Survey of English Place-Names

Etymology

Piper Hole, Pyperhoale 1625Terrier , Pyper Hole 1703ib , Piper Hole 1708, 1708 (18)ib , 1793EnclA , 1806Map , Pipers Hole 1795 Nichols, cf. Piperhole Mouth 1703Terrier (v. mūða ), Top of Piper Hole 1708, 1708 (18)ib (v. topp ), Piper Hole Road 1918ib . A small stream rises at Piper Hole and in descending to the Vale of Belvoir has cut deeply into the escarpment of the Wolds. In discussing Peppering (Sx 167) and Peppering Eye (Sx 498), Ekwall PN-ing 38 compares these names with Pebringe which occurs twice in Denmark. This is taken to derive from ODan  pipr - 'stream, water-course' or 'spring', an el. found in several Danish nature-names beginning with Peber-. The el. also occurs in Norwegian names. Ekwall postulates a cognate OE  *pipere 'spring, stream' as the base of Peppering and Peppering Eye. Such an el. would satisfactorily explain Piper Hole, even though no early spellings are recorded. However, the surn. Piper cannot be discounted if the name is a later formation (cf. Pipers Wong in Sewstern f.ns. (a)), nor can OE  pīpere 'a piper' which may have been early extended to describe a bird (cf. sandpiper , whose initial citation in OED is for 1674), v. pipere , hol 1 .