Frankby

Frankby (ˈfræŋkbi) is a village and former civil parish, now in the unparished area of Hoylake, in the Wirral district, in Merseyside, England. It is located on the Wirral Peninsula between Greasby and Newton on the outskirts of the town of West Kirby. The hamlet of Larton is to the north west. Historically within the county of Cheshire, it is part of the Greasby, Frankby and Irby Ward and is in the parliamentary constituency of Wirral West. According to the 2001 census, of a total ward population of 14,667, 310 people live in Frankby. In the 2011 census, population figures specific to Frankby were not available. However, the total population of Greasby, Frankby and Irby Ward was 13,991. The name Frankby come from the Old Norse Frankis-býr, likely referring to "Frank's/Franki's (Frenchman's) farm or settlement". Although it could also be interpreted as a personal name. The "býr" suffix, included in neighbouring place names such as Greasby, Irby and Pensby, applies to settlements believed to be Viking in origin. The settlement of Frankby was supposedly mentioned in the Domesday Book entry for neighbouring Greasby. Eight households are recorded: "3 villagers. 1 smallholder. 2 slaves. 2 Frenchmen." The name has been variously spelt over time as Frankeby (1230), Fraunkbi (1346) and Fraunkeley (1421). Frankby was formerly a township and chapelry in the West Kirby parish of the Wirral Hundred. From 1866 Frankby was a civil parish in its own right, on 1 April 1974 the parish was abolished. From 1866 Frankby was part of Wirral Rural Sanitary District, which was replaced in 1894 by Wirral Rural District. In 1933 the village transferred to Hoylake Urban District. On 1 April 1974, local government reorganisation in England and Wales resulted in most of the Wirral Peninsula, including Frankby, transfer from the county of Cheshire to Merseyside. The population of the village was 90 in 1801, 138 in 1851, 248 in 1901 and 413 in 1951.