Brackenfield
Encyclopedia
Brackenfield is a village and civil parish
in the North East Derbyshire
district of Derbyshire
, England
.
The village is about five miles east of Matlock and four and a half miles northwest of Alfreton
. It is also close to Clay Cross
. Set in farming country, the village is located around a large village green
. The parish of Brackenfield includes much of the attractive Ogston Reservoir
.
Brackenfield was originally known as Brackenthwaite, which probably meant "a bracken clearing". The suffix -thwaite is unusual in this part of the county, as it is commonly associated with more northern areas. It is of significance etymologically
as it seems to point to the existence of a small colony of Norsemen
or Norwegians
, separate from the incursion of the Danes. The village later became known as Brackenfeld, and then Brackenfield.
The parish of Brackenfield was originally a township of nearby Morton
. It was divided from it in 1758. The parish has the smallest population of all parishes in the North East Derbyshire district. Wessington had a population of 189 in 2001, however in the 19th century it was around 350.
A horse named after the village unseated its rider when competing in the 1996 Grand National
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 North East Derbyshire
North East Derbyshire
North East Derbyshire is a local government district in Derbyshire, England. It borders the districts of Chesterfield, Bolsover, Amber Valley and Derbyshire Dales in Derbyshire, and Sheffield and Rotherham in South Yorkshire....
district of Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
, 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...
.
The village is about five miles east of Matlock and four and a half miles northwest of Alfreton
Alfreton
Alfreton is a town and civil parish in Amber Valley, Derbyshire, England, adjoining the Bolsover and North East Derbyshire districts. It was formerly a Norman Manor and later an Urban District. The population of the Alfreton Ward was 7,928 at the 2001 Census...
. It is also close to Clay Cross
Clay Cross
Clay Cross is a former mining town and civil parish in the North East Derbyshire district of Derbyshire, England, about six miles south of Chesterfield. It is directly on the A61, the former Roman road Ryknield Street...
. Set in farming country, the village is located around a large village green
Village green
A village green is a common open area which is a part of a settlement. Traditionally, such an area was often common grass land at the centre of a small agricultural settlement, used for grazing and sometimes for community events...
. The parish of Brackenfield includes much of the attractive Ogston Reservoir
Ogston Reservoir
Ogston Reservoir is a reservoir operated by Severn Trent Water in Derbyshire. It is near the villages of Brackenfield, Ashover and Clay Cross....
.
Brackenfield was originally known as Brackenthwaite, which probably meant "a bracken clearing". The suffix -thwaite is unusual in this part of the county, as it is commonly associated with more northern areas. It is of significance etymologically
Etymology
Etymology is the study of the history of words, their origins, and how their form and meaning have changed over time.For languages with a long written history, etymologists make use of texts in these languages and texts about the languages to gather knowledge about how words were used during...
as it seems to point to the existence of a small colony of Norsemen
Norsemen
Norsemen is used to refer to the group of people as a whole who spoke what is now called the Old Norse language belonging to the North Germanic branch of Indo-European languages, especially Norwegian, Icelandic, Faroese, Swedish and Danish in their earlier forms.The meaning of Norseman was "people...
or Norwegians
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, separate from the incursion of the Danes. The village later became known as Brackenfeld, and then Brackenfield.
The parish of Brackenfield was originally a township of nearby Morton
Morton, Derbyshire
Morton is a civil parish and village, three miles north of Alfreton in Derbyshire, England.-History:Morton is first mentioned in the will of Wulfric Spott in 1002 and again mentioned in the Domesday Book as one of the manors belonging to Walter D'Aincourt....
. It was divided from it in 1758. The parish has the smallest population of all parishes in the North East Derbyshire district. Wessington had a population of 189 in 2001, however in the 19th century it was around 350.
A horse named after the village unseated its rider when competing in the 1996 Grand National
1996 Grand National
The 1996 Grand National was the 149th official renewal of the world-famous Grand National steeplechase that took place at Aintree on 30 March 1996....