Call for papers! Our Autumn Meeting will be held on Saturday 14 November 10-4 at the University of Sheffield and online. The theme is 'Names and Power'. Thanks @chegchenko.bsky.social for organising! Abstracts are invited by 4 September 2026. For more information, see the flyer attached!

Silver coins and jewellery and other treasures appear in English place-names – but all that glisters is not gold! Read about 'Golden Hopes', written by Jeremy Harte. www.snsbi.org.uk/exploring-na... @namestudies.bsky.social, @englishplacenames.bsky.social

This month's name story is 'Smith or Smythe' and is written by Peter McClure, Honorary Professor (Name-Studies) at the @uniofnottingham.bsky.social. @namestudies.bsky.social www.snsbi.org.uk/exploring-na...

400 years ago, on 24 May 1626, King Charles I and Cornelius Vermuyden signed a contract which would change the landscape of the Isle of Axholme and Hatfield Chase forever. Yesterday was the official launch of @northlincsmuseum.bsky.social's travelling exhibition.

👀 Take a look at our new website: www.snsbi.org.uk This is your place to begin discovering more! @namestudies.bsky.social, @englishplacenames.bsky.social, @logainm.bsky.social, @placenamesni.bsky.social, @placenames.bsky.social, @ainmean-aite.bsky.social

For those of you who live near Nottingham, you are invited to this exciting day conference, "Life & Landscape: Postgraduate Research Showcase" @uniofnottingham.bsky.social. See: www.nottingham.ac.uk/english/even... @uonenglish.bsky.social @namestudies.bsky.social

Happy 100th birthday to David Attenborough! On this special day, we take the opportunity to revisit our Attenborough name story written by Peter McClure, Honorary Professor (Name-Studies) @uniofnottingham.bsky.social @namestudies.bsky.social @englishplacenames.bsky.social

Thought-provoking History and Archives in Practice 2026 conference at Firth Court with @royalhistsoc.org, @natarchivestrust.bsky.social and @ihr.bsky.social - exploring the relationship between collections, researchers, practice and locality. Lots to ponder... #HAP26, #shapingsocieties

Today's name story is 'Tūn: From rustic fence to urban sprawl'. It is written by Nigel Suffield-Jones and Diana Whaley. For more information, see www.snsbi.org.uk/exploring-na...

Place-names are not always what they seem! This seasonal name story 'A tale of three Easters' provides a salutary reminder of that. It traces the contrasting origins of three apparently similar names from Scotland, England and Polynesia. www.snsbi.org.uk/exploring-na...

Great Vermuyden400 first exhibition previewed today at Normanby Hall in the Rural Life Museum. Thanks to our brilliant animators from Tentacle Media Ltd who joined us. @northlincsmuseum.bsky.social @englishplacenames.bsky.social @snsbi.bsky.social

Today's name story 'The English names of French bastides' is written by Dr Keith Briggs (@keithbriggs.bsky.social). In this story, he examines the transfer of some English names to France. www.snsbi.org.uk/exploring-na...

For anyone who is nearby, I am giving a talk about researching place-names on Monday, 23rd March 2026 at the North Lincolnshire Museum Society (Local History and Archaeology Section) at 7.15pm. The talk is called 'Digging for Lincolnshire - Axholme's place-names, a journey of interpretation'.

Many place-names are deceptive, so it’s not surprising that many people have assumed that the striking place-name Pity Me can’t really be what it seems. What is it, though? Today's name story is written by Emeritus Professor Diana Whaley of @newcastleuni.bsky.social. www.snsbi.org.uk/exploring-na...

THIRTY-SECOND ANNUAL CONFERENCE Spring conference March 27-29 2026 The Guildhall, Guildhall St, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk Join us for our 32nd annual conference, which will take place in the Guildhall, a beautiful medieval building in the historic town of Bury St Edmunds.

Our next name story explores the origin of the Hamilton family name, and is written by Peter McClure, Honorary Professor (Name Studies) at the University of Nottingham. Have a look! 👀 www.snsbi.org.uk/exploring-na...

Take a look at the second part of our Mills and Boon story www.snsbi.org.uk/exploring-na.... Both stories show changes in status and mobility. @namestudies.bsky.social, @englishplacenames.bsky.social, @logainm.bsky.social, @placenames.bsky.social, @placenamesni.bsky.social, @ainmean-aite.bsky.social

Call for Papers! Our Spring Conference @snsbi.bsky.social will be held on 27-29 March 2026 in the historic Athenaeum in Bury St Edmunds. @namestudies.bsky.social, @englishplacenames.bsky.social, @logainm.bsky.social, @placenames.bsky.social, @placenamesni.bsky.social, @ainmean-aite.bsky.social

Next, we take a look at Mills & Boon, an article written by Peter McClure, Honorary Professor (Name-Studies) at the University of Nottingham. www.snsbi.org.uk/exploring-na...

Today's name story is: Carpets of Wild Garlic, Creamhchoill and other aromatic place-names in Ireland, written by Conchubhar Ó Crualaoich & Aindí Mac Giolla Chomhghaill. Additional text referring to wild garlic beyond Ireland is written by Diana Whaley. www.snsbi.org.uk/exploring-na...

#Makers Dr Kathryn Bullen led the session today discussing the history of place names in the area.

Our next name story is the surname Fox and is written by Peter McClure, Honorary Professor (Name Studies) at the University of Nottingham. www.snsbi.org.uk/exploring-na... @namestudies.bsky.social @englishplacenames.bsky.social @logainm.bsky.social @placenames.bsky.social @ainmean-aite.bsky.social

Just settling in for the (online) @snsbi.bsky.social conference: Names Abroad: Names From Abroad, organised by Peder Gammeltoft (University of Bergen). I'll try to post some highlights from the papers. Looks like a great line up: www.snsbi.org.uk/2025_autumn_...

Our next name story comes from Glasgow, Scotland, and is written by Dr Alasdair Whyte, Lecturer in Celtic Onomastics at the University of Glasgow. www.snsbi.org.uk/exploring-na... @namestudies.bsky.social @ainmean-aite.bsky.social

Our next family name story is 'Hitchcock: a southern English family name' and is written by Peter McClure, Honorary Professor (Name Studies) at the University of Nottingham. @namestudies.bsky.social www.snsbi.org.uk/exploring-na... www.nottingham.ac.uk/english/peop...

Registration is now open for the SNSBI 2025 Autumn Day Conference, which will take place online via Zoom on Saturday 25 October (11.00 to 16.30) - do join us! Booking is via Eventbrite link: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/names-abro... Abstracts are available here: www.snsbi.org.uk/2025_autumn_...

Our congratulations to Emeritus Professor Hywel Wyn Owen, recent recipient of the Green Robes at the Gorsedd, the society of Welsh-language poets, writers, musicians and others who have contributed to the Welsh language and to public life in Wales. @placenames.bsky.social

@kfbullen.bsky.social has developed a useful and interesting site based on her research into Axholme place-names: axholmeplacenames.wordpress.com

Take a look at this new book by Liz Curtis on East Lothian place-names: spns.org.uk/resources/pl.... East Lothian is the Scottish county east of Edinburgh. The book shares a varied collection of place-names, providing windows on the past. @ainmean-aite.bsky.social @namestudies.bsky.social

Our next name story explores the archaeology of the place-name 'York', written by Diana Whaley, Emeritus Professor of Early Medieval Studies @newcastleuni.bsky.social. Explore the name's development reflected in the people/languages + layers of influence shown in buildings/archaeology.

Etymology of the day: spiders were once known as ‘attercops’, or ‘poison-heads’, because it was believed most spiders were venomous. The ‘cop’ element became the ‘cob’ in ‘cobweb’.

The SNSBI is now on LinkedIn! 👋 Give us a follow for content on names, place-names and events! www.linkedin.com/feed/update/...

Welcome to the first in a series of @snsbi.bsky.social name stories. This month, Peter McClure takes a look at the name 'attenborough'. Find out more about the famous brothers, the place-name which gave rise to the surname 'attenborough', & more about the surname... www.snsbi.org.uk/exploring-na...

Call for papers! The @snsbi.bsky.social autumn day online conference "Names Abroad - Names From Abroad" is on Sat 25/10/2025: A) Current Name Research in Scandinavia, of relevance to Britain/Ireland, B) Names of other origins in Britain and Ireland and elsewhere. Deadline for abstracts: 15 August.

Come join us @imc-leeds.bsky.social in 2026 to talk about names! Please share this CfP with anyone interested - all are welcome

I’m with @histassoc.bsky.social tonight talking all about how birds have been shaping and transforming our relationships with place for a very long time. Old places and old ways. Come join! Online, free, 19:30: www.history.org.uk/events/calen.... #thecuckooslea #naturewriting

At the Nottinghamshire Names Day, @beccagregs.bsky.social introduces place-names, their origins as descriptions of the world + importance of early spellings. www.nottingham.ac.uk/conference/f... @namestudies.bsky.social, @englishplacenames.bsky.social @snsbi.bsky.social @uonenglish.bsky.social

Next up: Introducing the place-names of Britain and Ireland; diverse landscapes, diverse human uses. Photo was taken at Ellenabeich, a small village on the isle of Seil, 7 miles southwest of Oban, in Scotland. @ainmean-aite.bsky.social www.snsbi.org.uk/exploring-na...

What is a name? This regular series of posts features pages from our new website: www.snsbi.org.uk/exploring-na... Let us know your thoughts below! @namestudies.bsky.social, @englishplacenames.bsky.social, @placenames.bsky.social, @logainm.bsky.social, spns.org.uk, www.ulsterplacenamesociety.org

Heads up - international workshop - call for papers! 'The social life of names and naming practices in migration contexts', Paris, 20-21 November 2025 calenda.org/1250904 anr.fr/Projet-ANR-2...

Come along to the University of Nottingham’s Nottinghamshire Names Day and discover how the names of places and people can tell us about history, languages, landscapes and culture, from ancient times to the present day. Find out more: www.nottingham.ac.uk/conference/f...

Fab exploration with folk from the North Lincolnshire Cultural Assembly looking at @bradford2025.co.uk. Highlights included community practices promoting wellbeing (integrating art, culture, health and care), youth advisory panel, and training community researchers. Much food for thought!

@snsbi.bsky.social 31st Spring Conference has begun at @stir.ac.uk with an evening lecture by Professor Richard Oram 'From Mountain to Moss and Forest: People, Land and Environment in Stirling and the Forth Valley'. A strategic place of power where kingdoms clash, not an untouched wilderness.

Many thanks to all who spoke at and attended 'History and Archives in Practice' yesterday: held jointly by @royalhistsoc.org, @ihr.bsky.social and The National Archives. This year's event brought together 130 historians & archivists to discuss collaborative practice and experience #skystorians 1/2

Wonderful afternoon to lead a walking tour of Bloomsbury with @adamchapman.bsky.social as part of #HAP25. Great to talk about how @vchlondon.bsky.social approaches to the built environment can use urban landscapes as archive.

Super day at #Hap25, sharing best practice working with community memories and narratives on the Flixborough exhibition @northlincsmuseum.bsky.social

Coming up in March, we look forward to hosting this year's 'History and Archives in Practice' day conference, on Weds 5th, with partners @ihr.bsky.social and The National Archives bit.ly/3XlcLbW #HAP25's theme is ‘Working with Memory', with contributions from historians and archivists #Skystorians

For updates on the latest research in place-names/names in England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland, come and join us at @snsbi.bsky.social's upcoming 2025 Spring Conference, which takes place from 11-14 April at the University of Stirling @stir.ac.uk. @namestudies.bsky.social

Definitely recommend the Merlin app from @cornellbirds.bsky.social - just a few of the flock whose songs greeted me in the woods this morning... @rspb.bsky.social #birds #birdsong #northlincolnshire

History and Archives in Practice 2025 registration is live! Join us, @royalhistsoc.bsky.social & TNA to explore 'Working with Memory: History, Storytelling and Practices of Remembrance' 📍 Senate House, University of London 🕰️ 5 March, 9:00–17:30 🎟 www.history.ac.uk/events/hap25