. Bailiff 's Hollish belonged to 'the Bailiff of Corfe ' (1783DROMap ), cf. Bayleys Cowleaze infra .