Survey of English Place-Names

Historical Forms

• Sulebi, Suleby c.1160 Lowth(AB2) 1185–99 1195 P 13 HMCx,320 13 Musg 1202 FF 1206 Cur 1210 Pipe 1369 Cliff

• Suleghby 1247,1256 Pipe

• Souleby 13 Musg 1278 Ass8d 1292 1297 Carliol 1310 FF 1315 Cl 1653 PR(CG)

• Sowleby, Sowlebie 1581 PR(R) 1662 PR(CG)

• Soweleby 1279 Ass13d

• Sowlbie 1576 FF

• Soleby 1292 Ass 1d, Cl

• Soolby 1712 Will

• Soulby, Soulbie 1355 Ipm 1360 Pat 1370 Hom 1706 PR(B)

Etymology

The first el. may be ON  súl(súla) 'post, pillar' or the ON  byname Súla formed from it, as in Soulby (Cu 188). The forms Suleghby suggest that it might be OE  sulh 'plough', also 'furrow, gully', as it may be in Sulby (Nth 121), but the Soule - spellings point to a long vowel -ū -, which might rule out sulh . 'Súla's farmstead' or 'farmstead constructed of posts', v. bȳ . It may be added that Marstrander 176 derives Sulby (IoM) from the Norw  r.n. element súl -used in the sense 'river-fork' or the like (NElv 251–2), but topographically this is not appropriate for Soulby. v. Addenda.