The answer is not a simple one, there is some conjecture and the real meaning isn't clear. One suggestion is that it comes from the Old English word "Heedra" which means heather or heath and the word "Set" is old English for a dwelling place, camp, stable or fold. It wouldn't take too much imagination to turn Heedraset into Heathersett and then Hethersett by dropping the letter A. This would give the meaning as a camp or enclosure on the heath. It is possible that this included the enclosure of deer and, on the current village sign just off the current B1172, you will see that the parish church and a deer are depicted.
The Domesday Book of 1086 ranks Hethersett in the top 20% of settlements in the country in size. This would suggest that Heedraset or Hethersett was an important centre. This was certainly the case in Roman times with significant finds on what has become new village development in recent years (I am working on an article on this).
We do know that the name has Saxon origins. By 1086 there were 400 people living in the parish and today this has increased to over 6,000.
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I know from the many kind likes and messages that I have well over 100 readers of my daily blog and I would like to thank every single one of you.
I'm wondering whether every blog reader is aware of my monthly e-magazine publication Hethersett Herald which takes a comprehensive look at what is happening in the village.
Often running to well over 130 pages, it includes latest news items along with articles on village history and the people who live here. We have a number of regular contributors and it serves as the most comprehensive coverage of the village in existence.
The mag began in November, 2015, as a modest eight page publication. Since that time it has grown and grown. Perhaps if you are reading this you would like to have a look at the latest edition. This and all the archive publications can be found at www.hethersettherald.weebly.com.
On that website you can also see other village information and also find the Hethersett History Project whose aim is to build up the most comprehensive story of our village ever produced.