A group of cows grazing in a green field — ©The cows enjoy the good weather to feed in the field.

What do the names of our communes, hamlets and villages mean?

Episode 2

If you’d like to find out more about the names of our hamlets, villages, towns, etc., this is the place!

Did you enjoy Episode 1, which revealed the origins of the names of some of our communes? Well, we’re back in our explorer’s garb for Part 2, so let’s get to it!

For this 2nd instalment, we’re taking a trip to the Normandy countryside, where it’s good to smell the woody fragrances, wander through the valleys in a thousand shades of green, touch the grassy plants… Yes, that’s right! Many of the names of our villages have their origins in the surrounding countryside, in very tangible and visible features such as abundant vegetation, geographical location, the presence of a watercourse and so on.

If we say to you: Belval. It’s easy, it’s all in the name! Made up of “bel” (beautiful) and “val” for the valley or dales, this commune, which had several spellings (Bella Valle, Belleval) before today, simply meant “beautiful valley”, “beautiful” in the sense of abundant/fertile.Today, it simply means “beautiful valley”, “beautiful” in the sense of abundant/fertile. South of Coutances lies the “nid de corbeau” (raven’s nest), known today as ” Nicorps” . (also seen as Nicor, Nicorb, Nidus Corvi), whose name is thought to be composed of the Latin words “nidus” (nest) and “corvus” (crow). Gavray (also known as Wavreti, Wavreium), on the other hand, derives from the Celtic word “wob(e)ro” or “wab(e)ro”, meaning “wooded/ scrubby/ uncultivated land”. Its meaning declined with time and linguistic evolution, eventually coming to characterize an underground stream, in the Gallic language “vobero”. It then became Guabreum, Guavreum, Gavraium, Gavreyum, which could be related to the ancient word “Gave”, a valley irrigated by a river.

A calm river runs through a town with houses and trees on both sides — ©The river brings a touch of nature to the heart of the city.|Teddy Bear

©Routes sinueuses dans le bocage à La Baleine|Teddy Bear

Stone chapel with a granite cross on a green lawn — ©A secluded chapel and a granite cross stand on a lush green lawn.

To keep with the theme, here’s a small selection of the names of our localities:

La Baleine: make no mistake, nothing to do with the marine mammal! Also seen over the centuries spelled Ballena, Balena, Labaleinne… This toponym could have a link with the Gallic divinity “Belisama”, goddess of the hearth, no less a warrior, of metal crafts, glass and weaving. Or with local flora, such as broom. In Old French, land covered with broom could be described as “balaine”.

La Rondehaye: Rotunda Haia, made up of the adjective “ronde” and the noun “haie” (grove, wood).

Lengronne: also seen as Lengrona, could come from the Norse word – the language of the Vikings – “lyngr” (heather) and “grund” (grassy expanse).

Roncey: Ronceio, Ronceyo, from the word “ronce” (of which the area was probably abundant), and the Old French ” roncei”, “ronçois”, to designate a “ronceraie”, the place where brambles flourish.

Ver : found in other French commune names, comes from the Gallic “verno”, and thus from vergne and verne, which are other words for alder, a tree found in thickets.

Ever perceptive, our Celtic ancestors literally referred to Agon (now Agon-Coutainville) as “the place surrounded by water”, “Aagon”. Perhaps this was also a way of remembering the geographical origins of the Normans – the “Northmans / and the Swedish island of Agön (Agö) in the Baltic Sea? As with many Norman localities ending in -ville, there are many -tot villages throughout Normandy (Yvetot, Butot, Sciotot, Saint-Gilles-de-Crétot, Bouquetot etc.).), which also denoted an estate belonging to a proclaimed owner. This is particularly true of Gratot, which has been known over the centuries as Guerartot, Gerartot, Girartot, Grartot, i.e. the “Guerard/Girard estate”.

Pebble beach with people swimming and buildings in the background — ©A sunny day at the beach with rocks and colorful buildings.|Thibault Poriel

The legend of Hambye

Finally, to conclude this article in style, let us tell you the legend of Hambye. “Ham” is said to be a word inherited from a Scandinavian word for “house”, and was thus the “house of Bye”. But who was Bye? Bye is said to have been a comrade-in-arms of Rollon, the Viking lord who converted to Christianity and was considered the first Duke of Normandy. One day, according to legend, Bye got wind that a huge serpent (or winged dragon) was rampaging across the island of Jersey. With his courage at the ready, Bye set out to slay the infamous creature and save the population from this misfortune. Once there, accompanied by his trusty steed and squire, he was shown the way to the hideous beast and immediately set off to battle. After a hard-fought battle, abandoned in the meantime by his vile squire terrorized by the beast, Bye defeated the dragon. Wearily, he dozed off. It was at this precise moment that the cowardly squire chose to retrace his steps and slay his master, in order to take credit for the dragon’s death among the villagers and marry the widow of the Sire de Hambye. The latter was buried on the island, and the coward was able to marry the Dame de Hambye, in spite of herself. Caught up in his own guilt, the mad felon thought he saw the Sire de Hambye everywhere: enthroned at the feast table, in the marriage bed… That’s all it took for the chatelaine to lift the veil on his crime! He was immediately arrested and hanged for his crime. As a tribute to her valiant husband, the Lady of Hambye had a tomb erected on the site of his death, on a hill in Jersey known today as “Hougue-Bie”, literally “Sieur Bie’s Hill”. It is said that the tomb was so high that the Lady could even see it from her château in Hambye.