Bagnall, Staffordshire
Encyclopedia
Bagnall is a village and civil parish
in the Staffordshire Moorlands
district of Staffordshire
, England
, just to the north-east of the Stoke-on-Trent
urban area. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 700.
The Domesday Book
of 1086 did not record Bagnall as a settlement at that time but noted that the area that now comprises the parish was largely wasteland containing one or two ploughlands, being part of the parish of Endon.
The earliest form of the placename is composed of two Anglo Saxon elements. The Oxford Dictionary of Placenames, A D Mills (Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-280074-4) states:
Bagnall, Staffs. Badegenhall 1273. Probably "nook of land of a man called Badeca". Old English Pers. name (genitive -n) +halh.
The etymologist Duigan in his "Notes on Staffordshire Place-names" suggests Bacga as the personal prefix, and the Old English word holt meaning woodland as opposed to halh above.
The etymologist Eckwall sees the first element as Old English Bodeca as the personal noun, with the second syllable being either halh or holt.
Early evidence of an individual adopting or being attributed with the surname originating from the settlement occurred when William de Bagenold was a witness to the deed of a gift of Ela de Aldethelegh to Trentham Priory circa 1154 (source: Dugdale's Monistacon vol.6, page 397).
The siting of the early settlement at Bagnall probably owes its origins to some sort of religious observance, it being sited at a place where cross-moorland routes converged. It was certainly on the old salt route to Weston-on-Trent.
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
in the Staffordshire Moorlands
Staffordshire Moorlands
Staffordshire Moorlands is a local government district in Staffordshire, England. Its council, Staffordshire Moorlands District Council, is based in Leek and is located between the city of Stoke-on-Trent and the Peak District National Park. The 2001 census recorded the population as...
district of Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, just to the north-east of the Stoke-on-Trent
Stoke-on-Trent
Stoke-on-Trent , also called The Potteries is a city in Staffordshire, England, which forms a linear conurbation almost 12 miles long, with an area of . Together with the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme Stoke forms The Potteries Urban Area...
urban area. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 700.
The Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
of 1086 did not record Bagnall as a settlement at that time but noted that the area that now comprises the parish was largely wasteland containing one or two ploughlands, being part of the parish of Endon.
The earliest form of the placename is composed of two Anglo Saxon elements. The Oxford Dictionary of Placenames, A D Mills (Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-280074-4) states:
Bagnall, Staffs. Badegenhall 1273. Probably "nook of land of a man called Badeca". Old English Pers. name (genitive -n) +halh.
The etymologist Duigan in his "Notes on Staffordshire Place-names" suggests Bacga as the personal prefix, and the Old English word holt meaning woodland as opposed to halh above.
The etymologist Eckwall sees the first element as Old English Bodeca as the personal noun, with the second syllable being either halh or holt.
Early evidence of an individual adopting or being attributed with the surname originating from the settlement occurred when William de Bagenold was a witness to the deed of a gift of Ela de Aldethelegh to Trentham Priory circa 1154 (source: Dugdale's Monistacon vol.6, page 397).
The siting of the early settlement at Bagnall probably owes its origins to some sort of religious observance, it being sited at a place where cross-moorland routes converged. It was certainly on the old salt route to Weston-on-Trent.