Wetwang

Name

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.

The name is jokingly defined in The Meaning of Liff by Douglas Adams as meaning "a moist penis". In some varieties of English, wang or whang is a slang term for penis. The name Wetwang has frequently been noted on lists of unusual place names.

History

The village is known for its Iron Age chariot burial cemetery at Wetwang Slack,{{cite web |access-date=12 February 2011}} and it has been speculated that the unlocated Romano-British town of Delgovicia may have been at what is now Wetwang.

Before the Norman Conquest (TRE) Ealdraed held Wetwang, and it was worth £4 per year in rent. The village is mentioned twice in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Wetuuangha. The lesser mention simply records its existence: "In Wetwang the archbishop carucates". The mention is under "Warter Hundred" on original folio 381V: East Riding. Earlier in the Domesday Book, there is a fuller description (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. In Wetwang there were 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. After the conquest, Wetwang was waste land held by Archbishop Thomas.

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. It is on the Sykes Churches Trail devised by the East Yorkshire Churches Group. The church has a ring of three bells (tenor in A), the oldest of which (the tenor) dates from .{{cite web | access-date = 8 June 2022}}

Wetwang was once known for its black swans, after which the village pub, the Black Swan, is named.{{cite web |access-date=12 February 2011}}

Public transport

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

Honorary mayor

Richard Whiteley of the Channel 4 quiz show Countdown held the honorary title Mayor of Wetwang from 1998 until his death in 2005.{{cite news |access-date=12 February 2011}} On 25 June 2006, local weather forecaster Paul Hudson from BBC Look North was invested as Whiteley's successor.{{cite web |access-date=12 February 2011}}

References

References

1. 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.
2. (1983). "The Meaning of Liff". [[Pan Books]].
3. "Wang".
4. "wang (n.)".
5. {{cite OED. Whang. 1010826372
6. Lyall, Sarah. (22 January 2009). "No Snickering: That Road Sign Means Something Else". [[The New York Times]].
7. "13 Town Names We Can't Stop Laughing Over". Cosmopolitan.
8. (1979). "The Place-Names of Roman Britain". B. T. Batsford.
9. (2003). "Domesday book: a complete translation". Penguin Books.
10. {{National Heritage List for England
11. "Sykes Churches Trail Southern Route". East Yorkshire Historic Churches Group<!--.
12. {{Butt-Stations
13. "Service 135". East Yorkshire Motor Services.