Note 32 — Chapter II

There has been a difference of opinion respecting the derivation of the name, which is not likely to be settled. The common notion is, that the first letter is an abbreviation of Bella. Some suppose the first syllable, Bec, to be derived from the name of an abbey in Normandy. A third interpretation may be suggested. Bec de terre, a point of land, was sufficiently descriptive of the spot, while the marshes which lie west, north, and east of the town, remained under water. Bec and eglise might be compounded into Becclys, the ancient orthography. It has been surmised that the town may have owed its origin to its site having “protruded into the ancient river” and served during the Roman, Saxon, and Danish invasions, as a convenient situation for placing a beacon or signal.—Gillingwater’s History of Lowestoft, p. 26. At all events, the Rev. Geo. Crabbe has been led into an error in supposing the name to be derived from the present “beautiful church,” nor does it appear why he prefers “beata” to “bella.” Crabbe’s Life and Works, vol. i. p. 147.