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.

Hood Grange

Major Settlement in the Parish of Kilburn

Historical Forms

  • Hod(e) 12 BylE 1138 Dugdv.350 1172–80 Dodsvii.149 1218 ClR 1293 QW 1332 Pat 1376 Dugdv.348

Etymology

Cf. Hood Beck 190supra . The origin of this name is uncertain but the element is probably found again in Hotham (YER), to fastan hode 963 (14) RegAlb i. 57, Hode , Hodhum 1086 DB, Hodum 1166 P, Hothum 1285 (16) KI, and in the names of two lost places in YNR, called Bakerhod 1278Malton 243 d (in Huttons Ambo) and Sculphode 13Easby 121 (in Scotton).Actually the word may be OE  hōd , 'hood,' used in a topographical sense of either 'the top of a hill' or 'a hood-shaped hill.'

Professor Ekwall would prefer to take OE  hōd as a lost word which is to be associated with OE  hēdan , 'to protect,' in the same way that we have Germ  hüten (vb) and hut (noun). In that case the word in place-names would mean 'shelter.' Dr Schram notes that the corresponding MLG  hoede , beside its abstract sense 'protection, custody,' has developed the concrete sense 'place under military protection, fortress,' the kind of meaning that is required here. (Cf. Verwijs en Verdam, s.v. hæde .)