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Littlestone L
Littlestone Nov 4, 2005 11:47:47
Replying to StoneLifter

Have just checked out 'borough' StoneLifter and Chambers gives the etymology as "...related to Old English <i>beorg</i> hill, mound, from Indo-European..."

Kenneth Cameron* goes into even greater detail but if I get started on that I'll not get anything else done today :-)

* <b>English Place Names</b>. SBN 416 27990 2

F FourWinds
FourWinds Nov 4, 2005 12:42:41
Replying to Littlestone

And this came about because each borough had its own law hill :-)

S StoneLifter
StoneLifter Nov 4, 2005 14:06:44
Replying to Littlestone

If this is true then it's kind of revolutionary as it suggests that the hill was the focal point for ancient 'administrative' stuff as well as the secular. My OED gives the origin of borough probably as Teut. burg 'castle'. But then it's the 1922 edition ...

I know what you mean about the time - but that's how I feel about watching TV.

S StoneLifter
StoneLifter Nov 5, 2005 06:30:51
Replying to Littlestone

The Tynwald ( http://www.isle-of-man.com/information/tynwaldhill.shtml ) meets on a mound still.