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Standing Stone / Menhir
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The name is often said to be from Welsh 'plu maen', meaning parish stone. Problem with that is Welsh 'plu' means feathers! Parish is 'plwyf'
Cornish 'plyw' (pronounced, I think, 'ploo') means parish, and that fits the bill better. But Cornish for stone is 'men'
We're left with either Welsh plwyf maen, or Cornish plyw men. But neither are a million miles away, and 'parish stone' looks plausible.
The problem now is establishing how early this "parish" was. First mention of parishes in English was in 'Life of Cuthbert' by anon of Lindisfarne, circa 700. Its "parrochia of Osingadun" was in N. Yorks, and held by Abbess Aelfflaed, but is now lost.
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Posted by hotaire
21st November 2006ce
Edited 2nd December 2006ce
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