Survey of English Place-Names

Historical Forms

• Laggeham 1169 P 1312–16 Ipm 1316 LGo

• Lageham 1231 ib

• Lagenham 1312–16 Ipm

• Lagholm 1349 Ipm

• Lagehameslond 1418 Harl

Etymology

Lagham is Laggeham 1169 P (p), 1312–16 Ipm, 1316 LGo, Lageham 1231 ib. et passim , Lagenham 1312–16 Ipm, Lagholm 1349 Ipm, Lagehameslond 1418Harl . Lagham House is a moated house, lying low, and the first element is almost certainly the very common Surrey and Sussex dialectal lag , denoting a narrow marshy meadow by a stream, thus giving us an early form for that word. The same element is also probably to be found in laggeburna in a Worcestershire charter (KCD 1313), the same stream appearing as lacgeburnan in another charter (BCS 219), v. infra 369.