Survey of English Place-Names

Historical Forms

• Essebi 1086 DB l.12 Dane 1210 Cur 1210(p),1211 P 1221 RHug

• Essebiam c.1175 MiD

• Esseby 1221 RHug 1226 Fine 1254 Val c.1291 Tax l.13 CRCart

• Eissebi 1203(p),1207(p),1212 P

• Aissebi 1189×95 AD l.12 Dane

• Assheby 1316,1320 Cl 1330 Ipm 1428 FA 1460 Wyg 1569 Fine 1579 CoPleas

• Asscheby 1316 Misc

• Ascheby 1330 FA

• Ashby 1518 Visit 1535 VE 1610 Speed

• Magna ~ l.12 Dane 1209×35 RHug 1266 Pat 1330 FA

• ~ Magna 1254 Val 1316 Misc 1320 Cl

• Mekyll ~ 1492 RBL

• Miche ~ 1518 RBL

• Myche ~ 1558 AAS

• Much(e) ~ 1576 LibCl 1638 ChancP

• Mutche ~ 1595,1603 RBL

• Great ~ 1610 Speed

Etymology

'The farmstead or village where ash-trees grow', v. æsc , bȳ . Spellings with Esse - may be due to the influence of ON  eski 'a place growing with ash-trees' or even OE  esce 'a stand of ash-trees'. The affixes MLat  magna , ON  mikill and ME  muche, all meaning 'great', distinguish the township from Ashby Parva infra , which lies some three miles to the south-west. Ashby is a common place-name, but it is uncertain whether in individual cases the name is an Old English creation modified by Scandinavian (say with bȳ for tūn ) or whether it is wholly Scandinavian in origin, with OE  æsc (ME  ash ) replacing ON  askr .