Carleton

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A proper name borne as a surname or given to places, such as Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada
2. A family name, or the name of several towns and institutions, most notably a university in Ottawa, Ontario
3. Used as a surname and as the name of various places, including a well-known Canadian university in Ottawa

Etymology: "Carleton" is an alternative spelling of "Carlton," and the name goes back to two Old English words: "ceorl," meaning a freeman (a man of the lower free classes rather than a noble), and "tun," meaning a farmstead or enclosure that later came to mean a town. Put together, the name meant something like "freeman's settlement." Its twin is "Charlton," the same name with the opposite pronunciation of the opening sound. The split between the two forms comes from a sound change. Both began with a "ch" sound, as in "church," but in some places that sound hardened into a "k," and "Carlton" follows that path. The source credits Old Norse influence for this shift. Old Norse was spoken by Scandinavian settlers in northern and eastern England, and their language left a lasting mark on the dialects of those regions, where the older "ch" often became "k." The name is now mainly known as a place-name and personal name, with "Carlton" more common in British and American usage today, and "Carleton" appearing mostly as a variant spelling.