Survey of English Place-Names

Historical Forms

• Meldeburna 970 BCS1266,1267 970 BCS1265 18th 1086

• æt (M)eldeburnan, (M)eldeburnan c.975 ASCh

• Meldeburne c.1050 KCD907 13th Pat 1434

• Meldebo(u)rn(e) 1232 ElyC 1392 Pat

• Meldb(o)urn(a) 1139 ElyD 1342 FF

• Melteborne 1401 ElyCh

• Melleburne, Melleborne 1086 DB

• Melleborn(e) 1419–97 Pat 1443 ADvi

• Mel(e)burne, Mel(e)bo(u)rn(e) 1204 Cur 1570 SR

• Melbourne by Royston 1383 Pat

• Mildeburn(e) 1170 LibEl 1252 FF 1257 Pat 1272–85 Ass 1291 Tax

• Mildeborne 1434 Pat

• Medelbne (sic print) 1207 FF

• Middelburn 1272 Ass

• Muldeburn, Muleburn 1272 Ass

• Moldebourne 1337 ib

• Metleburne 1276 Val

• Metleborne c.1330 ElyCouch

• Methelburn 1285 Ass

• Med(e)b(o)urn(e) 1285 Ass 1296 FF

• Milb(o)urn(e) 1428–36 Pat 1739 HardwickeA

Etymology

The names Melbourn and Meldreth infra 60 offer a difficult problem. The places are adjacent and it is natural to assume that the first element is the same in each. Ekwall has suggested in relation to Melbourn that the first element is OE  melde , 'orach,' and that the whole name means 'stream by which orach grows.' The late Dr Palmer, who came from this district and was at the same time a good field-botanist, considered this derivation impossible. Ekwall himself does not suggest this for Meldreth and we may pretty certainly dismiss it as impossible for both names alike, in spite of the fact that there is one 11th-century form Meldrethe which Ekwall did not record.

One might suggest OE  mylde , 'mould, earth,' as found in Rodmell (PN Sx 325–6), PN Nth 268, PN Wa 331, PN ERY 327, PN Nt 288, but the fragments in ASCh and BCS 1267 are documents in good West Saxon and the word mylde would not appear there as melde . Further, any interpretation of the compound as a whole would be difficult.

A third possibility has been suggested, viz. that we should take the first element in both names alike to be the personal name Melda , which is apparently found in Meldanige (BCS 810) in Berkshire. The name Melda would seem to be an adaptation for purposes of personal nomenclature of OE  melda , 'interpreter.' The great difficulty is that for Melbourn we have good late 10th- or early 11th-century forms Meldeburna and not any form Meldanburna such as we should expect.In these circumstances the interpretation of Melbourn must be left open.

With regard to Meldreth it should be noted that there is only one good early form with a d . This occurs in a sentence which also men- tions Melbourn and it is just possible that the writing of two successive names beginning with Mel -, one of which rightly had d , influenced the scribe and made him write the other with a d also. If this form can thus be ruled out, the remaining evidence is at least not inconsistent with the etymology suggested by Ekwall (DEPN), viz. a compound of OE  myln and rīð , hence 'mill-stream.' For such early and complete loss of n cf. the history of Milbrook (PN BedsHu 82), Milford (PN D 75, 208, PN W 382), Milton (PN Nth 233, PN Nt 56), Milcote, Millburn, Milverton (PN Wa 236, 184, 176), Milkhouse (PN W 349). The early intrusive d may be due to the influence of the neighbouring Melbourn, and the rise of the form may have been strengthened later by the common tendency in ME to develop d between l and r .