May Williamson: The Non-Celtic Place-Names of the Scottish Border ...

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Plenderleith (Oxn) and Plendernethy (Duns) appear to have the same first element as
Prenderguest (Ayt) but its nature is doubtful. OCelt *prenno, “tree”, /xxv/ is seen in Printonan
(Cdstr) and Primside (Mrb), which are O.W. pren tonnen, “tree of the bog”, and pren gwyn,
“white tree” (CPNS, 351). OW tref, “place, farm”, is found in Trabroun (Laud) and Trailtrow
(Cum), (ib, 359).
The name of the rivers and streams are predominantly Celtic, and only a few can be claimed
as British or Norse. The Eden, Ale, Allan, Evan, Esk and Kale are names which have parallels
in other parts of Scotland and in England and Wales. The Nith may be comparable to the
Nidd, YWR, although Ekwall is inclined to disagree on the grounds that the Dumfries-shire
Nith is derived from Ptolemy’s Novios, and therefore cannot have the same root as the Nidd.
Earliest spellings for the Nith refer to Nithsdale: Stranit c1124, Stradnitt, 1124-40 CDS;
Stranith, 1192-98 LSMM; Strathnith, 1195-99 ib; aquam de Nid (acc), 1161-74 (1300) HC.
Tweed, Teviot, Leader, Gala, Ettrick, Yarrow, Annan, are all of Celtic origin.
Examples of early Anglo-Saxon formations incorporating British elements are not uncommon
in this region. Coldingham is formed from Colud, seen in Caer Golud, the Celtic fortress on
St. Abb’s Head: v. No II. Tynninghame in East Lothian contains a British river-name. The
only comparable forms in England are /xxvi/ three -ingas names, probably from pre-English
river-names: Avening, Glo (PN -Ing, 70), Ulting, Ess (ib, 50) and Spalding, L (ib, 87). Ednam
contains the name of the River Eden and OE hm: cf Alnham Nb (PN NbDu, 4).
British-English hybrids have mostly been mentioned already in this chapter. There remain,
however, two in both of which a British element precedes OE hh, “hill spur, height”. Minto
is W mynydd, “hill”, and OE hh, a combination in which the later element explains the
earlier. Kelso is W calc, “chalk”, and OE hh. It may be a translation of the Welsh form
Calchuynid, which appears in Taliessin (CPNS, 343), into ONb calc-hh, but the initial back
consonant makes it probable that the British element was retained or at least influenced the
English pronunciation: v. No XXX.
/xxvii/
THE ANGLIAN SETTLEMENT OF BERNICIA
The earliest statement about the settlement of Bernicia is the entry for 547 in ASC ‘A’: “Her
Ida feng to rice, onon Norþan hymbra cynecyn onwoc”. This is amplified by an 11 th century
interpolation to the effect that Ida reigned twelve years and built Bebbanburh which was first
enclosed with a fence and afterwards with a wall. From references in Nennius and Welsh
sources it is learned that the fortress was earlier a Celtic stronghold named Din Guardi. It was
renamed after the wife of Ida’s grandson, Bebbe, to whom it was gifted.
The Celtic tradition of the settlement is less trustworthy, since it comes from Nennius. It is
full of probably fictional details, but the main points are clear. The Historia Brittonum and
Nennius both state in passages of equal obscurity as to geographical facts, that Octha, the son
or grandson of Hengist, and Ebbisa, first settled Bernicia after ravaging the Orkneys. Mr
Hodgkin thinks the story dubious, but concedes that “there could have been no better way
(than by advancing via the Orkneys) of doing what Hengist had been called in to do”
(Hodgkin, 152). This tradition cannot safely be ignored, because all /xxviii/ sources are
agreed that Hengist was called in by Vortigern to assist him against the Picts and Scots.