Survey of English Place-Names

Historical Forms

• Cornehuda 1086 DB(Exon)

• Cornehode

• Curnwod' 1242 Fees796

• Cournewode 1404 Ass

• Cornewud 1249 Ass

• Cornewode 1283 Exon 1337 FF

• Cornnewode 1337 Ipm

• Cornwode 1263 Exon 1276 Ipm 1283 Ass 1291 Tax 1297 Pat

• Cornwood vulg. Curlewood 1675 Ogilby

• Corndich 1297 (AddCh)

Etymology

Names in Corn - are always difficult. In Devon we have the present name, a lost Cornewode (1238Ass ) in Bampton Hundred, Cornworthy (infra 320), Corringdon and Corndon (infra 290, 426), and a Curnbroke 1291 and Corndich 1297 (AddCh ). Cf. also Corneal in St Dominick (Co), Cornhele 1305, 1404Ass , 1427 IpmR. All these names may, of course, contain the OE  corn , 'crane,' discussed under Cornwood (PN Wo 54), but in view of the numerous early spellings with ou or u , other alternatives are possible, e.g. British words corresponding to W  corn , 'horn,' or cwrn , 'spire, pile, knob.' Cf. the use of OE  horn in place- names.