Survey of English Place-Names

Historical Forms

• Renitone 1086 DB

• Rimington(a), Rymington(a) 1147 Sawl1 1182–5 YCh199 Ric1–1347 Puds 1190–1210 YChvii l.12,13 Sawl5,5d 13 YDviii 1244 FF 1574 PRGis

• Riminton(a) c.1154 Dugdv Ric1 Puds

• Reminton c.1250 Percy

• Remington, Remyngton 1303 KF 1336 Ch 1646 PRGis

• Rimmington, Rymmington 1522 FF 1665 PRGis

Etymology

Since this township is on the Lancashire-Craven border there can be little doubt about its meaning as 'farmstead on the boundary' and Rimingden as 'boundary valley', v. rima 'rim, edge, boundary', tūn , denu .The problem lies in the interpretation of -ing -; this could be the p.n. and r.n. forming suffix -ing2 (as Ekwall suggests); Riming would in that case mean 'the boundary stream' and would be a former name of Ings Beck which forms the boundary and not of Rimington Brook which is an alternative name for Gazegill Brook north of the village.On the other hand, the connective -ing4 might be used to link significant words, though the evidence for this is not altogether unambiguous (cf. EPN i, 296); if this applies here it would denote a general association of the farmstead and the valley with the boundary.Rossington i, 49, Pollington ii, 21, Swillington iv, 93supra and Grindleton 195infra offer a similar problem.