2 Matching Annotations
  1. May 2023
  2. Jul 2022
    1. Lindisfarne’s

      Historia Brittorum, chapter 65, states that Medcaut is the name of the island on which St Cuthbert died. This was not Lindisfarne, but the nearby, smaller, island of Inner Farne. I believe this works better with the proposed etymology - Inner Farne would make a suitable location for growing medicinal plants which could be dangerous to livestock (or careless monks). It would also be a suitable location for isolation for fear of communicable sicknesses. Cuthbert himself, of course, endured severe symptoms while there (notwithstanding his primary reason for contemplative isolation - indeed his desire for solitude could well be linked to his illness).