This is Ribchester, a village that grew from a first century Roman fort on the river Ribble in Lancashire (Lancastershire). You can see Pendle Hill in the background, famous for the tragic so-called Pendle Witches.
Pen -dle Hill actually means Hill Hill. 'Pen' means hill and the -dle comes from 'Dol', also meaning hill. The Romans used to adopt, as only seemed prudent and polite, the names of the resident local nature deities. They called the goddess of the Ribble- which floods-Belisama, from the Gaulish meaning The Powerful One or The Bright One. She is associated with the Roman goddess of Wisdom, Minerva/Athena.
The Ribble starts in N Yorkshire and is one of only a few rivers that courses westwards to the Irish Sea. There is a warning sign in the water. 'People have drowned here, swimming and wading. Don't be one of them.'
Beware Belisama.
Pen -dle Hill actually means Hill Hill. 'Pen' means hill and the -dle comes from 'Dol', also meaning hill. The Romans used to adopt, as only seemed prudent and polite, the names of the resident local nature deities. They called the goddess of the Ribble- which floods-Belisama, from the Gaulish meaning The Powerful One or The Bright One. She is associated with the Roman goddess of Wisdom, Minerva/Athena.
The Ribble starts in N Yorkshire and is one of only a few rivers that courses westwards to the Irish Sea. There is a warning sign in the water. 'People have drowned here, swimming and wading. Don't be one of them.'
Beware Belisama.
