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.

Sparrow Cliffe

Early-attested site in the Parish of Wath upon Dearne

Historical Forms

  • Sparahauec clif 12 Nost49
  • Sparahaclif l.12 ib
  • Sparhaucclif 13 ib
  • Sparahauekcliffe c.1270 ib
  • Sparakclif c.1280 ib
  • Sperkhawke Clyffe 1374 SheffMisc
  • Sparrow Cliffe Field 1820 EnclA

Etymology

Sparrow Cliffe (lost), Sparahauec clif 12Nost 49, Sparahaclif l. 12 ib 50, Sparhaucclif 13 ib 142, Sparahauekcliffe c. 1270 ib 53, Sparakclif c. 1280 ib 54, Sperkhawke Clyffe 1374 SheffMisc, Sparrow Cliffe Field 1820EnclA . 'Sparrowhawk cliff', v. clif . The earliest independent occurrence of sparrowhawk is fifteenth century (NED s.v.), but it is already known as a pers.n. in the eleventh (cf. Feilitzen 369).

Places in the same Parish

Early-attested site

Other OS name