English Place-name Society

Survey of English Place-Names

A county-by-county guide to the linguistic origins of England’s place-names – a project of the English Place-Name Society, founded 1923.

Towthorpe

Major Settlement in the Parish of Wharram Percy

Historical Forms

  • Touetorp 1086 DB
  • Touethorp 1231 Ass, FF
  • Thouetorp 1231 FF
  • Tout(h)orp(e) 1157–70 Malton 1231 FF 1355 Ipm
  • Thouthorp 1169 Malton 1285 KI 1348 Kirkham
  • Towethorp(e) 1333 SR 1489 FF
  • Towthorpe on the Wold 1475 Pat
  • Tothorpe 1546 YChant
  • Tolthrope upon the Wold 1564 FF

Etymology

'Tove 's village,' v. þorp . The pers. name Tove is common in ODan  as Tufi , Towi and in OSwed  as Tove , Tuve , but it is not found in OWScand sources until the end of the 10th century when ODan  Tove was borrowed as Tófi (LindN). The Danish name is also found in late OE  as Tofig , DB Tovi , etc. (NP 141) and in the place-name Towton (WRY), Touetun DB. The Swedish place-name Tofvetorp (Lundgren-Brate 282) and the Danish Toverup (DaSN(F) 94) offer exact parallels to Towthorpe. Towthorpe infra 232 is of different origin, but the phonetic development of the two names accounts for the inverted spelling Tolthrope for this place-name.

Places in the same Parish

Other OS name

Early-attested site