Survey of English Place-Names

Historical Forms

• Muschā, Nordmuschā 1086 DB

• Muscham 1159–81 Holtzmann c.1190 Dane 1196 P 1218 DukRec 1241 Ebor

• Nordmuscham, Sudmuscham 1242 Fees

• Northmuscham 1276 RH

• Northmuskham 1281 FF

• Suthmusc(h)am 1290 1291 Tax

• Muskham 1279 Ebor 1295 Ch

• Muskam 1312 Ebor

• Muscom 1618 ParReg(Averham)

• Muscamp c.1150 Dane 1156 1166,1187 P c.1180 Dane 1201–12 RBE 1211 Cur 1428 FA

• kamp(e), Muschamp c.1180 Dane 1203 FF 1215,1219 ClR 1242 Fees 1276 RH

• Northmuscaumpe 1287 Ass

• Muskeham 1210 Pap 1335 Ass

• Northmuskeham 1280 ib

• North Muskeham 1283 Pat

Etymology

This is a difficult name. We are faced with alternative possibilities of taking the name as a ham -name with later (but still early) gallicising of musc (e )ham to muschamp or of taking it as a compound of mus and camp (cf. DEPN s. n .) with very early loss of final p . In favour of ham are the series of forms in DB and a number of quite good ham -spellings of the place-name and several Muskeham -forms. The early camp -forms come for the most part from family rather than place-names and camp is otherwise an unknown element in Notts and the neighbouring counties. Further, ham is a much more likely element than camp in the name of a place important enough to have become two villages before 1066. None of the Trent Valley village-names seems to have quite so trivial an origin as 'mouse (infested) open country' and it seems unreasonable to separate Muskham from Marnham, Markham and Collingham. In favour of Muscanham as the original form of the name is the interesting parallel Muschenheim from Hesse first noted by Mutschmann (PN Nt s. n .). The earliest form of this place-name as given by Förstemann (ON s. n .) is the 8th-century Muscanheim with a corresponding personal name Musco , Musgo of the 9th century (PN s. n .).Hence 'Musca 's ham.'