Terwick
Major Settlement in the Parish of Terwick
Historical Forms
- Tortewyk 1271 Ch 1278 FF 1326 Cl
- Tertewick 1279 Ass
- Turdewyk 1291 Ct 1380 SAC5,234
- Turwick al. Turdwyke, Turwike al. Tourdwike 1560 FF
- Tordewyk(e) 1296 SR 1321 FF 1340 NI
- Turwiche, Turwycke 1615 SRS14,27
- Terwick al. Terrick 1714 Recov
Etymology
This is a difficult name. Probably the first element is OE tord , 'dung.' Hence, 'dung farm,' v. wic . See also Terrible Down infra 403. We possibly have a repetition of this name in Turdewic brook (Sa) in 1227 Ch. The variant ME form tort is found in the Cotton MS of the Owl and the Nightingale , l. 1686, v. turd in NED. Such names are likely to undergo strange changes in the effort to hide their unpleasant meaning.