Campaign to change name of hill in Cornwall called Brown Willy

Updated
Campaign to change name of hill in Cornwall called Brown Willy
Campaign to change name of hill in Cornwall called Brown Willy

Alamy


Red-faced locals are campaigning to change the name of the famous Brown Willy - in a bid to make it more attractive to tourists as well as residents.

Campaigners want the hill to be officially called its original 13th Century Cornish name, Bronn Wennili, meaning Hill of Swallows.

A former director at the Eden Project, Chris Hines, is championing the name-change, and told The Sun: "It has a lovely meaning 'Hill of Swallows', a name that the county and its people can be proud of and something that will be slightly more attractive to residents and tourists than Brown Willy.

"This isn't a case for dual names, one in English and one in Cornish. This is its proper name and should be its only name."

The hill's 1,378ft summet is the highest point of Bodmin Moor, and of Cornwall as a whole.

Because of this, it is sometimes suggested that the name came from Cornish bronn ughella meaning "highest hill".

But the toponymist Craig Weatherhill disagrees, as the name was Brunwenely c.1200, Bronwenely 1280, and Brounwenyly 1401.

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