Wetwang

Coordinates: 54°01′10″N 0°34′44″W / 54.0194°N 0.5789°W / 54.0194; -0.5789
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This article is about the East Yorkshire village. For the location in The Lord of the Rings, see Wetwang (Middle-earth).

Wetwang
St Nicholas Church
Wetwang is located in East Riding of Yorkshire
Wetwang
Wetwang
Location within the East Riding of Yorkshire
Population761 (2011 census)[1]
OS grid referenceSE932590
Civil parish
  • Wetwang
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townDRIFFIELD
Postcode districtYO25
Dialling code01377
PoliceHumberside
FireHumberside
AmbulanceYorkshire
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Yorkshire
54°01′10″N 0°34′44″W / 54.0194°N 0.5789°W / 54.0194; -0.5789

Wetwang is a Yorkshire Wolds village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, 6 miles (10 kilometres) west of Driffield on the A166 road.

At the 2011 census, it had a population of 761,[1] an increase on the 2001 census figure of 672.[2]

Name[edit]

There are two interpretations of the name. One is from the Old Norse vaett-vangr, or 'field for the trial of a legal action'. Another theory is that it was the "Wet Field" compared to the nearby dry field at Driffield.[3]

The name is jokingly defined in The Meaning of Liff by Douglas Adams as meaning "a moist penis".[4] In some varieties of English, wang is a slang term for penis,[5][6] although this sense of the word is not recorded in the Oxford English Dictionary.[7] The name Wetwang has frequently been noted on lists of unusual place names.[8][9]

History[edit]

The village is known for its Iron Age chariot burial cemetery at Wetwang Slack,[10] and it has been speculated that the unlocated Romano-British town of Delgovicia may have been at what is now Wetwang.[11]

Before the Norman Conquest (TRE) Ealdraed held Wetwang, and it was worth £4 per year in rent.[12]

The village is mentioned twice in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Wetuuangha. The lesser mention simply records its existence: "In Wetwang the archbishop 13+1⁄2 carucates". The mention is under "Warter Hundred" on original folio 381V: East Riding.[13] Earlier in the Domesday Book, there is a fuller description (Folio 302V: Yorkshire) within the listing of the land of the Archbishop of York:

In Wetwang there are 13+1⁄2 carucates to the geld, and there could be 7 ploughs. Archbishop Ealdraed held this as 1 manor. Now Archbishop Thomas has it and it is waste. TRE worth £4. This manor is 2 leagues long and 1+1⁄2 broad

— Folio 302V: Yorkshire) within the listing of the land of the Archbishop of York

A carucate is the area of land a man with 8 oxen can plough in a season, sometimes cited as around 120 acres (49 ha). In Wetwang there were 13+1⁄2 of them available for the tax take ("geld"). A "plough" was a carucate which was being ploughed, rather than grazed or fallow. A league is around 3 miles (4.8 km). After the conquest, Wetwang was waste land held by Archbishop Thomas. [12]

St Nicholas's Church is of Norman origin and was restored between 1845 and 1902. In 1966, the church was designated a Grade II* listed building.[14] It is on the Sykes Churches Trail devised by the East Yorkshire Churches Group.[15] The church has a ring of three bells (tenor 7 long cwt 0 qr 12 lb; 796 lb or 361 kg in A), the oldest of which (the tenor) dates from c. 1450.[16]

Wetwang was once known for its black swans, after which the village pub, the Black Swan, is named.[17]

The Victoria Inn

Public transport[edit]

Until 1950, the village was served by Wetwang railway station, on the Malton to Driffield Line, but this line has closed.[18] The village is now served by an infrequent East Yorkshire Motor Services bus.[19]

Honorary mayor[edit]

Wetwang Community Hall

Richard Whiteley of the Channel 4 quiz show Countdown held the honorary title Mayor of Wetwang from 1998 until his death in 2005.[20] On 25 June 2006, local weather forecaster Paul Hudson from BBC Look North was invested as Whiteley's successor.[21]

Year Mayor
1998–2005 Richard Whiteley
2006– Paul Hudson

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b UK Census (2011). "Local Area Report – Wetwang Parish (1170211287)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  2. ^ UK Census (2001). "Local Area Report – Wetwang Parish (00FB158)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 25 February 2020.
  3. ^ Parker, Quentin (2010). Welcome to Horneytown, North Carolina, Population: 15: An insider's guide to 201 of the world's weirdest and wildest places. Adams Media. p. 191. ISBN 9781440507397.
  4. ^ Adams, D.; Lloyd, J. (1983). "Wetwang". The Meaning of Liff. Pan Books. ISBN 0-330-28121-6.
  5. ^ "Wang". Cambridge Dictionary. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  6. ^ "wang (n.)". www.etymonline.com. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  7. ^ "Wang". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  8. ^ Lyall, Sarah (22 January 2009). "No Snickering: That Road Sign Means Something Else". The New York Times. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
  9. ^ "13 Town Names We Can't Stop Laughing Over". Cosmopolitan. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
  10. ^ Loades, Mike (25 January 2005). "Wetwang: A Chariot Fit for a Queen?". History Trails Archaeology. BBC. Retrieved 12 February 2011.
  11. ^ Rivet, A. L. F.; Smith, Colin (1979). The Place-Names of Roman Britain. London: B. T. Batsford. pp. 331–332.
  12. ^ a b Williams 2003, p. 797.
  13. ^ Williams, Ann, ed. (2003). Domesday book: a complete translation. Penguin classics. London: Penguin Books. p. 877. ISBN 978-0-14-143994-5.
  14. ^ Historic England. "The Church of St Nicolas (1083774)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 27 June 2013.
  15. ^ "Sykes Churches Trail Southern Route". Beverley, East Yorkshire: East Yorkshire Historic Churches Group.
  16. ^ Central Council of Church Bell Ringers. "Wetwang, S Nicholas". Dove's Guide for Church Bell Ringers. Central Council Publications. Retrieved 8 June 2022.
  17. ^ Thompson, Karen. "The Villages of the Yorkshire Wolds – Wetwang". Driffield Online. Retrieved 12 February 2011.
  18. ^ Butt, R. V. J. (October 1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199. OL 11956311M.
  19. ^ "Service 135". East Yorkshire Motor Services. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
  20. ^ "From Wilberforce to Mayor Whiteley". Yorkshire Post. 26 September 2007. Retrieved 12 February 2011.
  21. ^ "Paul Hudson – Weatherman". BBC Look North. BBC. Retrieved 12 February 2011.
  • Gazetteer — A–Z of Towns Villages and Hamlets. East Riding of Yorkshire Council. 2006. p. 11.

External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Wetwang.
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