Toponymy is the study of place names. Typically the definitions are simply a matter of natural or geographic origin (river / hill / forest / swamp / pool) or human settlements (fort / camp / castle) or climate or colour (hot / light / white or cold / black / dark) or founders (conquerors / saints) or basic trading conditions (safe harbour). Some however have come on quite a journey; others have been handed down by folklore, myth or legend. Not all are fully understood and often they are apocryphal causing scholars to tear their hair out in disputing the derivations.
