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.

Sunkenkirk

Early-attested site in the Parish of Millom and Millom Rural

Historical Forms

  • Chappell Suke 1624 PR
  • Chapel Sucken 1642 HMCiv
  • Sunken Kirks 1794 H
  • Sunken-Kirk 1816 Lysons

Etymology

This is the site of a stone circle (v. CW ii, 57–76), to which the name may possibly refer.Unfortunately, the name does not seem to be found before the 17th century, and the original form and meaning cannot be determined.