Meanings
proper noun
- A small town and civil parish in Northumberland, England (OS grid ref NU0501).
- A small town in the Cessnock council area, eastern New South Wales, Australia.
- A village in Oceana County, Michigan, United States.
Origin
- Old Englishbyriġ
- Old Norserauðr“red”
- Middle EnglishRothebyr
- EnglishRothbury
From Middle English Rothebyr, probably from Old Norse rauðr (“red”) + Old English byriġ, dative singular of burh (“fort”), since the bedrock in the area is red. However, the first element could alternatively come from Old English personal name *Hroþa, thus 'Hrotha's fort'.
More words from Middle English, Old Norse, Old English
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
APA
Rothbury. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Rothbury
MLA
“Rothbury.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Rothbury. Accessed November 3, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Rothbury,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Rothbury.
Source: Rothbury on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.