Does anyone know why...

[Izzy_140]

in novels written by authors such as the bronte's and jane austin, why they wrote place names as -shire rather than writing the actual place name?


thanks in advance to everyone who replies :)


/zzy

[Whifflingpin]

Do you mean, a) Nottinghamshire, rather than Nottingham -
or b) -shire rather than Nottinghamshire?

If a) then it is because Nottingham is a city, and Nottinghamshire means the county of Nottingham, i.e. an area of land of which Nottingham is the major city (or the land governed by the Earl [Count] of Nottingham.)

If b) then it was to make it seem more realistic - the author was saying, "I cannot tell you exactly where this is, because if I do you may know the people I'm talking about."

Later writers commonly avoided using blankshire by inventing a name, from which people could easily guess the place that they were talking about. Most famously, all the Wessex names in the Hardy novels; but many other Victorians and Edwardians did the same.

[Izzy_140]

thanks :D

i guess i wasn't very clear - i meant b)

thank you for helping me :)


/zzy