The masculine name Tholf (normalized as ON þólfr) was a shortened form of ON þórulfr. The longer form is recorded mainly in Iceland, but þólfr (ODan Tholf) is characteristic of Denmark (von Feilitzen 1937: 389–90; Fellow Jensen 1968: 295, 317), and it must have been introduced to England from there. The point is underlined by the byname of the most prominent Tholf recorded in DB, the rich west country landowner Tholf the Dane (Tholf 2).
The identifications proposed here bring together the very varied DB spellings which have long been recognized as variants of Tholf with others which von Feilitzen assigned (often tentatively) to different head-forms: Teolf, Teos, Tous, and þurs. They also reassign to Tholf a handful of instances which he placed without equivocation under ON Tóli or OE Cuthwulf. Those last two are undoubtedly present in DB as the names of persons who were quite distinct from any of the Tholfs, but some of the instances listed by von Feilitzen (1937: 220, 386) seem rather to refer to Tholf the Dane.
The name Tholf clearly gave Norman officials and scribes a great deal of trouble: on the identifications made here, there are fifteen different spellings for a name which occurs only twenty-seven times. The particular pairing of consonants at the start and end of the name may well have been almost impossible for a native speaker of Norman French to pronounce, making a name which was unfamiliar anyway (because quite rare) highly susceptible to variation and miscopying.
There are no other persons called Tholf currently recorded in PASE.
Spellings in Domesday Book: Coolf, Teolf, Teos, Thol, Tholi, Tof, Tol, Tolf, Toli, Torsus, Tou, Toul, Toulf, Tous, Tulf
Spellings in Exon: Teulfus, Tolus, Torssus
Forms in modern scholarship:
von Feilitzen head forms: þólfr, with some spellings assigned to OE Cuðwulf (Coolf), Teolf (Teolf), Teos (Teos), Toli (Toli), Tous (Tous), and ON þurs (Torsus)
Phillimore edition: Tholf (Derb., Staffs., Wilts.), Tholfr (Yorks.), Tulf (Suff.), with some spellings assigned to Cuthwulf (Coolf), Teos (Teos), Theodulf (Teolf), Thurs (Torsus), and Toli (Thol, Tholi, Tol, Toli, Tou, Toul)
Alecto edition: Tholf, with some spellings assigned to Cuthwulf (Coolf), Teolf (Teolf), Teos (Teos), Thurs (Torsus), Toli (Tholi, Toli), and Tous (Tous)
Shire | Phil. ref. | Vill | Holder 1066 DB Spelling | Holder 1066 | Lord 1066 | Tenant-in-Chief 1086 | 1086 subtenant | Fiscal value | 1066 value | 1086 value | Holder 1066 ID conf. | Show on map |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Devon | 22,1 | Powderham | Torsus | Tholf the Dane | - | William d'Eu | Ranulph 'the man of William d'Eu' | 0.50 | 6.00 | 6.00 | B | Map |
Devon | 22,2 | Whitestone | Toli | Tholf the Dane | - | William d'Eu | Ranulph 'the man of William d'Eu' | 0.25 | 0.30 | 0.50 | B | Map |
Dorset | 34,14 | Stock Gaylard | Toul | Tholf the Dane | - | William d'Eu | Hugh Maltravers | 1.00 | 2.50 | 2.50 | A | Map |
Dorset | 34,15 | Stourton Caundle | Toul | Tholf the Dane | - | William d'Eu | Hugh Maltravers | 3.50 | 3.00 | 3.00 | A | Map |
Dorset | 34,2 | Bradford Peverell | Tol | Tholf the Dane | - | William d'Eu | William Belet | 17.00 | 12.00 | 12.00 | A | Map |
Dorset | 34,5 | Lytchett Matravers | Tholi | Tholf the Dane | - | William d'Eu | Hugh Maltravers | 12.00 | 9.00 | 10.00 | B | Map |
Dorset | 34,6 | Blandford St Mary | Tou | Tholf the Dane | - | William d'Eu | William Belet | 3.50 | 2.00 | 2.00 | A | Map |
Dorset | 34,6 | Blandford St Mary | Tou | Tholf the Dane | - | William d'Eu | William Belet | 0.50 | 0.15 | 0.15 | A | Map |
Dorset | 34,8 | Swyre | Tol | Tholf the Dane | - | William d'Eu | William Belet | 9.00 | 9.00 | 9.00 | A | Map |
Dorset | 34,12 | Tarrant | Toul | Tholf the Dane | - | William d'Eu | William Belet | 3.50 | 1.00 | 4.00 | A | Map |
Hampshire | 32,1 | Somborne | Tol | Tholf the Dane | Edward, king | William d'Eu | - | 14.00 | 14.00 | 16.00 | A | Map |
Hampshire | 32,2 | Deane | Thol | Tholf the Dane | Edward, king | William d'Eu | - | 20.00 | 10.00 | 12.00 | A | Map |
Hampshire | NF4,1 | Rowditch | Coolf | Tholf the Dane | Edward, king | William d'Eu | Bernard Pancevolt | 1.25 | 2.00 | 1.50 | B | Map |
Hampshire | IoW1,4 | Wellow | Coolf | Tholf the Dane | Edward, king | William, king | - | 2.00 | 10.00 | 15.00 | C | Map |
Somerset | 19,57 | Shepton Montague | Toli | Tholf the Dane | - | Robert, count of Mortain | Drew 'of Montacute' | 5.00 | 7.00 | 5.00 | C | Map |
Somerset | 26,8 | Tickenham | Teolf | Tholf the Dane | - | William d'Eu | - | 4.25 | 2.50 | 3.00 | B | Map |
Wiltshire | 25,23 | Upton Scudamore | Tous | Tholf the Dane | - | Ernulf de Hesdin | Regenbald the chancellor | 2.50 | 2.00 | 2.00 | C | Map |
Wiltshire | 29,3 | Bincknoll | Toli | Tholf the Dane | - | Gilbert de Breteuil | - | 1.75 | 0.90 | 0.90 | C | Map |
Wiltshire | 32,16 | Tollard Royal | Toli | Tholf the Dane | - | William d'Eu | - | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | B | Map |
Wiltshire | 32,17 | Upton Scudamore | Toli | Tholf the Dane | - | William d'Eu | Ansfrid 'of Frome Vauchurch' | 3.00 | 0.75 | 3.00 | B | Map |
Hampshire | NF4,1 | Rowditch | Coolf | Tholf the Dane | Edward, king | William, king | - | 0.25 | 0.25 | 0.25 | - | Map |
Staffordshire | 13,4 | Hanford | Toulf | Tholf 'of Tillington' | - | Richard the forester | Nigel 'of Stafford' | 0.25 | 0.10 | 0.10 | C | Map |
Staffordshire | 11,1 | Tillington | Tol | Tholf 'of Tillington' | - | Robert of Stafford | - | 3.00 | 1.50 | 1.50 | C | Map |
Suffolk | 7,148 | Rendham | Tulf | Tholf 'of Rendham' | Eadric of Laxfield | Roger Bigod | Ralph de Tourleville | 0.06 | 0.06 | 0.06 | A | Map |
Yorkshire | 1E16 | Reighton | Tof | Tholf 'of Reighton' | - | William, king | - | 2.50 | 0.40 | 0.40 | A | Map |
Derbyshire | 17,5 | Coal Aston | Tolf | Tholf 'of Coal Aston' | - | Leofwine 'of Coal Aston' | - | 0.69 | 1.00 | 1.00 | A | Map |
Derbyshire | 17,4 | Totley | Tolf | Tholf 'of Coal Aston' | - | 1 king's thegn 'of Totley' | - | 0.50 | 0.50 | 0.05 | A | Map |
Cheshire | R1,37 | Barton | Teos | Tholf 'of Barton' | Edward, king | Roger the Poitevin | - | 1.00 | 0.13 | 0.00 | A | Map |
Total | 113.75 | 99.04 | 111.91 |
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