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.

Blockley

Major Settlement in the Parish of Blockley

Historical Forms

  • Bloccanleah, Bloccanlea 855 BCS489 11th KCD620 978 11th
  • Blochelei 1086 DB
  • Blokesleia c.1215 GiraldusCambrensis

Etymology

'Blocca 's clearing,' v. leah . This is the weak form of a pers. name Blocc found in Bloxham (O), Bloxholm (L), Bloxworth (Do) and Bloxwich (St). This name must be allied to the word block . If that is the case, the history of that name itself may be different from that suggested by the usual lexicographical material. It may be of OE origin and not a ME loan-word from some Germanic dialect, directly or indirectly.