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SPELLINGS
MEANING
PRONUNCIATION
LETTERING
TEA TOWEL: here
CONTACTS
See also STREETWISE
The
varied spellings of Eynsham from
the 10th to the
18th
century are recorded by Alan Hardy and
Roslyn Smith ('Eynsham, a
Village and its Abbey',
Oxford
Archaeology 2002). The
spelling 'Egonesham' seems to have
been in
use as early as 571 when the
settlement was captured from the
Britons
by Cuthwulf, King of the West Saxons
according to the Anglo-Saxon
Chronicle. More abbey history here; more
village history here;
Domesday text here.
The
meaning of 'Egonesham' is an
enclosure or river meadow of a man
called Aegen (AD Mills, 'A Dictionary
of English Place Names', Oxford
University Press 1998). The modern
spelling “Eynsham”
was first used in 1390 and has been in
regular use since the latter part of
the 19th century.
The
local pronunciation is EN-SHUM (at
least today).
The
original lettering shown here was
done for the calligraphy stall
at St. Benedict's Fair on 23 July
2005, by Isabelle Spencer of
Witney. She is a calligrapher and
artist, and a founder member of the
Oxford Scribes. She has
kindly donated this lettering to
Eynsham. The original will hang in
the Village
Hall by courtesy of the
Parish
Council, as a memento of the Abbey
Millennium.
A
cream cotton tea towel with
lettering in navy blue and terracotta
red is being sold in aid of the
renovation of St
Leonard's Church Hall, which will
benefit the whole community. It
is on sale (price £4.50) in Eynsham
Emporium in Mill Street and at the
rear of
St
Leonard’s Church. The same design
is also available as
notelets and notebooks (£2.50) and on
cotton canvas bags (£5)
Further
details:
Dorothy Berry 01865
882570
Doreen Hockedy 01865
880919
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