Combe
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A combe (/kuːm/; also spelled coombe or coomb and, in place names, comb) can refer either to a steep, narrow valley, or to a small valley or large hollow on the side of a hill;[1][2] in any case, it is often understood simply to mean a small valley through which a watercourse does not run.[3][4]
The word "combe" derives from Old English cumb and is unrelated to the English word "comb".[5] From Middle English coumbe, cumbe, from Old English cumb, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *kumbaz; compare Dutch kom ("bowl, basin"), German Kump ("vessel"). Related to Welsh cwm ("a hollow valley"), of identical meaning, through Proto-Indo-European *ḱumbʰ-.[6]
Today, the word is used mostly in reference to the combes of southern[7] and southwestern England.
Examples
The following is a list places in the British Isles named for having combes:
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References
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- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Combe". Merriam–Webster's Dictionary. Merriam–Webster. 2011.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Coomb". Webster's New World College Dictionary. Cleveland, Ohio: Wiley Publishing, Inc. 2010.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Combe". Encarta World English Dictionary: North American Edition. Bloomsbury Publishing Plc. 2009.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Coomb". Collins Pocket English Dictionary. HarperCollins Publishers Ltd. 2010. Archived from the original on 2011-10-18.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Comb". Century Dictionary.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Gooden, Phillip (2009). The Story of English. Quercus. p. 22. ISBN 9781847242723. Retrieved 27 December 2021.
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Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Coombe". Compact Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. 2010.
A short valley or hollow on a hillside or coastline, especially in southern England.
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