Winter Hill - the Setantii's Blessed Hill...

View from the Two Lads to The Pike Tower at sunset in August (2014)

I have previously written about the etymology of the name "Winter Hill", concluding that it may derive from a layering of Old Welsh, Old Norse and Old English, from "Gwyn-Týr-Hield", meaning “Blessed-God-Hill” - the oldest element of which simply being "Blessed Hill". 

This blog entry discusses some of the possible explanations why the inhabitants of prehistoric Lancashire considered this hill to be blessed...

In the Pagan religion, a great emphasis was placed on boundaries between the earth and water; being a symbolic threshold between two worlds, having sacred and magical properties. 

Water itself was divine, it inexplicably fell from the skies or rose from a spring in the earth, pure and clear.  It gathered in brooks and becks high up in the hills, formed rivers that deepened and widened as it made its way through valley and over dale, finally being released into the seemingly endless streams of Ocean.  It's course represented that of a life's journey; starting young, pure and fragile, ending-up old and great before passing into infinity - then being reincarnated at its source, to begin over again.

Anne Ross noted in her book Pagan Celtic Britain (1967), Chapter 1. Sanctuaries, Temples and Cult Sites:

“Springs, wells and rivers are of first and enduring importance as a focal point of Celtic cult practice and ritual. Rivers are important in themselves, being associated… with fertility and with deities such as the divine mothers and the sacred bulls...

That springs served as shrines in the northern region [of Britain] is evidenced not only by the cult of Coventia and of the local nymphs at Carrawbrough, but also by the reliefs depicting nymphs from High Rochester, and by the dedications to such local Cumbrian goddesses as Latis, goddess of the bog or pool...

The evidence, taken in its entirety, suggests that certain natural or prominent artificial features formed the [focus] of ritual practice...

For example, a certain well or spring… over which a… cult legend evolved, dealing with the patron deity of the well, or the source of a river, worship extending beyond the spring to embrace the flowing water itself"

Westerly view of a mid-summer sunset (August 2014) from Wilder's Moor, 
looking over the Irish Sea in the distance with  the Pike Tower silhouetted 
in the foreground - note, the glinting reflection of  the sunset off the water, 
being the mouth of the River Ribble (Bellisama Fluivis)

It is my hypothesis that Winter Hill was such a site of cult pagan worship in the pre-Roman period due to the attributes of its geography, an explanation of which I will now discuss.

From the top of Winter Hill the Irish Sea is clearly visible to the West, looking over the Lancashire plain.  Also visible is the mouth of the River Ribble, being released into the Irish Sea (see image to the right). 

During the pre-Roman period, the River Ribble was held in high regard by the local prehistoric inhabitants as being a divine river.

Around 150 AD, Claudius Ptolemy wrote his famous Geographia, compiling the geographical knowledge of the 2nd Century Roman Empire.  On his “Mappus Britanicae”, Ptolemy names (in order along the Lancashire Coast, from north to south): 

1. “Moricambe Aestuarium” - referring to Morecambe Bay; 
2. "Portus Setantiorum" - meaning “Seaport of the Setantii"; 
3. “Bellisama Fluivis” - identified as the hydronym for the River Ribble; and 
4. “Seteia Fluivis” - identified as the hydronym for the River Mersey. 

Focusing primarily on "Bellisama Fluivis”, being a reference to the River Ribble - Belisama is the name of a Celtic goddess, linked to the goddess Brigantia.  Anne Ross (1967) noted that the goddess Brigantia, or "the High One", was the patron goddess of the Brigante Tribe, and can be regarded as being the primary deity in their pantheon.

In pre-Roman times, the Brigante Tribe was the most powerful tribe in the British Isles, controlling the present day North of England, from the Southern Scottish Borders, to the river Dee in Cheshire and over the Pennines to Yorkshire.  Their capital was at "Isurium Brigantum", modern day Aldborough in Yorkshire.

"Portus Setantiorum" or "Sea Port of the Setantii" comes from the Setantii Tribe, a sub-tribe of the Brigantes who occupied modern day central-Lancashire and the Fylde Coast.  The exact location of the sea-port noted by Ptolemy still remains a mystery, but many place it on the Fleetwood peninsula.  An interesting read in these regards is William Ashton's book, The Evolution of a Coast-line, Barrow to Aberystwyth and the Isle of Man, with notes on Lost Towns, Submarine Discoveries, &c (1920).

The name "Setantii" is claimed to mean “the dwellers in the country of water”.  The capital of the Setantii tribe is unknown; however, it could be assumed that their capital was in close proximity to water (as their name suggests), perhaps being a sea port or close to a river, matching the location of the Fleetwood peninsula, as described by Ptolemy.

Interestingly, Hampson in his book Horwich: Its History, Legends and Church (1894) notes that the forest of Horwich was: "safely in the possession of the capital of the Setantii (Blackrod)".  I do not know where he got this information from, as he does not reference it, but it intrigues me!  If anyone can shed any light on this I would be much appreciated...

It is safe to assume that the pre-Roman inhabitants of Lancashire regarded the River Ribble as the embodiment of a mother-deity; a most sacred object of worship... now lets see how this links to Winter Hill...

The River Douglas is a primary tributary of the River Ribble, being the closest tributary to its mouth.  The course of the River Douglas (“Douglas” from Old Welsh “bubh”, meaning “black”, and “glas” meaning “stream”) can be traced to its source "Douglas Springs", which happens to be at the top of Winter Hill!

As already noted, the Pagan inhabitants of pre-Roman Lancashire would have considered this spring to be sacred, as being the birth place of their goddess Bellisama.

As noted by Anne Ross (1967):

It is not difficult to appreciate the psychology underlying the veneration of the source of a great river or of a powerful spring. The obvious and visible link with fertility and life itself would cause these natural features to become… tangible manifestations of the invisible powers they worshiped.” 

Accordingly, I surmise that Winter Hill would have been a place of great importance in pre-roman times, being regarded as an important and deeply sacred place to the Setantii Tribe (possibly also the Brigante Tribe), as the location of the sacred springs that gave birth to their beloved and most high goddess Bellisama (or Brigantia).  

I believe that this justifies my suggested etymology of the potential original name of the hill, being “Blessed-God-Hill”.

Let me know know what you think about his blog - post your comments below. 

Winter Hill - the clue is in the name... a suggested etymology... 

Aerial View of Winter Hill (source: Dave Lane’s Winter Hill Scrapbook)

Winter Hill is likely to have held religious significance among the prehistoric inhabitants of the North West of England, and I believe that the evidence of this is written into the modern name of Winter Hill itself...

Maps from 1610 and 1724 give the name as “Egberden Hill”, and Owen in his booklet “Rivington & District before 1066 AD” notes that the name Egberden Hill is:

“supposed to have arisen from one of the early kings who hunted in the surrounding forest. The most likely candidate is – Egbert, king of Wessex 800 to 836 AD who by 828 AD had included Northumbria, and therefore Lancashire, in his kingdom”.

However, the name Egberden Hill is not the oldest known name on record.  Earlier documents from the 13th Century indicate that Winter Hill was called "Wintyrhold" and / or "Wintyrheld", with the meaning suggested to be from the Old English word “wynter” meaning “winter” and “hyll” meaning “hill”.


Local tales describe how the hill got its name.  Specifically, that the weather on the hill is harsh and its landscape barren, making it always like winter up there!  Or, that there is a certain cotton-grass that grows with a white-tufty blossom and flowers between April and June, making the hill look white from afar, as if covered by snow, even in summer!

When you take a closer look at these local tales, they don't appear to make sense... firstly (for those who have never been up Winter Hill), I can vouch for the fact that it isn't always like winter up there!  Sure, in winter it gets pretty rough, but no more so than any of the other hills in the vicinity (and those hills are not given the same cold reputation).  Indeed, for large parts of the summer months it is most pleasant.  Also, for those who have never seen Winter Hill, it rarely appears to be snow covered and white in the summer!  Finally, as noted on page 20 in Dave Lane’s Winter Hill Scrapbook:

“Winter Hill – and the surrounding upland areas – have not always been as bare and empty as they now appear. At one time they were forested… The process of deforestation started as soon as human settlements began in the area… One pollen analysis investigation of Winter Hill showed a clearly defined woodland clearance of the area in the Norse period… followed by considerable woodland regeneration thought to be through the Middle Ages”

The Middle Ages spanned from the 5^th to 15^th Centuries, and the Norse period of Britain spanned over the 8^th and 9^th centuries within that period, meaning that the forest would have regenerated considerably by the 13^th century (the period when the hill is referred to as "Wintyrhold").   With Winter Hill covered in trees, it would not be as barren and windswept as it is in modern times, making it even less likely to have been given the name "Winter" back then, in reference to its environment; in fact, it is more likely to have been a place of refuge during winter, where people could seek shelter, with the trees as protection.  

Let’s look to find a more logical meaning by studying those older names in more detail...

The suggested Old English word “wynter” is slightly different from the historically recorded name “wintyr” - lets analyse the two components of this word, being "win” and “tyr”:

Firstly, looking at the "win" component, it would appear to be a corruption of "wyn", which is an Old Welsh mutation of the Welsh word "gwyn”, which means "white", "shining, or literally "visible", and also "blessed".  The Welsh language evolved from the Common Brittonic language, being the ancient Celtic language spoken throughout Britain; accordingly, the most ancient element of the name of the hill may be “Gwyn”, ultimately meaning "Blessed".  

The association of the name to the colour white is an extremely interesting find.  This links nicely to the local tale of the hill appearing to look white from afar, even in summer (which it simply doesn't!) - this may be an example of folklore remembering the place being associated in some way to the Old Welsh word for white, being the blessed colour of purity... 

The element "tyr", has two potential etymological meanings.  Firstly, coming from a corruption of "tor", from “tŵr” in Old Welsh meaning "hill", "look out" or "tower"– this certainly fits certain theories of the hill being used as a signaling point or look-out by the Romans - giving the hill the possible Old Welsh name of "Gwyn-Tŵr" or "Blessed Hill". Alternatively, "tyr" could derive from the Old Norse word “Týr”, which is a Norse God associated with law and heroic glory, cognisant with “Thor”, but more generally “God” - this results in the hill possibly having a culturally-layered Old Welsh and Old Norse name of “Gwyn-Týr” (meaning "Blessed God").

Evidence of the layering of place names is prevalent throughout the British Isles, with waves of successive cultures re-naming places by placing an epithet to its existing indigenous name, a method of cultural invasion and a way to subjugate the local peoples and claiming the land.  The Vikings were prevalent in the North West of England during the Viking Age (aka the Norse Period - 793 AD to 1066 AD).  They may have noted that the indigenous peoples revered the hill as "Blessed", and so renamed it by adding their word "God" to it, recognising their own god of victory (perhaps even honoring the specific victory when the hill was won in battle!?!).

Now considering “hold" or "held”, it is suggested that this is a later adage that comes from the Old English “hyld" or "hield”, which means “incline", "slope" or "hill”.  However, another suggestion is that this also comes from the Old Norse word “hlif” meaning “shield", "shelter" or "protector”; potentially suggesting the survival significance of the hill, linking it again to it's trees providing protection from the harsh weather in winter (as noted above).

So, the name “Winter Hill” in modern English, comes from “Wintyrhold” in Old English, which has its root etymology either:

1. from Old Welsh, being “Gwyn-Tŵr” meaning “Blessed Hill” (possibly it's original name);
2. from Old Welsh and Old English, being "Gwyn-Tŵr-Hield" meaning “Blessed Hill Hill”;
3. from Old Welsh and Old Norse, being “Gwyn-Týr-Hilf” meaning “Blessed God Protector” (possibly it's name during the Norse Period); or
4. from Old Welsh, Old Norse and Old English, being "Gwyn-Týr-Hield" meaning “Blessed God Hill” (possibly its name in the post-Nordic period).

I think that you will agree that all of these etymological origins have very similar meanings - it would appear that Winter Hill has been worshiped throughout pre-history, by successive inhabitants of the land - I personally favour the name "Gwyn-Týr-Hield" meaning “Blessed God Hill”... being a marvelous example of the layering of Old Welsh, Old Norse and Old English onto a place of great historical importance in the North West of England.

I hope you found this interesting??? Please don't be shy, let me know what you are thinking in the comments below...

P.S. For those who are interested, an excellent source of information regarding Winter Hill is Dave Lane’s Winter Hill Scrapbook – I have been trying to contact Dave Lane by email over the past year with no luck; if anyone knows him, or has his contact details, please feel free to connect us.