This Saturday, on 21 June, a joint Royal Australian Historical Society and Professional Historians Association NSW workshop will explore how the name of a place can form a historical record in its own right.
Toponymy is the study of place names. These names form a fluid layer of the landscape, with many being added, modified or even forgotten over time.
This 3.5-hour session at History House on Macquarie Street, Sydney, will introduce historians to toponymy, looking at how to research place name histories, what questions they can help answer, and how to incorporate them into history projects.
The line-up of speakers includes public historian Bruce Baskerville, who will introduce the idea of place names as historical records, and Dr Joshua Nash, from the University of New England, who will discuss Phillip Island in the Norfolk Island archipelago. In the afternoon session, Angela Phippen, the City of Ryde Council historian, will look at First World War battles as house names while Dr Terry Kass of the Geographical Names Board of New South Wales will discuss the official records of place names.
Booking are essential so reserve your place now.
Place Names as Historical Records: An Open-Air Archive
Where: History House Auditorium, 133 Macquarie Street, Sydney
When: Saturday 21 June, 11am-2:30pm
Cost: $20 for members; $25 for non members. Bookings essential.
Contact: 02 9247 8001 or history@rahs.org.au