Survey of English Place-Names

Historical Forms

• Hach 1086 DB

• Akes 1199 SAS2/X 1209-10 MGS 1255 RH 1255-6 Ass

• Okes 1271-2 Ass 1713 SBL5343

• des Okes 1283 InqMisc

• La Okes 1306-7 Ass

• Oakes 1565 PR(H) 1702 SBL13394

• Oke 1316 FA

• Hockes 1319 Ch

Etymology

'Oak tree', probably originally singular, but with the inorganic -s which was frequently added to monosyllabic names after the Norman Conquest. Simplex names from OE  āc are fairly common, but they more frequently have modern forms such as Nock, Noke or Rock, Roke because they were preceded in ME  speech by atten or atter , 'at the -'. Rock in Ludlow is 'at the oak tree'.