Urchfont
| Urchfont | |
|---|---|
 St. Michael and All Angels parish church |
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 Urchfont
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| Urchfont shown within Wiltshire | |
| Population | 1,075 (in 2011) |
| OS grid reference | SU0457 |
| Civil parish |
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| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Devizes |
| Postcode district | SN10 |
| Dialling code | 01380 |
| Police | Wiltshire |
| Fire | Dorset and Wiltshire |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| EU Parliament | South West England |
| UK Parliament | |
| Website | Parish Council |
Urchfont is a rural village and civil parish in the Vale of Pewsey to the north of Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, about 7 miles (11 km) southeast of the market town of Devizes. The parish includes the hamlets of Wedhampton (grid reference SU060577) and Lydeway (SU052578). The population of Urchfont taken at the 2011 Census was 1,075.
The name of Urchfont is often thought to derive from the phrase "Church Fountain" and is possibly derived from Latin fons meaning 'spring, fountain, well' (cf. fount), or the first element may be a lost personal name such as Eohric. Over 100 variations of the spelling are recorded; e.g. Lerchesfonte (1086), Erchesfonte(e) (1175, 1605), Erkesfonte (1175), Archesfunte (font)(1179, 1376, 1426), Ur(i)chesfunte (1242, 1289), Orchesfunte (1259), Orcheffunte (1428), Archfounte al. Urshent (1564), Urchefount al. Urshent (1611), Urshent al. Erchfont (1695). Shown to the left is the present-day village hall, erected in 1929-1930 by local villagers, which bears the name "Erchfont". Locally, the colloquial pronunciation of Urchfont is Ushant and in the modern day, it is often known as "Urnt".
The village is in the 'Urchfont and the Cannings' electoral ward. This ward starts in the south at Easterton, stretches through Urchfont to end in the north at Bishops Cannings. The population of this ward taken at the 2011 census was 4,350.
The civil parish elects a parish council. It is in the area of Wiltshire Council unitary authority, which is responsible for all significant local government functions.
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