Take the tour ×  I live in the south west of England and there
are many villages and roads that feature the word "Clyst". For
example, Broadclyst, Clyst St Mary, Clyst Honiton and so on.
What does clyst mean, and where does it come from?
share|improve this question add comment  3 Answers  up vote 11
down vote accepted  Clyst is the name of the river and all the
localities you cite are on its banks.  Presumably all the Clyst
St xxx are named after the saints to whom the various churches
were dedicated. The villages being named after the churches.
Broadclyst is when the valley or the river itself broadens
downstream.  Clyst is a Celtic name meaning 'clear stream'.(the
Devon shire is named after the Celtic Devon tribe that was
living there before the Roman conquest), just like Avon or
Thames.  Other Celtic words that made it into the English
toponymy are "crag", meaning "rock", "coombe", meaning "deep
valley" (also in French), "tor" meaning "peak", "car-" (remember
Harold's Carlisles) meaning "a fortified pla