Survey of English Place-Names

Historical Forms

• Avre 1086 DB

• Aura, Aur(e) 12 Flax 1150 France 1155–1204 P 1156 RBE 1167 P c.1200 GlR 1211–13 Fees 1595 Comm

• Awre 1437 IpmR 1481 Pat 1791 PR

• Aora 1167 P

• Oure 1200 Cur

• Overe 1242 Inq

• Auerey 1461,1466 Pat

• Awer 1597 FF

• æt Ahie (v.l. æt Alre) 872 (l. 13th) BCS 535

• Alra 1184 P

• Oure 1200 Cur

• Over(e) 1242 Inq

Etymology

Awre has been identified by Ekwall with OE æt Ahie (v.l. æt Alre ) 872 (l. 13th) BCS 535, but on topographical grounds (the place stands in the charter with Badgeworth, Pinswell in Colesborne, etc.) Ahie is more likely to be Arle (ii, 104supra ), as is Alra 1184 P. But we must admit the spellings Oure 1200 Cur, Over (e )1242 Inq (which are associated with Lydney, the adjacent parish). Formally the name could be from OE  æt alre 'at the alder-tree' (v. alor ) but the assumed change to ME  aure through AN influence is so complete as to make this solution suspicious. The only other OE  word which might be thought of is āfor adj. 'bitter, sour', cognate with OHG  eibar (cf. Pokorny 11) and possibly used in combination with ēa , ēg 'water- meadow, island' (as suggested by the spelling Auerey ) or substantially to denote 'sour land', but no other examples of this use have yet been noted; this word would appear as ME  Ōv (e )re and the spellings of this form could therefore be identified with Awre, or it would be shortened normally to ME  Avre . On the vocalisation of preconsonantal -f - in Awre cf. Phonol. § 34 (b ).