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 Head To Head The Modern Antiquarian Swallowhead Springs Forum | Start a topic | Search |
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tiompan wrote: Sanctuary wrote: tjj wrote: tiompan wrote: tjj wrote: Sanctuary wrote: Viewed from the air or a map, the Swallowhead Springs take the form of a Swallow's head, so that presumably is where the name came from...or does it? http://www.avebury-web.co.uk/avebury_map.html If they were named prior to there being flight by aircraft or balloon then how did the name come about because you wouldn't gather it looked like a Swallow's head at ground level would you. Thoughts? I often find myself referring to the very first book I ever bought about Avebury - The Secrets of the Avebury Stones by Terence Meaden. His theory is that Swallowhead is phonetically similar to Suilohead and may come from the same root as the Goddess name Sul. That seems more like an idea based on wishful thinking than etymology . Are there any examples in Celtic /Germanic languages with a change from oo - w ? Wherereas the Fergusson suggestion , old German swal, meaning swell or whirpool is not only more likely it 's at least etymologically sound . Yes, I agree with you (and Rhiannon) I read your earlier post and responded to it after I made this one. There is a lot of personal and archaeologically unprovable theory in Terence Meaden's book but I remain rather fond of it. His knowledge of Avebury is without question. Isn't it all unprovable, not just Terence's book? I thought is was quite feasable to be called the Swallowhead after the shape of the river but can't prove that either :-) But some explanations are more likely than others The swall , swallet , connection seems a good bet , it is found elsewhere , the etymology is sound . The Sul , Cunnit stuff was just wishful thinking to support an agenda , but etymologically unsound in both cases and binned long ago . Does the river look the shape of a bird and what other rivers get named after a birds shape or undistinctive head as in the case of a swallow ? Maybe there's a link somewhere with the Anglo-Saxon word "Swale" as in River Swale. ? "Swale is a river name of Anglo-Saxon origin and is thought to mean whirling, swirling swallowing river." Two rivers joining obviously cause a swirling effect, maybe a spring could too if flowing fast enough, plus the spring is right on a bend that would enhance the effect. Reply | with quote |  7th December 2012ce 19:50 In reply to: Re: Swallowhead Springs, Avebury (tiompan) |
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