Survey of English Place-Names

Historical Forms

• Ailwrde 1086 DB

• Ailewurda 1182 P

• Eilewurth, Eylewurth, Eylew(o)rth(e) 1220 Fees 1230 Cl 1248 Ass 1279 FF 1535 VE

• Ayl(e)worth 1476 IpmR 1497 AOMB 1587 FF

• Elewrde 1086 DB

• Elew(o)rth 1262 Ipm 1291 Tax

• Ailesw(o)rth(e), Aylesw(o)rth(e), Eylesw(o)rth(e), Eyleswurth 12 Tewk80b 1241 FF 1248 Ass 1327 SR 1557 Val140b

• Eyllisworth 1306 Ass

• Elleswrth 1291 Tax

Etymology

'Ægel's enclosure', v. worð . The first el. is an OE  pers.n. Ægel , which is not on record, but is assumed from p.ns. like Aylesbury (Bk 145), Aylesbeare (D 580), Aylesford (K 145), Ailsworth (Nth 228), etc. Some of the spellings of Aylworth suggest a weak form Ægla , but they can be accounted for as an uninflected genitive of Ægel . Most examples of Ægel - as a pers.n. theme occur in late OE and are in fact developments of names which contain OE  Æþel - (cf. Feilitzen 103–6, E. Ekwall, Early London Personal Names 197); others like Egelmund (LVD) can be explained as OG names (Forssner 12 ff). But the theme occurs in OG  Agil - and in the monothematic names OG  Aigil , Egil , ODan  Eghil , ON  Egill ; in view of p.ns. like Aylesbury and Aylesford which are evidenced as Ægelesburh and Ægelesford at an earlier date than the change of Æþel - to Ægel - it must also be presumed to have existed in OE; it would appear to have been a theme that fell into disuse at a very early stage in OE since it finds no place in the records.