The place name Hampton is of Old English origin and is common in England, particularly in the South of England and Central England. It can exist as a name in its own right or as a prefix or suffix. The name suggests a farm settlement, especially one where pastoral farmers keep livestock on flood-meadow pastures.
The name was exported around the world both as a place-name and as a surname, especially to those countries where the English language is an official language. Examples of place-names include: Hampton – Australia Hampton – Canada Hampton – United States
Etymology
The English toponymist P. H. Reaney has suggested that the name element Hampton may derive from: Old English hām + tūn – "village with a home farm". Old English hamm + tūn – "village with a flood-meadow or pasture".
The English toponymist Victor Watts has suggested the following possibilities: Old English hēah + tūn – "high settlement" Old English hamm + tūn: "settlement or estate in a river bend". "settlement or estate between rivers". Old English hām + tūn – "home farm".
Examples (home farm) Examples of Old English hām and tūn – "village with a home farm":
Place nameLocationOS GridHistoric landownerHome farmListedRiver nameHampton GayOxfordshireRobert de GayManor FarmGrade IIRiver CherwellHampton PoyleOxfordshireWalter de la PoyleManor FarmRiver CherwellHampton LovettWorcestershireLovet familyHampton FarmGrade IIElmbridge Brook
Examples (meadow) Examples of Old English hamm and tūn – "village with a flood-meadow or pasture":
Place nameLocationOS GridDerivationHamptonRichmond upon ThamesRiver Thames Hampton LucyWarwickshireRiver Avon
Examples (high settlement) Examples of Old English hēah and tūn – "high settlement":
Place nameLocationOS GridDerivationRiver nameHamptonEvesham, WorcestershireHigh groundRiver Isbourne – River Avon Hampton in ArdenSolihull, West MidlandsHigh groundRiver Blythe
Examples in England
Hampton Hampton, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire Hampton, Cheshire Hampton, Herne Bay, Kent Hampton, London Borough of Richmond upon Thames Hampton-on-the-Hill, Warwickshire Hampton in Arden, Solihull, West Midlands Hampton, Worcestershire
Hampton (prefix) Examples of Hampton followed by a name, usually of a landowner: Hampton Gay, Oxfordshire Hampton Poyle, Oxfordshire Hampton Loade, Shropshire Hampton Lucy, Warwickshire Hampton Lovett, Worcestershire
Hampton (suffix) Bothenhampton, Dorset Littlehampton, West Sussex Northampton, Northamptonshire Southampton, Hampshire Sevenhampton, Gloucestershire Sevenhampton, Wiltshire Wolverhampton, West Midlands
See also
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