Shearsby
Major Settlement in the Parish of Shearsby
Historical Forms
- Sevesbi 1086 DB
- Seuesbi 1195 P 1196 ChancR 1204 Cur
- Seuesby e.13 Wyg e.13 Rey
- Sevesby 1208 Fine 13 Wyg
- Svevesbi 1086 DB
- Svesbi 1086 DB
- Seuebi 1197 P 1190×1204 France 1205 ClR
- Shevysby 1220 MHW
- Shevesby 1236 Fine 1247 Ass 1288 Banco 1301 Ass 1339 Coram 1455 Fine 1524 CoPleas
- Sheuesby e.14 Wyg 1327 Pat 1416 Cl
- Shevisbye 1537 MinAccts
- Shevesby alias Shethesby c.1547 ECP
- Schevesby 1276 RH
- Scheuesby 1292 Ipm
- Scheveby 1306 Pat
- Shethesby 1436 Banco 1502 MiscAccts 1551,1590 Fine
- Shethisby 1510 Visit
- Sheathesby 1614 Ipm
- Shewesby 1488 Ipm
- Shewysby(e) 1549 1571 BM
- Sheavesby 1639 Fine 1675,1702,1717 LML
- Sheresby 1541 MinAccts
- Shersbie 1626 LML
- Shearesbie 1678 ib
- Shesbye alias Shethesbye 1560 Fine
- Sheasby 1576 Saxton 1610 Speed 1621,1691 LML
- Sheas(e)bey 1614,1619 ib
- Sheesbey 1631 ib
- Shearsby 1639 Fine 1721 LML
- Swæfes heale 940 (13) BCS 762 (S 461)
Etymology
This is a difficult name. A possible meaning is 'the farmstead or village of a man called Skeif', v. bȳ . The ON masc. pers.n. Skeifr is a byname, cf. ON skeifr 'askew, crooked' (Feilitzen 356). In this case, the original initial Scand sk would have undergone anglicization in an area of only light Scandinavian settlement. Perhaps there was an early association with the OE name Scēafa , that of the legendary king of the Langobards in the poem Widsith . Ekwall DEPN suggests the OE masc. pers.n. Swǣf as the specific (as in Swæfes heale 940 (13) BCS 762 (S 461)), based on the form Svevesbi , one of the disparate DB spellings.
Fellows-Jensen (SSNEN 68) tentatively proposes that the specific is OE scēaf 'a sheaf', perhaps used metaphorically of the steep hill on which Shearsby stands; and Watts CDEPN also offers OE scēaf as a possible specific, translating the place-name as 'the village of the sheaf'.But neither of these suggestions is clearly explained in application. If OE scēaf is indeed the first element of the name, it may be that with its splay of four minor promontories to the west, the hill formation beneath which Shearsby stands reminded the early farmers of the upper spread of a sheaf of corn. Such a topographical shape appears quite striking as presented on the O.S. 1st edn map of the area, but whether it would have been obvious to men on the ground rather than as when seen as from above on this particular map is open to question.