Grantham

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A market town in Lincolnshire in the East Midlands of England, historically significant for its railway heritage and Georgian architecture
2. A town located in the county of Lincolnshire in central England, known for its important railway junction and connection to the Great North Road
3. An English town in Lincolnshire famous for its medieval church, railway history, and position as a stopping point on the Great North Road route

Etymology: Grantham is a market town in Lincolnshire, England, and its name is a compound of two Old English elements. The first is either "Granta," an Old English personal name, or "grand," meaning "gravel," so the place may have been named for a settler called Granta or for gritty, gravelly ground. The second element is "hām," meaning "homestead" or "village," the same root that gives modern English "home" and that appears in countless English place names ending in "-ham." The uncertainty over the first element is part of what makes the name interesting. Both readings are plausible, and the surviving evidence does not settle which one the first settlers had in mind. A personal name would make the town a homestead belonging to someone called Granta, while a gravel reading would describe a site where the ground was sandy or stony. Either way, the name records the rural origins of a place that later grew into a town.