 The castle was originally called Dinham Castle, before it took on the name of Ludlow.A possible alternative is that Dinham takes its name from Josce de Dinan, a major landowner in the area in the 12th century, though this is regarded as erroneous on the balance of evidence with the similarity being a coincidence.The town is situated close to Wales, and lies near the midpoint of the England–Wales border; it is also very close to the county border between Shropshire and Herefordshire (neighbouring Ludford remained part of Herefordshire until 1895).