South Warnborough
county:
coords:
Hampshire
SU7247
Warnborough, South
otherwise: weargeburnan?, 973-974; weargeburninga?, 1046-16; Suthwargheborgh; Suthwargheburn, 1291
WARNBOROUGH (NORTH), WARNBOROUGH GREEN, village/hamlet in Odiham
WARNBOROUGH (SOUTH), parish
Hypothetical Old English 'Weargaburna'='felons' stream', where malefactors were drowned. (Cf Kristensson (1981) Arngart (1983), Sandred (1984) for discussion of a similar, though not historically identical, name in Norfolk, once thought to have a common origin with 'Warnborough'.) Puzzlingly, there is not a trace of a stream now at South Warnborough (below 'Wells Hill') to which the earliest forms appear to refer. North Warnborough is on the river Whitewater. Grundy (1927: 286-7) confidently identifies the Old English forms with South Warnborough; however there is no boundary clause to the relevant charter and considerable uncertainty about the course of the bounds written in 1046. We must reckon with the original Warnborough being N., or that N. and S. once formed some kind of unit.
In the 13th century both place names are rationalized as containing Middle English 'burgh' and the 'n' migrates to the first syllable to compensate. Occasional forms are found with 'gh' or 'n' in both elements (1291 'Suthwargheborgh' 1235 'Warnburn').
A reason to pause before accepting this rather spectacular etymology wholesale is that no origin is known for the common dialect word 'werg'='willow', which makes good sense with 'burna'.
Shown on an old map by Harrison 1788
- settlement, village - Odiham Hundred - Hampshire
Period - 1780s
Shown on an old map by Morden 1695
- settlement, village - Crundall Hundred - Hampshire
Period - 1690s-1720s
Shown on an old map by Blaeu 1645
- settlement, hamlet - Barmanspit Hundred - Hantshire
Shown on an old map by Speed 1611
- settlement, village - Barmanspit Hundred - Hantshire
Shown on an old map by Norden 1607
- settlement, village - Barmanspitt Hundred - Hamshire
Period - 1590s-1600s
Shown on an old map by Keer 1620 (probably)
- Southampton
Shown on an old map by Saxton 1575
- settlement, village - Southamtoniae
Listed in Domesday Book
- Odingeton Hundred - Hantescire
Period - 11th century
TERRA HVGON FILIJ BALDRI ... Isd~ Hugo ten. Wergeborne et Wido de eo cu~ filia ei . Bondi tenuit de rege E ...
Listed in Domesday Book
- Odingetone Hundred - Hantscire
Period - 11th century
