Re: Jed re Eric Gass and 'ham'

hamlet:
Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French hamelet, diminutive of ham
village, of Germanic origin; akin to Old English hAm village, home
Thanks to Merriam-Webster OnLine
If ham (or rather hamlet) is of Germanic origin than perhaps it did come
from Norse to Engl.ish through Middle French. The Norse Vikings did indeed
raid medieval France and were the founders of Normandy, where Old Norse
mixed a tiny bit with French (I believe there is a French word for 'ring'
similar to and rooted in the Old Norse 'baugr'). Normans were Norse that
assimilated into French culture. I don't know if that helps!
-Willliam

>From: "Gerald Mcharg" <Gerald.Mcharg@...>
>Reply-To: norse_course@yahoogroups.com
>To: <norse_course@yahoogroups.com>
>Subject: [norse_course] Jed re Eric Gass and 'ham'
>Date: Fri, 16 Jan 2004 22:55:56 -0000
>
>Eric
>
>I'm not too sure about place-names in 'ham' having a Norse derivation.
>
>I believe that 'ham' is one of the earlier place-name elements to be found
>in Old English charters of the seventh century; 'tons' as a rule, occur in
>later charters.
>If anyone is interested in this, the authorities to consult are Joliffe,
>Stenton and Granville.
>
>I haven't really looked at the distribution of 'hams' in Britain, so I
>can't say whether they predominate in the north. I do know that they occur
>far less frequently than the 'ton' settlements and that the implications of
>this could be that they were early administrative or political centres for
>their respective regions.
>
>Anyhow, if there is a chance for an informed discussion on this, I would
>like to hear other opinions.
>
>Cheers
>Jed Mc Harg

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