Chaceley Explained

Official Name:	Chaceley
Civil Parish:	Chaceley
Country:	England
Region:	South West England
Coordinates:	51.9742°N -2.2088°W
Hide Services:	Yes
Population:	125
Population Ref:	(2011 census)
Area Total Km2:	6.703
Static Image:	Chaceley Church - geograph.org.uk - 564836.jpg

Chaceley or Chaseley^[1] is a village and civil parish 8miles north of Gloucester,^[2] in the Tewkesbury district, in the county of Gloucestershire, England. In 2011 the parish had a population of 125.^[3] The parish touches Deerhurst, Eldersfield, Forthampton, Tewkesbury and Tirley.^[4]

Etymology

The name Chaceley is first attested in a charter of 972 (surviving in an eleventh-century manuscript), as Ceatewesleah. From the Domesday Book of 1086, through the fourteenth century, the name appears in forms such as Chad(d)esleia and Chad(d)eslega. A closer precusor to the modern form is attested from 1185, as Chaseleia, with Chaseley appearing in the seventeenth century. The form Ched(d)eslega is also attested a couple of times, on one occasion datable to 1167.^{[5] [6] [7]}

Scholars agree that the last element of the name derives from the common Old English work English, Old (ca.450-1100);: lēah ("cleared land amidst woodland"). But the origin of the beginning of the name is uncertain. There has been speculation that it might derive from a personal name such as *Cēatwe, but recent commentators prefer the suggestion that the names derives from the Common Brittonic words that survive in modern Welsh as Welsh: coed ("wood") and either a place-name-forming suffix Welsh: ow or the noun Welsh: yw ("yew"). Thus the name once meant "forest-place" or "yew-forest". No longer understood by Old English-speakers, it then became part of a new place-name meaning something like "cleared land at Cedow".^{[8] [9] [10]}

History

On 1931 the parish was transferred from Worcestershire to Gloucestershire.^[11] On 1 April 1965 44 acres were transferred to Eldersfield parish.^[12]

Landmarks

There are 20 listed buildings in Chaceley.^[13] Chaceley has a church called St John the Baptist^[14] and a village hall.^[15]

Notes and References

1. Web site: History of Chaceley, in Tewkesbury and Worcestershire. A Vision of Britain through Time. 9 July 2021.
2. Web site: Distance from Chaceley [51.975206, 2.209625]]. GENUKI. 9 July 2021.
3. Web site: Chaceley. City Population De.. 9 July 2021.
4. Web site: Chaceley. Ordnance Survey. 9 July 2021.
5. Web site: Parishes: Chaceley. British History Online. 9 July 2021.
6. Book: The Cambridge Dictionary of English Place-Names, Based on the Collections of the English Place-Name Society . Cambridge University Press . 2004 . 9780521168557 . Watts . Victor . Cambridge., s.v. Chaceley.
7. A. H. Smith, The Place-names of Gloucestershire, English Place-Name Society, 38–41, 4 vols (Cambridge : University Press, 1964–65), ii, 56.
8. A. H. Smith, The Place-Names of Gloucestershire, English Place-Names Society, 38–41, 4 vols (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1964–65), II p. 56.
9. Web site: Chaceley Key to English Place-names. The University of Nottingham. 9 July 2021.
10. Book: Coates, Richard . Celtic Voices, English Places: Studies of the Celtic Impact on Place-Names in Britain . Breeze . Andrew . Tyas . 2000 . 1900289415 . Stamford. .
11. Web site: Tewkesbury Registration District. UKBMDA. 9 July 2021.
12. Web site: Chaceley CP/Ch through time. A Vision of Britain through Time. 9 July 2021.
13. Web site: Listed buildings in Chaceley, Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire. British Listed Buildings. 9 July 2021.
14. Web site: St John the Baptist. A Church Near You. 9 July 2021.
15. Web site: Village Hall. GRCC. 9 July 2021.