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.

Wontley Fm

Early-attested site in the Parish of Southam & Brockhampton

Historical Forms

  • to Antan hlawe 769–85 BCS246 11th
  • to Honta hlaw 11 Heming
  • Huntelawe, Untelowe 1299 RBB
  • Huntelow 1327 SR
  • Wonntelows 1565 Dep
  • Wontlowe wood 1598 Comm
  • Wontley als. Wentlowe 1627 Inq
  • Woontley 1756 GR478
  • Wentlowe woode 1584 Comm
  • Huntly Farm 1830 M

Etymology

The OE  spellings do not accord exactly with the identification of Wontley with Antan hlawe (infra ), though the sites seem to coincide.The most reliable form is Antan hlawe , which probably means 'Anta's mound' from an OE  pers.n. Anta , Onta , a hypocoristic form of the rare OE  Ontwini , v. hlāw . Some later spellings in Hunte - have been influenced by the common el. hunta 'hunter'; this would clearly be possible with the OE  form Onta , which could become ME  Unte - by a well-evidenced WMidl change of OE  -an -, -on - to -un - in these phonetic conditions (cf. Phonol. § 6). The development of the Wont - form is dialectal (cf. Phonol. § 42a ) and Went - spelling is probably due to the palæographic confusion of e and o .