What’s in a name? How
important is it for us to understand place names?
Professor J R R Tolkien, who knew something of the power of
words was a member of the English Place Name Society – a
research group, founded in 1923, that has been based at the
UK’s University of Nottingham since 1968 and is a
long-standing project that aims to explain the origin and
development of all the place-names of England, based on the
analysis of spellings recorded in documentary sources over 1400
years.
Professor Tolkien was an active member of the society and his
books drew heavily on Anglo Saxon and Celtic languages for the
names of places and characters in his books.
“Oscar” is an Anglo Saxon name meaning “Spear
of God” – how many spears will Peter Jackson’s
interpretation of Tolkien’s work be collecting in the
upcoming awards?
Research-TV Feed: Tuesday 24
February 2004. For more information about this film and
Research-TV, email enquiries@research-tv.com,
or call 020 7004 7130.
What’s in a name? How
important is it for us to understand place names?