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.

Scam Matthew

Other OS name in the Parish of Shap

Historical Forms

  • Mathew 1564 PR

Etymology

, 1859OS , a piece of moorland with a small scar , possibly named from the local family of Mathew (1564et freq PR 4, etc.) ; the p.n. is apparently an inversion compound ; the first el . may be connected with ModE  dial. scam ' spot, stain, blemish ' , impurity in rocks , intercalations of other deposits in stratified rocks ' , but it seems more likely that Scam is an error for Scar ( v. sker ) , with the final - r assimilated to the following m - .

Places in the same Parish

Early-attested site

Other OS name

Major Settlement