Etymology

Digby

Dig·by
D2I1G2B3Y4

Today it means: A suburb of Exeter, Devon, England (OS grid ref SX9591). Full definition →

Old English dīc ← Old Norse býr
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The story

  1. Old Norse · derived frombýr“settlement”
  2. Old English · derived fromdīc“dyke”
  3. English todayDigby

From Old English dīc (“dyke”) + Old Norse býr (“settlement”). The town in Nova Scotia is named after admiral Robert Digby (1732 - 1815).

Words from the same roots

Old Norsebýr all →

rugbyAshbyCosbyApplebyBOEDenbyBarnabyDanbyBixbyKilbySaxbyKelbyWelbyBeebyMellanbyEllerbyAglionbyFenby-byby-CarperbyLoseby

First known use, by meaning

  • From 1783 A town in Nova Scotia, Canada.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.