Publisher Description

An exploration of the landscape of Anglo-Saxon England, particularly through the prism of place-names and what they can reveal.The landscape of modern England still bears the imprint of its Anglo-Saxon past. Villages and towns, fields, woods and forests, parishes and shires, all shed light on the enduring impact of the Anglo-Saxons. The essays in this volume explore the richness of the interactions between the Anglo-Saxons and their landscape: how they understood, described, and exploited the environments of which they were a part. Ranging from the earliest settlement period through to the urban expansion of late Anglo-Saxon England, this book draws on evidence from place-names, written sources, and the landscape itself to provide fresh insights into the topic. Subjects explored include the history of thestudy of place-names and the Anglo-Saxon landscape; landscapes of particular regions and the exploitation of particular landscape types; the mechanisms of the transmission and survival of written sources; and the problems and potentials of interdisciplinary research into the Anglo-Saxon landscape.Nicholas J. Higham is Professor of Early Medieval and Landscape History at the University of Manchester; Martin Ryan lectures in Medieval History at the University of Manchester.Contributors: Ann Cole, Linda M. Corrigan, Dorn Van Dommelen, Simon Draper, Gillian Fellows-Jensen, Della Hooke, Duncan Probert, Alexander R. Rumble, Martin J. Ryan, Peter A. Stokes, Richard Watson.

Author Biography

Della Hooke is an Honorary Fellow at the Institute for Advanced Research in Arts and Social Sciences, University of Birmingham (FSA: Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London).

Table of Contents

Place-Names, Language and the Anglo-Saxon Landscape: An Introduction - Martin J. RyanThe Landscape of Place-Name Studies - Alexander R. RumblePlace-Names as Travellers' Landmarks - Ann ColeLight thrown by Scandinavian Place-Names on the Anglo-Saxon Landscape - Gillian Fellows-JensenLanguage and the Anglo-Saxon Landscape: Towards an Archaeological Interpretation of Place-Names in Wiltshire - Simon DraperHunting the Vikings in South Cumbria from Ambleside to Haverbrack - Linda M. CorriganViking-Age Amounderness: A Reconsideration - Richard WatsonThe Woodland Landscape of Early Medieval England - Della HookeThe Pre-Conquest Lands and Parish of Crediton Minster, Devon - Duncan ProbertRewriting the Bounds: Pershore's Powick and Leigh - Peter A. StokesThat 'Dreary Old Question': The Hide in Early Anglo-Saxon England - Martin J. RyanBoroughs and Socio-Political Reconstruction in Late Anglo-Saxon England - Dorn Van Dommelen

Review

This volume's strength is in solid empirical research into how early medieval landscape was settled, organised and exploited. * MEDIEVAL ARCHAEOLOGY *
As befits the fruit of an interdisciplinary conference with a wide remit, the essays cover a wide range of themes, with several displaying considerable historical and philological subtlety. * LANDSCAPE HISTORY *
Contains some excellent material that many will find very rewarding, and it will surely encourage further use of onomastic and documentary sources in the exploration of landscape history. * THE MEDIEVAL REVIEW *
There is much of interest, ranging from detailed surveys of estate boundaries to wider contributions considering Scandinavian settlement. * BRITISH ARCHAEOLOGY *

Review Text

This volume's strength is in solid empirical research into how early medieval landscape was settled, organised and exploited. MEDIEVAL ARCHAEOLOGY As befits the fruit of an interdisciplinary conference with a wide remit, the essays cover a wide range of themes, with several displaying considerable historical and philological subtlety. LANDSCAPE HISTORY Contains some excellent material that many will find very rewarding, and it will surely encourage further use of onomastic and documentary sources in the exploration of landscape history. THE MEDIEVAL REVIEW There is much of interest, ranging from detailed surveys of estate boundaries to wider contributions considering Scandinavian settlement. BRITISH ARCHAEOLOGY

Review Quote

This volume's strength is in solid empirical research into how early medieval landscape was settled, organised and exploited. MEDIEVAL ARCHAEOLOGY As befits the fruit of an interdisciplinary conference with a wide remit, the essays cover a wide range of themes, with several displaying considerable historical and philological subtlety. LANDSCAPE HISTORY Contains some excellent material that many will find very rewarding, and it will surely encourage further use of onomastic and documentary sources in the exploration of landscape history. THE MEDIEVAL REVIEW There is much of interest, ranging from detailed surveys of estate boundaries to wider contributions considering Scandinavian settlement. BRITISH ARCHAEOLOGY

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