Place Name
Directional, the road leading to Hainault. The name Hainault was first recorded as Henehout in 1221 and later Hyneholt, less than 20 years later. It comes from the Old English words hīwan and holt meaning a wood belonging to a monastic community, referring to the ownership of Hainault Forest, part of the far larger Epping Forest, by Barking Abbey. The spelling was altered from the 17thCentury because of a supposed connection to Philippa of Hainault, wife of Edward III.
