Anglo-Saxon _ceosel_, sand, gravel, and the Teutonic _wick_, a reach,
from the root waes, a moist meadow. =Hammersmith= was originally
_Hammersmeide_, a Saxon village distinguished for the number of its
smithies. The forename, _Hammer_, is Scandinavian for a village
or small town. =Kensington= derived its name, or rather that of
_Kynsington_, the Saxon for King’s meadow, with the Old English suffix
_ton_, a town, from a royal residence erected here in very early
times. =Brompton= was so called from the broom-trees that grew in the
neighbourhood of this healthy _ton_ or town. =Chelsea= is described in
old documents as “Chevelsey,” meaning shingle island. The first portion
of the word claims the same etymology as Chiswick, viz., _ceosel_,
sand, gravel; while the suffix _ey_, or _ea_, is also Anglo-Saxon,
derived from _oe_, the Scandinavian for running water. These terminals
always indicate water, and not unfrequently an island, properly so
called; as, for example, Anglesey, the Isle of the Angles. In the case
of Hackney the terminal is expressive of a well-watered pasture, as has
already been seen; whereas in the cases of Chelsea and Battersea the
allusion is not merely to their proximity to the Thames, but to their
partial isolation in ancient times from the adjacent land on account of
the creeks and inlets of the river. =Battersea=, we may here remark, is
described in Domesday Book as “the Manor of Patricesy”; but even this
early name was a corruption of Petersey, or St. Peter’s-ey, because it
had belonged to the Abbey of St. Peter’s, Westminster, from time out
of mind. To return: =Walham Green= denotes a settlement of foreigners;
_wal_, being a modification of _wahl_, the Celtic for foreign, and
_ham_, the Old English for a home. =Fulham= was formerly written
“Fullenhame,” the Anglo-Saxon for a habitation of water-fowl. =Parson’s
Green= received its name from the parsonage in connection with Fulham
Church that stood here previous to 1740. =Percy Cross=, Fulham, is a
corruption of “Parson’s Cross,” referring to a cross on the roof of the
parsonage on Parson’s Green. =Putney= was originally “Puttaney,” the
Saxon for Putta’s Isle; whereas =Wimbledon= was _Wibbandun_, a Celtic
term signifying the _dun_, or hill-fort, belonging to one Wibba. The
name of =Wandsworth= denotes a manor watered by the Wandle. =Lambeth=
is a corruption of “Loamhithe,” the Anglo-Saxon for haven of the loamy
soil. =Vauxhall= is described in a document dated 1282 as the Manor
of Faukeshall. As, however, this manor was originally held by Fulke
de Breante soon after the Conquest, it is highly probable that the
designation was more correctly _Fulke’s Hall_, afterwards corrupted
into _Faukeshall_. The present spelling of the name may be traced back
to the year 1615, when the Hall, or Manor House, was occupied by Jane
Vaux.
=Southwark= is a modification of the Anglo-Saxon “Suthwerk,” and the
Danish _Sydrike_, literally the south fortification. During the Danish
occupation of England this was a very strong position. =Bermondsey= was
anciently written _Beormundsey_, signifying that the _ey_, or strip of
land intersected by creeks [_see_ CHELSEA, &c.], belonged to Beormund,
a prominent Anglo-Saxon lord. =Horselydown= is properly _Horsadown_,
so called because this district was originally a down used for grazing
horses. =Walworth= was named in honour of Sir William Walworth, Lord
Mayor in 1380, who resided here. The =Borough= recalls the fact that
the inhabitants of London south of the Thames were _Burghers_, and,
therefore, entitled to the rights and privileges of Corporation.
=Rotherhithe= is Saxon for red haven, alluding to the colour of
the soil. The name of =Deptford= indicates the deep ford over the
Ravensbourne, which is now spanned by a bridge. =Greenwich= means
the green town, or, more precisely, the verdant settlement beside the
_wick_, or reach of the river [_see_ CHISWICK]; whereas =Woolwich=
was originally _Hylwich_, _i.e._, hill town. The =Isle of Dogs= is
a corruption of “Isle of Ducks,” so described in ancient documents
on account of the number of wild-fowl always to be found there.
=New Cross= derived its name from “The Golden Cross,” a famous old
coaching-house, rebuilt and renamed “The New Cross.” =Lewisham= is
properly _Leawreham_, or meadow-home. =Blackheath= is a corruption of
_Bleakheath_. =Eltham= was formerly written “Ealdham,” the Anglo-Saxon
for the old home or dwelling, referring to the palace occupied by the
English kings down to the time of James I. =Catford= is a contraction
of _Cattleford_, signifying a shallow portion of the Ravensbourne
easily forded by cattle. [The University town on the Isis received
its present name of OXFORD for a similar reason.] =Beckenham= denotes
a home beside the beck or brook. Here again the Ravensbourne comes
into notice. =Sydenham= means the home or habitation in the south. The
names of =Forest Hill=, =Norwood=, a contraction of Northwood, and
=Westwood= remind us that the whole of this district was formerly a
large tract of wooded land. =Dulwich= is a corruption of _Dalewich_,
the town in the dale. =Honor Oak= owes its designation to the boundary
oak, under whose umbrageous shade Queen Elizabeth is said to have
dined. =Nunhead= derived its name from “The Nuns’ Head,” a place of
holiday resort for Londoners, dating back more than two hundred years.
=Peckham= was originally _Beckham_, a home distinguished for its becks
or brooks. =Brixton= is a corruption of the Anglo-Saxon “Brigestan,”
the bridge of stone. =Camberwell= derived its name from a miraculous
well discovered close by the parish church dedicated to St. Giles,
the patron of cripples. _Cam_ is Celtic for crooked. In this instance
the word applies to the cripples, or rather to their patron saint.
[On the other hand, the University town of CAMBRIDGE was so called
from the bridge over the CAM, a river distinguished for its winding
course.] =Stockwell= is in allusion to the well found in the _stoc_,
or wooded place, in Anglo-Saxon times. =Kennington= means a settlement
in the King’s meadow. One of the palaces of Henry VIII. stood here.
=Newington= denotes the new town in the meadow. Finally, the name of
=St. George’s Fields= was derived from the neighbouring church of St.
George the Martyr.
_BATTLES._
=The Tearless Victory= was the name given by Plutarch to the victory
won by Archimadus, King of Sparta, over the Argives and Arcadians in
the year 367 B.C. without the loss of a single Spartan soldier. =The
Thundering Legion= is the historical designation given to the Roman
legion that overthrew the Alemanni in the year 179 A.D., during a
thunderstorm, which was supposed to have been sent in answer to the
prayers offered up by the Christians. Not only did the storm strike
terror into the minds of their enemies, but it also enabled the Romans
to relieve their long-protracted thirst. =The Hallelujah Victory=
received its name from the battle-cry of the newly-baptized Bretons,
who were led to the attack by Germanus, Bishop of Auxerre, in the year
429.
=The Battle of the Standard=, fought between the English and the Scots
at Northallerton, August 29, 1138, was so called because the standard
of the former consisted of a tall crucifix borne upon a wagon. From the
crucifix itself there was suspended the Consecrated Host enclosed in a
pyx, while floating beneath were the bannerets of SS. Peter, Wilfrid,
and John of Beverley. =The Battle of the Herrings= (February 12, 1429)
obtained its title from the defeat suffered by the Duc de Bourbon
when attempting to intercept a convoy of salted herrings on their way
to the English besieging Orleans. =The Battle of Spurs= is the more
familiar designation of the Battle of Guinnegate, in which Henry VIII.
defeated the Duc de Longueville (August 16, 1513), because the French
were said to have used their spurs more than their swords. This event,
however, must not be confounded with =The Battle of the Spurs of Gold=,
which took place between the French and the Flemish at Courtray, in
Belgium, July 11, 1302. In this engagement the French were completely
routed, and the spurs of upwards of eight thousand of the vanquished
knights were left upon the field. These were collected and preserved as
trophies of war in the Church of Notre Dame de Courtray.
The Battle of Marignano (September 13, 1515) also bears the name of
=The Battle of the Giants=, owing to the defeat by Francis I., King of
France, of 1,200 Swiss Guards, the allies of the Milanese. The Battle
of Leipsic (October 16-18, 1813) is known as =The Battle of All the
Nations=, because, in addition to signalizing the overthrow of Napoleon
and the deliverance of Germany, it was the champion battle of the
nations of Europe.
_NOTABLE DAYS AND FESTIVALS._
That =New Year’s Day= is the first day of the recurring year goes
without saying. Previous to 1752, when the year commenced on the 25th
of March, its four recognized quarters were Whitsuntide, Lammastide,
Martinmastide, and Candlemastide; at the present time they are Lady
Day, Midsummer, Michaelmas, and Christmas. Let us at once consider the
meaning of these terms.
=Whitsuntide= is the season ushered in by =Whit Sunday=, a corruption
of =White Sunday=, because, during the primitive ages of the Church,
all newly-baptized persons were required to attend Mass in white
garments on this day. As every one knows, Whit Sunday commemorates
the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles in the form of fiery
tongues. It is highly probable, therefore, that the true meaning of
Whit, or White, Sunday remains to be sought in connection with the
wisdom symbolized by these fiery tongues. After all, the original
spelling of this festival-name may have been Witan Sunday, the
Anglo-Saxon for Wisdom Sunday; just as the earliest English parliaments
were styled WITANAGEMOTES, or “meetings of the wise men.” But to
proceed. =Lammastide= literally signified the season of First Fruits;
since on =Lammas Day=, a term compounded out of the Anglo-Saxon _hlaf_,
a loaf, and _mœsse_, a feast, (Aug. 1st), it was formerly the custom to
offer bread made of new wheat in the churches. =Martinmas Day= (Nov.
4th), latterly corrupted into =Martlemas Day=, denotes the Feast of
St. Martin, Bishop of Tours in the fourth century. =Candlemas Day=,
or the =Feast of the Purification= (Feb. 2nd), which commemorates
the presentation of the Infant in the Temple in accordance with the
Jewish Law instituted 1490 B.C., because the early Christians walked
in procession to Mass with lighted candles in their hands on this day.
This religious observance was introduced by Pope Gelasius in the fifth
century, as a literal bearing out of the words spoken by Holy Simeon
when he took the child Jesus in his arms: “Lord, now lettest Thou Thy
servant depart in peace, according to Thy word; For mine eyes have seen
Thy salvation, which Thou hast prepared before the face of all people:
_A light to lighten the Gentiles_, and the glory of Thy people Israel”
(_Luke_ ii. 29-32). It is still the practice in the Roman Catholic
Church to make offerings of candles for the use of the altar on this
day. =Lady Day= (Mar. 25th) is but another name for the =Feast of the
Annunciation=, or the day upon which “the angel of the Lord appeared
unto Mary,” and announced that she was to become the Mother of the Son
of God. =Midsummer Day= (June 24th) expresses the midday of the year;
while =Michaelmas Day= (Sept. 29th) is the Feast of St. Michael, the
patron saint of the Roman Catholic Church. As the latter feast falls
upon the first day of autumn, the hiring of labourers and domestics in
the rural districts takes place at this time. =Christmas Day= is, to
put it literally, the Feast Day of Christ, being the anniversary of the
Nativity of the Blessed Redeemer.
=Innocents’ Day=, formerly known as =Childermas Day= (Dec. 28th),
commemorates the Massacre of the Innocents by Herod. =Twelfth Day=
(Jan. 6th), signifying the twelfth day after Christmas Day, bears the
ecclesiastical name of the =Epiphany=, from the Greek _Epiphaneia_,
a showing or appearance, because on this day the Infant manifested
Himself to the Three Wise Men from the East who came to adore Him. In
olden times the Feast of the Epiphany was kept with great solemnity
in the churches during the day, followed by a festival of a more
social character in the evening, thus accounting for the old-fashioned
appellation of =Twelfth Night=. The 7th of January was formerly called
=Distaff’s Day=, because the Christmas festivities having come to an
end with Twelfth Night, the women were expected to return to their
distaffs and other regular occupations on this day. Another name for
the same occasion was =Rock Day=, _rock_ being the Anglo-Saxon term
for a distaff. Similarly, the first Monday after the Epiphany bore
the designation of =Plough Monday=, on account of the men returning
to the plough and the ordinary labours of the field on this day.
=Handsel Monday=, the first Monday in the New Year, was so called by
the Anglo-Saxons because then it was that _handsels_, or presents,
were bestowed upon domestics and children. To the best of our knowledge
the custom no longer exists in any portion of this country; or perhaps
it may be more correct to say that its observance has been universally
transferred to =Boxing Day= (Dec. 26th), originally so styled from the
opening of the various alms-boxes in the churches, and the distribution
of their contents, which bore the name of a =Christmas Dole=, to the
poor by the clergy on this day. Moreover, since heads of families
usually gave their children and domestics small sums of money to drop
into the boxes for the latter purpose on Christmas morning, we here
trace the origin of the term =Christmas Box=, which nowadays applies to
a present received by servants and others during the Christmas season.
The word =Lent= is a contraction of the Old English _lenten_, and
the Anglo-Saxon _lencten_, the spring, both derived from _lencgan_,
to lengthen, because the long fast of the Christian Church occurs
when the days begin to lengthen. =Shrove Tuesday=, also known as
=Pancake Tuesday=, derived its name from the shriving or confessing
imposed upon the faithful on this day. The custom of eating pancakes
originated from the fact that this species of food afforded a stay to
the appetite during the long hours of waiting in church to be shrived.
The distribution of ashes on =Ash Wednesday= commemorates the passage
in the third chapter of _Genesis_, where the Lord curses Adam in these
words: “In the sweat of thy face thou shalt eat bread till thou return
to the ground; for dust thou art, and unto dust thou shalt return.”
=Passion Sunday=, which precedes Palm Sunday, is devoted to a general
commemoration of the subject of Christ’s Passion. =Palm Sunday= owes
its name to the distribution of palms in the Roman Catholic Church,
in allusion to the palms borne by the populace who accompanied the
Redeemer into Jerusalem shortly before His betrayal by Judas. The week
following Palm Sunday is called =Passion Week=, and also =Holy Week=,
because it contains the days upon which the incidents of Christ’s
Passion are particularly commemorated. =Maunday Thursday= is the
first, not at all on account of the _maund_, the Saxon term for an
alms-basket, formerly presented to the poor by the Lord (or rather by
the Lady, “the loaf-giver”) of the Manor, but from the ancient ceremony
of washing the feet of poor persons, in imitation of Christ at the Last
Supper, when He said, “Mandatum novum do vobis,” &c., the French for
_Mandatum_ being _Maundé_. The ecclesiastical designation of this day
is =Holy Thursday=, in commemoration of the Agony and Bloody Sweat of
the Saviour in the Garden of Gethsemane. =Good Friday=, the anniversary
of the Crucifixion, was originally known as “God’s Friday.” The
Anglo-Saxons usually called this day =Long Friday=, in consequence of
the length of the Church service. =Holy Saturday= is the day upon which
the Church commemorates the Burial of Christ.
The word =Easter= bears in itself no Christian significance whatever,
having been derived from _Eoster_, the goddess of light, or spring, in
whose honour a festival was anciently held in the month of April. The
Jewish festival corresponding to our Easter is called the =Passover=,
in commemoration of the Destroying Angel having _passed over_ the
houses of the Israelites whose door-posts were marked with the blood of
a lamb killed the previous night in accordance with the Divine command,
when He smote the firstborn of the Egyptians in the year 1491 B.C.
Returning to the Christian Church, the Sunday after Easter is called
=Low Sunday=, because it stands at the bottom of the Lenten Calendar;
being the last day upon which Roman Catholics may fulfil their Easter
obligation of receiving the Holy Communion. =Sexagesima Sunday=,
=Quinquagesima Sunday=, and =Quadragesima Sunday= are situated in the
Calendar respectively sixty, fifty, and forty days before Easter; the
terms expressing the Latin for those round numbers.
The Feast of Whitsuntide, which we have already discussed, also bears
the name of =Pentecost=, from the Greek _pentekoste_, the fiftieth
day, in commemoration of the gift of the Law to the Israelites fifty
days after their deliverance out of Egypt. =Trinity Sunday=, so
called from the Latin _trinitas_, three, is the Festival of the Holy
Trinity, _i.e._, the unity of the three persons, the Father, the Son,
and the Holy Ghost, under one Godhead. =Corpus Christi= expresses
the Latin for the Body of Christ, especially alluding to the Last
Supper. As the Church considered it out of keeping with the solemnity
peculiar to Holy Week, the celebration of this High Festival has
been transferred to the Thursday after Trinity Sunday. The Sunday
preceding Ascension Day is called =Rogation Sunday= because it ushers
in the three =Rogation Days=, or days of preparation, conformably to
the Latin _rogare_, to beseech, for the Feast of the Ascension. We may
conveniently add here that =Ember Days= are those days of especial
fasting and prayers that occur in each of the four seasons of the year,
viz., the Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday after the first Sunday in
Lent, and the corresponding three days after the Feast of Whitsuntide,
the 14th of September, and the 13th of December. The weeks in which
these days occur are styled =Ember Weeks=; the allusion to embers
(Anglo-Saxon, _ämyrie_, hot ashes) being commemorative of the ancient
custom of doing penance by the wearing of sackcloth and ashes.
On =Ascension Day= the Church celebrates the Ascension of our Saviour;
while the =Feast of the Assumption= similarly reminds Roman Catholics
of the consummation of the Virgin’s mission upon earth by being assumed
into Heaven. =Holy Cross Day=, =Holy Rood Day=, and the =Feast of the
Exaltation of the Cross= are one and the same, the term Rood being Old
English, derived from the Anglo-Saxon _rôd_, for cross. This festival,
which occurs on the 14th of September, celebrates the restoration of
the Holy Cross of Calvary to Jerusalem in the year 628. =All Saints’
Day= (Nov. 1st), is the day dedicated to those whose sanctification
during life merited their canonization by the Church after death;
while =All Souls’ Day= (Nov. 2nd) is the day set apart for special
prayers, having for their object the liberation of the suffering souls
in Purgatory. The older designation of the first-named was =Allhallowes
Day=, in accordance with the Anglo-Saxon word _haligan_, holy.
=Allhallowe’en= denoted the evening before, generally attended with
sundry amusements in the social circle; conspicuous among which was the
cracking of nuts in large quantities in the fire, whence it received
the name of =Cracknut Night=.
=St. Valentine’s Day= (Feb. 14th) is sacred to the memory of Bishop
Valentine, a Christian martyr beheaded at Rome on this day in the year
278. The custom among young people of sending poetical souvenirs to
their sweethearts on the birthday of St. Valentine originated from
the old notion that birds commenced to couple on this day: hence, a
sweetheart chosen on the 14th of February anciently bore the name of
a VALENTINE. Nowadays, alas! the paper VALENTINES are all that remain
to remind us of the fact. =St. Swithin’s Day= (July 15th) perpetuates
the memory of St. Swithin, the preceptor of King Ethelwulf and Bishop
of Winchester, who died July 2, 862. The vulgar belief that if it
rains on this day it will continue to rain for forty successive days
is attributed to the tradition that when, despite the saint’s dying
request to be buried in the churchyard, the clergy took steps to
disinter his body in order to remove it within the cathedral, a heavy
downpour of rain necessitated a postponement of their efforts on
thirty-nine successive days, whereupon, after the fortieth attempt,
they determined to allow the saint to remain where he lay. =St. David’s
Day= (Mar. 1st) commemorates the victory won by the Welsh over the
Saxons on the birthday of their Archbishop (born 490, died 554), in the
year 540. It was in consequence of the Archbishop having ordered them
on this occasion to place a leek in their caps, so as to distinguish
one another from the invaders, that the Welsh afterwards adopted the
leek as their national emblem in his honour. =Comb’s Mass=, which in
the north of Scotland, and Caithness more particularly, takes the
place of our Whitsuntide, is the colloquial term for the Feast of St.
Columba, Abbot of Iona (born 521, died 597).
=Primrose Day= (April 19th) is the anniversary of the death of Lord
Beaconsfield (born 1804, died 1881). The abundant display of primroses
on this day, particularly on the part of the members of the Primrose
League, established in 1884 in his honour, originated in the Queen’s
primrose wreath sent to the funeral of the great statesman, thus
inscribed--“His favourite flower.” The custom of displaying a sprig
of oak on =Royal Oak Day= (May 29th) perpetuates the manner in which
the Royalists welcomed the return to England of Charles II. on his
birthday, May 29, 1651, in allusion to his concealment in the oak
at Boscobel, after the Battle of Worcester, on the 3rd of September
previous. =Guy Fawkes’ Day= keeps alive the incident of the Gunpowder
Plot, by the timely discovery of which, November 5, 1605, the
wholesale destruction of King James’s Parliament was averted. The name
of the chief conspirator was not Guy, but Guido Fawkes; his execution
took place January 13, 1606.
=Arbor Day= is an expression scarcely understood in this country,
except, perhaps, at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, where the Transatlantic
ceremony of planting trees, shrubs, and flowers within the school
precincts, was publicly performed for the first time by the Mayor,
June 11, 1888. This annual observance prevails not only throughout
the United States and Canada, but also in certain portions of British
Columbia, where the trees have to be coaxed into growing. =Forefathers’
Day= (Dec. 20th) is kept as a high holiday in New England,
commemorative of the landing of the Pilgrim Fathers at New Plymouth in
the year 1620. =Independence Day= (July 4th), perpetuates the memory of
the American Declaration of Independence, 1776; and =Evacuation Day=
(Nov. 25th), the date of the evacuation of New York City by the British
army, at the conclusion of the American War of Independence, 1783.