Humbleton
Major Settlement in the Parish of Humbleton
Historical Forms
- Humeltone, Umelton 1086 DB
- Humbletun, Humbleton 1154–80 YCh 1286 YI 1828 Langd
- Humbeleton' 1260 Rental
- Humbelton 1190 YCh 1216–21 RegAlb 1260 Rental 1342 SR
- Humbilton(a) 1297 LS 1300 Ebor 1301 Ch
- Hombelton 1280 Ass 1341 Extent
- Hombleton 1479 Test
Etymology
There are several possibilities for the first element of Humbleton, but the choice would seem to rest between a pers. name Humli (Humbli ) or Humla (LindBN, Lundgren Brate 113) and an OE *humele or OScand humli 'hop.' The pers. name appears to be found in one or two Norwegian place-names such as Hummelneset (NoGN iii, 342) and possibly Humlestad (ib. vii, 26), but there is some doubt about the origin of these place- names; other suggestions for these as well as Homleid (ib. vii, 18) include ON humla 'humble-bee' or a river-name derived from the insect-name (v. NoEN 110). On the other hand, Homle (NoGN ii, 394) may be connected with OScand humli 'hop- plant' and this appears too to be the case with Danish Humlebæk (DaSN(F) 17). In Humbleton and Humblescough (PN La 163) we may have this Scandinavian word humli or OE *humele , an unmutated variant of the hymele found in Himble Brook and Himbleton (PN Wo 10, 135). There is doubt about the wild hop being a native plant (cf. NED s.v. hop ) and it is suggested in PN Wo loc. cit. that hymele means 'bryony' or 'bindweed'.It has also been suggested that many of the names referred to contain an OScand *humul or an OE *humol meaning 'some- thing rounded' (v. Noreen in NoB vi, 169 ff. and Mawer, ib. ix, 56 ff.). This word is certainly related to Swedish dialect hummel 'protuberance, hillock,' Norwegian dialect humul 'a round rock,' and to Scots dialect humble 'hornless.' The meaning 'rounded hillock' is suitable in the case of Humbleton, for though it is in the flat, low parts of Holderness Mr Sheppard notes for us that there are many low, glacial mounds in the neighbourhood and hummel might well be used of one of them.v. Addenda lix.
On the development of a euphonic b cf. Camberwell (PN Sr 17) and OE brembel for brēmel (Bülbring, Altenglisches Elementarbuch § 534, Wright, Elementary ME Grammar § 251). Other problems of a similar character are raised by Dimlington supra 17.