_Meaning of Steyne_ (Vol. ii., P. 71.).--Steyne is no doubt _stone_, and
may have reference to the original name of Brighthelm-_stone_: but what
the _stone_ or "steyne" was, I do not conjecture; but it lay or stood
probably on that little flat valley now called the "Steyne." It is said
that, so late as the time of Elizabeth, the town was encompassed by a
high and strong _stone wall_; but that could have no influence on the
name, which, whether derived from Bishop _Brighthelm_ or not, is
assuredly of Saxon times. There is a small town not far distant called
_Steyning, i.e._ the meadow of the stone. In my early days, the name was
invariably pronounced Brighthamstone.