Editing London Borough of Hackney (section)

===Place name origin===
In the 13th century the name appears as ''Hackenaye'' or ''Hacquenye'', but no certain derivation is advanced.<ref>{{EB1911|wstitle=Hackney|volume=12|page=794}}</ref> The ''Concise Oxford Dictionary of Place Names'' (fourth edition) discusses the origin of the name. The first surviving records of the place name are as Hakney (1231) and Hakeneye (1242 and 1294). The "ey" suffix almost certainly refers to an island; the dictionary favours the interpretation that Hackney means "Haka's island", with Haka being a notable local person and the island (or inaccessible place surrounded by marshes) lying close to the [[River Lea]]. This was once a much wilder place than today.

The dictionary suggests that the ''Hack'' element may also derive from:
* The Old English "Haecc", meaning a hatch – an entrance to a woodland or common.
* Or alternatively from "Haca", meaning a hook, and in this context, a bend of the river.
Given the island context, the "hatch" option is unlikely to be correct, so the favoured "Haka's Island" or the "Island on the bend" seem more likely.

The place name will have originally referred to just the island or possibly both the island and the manor of the same name based around it. Subsequently, the name Hackney was applied to the whole [[ancient parish]] of Hackney.