Woolfardisworthy, Torridge

Woolfardisworthy (/ˈwʊlzəri/ WUUL-zər-ee), also spelled Woolsery,[3] is a village and civil parish in the Torridge district of Devon, England. The village is accessible via the A39 road, 2 miles (3 km) from the village.

Woolfardisworthy
  • Woolsery
Village
All Hallows' Church
Woolfardisworthy is located in Devon
Woolfardisworthy
Woolfardisworthy
Location within Devon
Population1,123 [1]
Civil parish
District
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townBideford
Postcode districtEX39
Dialling code01237
PoliceDevon and Cornwall
FireDevon and Somerset
AmbulanceSouth Western
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Devon
50°57′53″N 4°22′37″W / 50.96472°N 4.37694°W / 50.96472; -4.37694

Name

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Woolfardisworthy, jointly with a few other places in Devon, has one of the longest place names in England, with 16 letters. As the modern pronunciation of the village, known to have been in use since the 17th century, is /ˈwʊlzəri/, its name is sometimes marked on local signs as Woolsery alongside the original spelling.[4]

The original meaning of the name is probably "Wulfheard's homestead" – the element -worthy being from Old English worþig, one of several words used by the Anglo-Saxons to denote a homestead, farmstead or small settlement.[5]

All Hallows Church

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In the parish church dedicated to All Hallows is the large monument with effigy to Richard Cole (d.1614) of Buckish within the parish, also of Slade in the parish of Cornworthy, Devon. It is a Grade 1 British Listed Building.[6]

Organisations

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The Centre for Fortean Zoology is based here.

References

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  1. ^ Census 2001; Parish Headcounts
  2. ^ "Woolsery Parish Council - Home". WPC.
  3. ^ Pointon, Graham, ed. (1990). BBC Pronouncing Dictionary of British Names (2nd ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 264. ISBN 0-19-282745-6.
  4. ^ Padel, O. J. (1999). "Place-names". In Kain, Roger; Ravenhill, William (eds.). Historical Atlas of South-West England. Exeter: University of Exeter Press. pp. 88–9. ISBN 0-85989-434-7.
  5. ^ Ekwall, Eilert, ed. (1960). Oxford Dictionary of English Place Names (4th ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19869-103-3.
  6. ^ "Church of All Hallows, Woolfardisworthy, Devon". www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk. Listing NGR: SS3322121085. Retrieved 9 May 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
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