Meanings
- A county in the Northeast of England; in full, County Durham.
- A city, the county town of County Durham, England.
- A unitary authority of County Durham, which replaced the county council in 2009 in all of County Durham except Darlington, Hartlepool and Stockton-on-Tees; in full, Durham County Council.
- An English habitational surname from Old English from the city in England.
- An outback town in Queensland, Australia.
- A locale in Canada.
- A community in New Brunswick; named for Lord Durham, Governor General of Canada.
- A community in West Grey, Grey County, Ontario.
- A regional municipality east of Toronto Ontario; in full, Regional Municipality of Durham.
- A locale in the United States.
- A census-designated place in Butte County, California; named for California politician W. W. Durham.
- A town and census-designated place therein, in Middlesex County, Connecticut; named for the city in England.
- An unincorporated community in Walker County, Georgia; named for Durham Coal and Coke Company.
- A township in Hancock County, Illinois.
- A minor city in Marion County, Kansas; named for the breed of cattle.
- A town in Androscoggin County, Maine; named for County Durham, England.
- An unincorporated community in Lewis County, Missouri; named for a railroad employee.
- A town and census-designated place therein, in Strafford County, New Hampshire.
- A town in Greene County, New York; named for the town in Connecticut.
- A city, the county seat of Durham County, North Carolina; named for landowner Bartlett S. Durham.
- A township in Durham County, North Carolina, most of which is in the city.
- An unincorporated community in Roger Mills County, Oklahoma; named for postmaster Doris Durham Morris.
- A city in Washington County, Oregon; named for pioneer and Oregon Territory legislator Alberto Alonzo Durham.
- A township and unincorporated community therein, in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.
Synonyms & antonyms
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Old Norseholm“islet, island”
- Old EnglishDūnholm
- EnglishDurham
From Old English Dūnholm, which is from dun (“hill”) + Old Norse holm (“islet, island”). In order to get from Dunholm to Durham, two major processes had to take place. Firstly, the n at the coda of the first syllable, dun, underwent dissimilation. Specifically, by influence of the m in the coda of the following syllable (holm), said n denasalised and lenited to the oral r, thus dur. Secondly, after a weakening of the vowel quality in the more weakly-stressed syllable holm, this ending was misanalysed as the similar-sounding toponymic suffix, -ham, meaning home or farm. Doublet of Duresm and Dunelm.
More words from Old English, Old Norse
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian Дърам, Дърам
- Дърам (Dăram)city and county in England
- Дърам (Dăram)city in North Carolina
Czech Durham, Durham
- Durhamcity and county in England
- Durhamcity in North Carolina
Dutch Durham, Durham
- Durhamcity and county in England
- Durhamcity in North Carolina
Estonian Durham, Durham
- Durhamcity and county in England
- Durhamcity in North Carolina
Finnish Durham, Durham
- Durhamcity and county in England
- Durhamcity in North Carolina
French Durham, Durham
- Durhamcity and county in England
- Durhamcity in North Carolina
Italian Durham, Durham
- Durhamcity and county in England
- Durhamcity in North Carolina
Latin Dūnelmum
- Dūnelmumcity and county in England
Latvian Darema, Darema
- Daremacity and county in England
- Daremacity in North Carolina
Lithuanian Daramas, Daramas
- Daramascity and county in England
- Daramascity in North Carolina
Polish Durham, Durham
- Durhamcity and county in England
- Durhamcity in North Carolina
Portuguese Durham, Durham
- Durhamcity and county in England
- Durhamcity in North Carolina
Romanian Durham, Durham
- Durhamcity and county in England
- Durhamcity in North Carolina
Russian Да́рем, Да́рем
- Да́рем (Dárem)city and county in England
- Да́рем (Dárem)city in North Carolina
Slovak Durham, Durham
- Durhamcity and county in England
- Durhamcity in North Carolina
Spanish Durham, Durham
- Durhamcity and county in England
- Durhamcity in North Carolina
Swedish Durham, Durham
- Durhamcity and county in England
- Durhamcity in North Carolina
Turkish Durham, Durham
- Durhamcity and county in England
- Durhamcity in North Carolina
Ukrainian Да́рем, Да́рем
- Да́рем (Dárem)city and county in England
- Да́рем (Dárem)city in North Carolina
Rhymes & wordplay
Sounds the same
Anagrams
Cite this entry
Durham. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Durham
“Durham.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Durham. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Durham,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Durham.
Source: Durham on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.