Mawbray

Mawbray is a village in the civil parish of Holme St Cuthbert in Cumbria, England. Historically part of Cumberland. It is located on the Solway Plain, south west of Silloth, north of Maryport, and west of Carlisle. The B5300, known locally as the "coast road" runs to the west of the village. Mawbray serves as the hub of a community of several smaller hamlets, including Beckfoot, Goodyhills, Hailforth, Holme St Cuthbert, Jericho, Newtown, Salta, and Tarns. The name "Mawbray" is believed to be derived from Latin, meaning "a maiden's castle or fort". This would be consistent with Roman mile-forts known to exist nearby on the coast, especially in the Maryport area. A Roman fortlet, known as Milefortlet 16, has been located at the west end of the village. Alternatively, the early forms of the first element seem to be from Old English mæge, later replaced by Maw from the variant māge. The second element is burh, which means a "fortified place, town, or manor house", and the name means "the maidens' stronghold", or, "maidens' castle". The early form of the name was Mayburgh, and additional variants include Mayburg, Mawbrey, Malbrough, and Malbrew. Some variants, such as Olde Malbraw and Old Mawbery add an "Old" prefix, to distinguish the village from "New Mawbray", two miles to the north, today known as Newtown. This part of the west Cumbrian coastline has a very long history. The area that today forms Mawbray would have been uninhabitable by humans until around 11,000 BC, as it was covered in ice sheets from the last ice age. Archaeological evidence from Mawbray and the surrounding area shows clear evidence of human activity and habitation as early as 4000 BC, as a ditched enclosure with large post-holes in an 'annexe' was excavated at nearby Plasketlands, as has been identified as being from the early Neolithic period. The archaeologist in charge of the expedition, R. H. Bewley, called the find their "best evidence for permanent settlement" on the Solway Plain.